THE WILD BUNCH

Sam Peckipah's "The Wild Bunch" (1969). This is the Western to end all Westerns. Just as grand in scope and violent as any Spaghetti Western, such as Sergio Leone's "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", and just as deep, hard-hitting, and beautiful as John Ford's "The Searchers". In my opinion, Peckinpah intended "The Wild Bunch" this way...the last word on the Western. Period. This is a movie of sweeping choreographed violence, beautiful desert landscapes, and a gorgeous leisurely, but not too slow pace, giving you just enough time to soak everything in.

"The Wild Bunch" is a tale of a band of outlaws in the wild west. They are getting along a bit in age and they have a price on their heads wherever they go. There is a bounty hunter and a group of inane thugs hired by a corrupt sheriff to track them down at any cost. With this group of outlaws, however, you don't need to worry about them getting caught. You just need to worry about what they may do next.

"The Wild Bunch" is a classic of the anti-hero Western. This is a group of hardened, horse riding thugs. There is a long and close friendship that binds these criminals together. You really begin to care about these people. They are led by William Holden, playing the tough, aging, embittered, burnt out cowboy to perfection. Another star of this group is Ernest Borgnine, playing a vulgar, sinister, best friend to Holden.

Anyway, our group of anti-heroes wants to do one final job before they retire. They want to steal a train load of guns for the corrupt Mexican miltary in exchange for a large sum of gold. They also want to give a case of guns on the side to the insurgents, whose villages are being taken over by the military. You see, one of the Wild Bunch is a native Mexican, and he doesn't want to see his people suffer. Can they pull this caper off? And what happens if the Mexican military finds out about that missing case of guns? And what about the bounty hunter that is on their trail? All he wants to do is keep his freedom. He is a crimnial too, and he's going back to jail if he can't catch the Wild Bunch...

What follows is a gut-wrenching ultra-violent tale of camaraderie...a blood soaked epic valiantly fought to the finish. Every detail is perfect in this film, and every character is fleshed out perfectly. The images in this film are full of disturbing beauty. The movie opens with a shot of little Mexican children feeding scorpions to fire ants, and you slowly watch the ants eat the scropions alive. This is the felling you get by watching this movie, watching the not so noble characters you have grown to love head to their ruin...

Admittedly, this is a movie that is hard for me to review for some reason. This is the first time I have seen "The Wild Bunch", and it left me speechless. I didn't think there was a film that could ever come close to topping "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" and "The Searchers". This film has so many nuances. It makes it such a joy to watch these larger than life characters develop and so saddening to watch their demise. The ending of this film is too powerful. I was speechless once the credits rolled. I really don't know how to bring to you all the details I loved in this movie to type, so I'm going to leave you with a trailer and one request...drop everything and watch "The Wild Bunch" now!

THE SEARCHERS

John Ford's "The Searchers" (1956) is in my opinion, along with Sergio Leone's "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" the greatest Western ever made. John Ford's camera work and eye for scenery is breathtaking. The script and pacing of this movie is top notch, and there is never a wasted moment. John Wayne's acting in this film is possibly his best performance ever. "The Searchers" truly raises the western to the status of myth. It has a movie whose influence is wide ranging. Just watch the original Star Wars and you will note those vast desert landscapes of Tattooine. You may also note some plot similarities, but I digress. Without any further ado, let's get on with the review.

The Searchers takes place a few years after the Civil War, as America is ever expanding into the west, further into the desert. The lurking wild west danger of Indians attacking a a ranch and home has never seemed so ominous. Anyway, Ethan Edwards, played by John Wayne finally makes his way back home after fighting in The Civil War. He has had a very shady and questionable past. Everything is peaceful, with a joyful and bittersweet reunion taking place. Soon we get word of Indians killing some livestock at a neighboring ranch. The men go out on horseback to investigate, but it is a diversion. That evening, under an eerie red sunset, the Indians kill everyone that was still in Ethan's family's house and burn their home to the ground. They kidnap the two daughters of the family, Lucy and Debbie. All of this is done off camera, so the actual horrific events are left to the imagination. All you see is the Indian Chief named Scar, and an ominous shadow as the Indians surround the ranch.

Ethan and his nephew Martin Pawley swear revenge and they begin a years long quest to find the two girls and to kill the Indian Chief responsible. The story grandly and leisurely unfolds. This is truly a mythic story of a quest and an epic revenge tale all rolled up in one against the harshly beautiful backdrop of the desert. How their adventure unfolds is something you will need to see for yourself. John Ford has the knack of making such a long quest entertaining and all of the events unfold with a comfortable ease, but there is always an underlying tension. John Wayne as Ethan becomes so obsessed with killing the Commanche tribe and it's leader Scar it is frightening. The look in his eyes alone is enough to make you shudder. His character grows darker and darker as the movie progresses. Do they ever find the two girls? And at what emotional costs? This movie has one of the most powerful endings in cinema. They just don't make them like this anymore.

"The Searchers" has so much depth to it, and so much visually to look at it is overwhelming yet simple at the same time. John Ford uses symbolism to great effect. The symbol of the doorway is a great example. The movie starts with a camera shooting through a doorway. Many scenes start and end this way and the movie ends looking out through a doorway. The them song by Stan Jones is also an excellent recurring theme.
The lyrics go as follows:

"What makes a man to wander?
What makes a man to roam?
What makes a man leave bed and board
And turn his back on home?
Ride away, ride away, ride away

A man will search his heart and soul
Go searchin' way out there
His peace of mind he knows he'll find
But where, oh Lord, Lord where?
Ride away, ride away, ride away".

The tune is has a depressive, slightly ominous tone to it, and fits the violent quest that unfolds in this movie.

Another fine point in this movie is of course John Ford's cinematography. His eye brings the beautiful desert landscapes to life and makes watching them as interesting as watching the characters and the story unfold. I highly recommend this movie. It's hard for me to put how good "The Searchers" is into words. All I can say is if you haven't seen this one, drop everything and rent/buy it now. And if you have seen, well watch it again. I never grow tired of this film.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY

I love the whole sub-genre of Spaghetti Westerns. They were made by Italians and filmed in Spain, because the landscape resembles that of the old west. Italian directors at that time had a great eye for scenery, atmosphere, and excellent camera work. They also had a great ear for music and incidental background noises that really set the atmosphere. The morals to these stories are always gray, as the heroes are not exactly the best people in the world, and a lot of the times you find yourself seriously questioning their actions. There are many great Spaghetti Westerns out there, but the most definitive and well made of them all is Sergio Leone's "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" (1967).

"The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" is the final part of a loosely knitted together trilogy. The first two installments were "A Fistful of Dollars" and "For a Few Dollars More". The movies center around three characters, Tuco, Angel Eyes, and Blondie(or The Man with No Name), whose paths cross in some way or another in all three films. All three of the men are scum, especially Tuco who is a sloth and a violent thief and drunkard. Angel Eyes (played by Lee Van Cleef) and Blondie (played by Clint Eastwood) are no better. They are bounty hunters, thieves, and guns for hire as well, but they have a certain air of sophistication about them that Tuco lacks.

"The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" pits these three characters against each other perfectly. The movie opens with Tuco and Blondie in the midst of an ingenious money making scam. Tuco has a price on his head just about everywhere. As the two travel from town to town, Blondie pretends he has captured Tuco and hands him over tho the authorities to collect the reward money. As Tuco is about to be hung for his crimes, Blondie shoots the rope, and the two get away to go to the next town, where Tuco's bounty has now gone up.

Eventually, the two hear of some money that is buried in a soldiers grave. The problem is, one knows only the name of the cemetery and the other knows only the name on the grave. Eventually, Angel Eyes enters the picture, and the three men try to no end to outsmart, back stab, and betray each other to find out where the money is. Eventually some one gets the money. But who? And which one is the good, which one is the bad, and which one is the ugly? A tough decision, but that is only one thing that makes this movie so great.

The historical background of this movie is sweeping, set against an awe-inspiring, detailed backdrop of The Civil War. And the scenery! Beautifully film desert landscapes, haunting scenes of the wild west and The Civil War, profound images of an America that once was. The camera work is also incredible, and really helps to build suspense with its slow, lingering shots and insane close-ups. Another way Sergio Leone hits you is with silence, sparse dialogue, and background noise. Sometimes silence speaks louder that words, and Leone uses this as a great way to build suspense. Long periods with no dialogue, just the sound of boots and spurs jingling on a hard wood floor and noises that are going on outside often lead up to the most violent and climactic scenes in the movie, filling the air with tension so thick you could cut it with a knife...

Of course one of the best and most memorable things about this movie is the excellent, beautiful, and strange soundtrack by Ennio Morricone. Mixing fuzzed out electric guitar, whistling, chanting, and Spanish horns, fused all into a Western movie soundtrack. His music is instantly recognizable and unforgettable.

One word of note: only watch this movie in wide screen. If you have only seen this movie in pan and scan, as they usually show it on TV, then you have not really SEEN "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly". I first saw it in the full screen TV format, and a few years later I broke down and bought it on DVD in wide screen. It was like watching a completely different movie. Visually, it floored me.

Anyway, if you haven't seen this one, drop what you are doing and go rent it now.