Get three coffins ready — and take a little off the top.

« 50s Westerns On Netflix Instant Watch

50s Westerns DVD News #43 »

Get three coffins ready — and take a little off the top.

April 27, 2011 by Toby

A Fistful Of Dollars (1964) was on at the barber today.

About these ads

Posted in Post-1959 | 28 Comments

28 Responses

on April 27, 2011 at 1:56 pm | Reply le0pard13

“My mistake. Four coffins… “
on April 27, 2011 at 2:03 pm | Reply hcbeck

Considering the weather you’ve been, and might be, getting, “a little off the top” is not a request to be taken casually.
- on April 27, 2011 at 2:11 pm | Reply Toby
  
  Good point. And we’ve got a warning till tonight.
  
  It was incredible how walking into the middle of A Fistful Of Dollars this afternoon, I was completely entranced, even with my glasses off.
  
  Really wanted to stay and watch the rest.
on April 27, 2011 at 2:38 pm | Reply hcbeck

Off subject, but—

I’m putting the final touches to a piece on Civil War Westerns, tied to a great many DVDs that are due. It’s interesting to draw a distinction between Westerns that take place during the Civil War, post Civil War Westerns (i.e., Westerns that exit from, or are distinguished by having a Civil War back story), and straight-up Civil War movies, which aren’t Westerns at all, like Gone With The Wind, Red Badge Of Courage and Glory. (or are they?).

Are all Jesse James movies Westerns? I’m a huge fan of Ride With The Devil, but it’s a real genre-bender, I think.

I wonder if anybody wants to toss in any opinions. And are there favorites?
- on April 27, 2011 at 2:49 pm | Reply Toby
  
  This is something I’ve been thinking about myself. As a way to manage my 50 titles/chapters, I’ve disqualified strict Civil War pictures and modern day Westerns.
  
  With that in mind, you really see how many “traditional” cowboy pictures have some sort of Civil War tie.
  
  But the main thing I notice is how freely these things play with history.
on April 27, 2011 at 2:46 pm | Reply hcbeck

By the way–I took a fine tooth comb to the novel The Searchers, and the only reference to Amos (Ethan) Edward’s Civil War history is a toss-away line that tells us that Amos “…served two years with the Rangers, and four under Hood, and twice had been up the Chisholm trail.” No Johnny Reb coat or sword or any of that.

Hood is John Bell Hood who led the Texas Brigade, or “Hood’s Brigade,” which puts Amos in gray, at Gettysburg.
- on April 27, 2011 at 2:52 pm | Reply Toby
  
  The Searchers is a good example. The war hangs over that picture � it’s interesting that there’s so little in the novel.
  
  It’s funny to me how many pictures make mention of Quantrill’s raiders. You’d think every badman from 1875 on had ridden with Quantrill.
on April 27, 2011 at 3:01 pm | Reply hcbeck

Well, foremost, and both coming to Blu-ray, are Josey Wales and True Grit. Cogburn and Wales are near-twins. What others beside the James boys and those two are there?

I did some scouring and got in touch with Alex Cox on this for a quote, but it fascinates me how the Spaghetti’s sided with the North, while most of our Western heroes come out of the South. Jonah Hex is a little of both, since the hero and villain are both from the Confederacy.
- on April 27, 2011 at 3:17 pm | Reply Toby
  
  Randolph Scott was a Southern soldier/spy/veteran several times: Santa Fe, The Stranger Wore A Gun, Sugarfoot, Westbound, etc.
  
  McCrea’s a Confederate in The Outriders and a gun-runner in South Of St. Louis (a movie I love).
- on April 27, 2011 at 3:24 pm | Reply Toby
  
  Now that I’m thinking about it (and can’t stop) —
  
  Completely forgot Errol Flynn is a Reb in Rocky Mountain.
  
  Wayne’s a Union man in The Horse Soldiers, which is a real CW film.
  
  Escape From Fort Bravo, another actual Civil War picture, has Holden running a Union prison.
on April 27, 2011 at 4:16 pm | Reply hcbeck

I was thinking specifically of ex-Missouri boys, Quantrillians, as it were.

Scott was the perfect bitter Southerner, wasn’t he? Never a grunt, though–always an officer, which doubles the sense of loss. Saw Great Day In The Morning the other night–the usual Tourneur style and the Veronica and Betty were Virginia Mayo and Ruth Roman.

Doc Holiday carries all that Southern tradition, minus the Civil War involvement, but John Carradine’s character in Stagecoach was Holiday + the Confederacy.

What Cox points out is that the Italians turned a cold shoulder to our American-born notions of Southern chivalry, and saw the South simply as the home, and cause, of slavery. They saw no inherent romantic loss in the South, which is why Joseph Cotten played demented Confederate officers in two separate pictures.

Another footnote: What happened to Maureen O’Hara’s family in Rio Grande–the destruction of their plantation–happened to the family of John Ford’s wife, Mary.
- on April 27, 2011 at 8:49 pm | Reply Toby
  
  We moved to Bucks County, Pennsylvania, when I was in high school, and I was kidded a lot about my Southern accent (which has eased off over time). But Randolph Scott, so cool and unshakable and noble, made that accent OK.
  
  Never thought of Carradine as a Holliday character, but I’ve always loved him in that. (There’s a lot to love in that one.) He does the Southern thing very well.
  
  I’d love to sit down with Alex Cox and watch Django and The Great Silence or something.
on April 27, 2011 at 6:14 pm | Reply Colin

Re Spaghettis:
I think the Euro western generally lacked the romance that’s inherent in the Hollywood movies. Characters in spaghettis typically act out of greed and the desire for self-gratification, whereas the US version usually tries to attribute some nobler motive.

In (I’m pretty much guessing here) most Hollywood westerns the Confederacy tends to get a sympathetic shake, probably due to the romance of the lost cause. The Yankees, on the other hand, are seen as usurpers – not just the army but the politicians and businessmen. The North usually represents the inexorable advance of industry, the railroad, business and the attendant loss of personal freedom and the passing of the old ways.

I think the Euro westerns were more interested in the dramatic/action potential of a purely avaricious society devoid of any moral sense. That, rather than any particular antipathy towards the Southern cause, strikes me as being at the root of their leaning towards the Union.
- on April 27, 2011 at 8:28 pm | Reply Toby
  
  Y’all are making some great points here.
  
  This seems like a good time to bring up Vera Cruz, which I see as the real link between, say, Dodge City and The Good, The Bad And The Ugly.
  
  And in it, we have Southerner Cooper being almost as greedy, etc. as Lancaster, but with a tiny trace of chivalry left.
on April 27, 2011 at 8:49 pm | Reply hcbeck

Vera Cruz is cited as a direct predecessor of the Spaghetti’s by many writers, which makes a lot of sense if you have an idea of Aldrich’s notions of heroism. So Tarantino cites the Spaghettis and makes Inglorious Basterds, which comes from a rip of Aldrich’s Dirty Dozen, which was also ripped as a Spaghetti, A Reason To Live, A Reason To Die! with Telly Savalas, who was in The Dirty Dozen and so on and so on.

Vera Cruz also figures into my article, since it’s being re-released on Blu-ray, something I discovered here. Another Civil War Western, Rio Lobo, is coming out as a Blu-ray soon.
- on April 27, 2011 at 9:08 pm | Reply Toby
  
  I cannot wait for that Vera Cruz Blu-ray. I’ve been working on that chapter, and it’s got me stoked to see it again.
on April 28, 2011 at 8:23 am | Reply john knight

In “Rebel In Town” John Payne plays an ex Union
officer who hates Southerners so much;he persuades
his son to share the same view.The film then becomes
darker and darker.
In “The Vanquished” a sort of Southern Gothic Western
from a Russian born director Payne again; plays a
Southerner returning home to find his hometown ruled
by corrupt Yankees. More Costume Drama than Western
but interesting nevertheless.
Then there is “Drango” that has Union officer Jeff Chandler
trying to restore order to a town his troops once plundered.
“Run Of The Arrow” should have been mentioned before
and “Kansas Raiders” and “Red Mountain are worth a look
too.Both feature Quantrell played by Brian Donlevy and
John Ireland respectively.
I like “The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid” very much; its
my favourite Jesse James film.
Then there is the cycle of fighting Indians during the
Civil War like “Two Flags West” great cast; but a somewhat
leaden film.”Guns Of Fort Petticoat” falls into this category
too.Then there is “Devils Doorway” that has Robert Taylor
as a Native American Civil War veteran getting rooked
out of his land.
“Stage To Tucson” is a pretty fun pre Civil War Western
with stunning Lone-Pine locations. The heroes go off to
war at the end of the film.
There is also films set at the end of the Civil War like
“Hangmans Knot” where the troop do not know the
war is over!
- on April 28, 2011 at 8:36 am | Reply Toby
  
  How could I forget Run Of The Arrow � watched it about a month ago. Same with Devil’s Doorway.
  
  The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid is a terrific, sadly overlooked film. Saw it countless times growing up. Always loved Paul Frees’ narration.
  
  That scene in Hangman’s Knot, where Scott and his men wipe out the Union troops (in Lone Pine), is such a great sequence. Really gets that picture off and running.
on April 28, 2011 at 9:22 am | Reply john knight

Im making this up as I go along,as if you had not guessed
but there are a couple of Henry Levin flicks for the
checklist too!
“Man From Colorado” has Glenn Ford in a rare bad guy
role;he plays a Union officer on the edge of insanity.
Levin also directed “The Desperados” (1967) that has
Jack Palance (OTT like never before!) leading a Quantrell
like band of raiders.As a European made Western it has
plenty of bad acting but good set pieces.
Phil Karlsons “A Time For Killing” (a.k.a. “The Long Ride
Home”) has George Hamiltons Southeners escaping Glenn
Fords Yankee prison.Film is a mixed bag (Roger Corman
is said to have had a hand in directing it!) but it does have
a very early Harrison Ford appearance.
“Escort West” has Victor Mature as a Southern Officer
trying to settle down with his daughter after the Civil War.
He encounters unfriendly Yankees (Leo Gordon) and
Native Americans.
on April 28, 2011 at 11:06 am | Reply Elisabeth

All three of the Ford/Wayne cavalry trilogy are peopled with Civil War veterans from both sides, but Rio Grande (my favorite) is the only one where events from the war really have a direct effect on the plot.

Speaking of Quantrill, have you ever seen Dark Command (1940)? That seems like an underappreciated John Wayne film – I was surprised by how good it was when I saw it. Walter Pidgeon plays a fictionalized version of Quantrill named ‘Cantrell.’
- on April 28, 2011 at 11:09 am | Reply Toby
  
  I love Dark Command, but with Wayne, Claire Trevor, Roy Rogers, Gabby Hayes and Raoul Walsh involved, what’s not to like?
on April 28, 2011 at 11:16 am | Reply Toby

It’s interesting that the shortest, most nothing post I’ve ever put up on this thing has generated some of the best back-and-forth.
on April 28, 2011 at 11:25 am | Reply hcbeck

that’s cause nothin’ can be a real cool hand.
on April 28, 2011 at 11:25 am | Reply hcbeck

how’s the weather?
- on April 28, 2011 at 11:49 am | Reply Toby
  
  Thanks for asking. Our tornado watch has given way to a high wind watch. So it’s pretty much just wet and windy. Let’s hope the thousands of blue tarps on roofs around here hold.
  
  A friend in Knoxville, TN got clobbered by hail literally the size of golf balls (he sent a photo comparison).
  
  And, of course, Alabama’s a real mess.
  
  I bet it’s gorgeous out your way.
on April 28, 2011 at 12:04 pm | Reply hcbeck

It’s great here when it’s awful everywhere else, but it can be murder here when it’s nice other places. Depends on how you feel about rain and heat, since there’s too little of the former and too much of the latter.
on April 28, 2011 at 3:34 pm | Reply Colin

Maybe I missed it, but has anybody mentioned Major Dundee? I adore the part where they all ride out singing different songs.
- on April 28, 2011 at 8:23 pm | Reply Toby
  
  “I adore the part” is a great way to talk about Major Dundee. It’s several adorable parts tied together with stuff that doesn’t really tie it together.
  
  In other words, it’s yet another Peckinpah picture that somebody else messed up.
  
  And to answer your question, nobody’s brought it up yet.