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Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Right up front I have to say I liked Gregory Peck's character, and the story in general had the makings of a good revenge Western. However I can't get past some rather large plot holes in the story that leave me puzzled even now as I write this. Jim Douglass (Peck), on his arrival in Rio Arriba, states to the sheriff (Herbert Rudley) that he's traveled a hundred miles from Winthrop to witness the hanging of the four outlaws. Now if it was better explained how he covered all that ground I wouldn't be so perplexed. However Douglass's ranch was only four miles away! The Padre (Andrew Duggan) knew that, and even told Josefa Velarde (Joan Collins) how to get there through the San Marcos Pass.Which brings up my next point - how would the sheriff of San Arriba be unaware of such a large ranch so close to his town? Or have never heard of the owner? Is it possible the sheriff never had to leave town during the execution of his duties? It didn't make sense to me.So as one point leads to another, the inconsistencies continue to pile up. Rio Arriba didn't strike me as a very big place, and the outside view of the local church offered a structure in keeping with the town's size. However once you got inside, it was as big and as ornate as a cathedral! On top of that, the church was packed for services in the middle of the week, and in a screen freeze of the choir I counted twenty eight boys singing! Where would they all have come from? I don't know, all of this stuff kept intruding on my paying attention to the story.Had all this stuff been dealt with a bit more carefully, I think the irony of Jim Douglass's mistake would have been a lot more thought provoking. As it is, I've never seen Lee Van Cleef grovel in a Western before, and to say that the gunning of Bill Zachary (Stephen Boyd) was one of the strangest looking showdowns I've ever seen in a Western is an understatement. The icing on the cake here was when the Indian Lujan (Henry Silva) managed to convince Douglass that he and his outlaw friends had nothing to do with the murder of his wife. When it finally dawned on Peck's character that the Butler did it, well that about did it for me too.So I guess this is one of those rare occasions where I liked the story while watching it, but upon reflection of what transpired I've managed to talk my way out of it. Well maybe not all the way. Like I mentioned earlier, I liked the way Gregory Peck carried himself in the story, and Joan Collins' character didn't irritate the way I thought she would. Now if I can only figure out what the title had to do with the picture.

I enjoyed this movie. The plot was interesting. But. Yes, there is a "but."Many strange things happened in this movie, like, why exactly a posse couldn't take care of an outlaw by themselves. They even let the outlaw ride away to get back to his friends. I will not complain about any other plot holes because there have been other reviewers pointing them out already. What's really bugging me is the romance between Jim and Josefa. I knew they were ex-couple. But Jim was supposed to be a mourning husband, trying to avenge his wife's death. He said he still loved her. He rode 100 miles hunting these men for six months! But at the end of the movie, Jim seemed to accept Josefa as his new girlfriend easily. Dead wife forgotten.Josefa was strange too. She wanted Jim. She knew Jim was married but she flirted with him anyway. After knowing about his wife's tragedy, she still tried to get closer to him. She wanted to go to his ranch right away. She said she'd take care of his daughter as if the girl was "her own" and then she kissed him right in front of Jim's daughter. It appeared to me that the woman was down right shameless. And Jim accepting her made him a lesser man than when he firstly rode into the town.The relationship grew too fast it was groundless, meaningless and made the story worse. Many western movies made the same mistake.

When Jim Douglas rides into the town of Rio Arriba he is told they don't want any strangers in town till after four criminals are hanged; he states that he has come to see them die and after surrendering his guns he enters town anyway. The sheriff asks him why he wants to see the men hang but receives no answer and when Douglas goes into the jail to see the men none of them recognise him. That night while the town is in church the men are broken out of jail and flee with a young woman as hostage; the sheriff is wounded so his deputy leads a posse after the escapees. In the morning Douglas joins the posse and they track the men as they head for the Mexican border. As they go Douglas manages to corner the bandits one by one and each time shows his captive a picture of a woman; they all claim not to have seen her but he doesn't believe them. Back in town a friend of his, who he hasn't seen for five years learns his story from the town priest; one day Douglas had returned home to find his wife had been raped and murdered; the gang had been identified by a neighbour and Douglas had been after them ever since. When Douglas finally corners the last of the escapees he learns a shocking truth; one that will affect him for the rest of his days.I've always associated Gregory Peck with the mild mannered lawyer Atticus Finch from 'To Kill a Mockingbird' so it came as a shock to see him playing a character hell bent on seeing four men die; perhaps it is that surprise that made his performance seem so powerful. While Peck's performance carried the film the supporting cast, which included Joan Collins and Lee Van Cleef, did a fine job. The story of a man seeking revenge might be one of the oldest but that doesn't mean it is always cliché; the ending added an excellent twist that I'm sure would have taken me totally by surprise if it hadn't been hinted at on the blurb on the back of the DVD case. With many classic westerns the setting is almost as important as the story and this is no exception; the locations are stunning in a way that makes the action believable. When I sat down to watch this I expected something fairly average but was gripped from start to finish; I'm surprised this film isn't better known as it is a fine example of the genre... if you like Westerns this is a must see.

This is a smart western, it is not about the hero quick-drawing against four anonymous opponents at the same time, it is about moral.For quite some time, you are not sure exactly where the movie is heading. The beginning is slow, with the goal to present the hero (Peck). He is doing just about the same silent, dry western hero as in "The Gunfighter". But the tempo goes up and the plot reveals, step by step. We get very convinced that the four criminals are quite bad men, and the worst is clearly the ruthless Bill (Stephen Boyd), ready for rape and murder any time it suits him.Joan Collins, however, is mostly annoying, subject of an implied love story that the movie fortunately doesn't go deeper into. She has little importance to the story. It seems she is there only to tack on a touch of romance.The movie manages to make each and every one of the bad guys (six of them if you count right) sharp and live, we get to know them. We also get to know a few others. The most famous villain actor here is clearly Lee van Cleef, who makes a great job as Parral, but the best character actor is really Joe DeRita (one of the Three Stooges) as Tucker/Simms, who is, incredibly, uncredited despite his fairly big role, central to the story. This means that both casting and script are very good, the script gives room for acting and the actors are capable of delivering.From an action/western perspective, the movie fails on one thing: It could make more dramatic endings when people are killed, spend a little more time on their last seconds so we kind of follow them down. Now, a death is too much like flipping a switch. We don't have to use slow-motion every time, but a second or two extra would have helped in some places. In some cases, I feel that the movie really doesn't want to show too much violence and blood, but in at least two occasions it isn't that simple, it looks rather like if the director or producer was careless with some important scenes. These all to obvious mistakes lower the total a bit, but they don't ruin the movie, it just takes it below the absolute top.But what the movie doesn't fail in is to deliver a message, a message of right and wrong, life and death, who has the right to kill. This is where it shines. After all is said and done, you find that there is still a lot more to say, more to think about, and the movie stays with me a lot longer than the average western where the difference between right and wrong is obvious and crystal clear.