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So much average

Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

(Thematic SPOILERS)This is half of a great movie. The great half is the first, where we meet cowboys dealing with a time when their world is coming to an end. Corporations are taking over, and the work of the cowboy is needed less and less.The second half is where things go awry. The movie goes into formula mode. The greatness of the first half, with its quiet moments of reflection, and views of life on the range, go away. In their place is murder, heartbreak and revenge. I was very disappointed in the way the film went.Often-cinematographer William Fraker takes the Director's Chair here and does admirably. He is supported by David Walsh behind the camera. John Barry provides an excellent score. He would later earn an Oscar with "Dances with Wolves," and fans of that score can get more of Barry's work in the Western genre here. Barry strays into his James Bond score work occasionally here, which is distracting.The issue in this film is with the origin material. Jack Shaefer, who wrote the novel, also wrote "Shane." Maybe he wasn't ready to go without overt drama to make his point. That's too bad.****** (6 Out of 10 Stars)

The Mama Cass tune over the opening credits seems to herald a new era as she sings 'The Good Times Are Comin', but as the picture progresses, it becomes apparent that the good times are about to fade forever for Monte Walsh. Lee Marvin portrays the title character, Jack Palance is his loyal friend and partner Chet Rollins. The entire film pays tribute to a dying breed, the passing of the cowboy way of life, taking it's toll on those free and independent spirits who never had the time or inclination to just settle down. Some can't take it, like Fightin' Joe Hooker (John McLiam) who goes out in his own blaze of glory by charging his horse over a cliff. Others, like Palance's character, succumb to the banality of becoming a hardware husband, replete with shop apron and shelves full of merchant goods. There's worse things than winding up a Texas Jack Butler in a Wild West Roundup Show, but it's tough to keep your integrity intact when the rest of the life you've known is falling away in a steady slide toward oblivion. It's that prevailing melancholy that pervades "Monte Walsh", the character and the movie, that makes it so difficult yet wonderful to watch. An ode to the Old West that confirms that nobody gets to be a cowboy forever.

Monte Walsh (1970)A large amount of Cowboy films or Westerns suffer from a cheesy song that either begins the show or ends it. In few cases the song works as is the case with High Noon (1952) but usually they do not.Monte Walsh (1970) begins with a particularly awful song composed by the usually reliable John Barry of Zulu and James Bond fame. This song not only starts the picture, it repeats in the middle and ends it too.Apart from this terrible composition, Monte Walsh is an excellent, if gentle Cowboy film that shows the end of the Cowboy days in the face of corporate control of the "common" land. The movie is really a character study of simple men facing an uncertain future and this is helped enormously by a wonderful cast and great performances by Lee Marvin and Jack Palance.Lee Marvin as usual commands the screen. His performance is perfectly paced and very moving. This is a far better movie than the shallow and more widely available 2003 remake starring the one-note Tom Selleck, even if it has a higher rating on IMDb.Monte Walsh (1970) is an unfairly neglected western.

When "Monte Walsh" appeared in 1970, I avoided it like the plague. "Who wants to see a movie about the end of an era?" I asked myself, conveniently forgetting how much I loved "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance." So, nearly 30 years later, Turner Classic Movies gave me the opportunity to correct what might have been a mistake. Had I erred in 1970? Well, yes and no. Yes, because "Monte Walsh" now joins my list of one of the five best westerns ever made; and, no, because at the tender age of 21, I would not have appreciated this masterpiece; which, in these especially troubled times, seems more relevant than ever.According to TCM host, Robert Osborne, William Fraker directed only 4 films during his distinguished career, preferring his role as director of photography. If "Monte Walsh" is any example, then director Fraker missed his calling; as, "Monte Walsh" boasts outstanding ensemble acting, unusual unless the director is especially gifted. Many in this cast give the best performances of his or her career, particularly Jim Davis and Mitchell Ryan. "Monte Walsh" should be the role for which Marvin is remembered, as "Chet" should be the role to remember Jack Palance. It's a joy and a privilege to watch Marvin and Palance interact, even more enjoyable than Marvin and John Wayne in their frequent pairings. The first two thirds of "Monte Walsh" is largely upbeat, even in the hard times portrayed, while the final third left me both numb and aching."I won't p**s on 30 years of my life," is one of the many profound quotations in "Monte Walsh." It defines Monte's code of honor; a decent, loving and honorable man unwilling to compromise who he is. I give "Monte Walsh" a "10".