***Official 1st HTF Western Movies/TV Shows Challenge 2024*** (3 Viewers)

[Scott Merryfield]

18. And God Said to Cain 1970 (Arrow Video HD digital stream via iTunes)

Klaus Kinksi moves from a supporting role to star in this spaghetti western about revenge. Kinski gives an uncharacteristic subdued performance as Gary Hamilton, a former colonel pardoned after 10 years at hard labor for a crime he didn't commit. He returns to his home town bent on exacting revenge on the people who framed him, led by a rich man named Acombar (played by Peter Carsten, who also appeared in My Name Is Pecos).

This film is shot mostly at night, as Hamilton takes his revenge during a night time wind storm. This provides for a great atmosphere and added tension as Hamilton cuts through Acombar's men. It's a terrific spaghetti western, highlighted by Kinksi's performance. Arrow's transfer is also quite good.

 

[borisfw]

18. And God Said to Cain 1970 (Arrow Video HD digital stream via iTunes)

Klaus Kinksi moves from a supporting role to star in this spaghetti western about revenge. Kinski gives an uncharacteristic subdued performance as Gary Hamilton, a former colonel pardoned after 10 years at hard labor for a crime he didn't commit. He returns to his home town bent on exacting revenge on the people who framed him, led by a rich man named Acombar (played by Peter Carsten, who also appeared in My Name Is Pecos).

This film is shot mostly at night, as Hamilton takes his revenge during a night time wind storm. This provides for a great atmosphere and added tension as Hamilton cuts through Acombar's men. It's a terrific spaghetti western, highlighted by Kinksi's performance. Arrow's transfer is also quite good.

One of my favorite spaghetti westerns. Very dark with a really good performance by Kinski.

 

[Capt D McMars]

Terrence Hill and Bud Spencer doing the Trinity trilogy of They Call Me Trinity (1970), They Still Call Me Trinity (1971) and My Name is Nobody (1973). A fun Binge watch...

 

[Malcolm R]

The Burrowers (2008)

It's 1879 in the Dakota Territories. A family who settled in the badlands have been found with some being murdered and several members missing. They're presumed to be victims of area indians, though the bodies left behind show odd markings and there are strange holes in the ground nearby. A group led by a local cavalry officer sets out to hunt down the tribe and rescue those kidnapped. However, they soon find the indians are not the enemy they really need to fear.

A mash-up of western and creature feature, the film has some nice cinematography and builds some decent suspense keeping the creatures largely unseen until the climax, at which point the FX are sort of underwhelming. Cast is mostly B-level character actors including William Mapother, Doug Hutchison, and Clancy Brown who do a decent job with the material. Watched via Vudu streaming.

 

[Robert Crawford]

See my summary with movies/TV shows grades:

29) 03-23-24: "The Cimarron Kid" (1952) (DVD) 3.5/5 Stars
Yup, one more western with the Dalton brothers and Bill Doolin in another chapter of Hollywood fiction. One of Audie Murphy's early westerns with him playing outlaw Bill Doolin and his criminal activities with the Dalton brothers. Action packed but generally a standard 1950's western that many of us grew up watching in our youth. This was the first western that Budd Boetticher directed before he started hooking up with Randolph Scott. It's too bad the 2007 DVD doesn't highlight the beauty of the scenery in this Technicolor movie. The video presentation is okay for a DVD but falls well short of a good-looking Blu-ray. This 1952 Paramount film rights belong to Universal now. With that said, Kino might release it on Blu-ray, if it can be derived from an 2k or 4K scan. I hope that happens one day. One more thing about this western is the cast of actors in it that includes Hugh O'Brien with his hair dyed red no less, James Best, Leif Erickson, Frank Silvera and Noah Beery Jr. I was most impressed by actress Yvette Dugay as Rose, Bittersweet/James Best girlfriend.

30) 03-23-24: "Pony Soldier" (1952) (Blu-ray) 2.5/5 Stars
I never really liked this movie, so I decided to give it another chance by watching the 2013 Twilight Time Blu-ray. It didn't help much as the video presentation was rather poor for a Blu-ray with faded colors. It's too bad as this was the second 1952 Technicolor western that I watched today in which I wasn't impressed by the video presentation. The film's premise is basically about a Canadian Mounted Policeman trying to negotiate peace with Cree tribe in Canada's Northwest in 1876, as the United States calvary wages warfare south of the Canadian border with the Sioux and Cheyenne. Tyrone Power plays the Canadian Mountie, who is helped by a half-breed Blackfoot played by Thomas Gomez. Most of the Native Indian leader parts were played by white actors including Cameron Mitchell, Stuart Randall and Frank de Kova. A young Robert Horton has a supporting role as an escaped convict that is captured by the Cree. The most endearing part in the film is played by Anthony Earl Numkena, who plays an orphaned Cree boy that attaches himself to Power's character and becomes his adopted son. For a 1952 western, there are some brutal violent scenes in this movie like a hatchet to the head and an arrow through the neck. However, overall, I always thought the movie drag a bit, particularly, during scenes in the Indian camp during Powers interactions and negotiations with the Indians. Some of that dialogue has always been cringeworthy to me.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

19. Sartana's Here... Trade Your Pistol For a Coffin 1970 (Arrow Video HD digital stream via iTunes)

George Hilton takes over for Gianni Garko as Sartana in the third installment of this spaghetti western series -- Garko will be back in the role for the next two films. Sartana arrives in a mining town and gets involved with the different factions conspiring to steal shipments of gold. This time, a rival by the name of Sabata (a familiar character of the genre) also arrives and joins the entanglement. There are lots of plots twists and extravagant gun play that became a signature of this series. Overall, it's a decent entry in the Sartana catalog of films. The transfer from Arrow is very good.

 

[dpippel]

Terrence Hill and Bud Spencer doing the Trinity trilogy of They Call Me Trinity (1970), They Still Call Me Trinity (1971) and My Name is Nobody (1973). A fun Binge watch...

GOTTA love My Name is Nobody!

 

[Doug Wallen]

Watched on March 14th.

The Shootist (1976) Arrow Home Video/Paramount Pictures 4k – John Wayne, Lauren Bacall, James Stewart, Ron Howard, Hugh O'Brian, Richard Boone, Bill McKinney, Harry Morgan, Sheree North. I had this film on pre-order since it was first announced. After release day arrived and I had received no shipping notice, I started to panic. Luckily the film arrived a few days later. I could not believe my good fortune, I have wanted this film on bluray when Wayne's films started appearing on blu. Boy, was it worth the wait. I have never seen this film look better. The story still is such a poignant portrait of one of our most treasured Western actors. The similarities between J. B. Books and John Wayne are blurred. I was able to introduce this film to my wife who had never viewed this. She is not a big fan of Westerns and generally prefers Wayne's later films. One point in my favor, as the movie ends, she said she really enjoyed it (her favorite is still Rooster Cogburn). I was immediately taken with the story and felt like I was watching this for the first time. One of John Wayne's best performance's along with a fine supporting cast. An ode to the “old school” Western that seems to have passed on with J. B. Books (John Wayne).

 

[Doug Wallen]

Watched on March 15th.

Paint Your Wagon (1969) Kino Lorber 4k -Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, Jean Seberg, Harve Presnell, Ray Walston, Alan Dexter, Tom Ligon, Alan Baxter, Benny Baker, Paula Trueman. Got to admit, this was a blind buy and I was not exactly sure what to expect. I have read reviews that ranged from “entertaining” to “dull and slow” as well as not “very good musically”. I have always been intrigued by this film and have wanted to see it. Kino's 4k seemed like a good time to order it, came in time to view it for this challenge. So, here goes. I liked it, I mean I really enjoyed it. The film hit all the right beats with me and my wife. It was comical without being overplayed (maybe a time a or two with Marvin – his Kid Sheleen drunk act). I thought the songs fit the story being told and were performed well. I knew heading into this film that the leads were not singers as such. I thought they handled the songs well. I was familiar with two of them; “Wandrin' Star” and “They Call The Wind Maria”. I felt Eastwood acquitted himself well for his songs, especially “Gold Fever”. I guess this is about the best musical telling of the Gold Rush I have ever seen. With all of the digging taking place in town, I wondered when everything was going to collapse. Glad I made the purchase and was able to place this viewing in the Challenge.

 

[borisfw]

23)Five Card Stud(68)(PAR)Dean Martin,Robert Mitchum (VS)(BLU) 3 1/2/5 In Rincon Colorado a card player is hung by the other players when he's caught cheating. Soon after the players are being killed off one by one by an unknown killer. . Not a bad mystery/western even though the mystery isn't hard to figure. Robert Mitchum as Reverend Rudd and Roddy McDowell as jerk Nick Evers are pretty good and Inger Stevens looks good but doesn't have much to do. Unfortunately Dean Martin is only ok and a bit bland. Which is too bad because i like Dean Martin. The mix of western and mystery works well but could have been better. Still enjoyable enough.

 

[Bob Gu]

23) CHEYENNE TV Series, S1E1-1955, "Mountain Fortress". Remake of ROCKY MOUNTAIN-1950, with footage from ROCKY MOUNTAIN, plus a couple of the same actors and even the same dog from the movie.
Clint Walker and Ann Robinson.

24) CHEYENNE-S1E3, "The Argonauts"-1955. CHEYENNE remake of THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE-1948, with Rod Taylor as Tim Holt, Edward Andrews as Humphrey Bogart, and Clint Walker as Walter Huston.
Andrews, Taylor, and Walker.

25) CHEYENNE-S1E12, "Fury at Rio Hondo"-1956. Cheyenne remake of TO HAVE AND TO HAVE NOT-1944, with Walker as Bogart and Peggie Castle as Lauren Bacall.
Walker and Castle.

 

[Robert Crawford]

See my summary with movies/TV shows grades:

31) 03-24-24: "When the Daltons Rode" (1940) (Blu-ray) 3.5/5 Stars
After watching "The Cimarron Kid" yesterday, it renewed my interest in watching some other westerns involving the Daltons and Bill Doolin. First movie up has the Dalton brothers, but no Bill Doolin. It's "When the Daltons Rode" (1940) starring Randolph Scott, Kay Frances, Brian Donlevy, Broderick Crawford, and Andy Devine. The cast even has George Bancroft and Edgar Buchanan in it. This 81-minute Universal western is highly entertaining with plenty of action and humor throughout the movie despite what actually happened to the Dalton brothers. Any movie that has Andy Devine as a "ladies' man" has to be fun and his scenes throughout the movie are hilarious. The Blu-ray offers a strong video presentation for this black and white western. The last time I watched this movie was four years ago when this Blu-ray was release in a Kino first Western Classic boxset. My viewing this morning was with the Toby Roan audio commentary that was very informative about the movie and those involved in the making of the film.

32) 03-24-24: "The Doolins of Oklahoma" (1949) (iTunes HD Digital) 3.5/5 Stars
The second movie I watched this morning about the Daltons and Bill Doolin was "The Doolins of Oklahoma" (1949) starring Randolph Scott, George Macready, John Ireland, Charles Kemper, Noah Beery Jr. and Virginia Huston. Now, in this western the Daltons aren't in the movie very long before they're killed off. The main focus is on Bill Doolin and how he was forced into a life of crime and the outlaw gang he put together. By the way, there are no Doolins, there is only one of them, unless you're counting his outlaw gang as the Doolins. There are a few similarities script-wise between this movie and "The Cimerron Kid" as well as some major differences. The influence of the production code can easily be noticed with the ending of this film. No criminal goes unpunished in death or jailtime. Also, it was interesting watching George Macready playing a "good" guy as the United States Marshal intended on stopping the Doolin gang. Though, I have this movie on DVD which was released in a TCM boxset back in 2013. I actually watched it on HD digital that I purchased on Vudu back in January. It propagated over to MoviesAnywhere and I watched it on iTunes.

 

[t1g3r5fan]

23. Three Violent People (1956, Rudolph Mate, Paramount DVD)

In post-Civil War Texas, former Confederate soldier Colt Saunders (Charlton Heston) returns to his sprawling homestead with his brand new bride (Anne Baxter). However, he has to contend with his wife's past, his violent, one-armed brother (Tom Tryon) and the provisional government led by carpetbaggers that are coveting the vast land Saunders owns.

OK western from former cinematographer turned director Rudolph Mate benefits from Loyal Griggs' VistaVision cinematography (though the film could use a fresher transfer than the Paramount DVD currently available) and Walter Scharf's brilliantly moody music score. Decent performances from the cast - including surprise appearances by Ross Bagdasarian (Dave Seville himself) and Robert Blake as 2 of the 5 sons of Colt's ranch foreman Gilbert Roland - help as well.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

 

[dpippel]

23. Three Violent People (1956, Rudolph Mate, Paramount DVD)

In post-Civil War Texas, former Confederate soldier Colt Saunders (Charlton Heston) returns to his sprawling homestead with his brand new bride (Anne Baxter). However, he has to contend with his wife's past, his violent, one-armed brother (Tom Tryon) and the provisional government led by carpetbaggers that are coveting the vast land Saunders owns.

OK western from former cinematographer turned director Rudolph Mate benefits from Loyal Griggs' VistaVision cinematography (though the film could use a fresher transfer than the Paramount DVD currently available) and Walter Scharf's brilliantly moody music score. Decent performances from the cast - including surprise appearances by Ross Bagdasarian (Dave Seville himself) and Robert Blake as 2 of the 5 sons of Colt's ranch foreman Gilbert Roland - help as well.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

iTunes has it available in HD. I wonder if it's based on the same master? Probably.

 

[Robert Crawford]

iTunes has it available in HD. I wonder if it's based on the same master? Probably.

I would say so because I purchased that digital back in 2018. I need to watch it though to confirm.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

20. Bandidos 1967 (Arrow Video HD digital stream via iTunes)

Enrico Maria Salerno, the inspector from The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, is marksman Richard Martin, who was maimed as a passenger during a train robbery by his former protege Billy Kane (Venantino Venantini). No longer able to shoot a gun, Martin is reduced to running a traveling side show. He then meets an escaped convict framed for murder -- Philip Raymond (Terry Jenkins from Paint Your Wagon) -- and enlists him as his apprentice, hoping he will help Martin take revenge upon Kane. Raymond, though, has his own agenda.

The film is directed by Massimo Dallamano, the cinematographer of the first two installments in Sergio Leone's "Man With No Name" trilogy. You can really see Leone's influence in shooting style, storytelling, music, and even the opening titles. Anyone who likes the films A Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More should enjoy this fine spaghetti western, too. Another very good transfer from Arrow Video, as well.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I would say so because I purchased that digital back in 2018. I need to watch it though to confirm.

I watched the first ten minutes and for a VistaVision Technicolor movie it definitely hasn't undergone any significant work like some other Paramount westerns.

 

[dpippel]

I watched the first ten minutes and for a VistaVision Technicolor movie it definitely hasn't undergone any significant work like some other Paramount westerns.

Thanks for taking the time to check this out, Robert!

 

[dpippel]

March 24:
6) The Night of the Grizzly (1966) (Blu-ray Disc) 3/5 stars - Director Joseph Penvey's film plays out much like a glorified TV movie, with its main draw sitting squarely on the shoulders of Clint Walker. The affable Walker plays Marshal "Big Jim" Cole, a Utah lawman who gives up the badge and moves his family to a ranch outside of Hope, Wyoming, left to him in his father's will. While paying off an outstanding bank note on the property, he finds out that one of the most powerful men in town has wanted his father's spread for years, so he can leave it to his own sons. Meanwhile, the ranchers in the area have been terrorized by a rogue grizzly they call Satan, who raids their livestock, sometimes slaughtering them for sport alone, and has killed locals. He's seemingly indestructible. The plot revolves around Cole's repeated rejections of increasingly strident offers to buy his land from Jed Curry (Keenan Wynn), and he and his former deputy trying to track down and kill the bear after it butchers his prized bull.

Walker is so easy to watch that he makes up for a lot of the movie's shortcomings just by showing up. There are quite a few recognizable actors from the era AND from television work here as well, including Wynn, Nancy Kulp (Miss Hathaway from The Beverly Hillbillies), Ellen Corby, Ron Ely (Tarzan and Doc Savage), and the always entertaining Jack Elam.

The Night of the Grizzly is a bit clunky but I've always liked it anyway. I was fortunate enough to get Mr. Walker to sign my copy of the Olive Signature release not too long before he passed away in 2018. He was a friendly and gracious man, and I was sorry to hear that he had died, but he lived a good, long life at 91 years of age.

 

[Jeff Flugel]

The Night of the Grizzly is a bit clunky but I've always liked it anyway. I was fortunate enough to get Mr. Walker to sign my copy of the Olive Signature release not too long before he passed away in 2018. He was a friendly and gracious man, and I was sorry to hear that he had died, but he lived a good, long life at 91 years of age.

Very cool that you got to meet Clint Walker and have him sign your The Night of the Grizzly Blu, Doug! He's an actor I always have a lot of time for. I also enjoy The Night of the Grizzly, too, despite it's episodic nature. Not perfect, as you say, but a fun watch.