The Diamond Dick Library: The Film Shelf
A compendium of reviews of films on the Old West
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Reviewed works, listed alphabetically:
A Fistful of Dynamite
Alamo, The
Apache: Geronimo on the Warpath
Barbarosa
Bite the Bullet
Cahill: US Marshal
Cat Ballou
Duck, You Sucker
Earp, Wyatt
Fistful of Dollars
Fistful of Dynamite, A
For a Few Dollars More
Frank and Jesse
Geronimo on the Warpath
Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, The
Great Northfield Minnesota Raid, The
Hang 'Em High
Have Gun Will Travel
High Plains Drifter
Lonesome Dove
Long Riders, The
Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The
Missouri Breaks, The
Outlaw Josey Wales, The
Professionals, The
Quick and the Dead, The
Quigley Down Under
Red Sun
Sergeant Rutledge
Shootist, The
Silverado
The Alamo
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid
The Long Riders
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
The Missouri Breaks
The Outlaw Josey Wales
The Professionals
The Quick and the Dead
The Shootist
The Wild Bunch
Tombstone
True Grit
Unforgiven
Wild Bunch, The
Wyatt Earp
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The Alamo, a John Wayne film, Batjac Review by Henry Fardan It's John Wayne. Sure, it's hokey. |
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Apache: Geronimo on the Warpath, a Dan Dalton film, 1993, Simitar Entertainment Review by Henry Fardan |
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Documentary on the greatest guerrilla fighter in history. |
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Barbarosa, a Fred Schepisi film, 1981, ITC Films Review by Henry Fardan |
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You gotta love Willie Nelson, and I do. |
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Bite the Bullet, a Richard Brooks film, 1975, Columbia Pictures Review by Henry Fardan Everyone must have needed the money. |
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Cahill: U.S. Marshal, a Andrew McLaglen film Review by Henry Fardan Not one of John Wayne's more successful films, tarnished by a saccarine script and bad child co-stars {both consistent problems for Wayne}. |
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Cat Ballou, an Elliott Silverstein film, 1965, Columbia Tristar Review by Henry Fardan Jane Fonda, pre-Hanoi, in a delectable role. She hires Lee Marvin to protect her from Lee Marvin. The first Lee is a drunk {as is his horse, in one of the funniest scenes in Western movies}, the second is a gunslinger with a silver nose. No, really. You gotta see it to believe it. But Marvin got a justly-deserved Oscar for his role{s}. |
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Fistful of Dollars, a Sergio Leone film Review by Henry Fardan The first spaghetti Western. |
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Eastwood became a leading man, Sergio Leone became a legendary director, and harmonicas made a comeback. |
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A Fistful of Dynamite, a Sergio Leone film, 1971, United Artists Review by Henry Fardan |
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Another movie that you have to see to love; it's Sergio Leone at his finest. It teams a exiled Irish motorcycle-riding dynamiter {played by James Coburn} with a Mexican bandit with a dozen sons {played by Rod Steiger} against the backdrop of the Mexican Revolution, staging a daring daylight robbery of a bank full of gold. |
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For a Few Dollars More, a Sergio Leone film Review by Henry Fardan If you don't like this one, you don't like Westerns. Eastwood glares with the best of them. |
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Frank and Jesse, a Robert Boris film, 1995, TriMark Review by Henry Fardan Made for television, but worth watching. |
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The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, a Sergio Leone film Review by Henry Fardan Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach. Don't miss it when Wallach says "if you're going to talk, talk, if you're going to shoot, shoot"... |
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The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid Review by Henry Fardan |
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While The Long Riders is probably more brotherly, Cliff Robertson as Cole Younger is still one of the best. |
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Hang 'Em High Review by Henry Fardan Eastwood carries on the Man With No Name franchise. |
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Have Gun Will Travel, 1957 through 1962, CBS Review by Henry Fardan "Have Gun Will Travel reads the card of a man..." |
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Also available through Columbia House. |
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High Plains Drifter, a Clint Eastwood film, Malpaso Review by Henry Fardan Eastwood was just warming up for the sweetheart he'd eventually play in The Unforgiven. But here he gets to have fun demolishing an entire town and the egos of everyone in it. Don't miss the part about the red paint. |
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Lonesome Dove Film review by H.P. Tyner |
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Lonesome Dove is just about perfect. The book is special in its own way, but the rendition of Woodrow F. Call and Gus McRae by Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duvall in the film is damn near heartbreaking. Any man who can watch it and not cry once don't deserve to live in Texas. |
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The Long Riders, a Walter Hill film, 1980, United Artists Review by Henry Fardan The Carradines as the Younger brothers. |
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The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, a John Ford film Review by Henry Fardan Jimmy Stewart. If it was ever better than this, I didn't see it. |
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The Missouri Breaks, an Arthur Penn film, 1976, United Artists Review by Henry Fardan The wackiest Western ever made as serious. Brando as a cross-dressing psychopath. Nicholson as a well-meaning rustler who falls in love. Harry Dean Stanton with a father problem. But don't get me wrong; I loved this film. |
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The Outlaw Josey Wales, a Clint Eastwood film, Malpaso Review by Henry Fardan |
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Eastwood in his glory. One of the funniest truly vicious movies you'll ever see. |
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The Professionals, a Richard Brooks film, 1966, Columbia Pictures Review by Henry Fardan The Professionals is one of those Westerns that's loved by those who've seen it, but unseen by many people who'd love it. It stars Lee Marvin {in one of his best roles, not coincidentally as a character named Henry 'Rico' Fardan}, Burt Lancaster, Robert Ryan, Woody Strode {in an unsung performance; he didn't even get his name on the poster}, Jack Palance, Ralph Bellamy, and Claudia Cardinale, along with a great supporting cast. |
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Suffice it to say that it takes place along the Mexican border during the Mexican Revolution, and there's enough gunplay, sex, and general hoorah in it to satisfy any Western film buff. Besides, where else besides The Wild Bunch are you going to see a great Western film where they use a machine gun? It's often available in bargain bins in the oddest places. Buy every copy when you find it; give them to your friends. The movie is based, loosely, on the Frank O'Rourke book A Mule for the Marquesa. It's sadly out of print, but you can try to find a copy. |
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The Quick and the Dead, a Sam Raimi film, 1995, TriStar Review by Henry Fardan Gene Hackman, while as good as ever, must have needed the money. |
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Quigley Down Under, a Simon Wincer film, 1990, Pathe Review by Henry Fardan Those who love big-bore guns and long-range shooting will love this film. I like both. I like Australia, too. I liked the hell out of this film. |
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Red Sun, a Terence Young film, 1993, UAV Review by Henry Fardan Toshiro Mifune. Charles Bronson. Ursula Andress. Swords and guns in the Old West. What more can you say? Mifune buffs will love it. |
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Sergeant Rutledge, a John Ford film, 1960, Warner Bros. Review by Henry Fardan John Ford was ahead of his time in the treatment of both subject matter {accusations of rape} and the historic role of blacks in the military. But the magnificent Woody Strode in the title role {along with his unsung work in The Professionals and other Westerns} makes this film a must-see. |
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The Shootist, a Don Siegel film Review by Henry Fardan Sabotaged by the decision to use Opie as his costar, Wayne allowed some of the brilliant possibilities of the book to slip away. [Read the book first.] Playing an old gunfighter dying of cancer, as he was himself, it's still a magnificent swansong to his career. Any regrets at what-might-have-been aside, if you like Wayne {and I surely do}, you have to see him here. |
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Silverado, a Lawrence Kasdan film, Warner Bros. Review by Henry Fardan |
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A great homage to the Western film. |
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Tombstone, a George Cosmatos film, Hollywood Pictures Review by Henry Fardan Tombstone is one of two recent versions {the other is Wyatt Earp, reviewed elsewhere} of what may or may not have happened at the OK Corral. |
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True Grit Review by Henry Fardan John Wayne as Rooster Cogburn.
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The Unforgiven, a Clint Eastwood film, Malpaso Review by Henry Fardan Clint Eastwood.
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The Wild Bunch, a Sam Peckinpah film, 1969, Warner Bros. Review by Henry Fardan Peckinpah reinvents the Western.
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Wyatt Earp, a Lawrence Kasdan film, 1994, Warner Bros. Review by Henry Fardan Wyatt Earp is one of two recent versions {the other is Tombstone, reviewed elsewhere} of what may or may not have happened at the OK Corral. |
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