Tag: Monte Hellman

Project: 100 Westerns: Part Eight: Last of the Wild Horses; Stars in My Crown; Shanghai Noon; China 9, Liberty 37

Posted on July, 2025 by JS

Salutations street-toughs,

Welcome back to Project: 100 Westerns!  We’re approaching the one-third mark in my endeavor to watch 100 Westerns, and I’m starting to get a little more adventurous in my picks. This quartet might be the most dissimilar group I’ve tackled yet.

Read on, loyal reader!

#28. Last of the Wild Horses – MST3K Version (1948/1994)

“Here’s where the sepia tone really pays off.”

Since we slid a bit in Sci-fi with this month’s release of Glistening Scar (by Dan Lauer, Amal Desai and myself) I thought it apt to rope in one of my all-time favorite TV shows: Mystery Science Theater 3000.

If you’re not in the know, MST3K stars the literal captive audience of a normal human dude and a pair of robots, documenting their mockery of a real-life bad movie. The features very often tilt toward science-fiction realms, but not always, as is the case of Last of the Wild Horses.

It’s a sloggy movie, gray as hell with terrible audio quality. It follows Duke (James Ellison), a bandit on the path to reform after his recruitment onto a horse farm. There’s a romance with the farmer’s daughter somewhere in there, and a smattering of frontier (in)justice, for good measure. This is a paint-by-numbers Western in just about every way. Except the palette is gray, light-gray, almost white, storm cloud and ash.

For fans of the show, this episode is famous for a Star Trek inspired switcheroo: in a multiversal accident, the series’ villains, Dr. Forrester and his sidekick TV’s Frank (aka The Mads) are the ones in the theater mocking the film through the first segment. It’s a treat for the aficionados, and a hidden gem in the deep catalogue of “experiments” constituting the show’s run.

In terms of the movie inside the TV show, I think one needs the MST3K enhancements to get through this piece of cinema. As Crow complains about halfway through: “The movie’s just starting to mosey now! The pace is rough sledding, and this viewer can only handle so many transition shots of people walking someplace before the scene even bothers to start.

#29. Stars in My Crown (1950)

This is labeled Western but is more of a “Southern”. It slants way more toward “historical piece” than “adventure story”.

For the creative conglomerates that produced a film like this, something like Stars in My Crown are the tales of their (great-)grandparents, the happenings still in the living memory of their elders. And indeed, it’s based off of a novel by Joe David Brown, inspired by the memory of his preacher grandfather.

The movie sort of starts out like a traditional Western: a parson named Josiah Gray (Joel McCrea) saunters into the town of Walesburg, Tennessee and immediately enters the local saloon to give a sermon. When the unruly patrons scoff at this attempt, Gray pulls out two handguns and continues to preach at gunpoint. This sets up the parson as a no-nonsense type with a bit of a jagged edge, but honestly, this aura of gruffness dissipates quickly through the first act. Guns and power play only a small part in this story.

Rather, the film revolves around the challenges of Gray to bring more morality and kindness to Walesburg. The slow building A-plot concerns freed slave Uncle “Famous” (Juano Hernandez) as he fends off a wealthy mine owner looking to obtain his land; the B-plot turns on an outbreak of “slow fever” that pits the parson and the town doctor (James Mitchell) against each other in an ideological spat.

The story overall is a bit Pollyanna, but pleasant and put together well. Gray continuously inspires the town through his good nature and the adherence to his values and teachings, and the final scene or two are quite charming and earned. It also gets a few bonus points for one of the best character names I’ve ever seen – Chloroform Wiggins.

#30. Shanghai Noon (2000)

 

There’s a large bracket of folks who were raised during the Age of (Cable) TV, which I would loosely define from the 1960s until about a decade ago. For these watchers, certain movies or programs seem to be stalwarts of the medium. The reruns were constant, and the stuff that played repeatedly become ingrained into the cultural zeitgeist.

Shanghai Noon certainly fits into that category, for me, at least. This movie appeared in the scrollable channel guide a whole lot in my teen years, but to be honest, I’m not entirely sure I ever really watched it front-to-back. It was definitely one of those movies you sort of flip on and play in the background until you find something better to do.

Honestly, I forgot the reason a station would put a movie like this into heavy rotation is because it’s actually pretty good.

In the current age of Western, where the current offerings slant generally into either “low-budget” or “arthouse” we need more movies like Shanghai Noon. The movie follows the buddy flick formula, teaming two oddballs on a mission full of action and humor. We have Owen Wilson’s Roy O’Bannon – who we discover in the last minute is also somehow Wyatt Earp – a womanizing thief recently expelled from his own gang, and Jackie Chan’s Chon Wang – a play on “John Wayne” – a Chinese Imperial Guard on a mission to save an abducted princess (Lucy Liu). This plot and casting is pretty obviously trying to catch and harness the magic of Chan’s mega hit Rush Hour, and it comes very close to achieving that vibe.

The movie plays off of a lot of the Western tropes for comedic effect, but stops short of satire or parody. It’s an absurd movie, and the tonal quality is just right, for the most part. There are amazing comedic sequences (of note is the scene where Roy and Chon get blitzed in bathtubs) and Chan’s action choreography injects a super fun element into a fairly average series of plot churns.

This is a good popcorn flick, and it almost makes me want to take back what I’ve said previously about the Comedy Western’s effectiveness. There’s a lesson here about what tenor and inspiration this subgenre should take on, and generally the Western needs more high concept ideas and a more high-flying atmosphere if it wants to attract mainstream audiences again.

#31. China 9, Liberty 37 (1978)

“I need you tonight, and I hate you for it.”

No, you’re not reading the score of an odd football matchup. This methodical Western (with a heavy tint of love story) is led by Fabio Testi and directed by Monte Hellman. It was released in 1978 under the title Amore piombo e furore (“Love, Lead, and Fury”) but didn’t reach the US until 1984.

Basic plot rundown: Mere minutes before his scheduled hanging, gunfighter Clay Drumm is tasked by a railroad company to kill a man whose property they covet. After spending a few days with Matt (Warren Oates) and his wife Catherine (Jenny Agutter), Clay decides against murder…but does engage in an affair with the wife, which leads to the pair fleeing a scorned Matt and his clan. Bullets fly, the damsel changes hands a couple times and the guy on the horse tries to save the day.

The movie leans heavily on extended takes, cheesecake/beefcake and a lively soundtrack. The flavor of the Italian-Spanish Western is as thick as Testi’s accent. It takes a long, long while for the audience to feel the friction of the plot. Maybe a third of the movie is spent introducing us to the characters and their surroundings, and in formulaic fashion, the last third pops with gunfire and sex. What normally keeps a movie like that afloat is either compelling camera work or inspired repartee, neither which isn’t exactly crackling in this. The dubbing and audio is a speck slipshod, as well. I try not to watch with captions but this time I just had to.

The romance at the heart works via the effort of Testi and Agutter. The atmosphere of syrupy lust is sometimes too thick, the attraction between Clayton and Catherine is prominent and immediate. It’s not until much later in the film, after danger has entwined them even further, that you feel their genuine connection and a fear for their romantic future.

I liked China 9, Liberty 37 more than the other Hellman (Ride in a Whirlwind) and Testi (Dead Men Ride) films I’ve previously reviewed for this column. It has a jumbled morality and a bare plot but the steady quality provides enough juice to get you to the ending credits.

Good movie! Though, I would still like to see The People’s Republic of China and Liberty University play football.

This was maybe my smoothest group so far. Nothing felt like a chore.

We have a new comic release on Aug 4th, 2025! A revenge story gone wrong!

And remember to follow on the social accounts: Instagram, Bluesky, X and Facebook! Every like, comment and share helps us exponentially.

Westward!

 

~Jamil

Project: 100 Westerns: Part Four: Gunless; Ride in a Whirlwind; Dark Command; Almost Heroes

Posted on March, 2025 by JS

Oi Outlawians,

This is the fourth installment of Project: 100 Westerns. I’m angling to watch 100 Westerns this year, and if you’re keeping count, you can see I’m way behind! 😵

Here’s the next batch of movies, selected on whim and vibes:

#12. Gunless (2010)

Movie poster for Gunless. The Montana Kid, played by Paul Gross, in profile

Way, WAY back in the day, a teenage me used to riffle through IMDB like I was a card shark with a fresh deck. This was back when the Internet Movie Database was one of the more complete and robust sources of information on the nascent web, and as I was introduced to more and more classic and mature films, I was enamored with the resource IMDB offered. I mention this because IMDB also has pages for movies in pre-production, and that’s how I first came across Gunless. This was before 2005, and for whatever reason, a Canadian Western where the gunslinger is not revered like he is just south seemed like a concept that could work. I took a mental note to check that movie out, then like most teen things, it faded into the mist of memory – however every few years I’d think “I wonder why they never made that Canadian Western about the displaced outlaw?” then subsequently would forget about it again.

So, I was pretty surprised to see Gunless show up across my screen when combing the apps for a weekend Western viewing. I didn’t think it existed!

The movie centers on “The Montana Kid” (Paul Gross), a man who drifts into a very small Canadian town and quickly discovers the residents don’t care about nor understand the Wild West way of doing things. He’s a spectacle to these common folk, and while rife with that famed Canadian politeness, their interactions with him border on scoffing. The Montana Kid, also known as Sean, is dismayed by the lack of urgent violence, and spends most of the movie adjusting to his new atmosphere. 

I’ve written before that the Western Comedy doesn’t work as well as filmmakers and audiences might like. There’s a tonal tension between the savagery of the West and humor that does not square under most circumstances, especially under the scope of time and changing tastes. Gunless, though, I think hits the mark and is a legitimately funny and entertaining flick. The use and role of violence is the humor, and it satirizes the Western genre without veering into territories of parody. 

Gross plays the fish out of water role very well, alternating between the gruff ne’er-do-well and confused newcomer through just about every scene. When he tries to settle disputes through threat or intimidation the townspeople put him in his place with a quip or a shrug, which totally throws him off his game. The subtext is a gentle needling of American tastes, views and values, and it’s done in a brotherly, amusing sort of way that gets the idea across while not making it the totality of the piece. 

I really enjoyed the movie, it’s pretty low budget but you don’t notice that too much between the plot movements and the capable cast. I definitely recommend it, probably one of the better “modern” Westerns I’ve seen. It gets points for originality and execution!

#13. Ride in a Whirlwind (1966)

Movie poster for Ride in a Whirlwind. Nicholson up top, a posse on horseback on the bottom.

 

“They’ve seen their last sunrise.”

Before he was the coolest guy in Hollywood, and one of the world’s most accomplished actors, Jack Nicholson was sort of a writer-producer in the movie game. A sputtering start to his career gave rise to his work behind the camera, and Ride in the Whirlwind is placed in this era, released just a few years before Easy Rider.

Filmed back-to-back with the more notable The Shooting, this movie is like when you buy bulk at Costco or Sam’s Club: “hey if we’re already here may as well stock up”. Featuring basically the same cast, crew, locale and director (Monte Hellman), it’s also considered an “acid Western”, which I feel like is one of the haziest labels in the entire genre. 

In 1966, the revisionist Western was just emerging from the studio machine, and its close cousin the acid Western was budding at the same time. Like most long-running genres, when the people who grew up watching a certain type of media begin working in that same arena, they will often try to break down and invert the conventions and commonalities in order to challenge audiences. Ride in the Whirlwind, light on some of the more trippy elements that sometimes define acid Western, is certainly oriented to do that. This is a movie that does nothing to glorify the western frontier. It’s closed off and claustrophobic, violence is random and without honor and by the end there’s no one to really root for. In the era it debuted, it likely felt more grave and important than it would today. I can respect that.

With that said, I didn’t find this movie too engaging or poignant. It’s a poor man’s The Ox-Bow Incident. The plot: A set of three cowboys run into a gang of outlaws, a mob mistakenly groups them all into one bad sect, and the cowboys commit crimes in their increasingly desperate attempt to escape. The down mood of the film is understandable in what it’s trying to do, de-romanticize the Western and condemn mob justice, but the characters, scenery, dialogue and action are pretty bland. This may jive with the acid Western coda however it does little for the movie as a standalone piece. This is clearly a low-budget project, yet the old adage of “desperation breeding innovation” didn’t seem to stick here. 

I gave this a pretty low score on the All-True letterboxd, but it’s not overly offensive in quality if you’re looking for a Nicholson fix.

#14. Dark Command (1940)

Movie poster for Dark Command. Drawings of actors John Wayne, Claire Trevor and Walter Pidgeon populate the image.

 

“You’re fighting for the host of darkness and the devil’s riding beside you.”

You might describe my view on John Wayne as agnostic.

Never really had a high or low opinion of the Western genre’s most recognizable actor. He’s good to great in some stuff, average to whatever in other projects. It seems nostalgia is the main driver when it comes to Wayne opinions, and well, he was before my time. 

The title of Dark Command is what caught my eye first. I knew it to be a sort of historical piece on the Civil War-era Middle West region, and I kind of stayed away from it because, uh, the quality and tone of a movie about the happenings in and around Kansas during this period depend greatly on the script and direction. I mean that’s the case with every movie, but this one wades into some murky territory. 

Dark Command follows Bob Seton (Wayne) and “Doc” (Gabby Hayes) as they enter Lawrence, Kansas. The two have a bit of a scam operation going, Bob picks fights with mouthy jerks and Doc pulls whatever teeth may be loosened. When they enter Lawrence, they make the acquaintance of schoolteacher William Cantrell (Walter Pidgeon), a surrogate for the real-life William Quantrill, a notorious guerilla fighter that was so aggressive and brutal in his tactics that the Confederacy decommissioned him following the events depicted in this movie. 

The portrayal of Cantrell/Quantrill is fairly benign, presenting us with an intelligent man frustrated with his station and angered that a cowpoke like Bob can win a Marshal position that he coveted. Cantrell also is eager for the affections of Mary McCloud (Claire Trevor), the daughter of Lawrence’s banker, which Bob is also in competition for. Seeing no other path for his ambition, Cantrell turns toward a sinister path, attacking and stealing from both sides of the conflict, then using stolen Confederate uniforms to pose as legitimate soldiers in order to pilfer more good and influence. 

Despite all this action by the movie’s antagonist, Wayne’s Bob is the primary focus. Wayne plays the undereducated and overly earnest Texan with bravado and charm. There’s a certain “aw shucks” quality to the character that is backed by a large stature and a heavy fist. He is at his most charming when in the presence of Mary, fumbling over words and smiling a little too much, and glowers at the appropriate times too, like when he softly confronts Cantrell about his extracurricular activities outside of the town. 

An interesting component to the film are some of the tidbits and footnotes to the production. This marks the first time that Wayne and Raoul Walsh worked together since when the director discovered him in 1929; this film is second reunion for Wayne and Trevor after co-starring in the previous year’s Stagecoach; and this is the only time that Wayne and Roy Rogers (who plays Mary’s brother Fletch) worked together in their storied careers. Also (as posted on reddit recently) there is a really ambitious stunt involving horses diving off a cliff. It stands out in a movie from this era, if only because you’ll ask “hey, are those beasts OK…?”

Despite some anachronisms, the plot of this film hides many folds, and the characters ebb together adequately. Overall, a pretty good Golden Age offering.

#15. Almost Heroes (1998)

Movie poster for Almost Heroes. Actors Chris Fairley and Matthew Perry stand near a sign post indicating all the danger of the frontier

 

Screamed lines, indecipherable shouting, fidgety physicality – in his final role, we got Farley at his most Farley.

A Comedy Western set in 1804, the movie centers on the previously unknown counterparts to explorers Lewis & Clark as they attempt to beat the famous expedition to the Pacific Ocean. Leslie Edwards (Matthew Perry) is a milksop-y aristocrat who enlists supposedly seasoned tracker and guide Bartholomew Hunt (Chris Farley) to help with the mission in exchange for riches and glory. 

Imma be frank with you, this movie, despite its premise, cast, director and setting, is pretty poor. It’s fiercely goofy in the way a lot of 90s comedies are, but not misses the tonal mark unlike other Farley hits like Beverly Hills Ninja or Tommy Boy. The jokes are shallow and gross, there’s too much reliance on Hunt’s ineptitude as a source of humor and a real lack of surprises or ingenuity in plot turns keeps the viewer from getting too engaged. Also, the movie just sort of dissipates into what we’re forced to consider an ending – it almost feels like the studio felt like there would be a sequel. 

So yeah, it’s not bad-bad, but it’s not good-bad either. 

This is Christopher Guest’s weakest turn as a director, and despite some legitimate acting chops in the names of Perry, Farley, Eugene Levy, Bokeem Woodbine, Kevin Dunn, etc. no one can really save this effort. 

That said, you can do worse in frittering away 90 minutes. There’s a few scraps of meat on this bone, and I chuckled at parts. Still, Almost Heroes is probably best left to those who greatly enjoy the works of Perry and/or Farley.

Another batch of movies in the bag!

On April 7th, 2025, we debut our newest short comic. Be sure to mosey back for a looksee.

Westward!

 

~Jamil