The mighty ones

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Movie
German title The mighty ones
Original title The War Wagon
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1967
length 97 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Burt Kennedy
script Clair Huffaker
production Marvin Schwartz
music Dimitri Tiomkin
camera William H. Clothier
cut Harry W. Gerstad
occupation

The Powerful (Original Title: The War Wagon ) is a western from 1967 with John Wayne and Kirk Douglas in the lead roles. The film was produced by Marvin Schwartz for Batjac Productions . The director was Burt Kennedy . Clair Huffaker wrote the book based on his novel The War Wagon .

action

Around 1870, the corrupt businessman Frank Pierce got hold of a piece of land on which gold was found in New Mexico by imprisoning the rightful owner Taw Jackson through perjury and bribes . After three years in prison, Jackson is unexpectedly paroled for good conduct and reappeared in town. Pierce, who has become rich from the gold discoveries, is concerned about his safety and wants Jackson dead. For this he tries to hire the gunslinger Lomax, who was once also involved as an employee of Pierce in bringing Jackson behind bars. But Lomax has meanwhile been recruited by Jackson: He is planning a robbery on an important gold transport from Pierce. For this he needs the skills of Lomax as a gunslinger and especially as a safe cracker. Lomax supports Jackson, although he has doubts about the success of the attack, because Pierce has recruited many men to guard the transport and recently bought a well-armored car with a Gatling bolt-action gun .

Jackson's gang also includes the veteran Levi Walking Bear, the young explosives expert Billy Hyatt, and Pierce's collaborator Wes Fletcher. Everyone is supposed to receive a fifth of the gold transported, worth around half a million US dollars. A group of Kiowa Indians, who were driven from their lands by Pierce, provided support for the raid for a fee . In the following days, the group planned the attack, but there was always turbulence. Since Pierce wants to continue to recruit Lomax, Lomax has to delay him and at the same time not let get on the trail of the planned attack. Billy Hyatt has a drinking problem despite his young age and appears unreliable. He also falls in love with Kate, the young wife of the old and grumpy Fletcher, which creates tension.

The attack succeeds: When the Indians appear and a bridge is blown up, the numerous security guards employed by Pierce are cut off. Then Jackson and Lomax jump on the car and can bring it under control. Pierce kills many Indians with his repeater gun, but is eventually shot himself. The five initiators of the attack are apparently on target, but the Kiowa Indians suddenly want the gold for themselves and shoot Fletcher. Billy throws the last remnants of explosives at the Indians and in fright the horses break loose with the cart on which the gold is hidden in tons of flour. The tons of gold fall from the car and are collected by the Indians. A small but still financially generous portion of the booty can be hidden by Jackson in a safe place. He wants to share it with his comrades when the grass has grown on the matter. Lomax has no choice but to continue to take care of Jackson's safety.

Locations

Large parts of the film, especially the landscape shots, were shot in Durango, Mexico and in the Sierra de Órganos National Park in Zacatecas, Mexico .

Awards

In 1968 there was a Bronze Wrangler for Burt Kennedy in the Theatrical Motion Picture category at the Western Heritage Awards .

criticism

Joe Hembus keeps the great man for "the most successful work in a series of experiments, several old warhorses of the Western zusammenzuspannen" which aspects of the genre are "perfectly prepared, bolted with irony and with (...) high-gloss finish (...) " . Phil Hardy states that the film is "best in its funny moments" , the action is "sluggish" , but the interplay between the cynical Douglas and Wayne is "always amusing" . The Protestant film observer came to the conclusion that the strip was a solid American color widescreen Western with a sympathetic, ironic undertone.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Release certificate for the mighty ones . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , May 2008 (PDF; test number: 37 413 DVD).
  2. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062472/locations?ref_=tt_dt_dt locations according to IMDB
  3. ^ Joe Hembus: Western Lexicon - 1272 films from 1894-1975. Carl Hanser Verlag Munich Vienna 2nd edition 1977. ISBN 3-446-12189-7 . P. 242
  4. ^ Phil Hardy: The Encyclopedia of Western Movies. Woodbury Press Minneapolis 1984. ISBN 0-8300-0405-X . P. 305f.
  5. ↑ Evangelischer Presseverband München, Review No. 427/1967.