Water hole no.3

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Movie
German title Water hole no.3
Original title Waterhole No. 3
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1967
length 95 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director William A. Graham
script Joseph T. Steck ,
Robert R. Young
production Joseph T. Steck
music Dave Grusin
camera Robert Burks
cut Warren Low
occupation

. Waterhole No. 3 (Original title: Waterhole No. 3 ) is a Western - comedy from 1967 directed by William A. Graham with James Coburn in the lead role.

action

A box of gold is stolen from a US Army depot by digging a tunnel from a shoemaker's shop next door. The soldier who was supposed to guard the box belongs to the gang of thieves and the foreign shoemaker, who had nothing to do with the matter, was taken hostage by the thieves. The thieves bury their prey and record the location on a dollar bill. Later, the gambler Lewton Cole is challenged to a duel in the Dolores Saloon . As he steps outside the door, he goes to his horse and shoots his opponent, who is only waiting with a pistol, with a rifle from a long distance. He had the dollar bill with him, which Cole now takes. He goes to Integrity town . There he locks Sheriff Copperud and his deputy Typing in their own prison cell and takes their clothes off. He goes to the sheriff's house, takes his daughter Billee by surprise, throws himself at her with force and rapes her in the horse stable. Then he steals the sheriff's horse, which goes by the name of Big Blue , and rides away, with his daughter dreamily watching the horse thief and rapist. When her father arrives, she explains to him, “I think I was raped,” but that doesn't bother him. However, the news that Cole stole his beloved horse hits him hard. He explains to his daughter that he cannot take care of her now because he has to take care of his horse first. He follows Cole and finds him at waterhole no. 3 when he is pulling the box with the gold out of the waterhole. The sheriff takes the gold, later both of them are surprised and tied up by the thieves of the gold. Then Billee comes and frees them both. The gold now changes hands several times. Eventually Billee can get rid of it. When Cole promises her a life with him, she leaves him the gold and they sleep together. Then Cole explains to her that he is leaving her after all and that he is such a man. He rides away with the gold and Billee looks dreamily at the sky.

background

  • The film is accompanied by a narrator who comments on the plot (in vocal form). In the German dubbing, the singer's English texts are translated during his singing breaks. The German narrator only stays mute for one of the singer's verses and does not translate the song: When he sings “raping and killing ain't really so bad, but stealing Old Blue now that made Sheriff John mad” (rape and murder is not so bad it was the theft of his horse that made Sheriff John really angry). Roger Miller sings the original lyrics , the song translator in the German version is Joachim Nottke .
  • The fact that the main character and thus the hero of the film commits a rape that is portrayed in a seemingly funny manner has been the subject of numerous criticisms and discussions. The film also ridicules the victim's complaints when it seems completely insignificant and normal to both the father and the law enforcement officers who are reported to have been raped, as "any man would do this with such a beautiful woman." The crime is subsequently played down by the woman looking longingly after the perpetrator after the rape and would later like to see him as a husband.
  • The film was shot in California : Red Rock Canyon State Park, the Cerro Gordo Mines (Ghost Town) and the Alabama Hills.
  • It was released in the United States on October 10, 1967, and in Germany on November 30, 1967.

Reviews

  • Roger Ebert : “ Waterhole No. 3 , advertised as a western comedy, is about as funny as a bucket of floppy corn grits. Another problem is the inadequate amount of, well, filthy stuff. There is certainly nothing wrong with sex-related humor. But the most recent Coburn films spoil the fun with dumb grins, suggestive looks and raised eyebrows. If the jokes were at least brought forward openly and straightforwardly, we could laugh at them, but they preferred a sneaky and almost obscene approach here. "
  • Lexicon of international films : "After the initial lengths, a quite entertaining, ballad-like parody of the Wild West films develops, which, however, comes up with an unnecessarily cynical 'gag' at the end."
  • Protestant film observer : “A comical western that turns the forms and contents of the classic western into their opposite. Except for one derailment (in the description of the hero's relationship with the sheriff's daughter), it was a good conversation. "

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ [1] "Cole is confronted by the sheriff's daughter, Billee. [..] This leads to a wildly inappropriate comic rape, in which Billee kicks and screams but soon willingly surrenders to Cole's charms. [..] Further, when Copperud learns of this, he easily forgives Cole because, well, his daughter is gorgeous. Produced just prior to the introduction of the MPAA's official rating system, Waterhole # 3 was released at a time of newfound permissiveness, when formerly taboo subjects could actually be discussed and to some degree shown in mainstream Hollywood movies, and the business about the rape was a by product of that transitional period. Looking at it now, it doesn't seem so much as offensive as simply embarrassing, like watching an eight-year-old child tell his first dirty joke to a bunch of his pals. You can almost hear the filmmakers snickering at their allegedly clever offensiveness - Cole calls the deed "assault with a friendly weapon," which makes me wonder if any real rapists ever quoted Coburn in their defense. "
  2. ↑ Archive link ( Memento from August 26, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) “Cole's sexual assault of the sheriff's daughter conjured up a question I would never have thought to ask: Should rape be portrayed as a jocular activity, or even as a subject of satire? Sure, Billee Copperud seemed willing enough to submit to Lewton Cole's advances after a perfunctory struggle; but the whole thing leaves a bad aftertaste, and it becomes a running gag throughout the rest of the film. For example, Billee's father is more concerned about the theft of his prized horse than about his daughter's complaint of rape, and Cole cracks wise about his conquest to sheriff Copperud, whose attitude seems to be "boys will be boys." In answer to my own question: The subject might be suitable for a black comedy, but it doesn't work here. "
  3. ↑ [2] " Waterhole No. 3 , advertised as a Western comedy, is approximately as hilarious, as a pail of limp grits. [..] Another problem is the [..] disproportionate amount of well dirty stuff. [..] There's certainly nothing wrong with humor based on sex. [..] But the recent Coburn movies spoil the fun with their smirks and leers and raised eyebrows. If they'd only joke out in the open, we'd laugh; but they seem to prefer a sly and almost obscene approach. "
  4. ^ Waterhole No. 3. In: Lexicon of international film . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  5. ↑ Evangelischer Presseverband München, Review No. 548/1967