Warlock (1959)

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

best movie i've ever seen.

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Just so you know: Warlock is the name of the town in Warlock. In case you're like me and sometimes misinterpret the meaning of a title, this is a western, not a movie about witches and wizards. Now that that's out of the way, let's get to the plot.Henry Fonda and his faithful sidekick Anthony Quinn arrive in the town of Warlock to instill some law and order into the western city that's frequented by bandits and criminals. The local "bad boys" resent the presence of a new marshal, and they're quick to let Henry and Tony know they're not about roll over and play nice. Richard Widmark, Frank Gorshin, Tom Drake, and DeForest Kelly constantly toe the line with the so-called good guys, but then the lines start to blur. Henry and Tony aren't as good as they appear to be, and Dick isn't as enamored by the bad guys as he should be. . .I actually really liked this movie, but if John Wayne were the lead, or if Henry Fonda had been given Dick's part, I probably wouldn't have liked it. Richard Widmark, looking adorable in glorious Technicolor, is a fantastic and conflicted hero, torn between good and bad, family and friends. There's no scrimping on the side plots in this movie, as everyone has a backstory and something to hide. Plus, there are countless love triangles with the arrival of Dorothy Malone and Dolores Michaels. Since I'm not the biggest Henry Fonda fan, so I didn't need to be convinced that he's got a bit of a bad guy in his character. Anthony Quinn does a good job, except for his strangely muddled Southern accent, but really it's Richard Widmark who's the heart and soul of the movie. Even when he's bad-which he almost always is-he's incredibly likable. He just might be the most adorable, lovable, type casted bad guy ever! And ladies, if you don't think he's handsome, make an appointment with your eye doctor.

Copyright 1959 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening at the Paramount: 30 April 1959. U.S. release: April 1959. U.K. release: 17 May 1959. Australian release: 6 August 1959. Sydney opening at the Regent. 10,980 feet. 122 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Warlock is a small, dusty cow-town which is dominated by a gang of ruffians and cowpunchers. After numerous killings and other incidents, the citizens hire Clay Blaisdell (Henry Fonda) to become town marshal. He is an infamous professional gunfighter who always travels with a club footed sidekick, Tom Morgan (Anthony Quinn). In addition, Johnny Gannon (Richard Widmark), until recently a member of a cowboy gang, is appointed deputy sheriff, a job paralleling Clay's and one which is noted for the short life expectancy of its holder. Jessie Marlow (Dolores Michaels), known as "The angel of Warlock", soon comes to like Clay, although she originally protested his being hired. Clay starts to clean up the town, while Morgan starts to run a gambling hall and saloon, a familiar pattern between the partners.NOTES: Negative cost: $2 million.COMMENT: In "Warlock", Dmytryk and Aurthur tried to take the formula western with its standard characters, ready-made plot and familiar backgrounds and give it some unusual and intriguing variations. That they were not wholly successful — despite a lot of earnest acting and some occasionally forceful uses of the CinemaScope screen — is due to the wordiness of the dialogue which should have been trimmed and made sharper and more realistic before shooting commenced.OTHER VIEWS: Big western... Many of the familiar elements of the western story, the frontier town cowed by unruly elements, the imported lawman with a killer's reputation, the citizens who finally assert themselves to gain control of their community, these are all part of Warlock. But the 20th-Fox presentation is an effort to take such a theme, familiar in its basic outline and carry it beyond the ordinary conclusion and behind the usual facade... The plot, dealing as it does with very complicated people, is involved, but not puzzling. Aurthur's characters and their dialogue are fresh and picturesque. Widmark's portrayal is vital, although his early position as a member of the hell-raising gang is not entirely clear. Fonda is particularly fine. It may not be a romantic conception, but Fonda gives his role great validity. - "Variety".

Nice Western concentrates on psychological issues , complex characters and adult themes . The town of Warlock is plagued by a band of thugs , leading the inhabitants to hire Clay Blaisdell (Henry Fonda) , a famous Pistolero . As the villagers ask the experienced sheriff/gunman to rid the little town of bandits when a vicious gang of freebooters passes through . This is the story of the sheriff who'd worn it -till he'd faced one gun too many , and his crippled partner (Anthony Quinn) , they had to teach or watch to die . As a hired sheriff in the small town of Warlock must take a stand when a gang of nasty outlaws takes over his town . A gunfighter/sheriff that's what they gave you for protecting people who ran like rabbits when the going got roguish !This stand-out , meaty Western contains interesting plot , intrigue , thrills , shootouts and results to be quite entertaining though slow-moving and excessively allegorical . Outstanding literate Western balances action , suspense and drama , including a high-voltage cast . It's a classical recounting about an experienced marshal hired to clean up the crime-infested location . As Fonda in charge of a little town full of cowards and frightening people ; being probably one of the best Western in the fifties and sixties . The highlights of the film are the climatic showdowns , the twisted surprises and , of course, the final confrontation . The traditional story and exciting screenplay was well written by Robert Alan Arthur though clichés run through-out , the enjoyable tale is enhanced for interesting moments developed among main characters and especially on the relationship between gunslinger Henry Fonda and gambler Anthony Quinn . As the picture relies heavily on psychological aspects of the peculiar relationship between them . As Anthony Quinn steals the show playing a particular role going very much against his ordinary type , as the often strong, tough , macho Anthony here is cast as a hesitant, even weak man . However , Richard Widmark is all but lost in the background as a guilty-ridden outlaw become a town sheriff . Being magnificently performed by Henry Fonda and Anthony Quinn , they are awesome experts in the art of conjuring sensational acting , here are reunited in this atypical but thought-provoking western with a lot of reflection , distinguished moments and dramatical attitudes , in addition a multitude of entertaining situations . Top-notch plethora of secondary actors playing vicious, sadistic sociopaths who take advantage of the frightened townspeople such as Tom Drake , James Philbrook , DeForest Kelley ,Frank Gorshin , Gary film debut of Lockwood as well as villagers perfectly performed by Wallace Ford , Richard Arlen , Ann Doran , among others . Wonderful cinematography in Technicolor and CinemaScope is superbly caught by cameraman Joseph MacDonald . Sensitive as well as lively musical score by Leigh Harline .This is another superbly powerful though forgotten Western being stunningly directed by Edward Dmytryck . A veteran filmmaker, Dmytryck is one of Hollywood's most prolific directors who started his career in the early 40s . He was a craftsman whose career was interrupted by the activities of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), a congressional committee that employed ruthless tactics aimed at rooting out and destroying what it saw as Communist influence in Hollywood . A lifelong political leftist who had been a Communist Party member briefly during World War II, Dmytryk was one of the so-called "Hollywood Ten" who refused to cooperate with HUAC and had their careers disrupted or ruined as a result. The committee threw him in prison for refusing to cooperate, and after having spent several months behind bars , Dmytryk decided to cooperate . Dmytrick's biggest film was ¨The Caine Mutiny¨ , but he also realized another mutiny film titled : ¨Mutiny¨ with Angela Lansbury . Edward was an expert on warlike genre as ¨Back to Batan¨ , ¨Battle of Anzio¨ , ¨Young lions¨ and Western as ¨Broken lance¨ , ¨Alvarez Kelly¨ , ¨Warlock¨ , among others . Rating : 7 , better than average . It's recommended for Western enthusiasts and big stars lovers . Well worth watching as well as to rediscover and it will appeal to Anthony Quinn and Henry Fonda fans .

This is an extremely complex film, with a lot of undertones to it. One of which is NOT homosexuality. Basically Quinn & to a lesser extent, Fonda are dependant upon each other. What is interesting is none of the characters in the film except Jessie Marlow (Delores Michaels), are really that good, and all must play a heavy price for their actions including the good bad guy Johnny Gannon (Richard Widmark) (Spoilers coming) Who had to see his brother get killed in a showdown with Marshall Clay Blaisedell(Henry Fonda) because as Gannon said to his brother: "I'm not backing him because you are my brother and I'm not backing you because you are wrong." Gannon also had to live with the fact he participated in a killing of a group of Mexicans, an event that hurt him deeply. What is interesting is how low the town is (Like in "High Noon"), and none of the people (Except Gannon of course) was willing to stand up and become Sheriff, and the only ones willing to take Gannon's side was Curley Burne (DeForrest Kelly) and of course, Lily Dollar (Dorothy Malone), who came to town with the express intention of killing Tom Morgan (Anthony Quinn), who is at his most evil as a cowardly, crippled, saloon owner who uses his friendship with Blaisedell as a way to get rich and to break the law. Even the name "Lily Dollar" has the image of a cheap saloon girl, passing out drinks and singing an occasional song. The showdown with Gannon and Blaisedell is a classic scene where the wounded Gannon stands up to Blaisedell (Despite having a slim chance of winning), and does when Blaisedell throws down his guns and leaves town. 10/10 stars