The Gunfighters (1987)

Great Film overall

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

In 1950, there was "The Gunfighter" with Gregory Peck, one of my all time favorite Westerns. In 1999, there was a Christopher Coppola directed flick simply called "Gunfighter", which was every bit as bad as the 1950 film was good. In between, you had "The Gunfighters", looking very much like a made for TV Western, right down to the obviously edited commercial break fades. With a relatively unknown cast, except for George Kennedy in a major heel role, this film is passable with a few creative touches. Like the barroom bull-whip contest between Dutch Everett (Reinor Schone) and Deke Turner's nameless henchman (Steve Atkinson). And I can't say for sure if it was a goof or not, but when Cole (Art Hindle) shot at the the portrait behind Deke Turner, he knocked both eyes out with a single bullet. Now that's some fancy shootin'! Otherwise this is a pretty standard Western from start to finish, more on the B side than a good theatrical effort. Most of the time the Everret's (brothers Matt and Cole and cousin Dutch) are on the run from the law, thanks to Matt's (Tony Addabbo) quick reflexes and sure-fire aim. Killing someone is always good for a price on your head, especially if the town boss is calling the shots. The Everett's become reluctant outlaws to get some measure of revenge against the Turner bunch, teaming up with a trigger happy Sam Martin (Frances Damberger) and his gang. That was bound to cause trouble.Throw in a few reward posters, some Pinkerton agents, and a pregnant woman on the way to meet up with her husband, and you have the remaining ingredients for a ninety minute oater. Even though the good guys turn bad for a while, they're redeemed in the end by a Wyoming governor who offers them a job as lawmen. Yes, you read that right, and you'll just have to watch it to find out how that came about.You know what puzzles me - how did the newspaper pop up at the line shack with Billy the Kid's death on the front page?

Level-headed rancher Art Hindle, his hot-headed younger brother, and their Dutch immigrant cousin are forced into a confrontation with evil land-baron George Kennedy, when Hindle's brother shoots a man in self-defense and is framed by the local authorities under Kennedy's instruction. Soon, the ranch is torched and the whole family is turned into desperadoes.There's really nothing new here and some of the performances are a little overwrought at times, but the story is straight-forward, unpretentious and entertaining, with a few timeless themes that are worth repeating. If you're expecting something slick though, you may be disappointed.It's nice to see Canadian character actor Art Hindle in a starring role for once, instead of his usual appearance as second or third banana to some other star.Some interesting moments involve a duel with whips, the outlaws being forced to birth a baby, and the satisfying, though open-ended finale that looked to me like a setup for sequels, or perhaps a TV series that never materialized.

One of the best westerns I have seen in a long time. Makes you wonder who was worse the outlaws or the law. The story was very convincing and makes you want to know more about the western families. The Everetts were able to understand what would happen when they took the law into their own hands. It tells how the rich were able to get the law to work for them. The common rancher has no chance against another rich rancher. The common rancher was not believed even when he had facts to back him up The rich rancher could pay the law to do what he wanted done. The Everetts did not want to kill and only wanted to be treated right and not cheated out of their land. The youngest was accused of murder only when he was defending himself and was framed by the law.

From the onset, this film was bent on destruction. Even in one's wildest imagination, Kansas doesn't come close to resembling the scenery in the film. When this much liberty is taken with the scenery, one might also wonder how it fared with the plot. Weaker than the cast. I fell asleep 3 times before I finally gave in and put on another movie.