The Bravados **** (1958, Gregory Peck, Stephen Boyd, Joan Collins, Albert Salmi, Henry Silva) – Classic Movie Review 7248

Director Henry King’s 1958 revenge and redemption Western The Bravados stars Gregory Peck as grimly determined Jim Douglass, who sets out to find the escaped bad guys – four deadly in-laws – he thinks have raped and killed his wife. He tracks the gang of outlaws down to a small town, where they are in jail, but they escape to Mexico, so he pursues.

This powerfully-acted, brutal pursuit Western boasts superior direction by King, who makes it look great with the help of Leon Shamroy’s cinematography, the various Mexican locations and an expensive 20th Century Fox production. Lionel Newman and Hugo Friedhofer’s score helps it to sound great too. Philip Yordan’s screenplay is based on the novel by Frank O’Rourke.

At the head of a fine cast, Peck gives a distinguished performance. He is a bit of a city slicker, but he manages to fit well into a Western. At any rate, he caught the cowboy bug and bought a big ranch near Santa Barbara, California, stocked with 600 head of prize cattle.

The Bravados co-stars Joan Collins as Josefa Velarde, Stephen Boyd as Bill Zachary, Albert Salmi as Ed Taylor, and Henry Silva as Lujan. It is not Joan Collins’s fault that only the pauses for romance let it down.

Also in the cast are Stephen Boyd, Albert Salmi, Henry Silva, Kathleen Gallant, George Voskovec, Barry Coe, Lee Van Cleef, Herbert Rudley as Sheriff Sanchez, Ken Scott, Andrew Duggan, Gene Evans, Robert Adler, Robert Griffin as banker Loomis, Jack Mather as Quinn the blacksmith, Jacqueline Evans, Jason Wingreen as the hotel clerk, Juan Garcîa, Joie DeRita, Alicia Del Lago, Kay Koury and Ada Carrasco. The Niños Cantores De Morelia Choral Group appear as themselves.

Jason Wingreen, the original voice of Boba Fett in Star Wars, passed away at 95 on 25 December 2015.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7248

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