GERMAN WESTERN ‘GOLD’ REVIEWED, PLUS ‘DOC HOLLIDAY’S REVENGE’ FIRST LOOK!

GOLD – A Film Review

When I heard that a new German-made Western had just been completed, “…visions of Winnetou danced in my head!”  Though most Americans are not aware of it, Germany has a long history of American Western story-telling, Karl May being the most popular Western writer in the world, easily eclipsing American Western writers from Max Brand to Louis L’amour with his non-English-language following. 

Emily and Carl

German Western film, likewise not well known in the States, has been tremendously influential.  The success of a dozen Karl May Western films made in the early 1960s, starring French actor Pierre Brice as Apache Chief Winnetou, opposite American and British actors like Lex Barker, Rod Cameron and Stewart Granger, were such a smash that they inspired the Italians to create the Spaghetti Western genre.  

GOLD, written and directed by Thomas Arslan, could not be further from the melodrama of WINNETOU, but that is by design.  It is a movie that strives for realism and naturalism.  Filmed where the tale is set, in British Columbia, Canada, GOLD surprisingly is not a gold-field story, ala the recent miniseries KLONDIKE, but a tale of people on their way to the gold-fields.  Near the turn of the century, when an improbably large nugget is found by a panner, Argonauts head for the Klondike, and fortune, anyway they can.   (When I saw Indians waiting at the railroad's end, wrapped in blankets with the distinctive design of the Hudson Bay Company, I knew that production designer Reinheld Blaschke knew his stuff. )

German-born Wilhelm Lasser (Peter Kurth), an experienced guide, advertises his services to other German-Americans, assembles five prospective prospectors and, with wrangler Carl Boehmer (Marco Mandic), sets out for glory. Among them is Emily Meyer, who has tired of being a house-maid in New York.  She’s played by Nina Hoss, a major star in German cinema who, appropriate to the role, bears a striking resemblance to Lillian Gish, who frequently played pioneers for D. W. Griffith; not by chance, Hoss wears her hair in the same distinctive manner.

Tension builds, a bit, as the travelers begin to suspect that wagon-master Lasser is no master at all.  He becomes upset when they reach a river that’s not on his map.  It’s almost as if he’s never been there before.  In fact, he’s greatly exaggerated his experience, and it is only through the assistance of the occasional Indian, for a five-dollar payment, that they stay anywhere near on the path.  Further, as we see at around the half-hour mark, in a scene that calls to mind Hemingway’s THE KILLERS, a pair of riders is tracking the group, or rather the wrangler.  It’s a scene with both menace and humor, and it’s about all we see of either element. Because the major flaw of this film is that, beautifully made though it is, not nearly enough happens.  

There is hardship aplenty, but damned little conflict.  The characters are so stoic that they never get impassioned enough about anything to get the viewer involved.  Cinematographer Patrick Orth makes the most of the varied and beautiful forests and vistas of British Columbia – much of the photography is spectacular, especially a scene in a forest of barren trees.  But there are so few close-ups that the viewer rarely has the sense that he knows what a character is thinking.  While the wide-screen process – the image here is more than twice as wide as it is tall – is perfect for landscape, when it comes to actors, as Leone taught us, you have to jam the camera all the way into the center of a face to fill the screen.  We never get half that close.  And I don’t ever recall seeing a movie where more screen-time is spent watching a small group of riders ride across the screen, over and over again.

In a ‘Ten Little Indians’ manner, their numbers drop.  Some give up; one goes mad, strips off his clothes and runs pell-mell into the forest.  In one of the most affecting scenes, a man’s injured leg must be amputated before gangrene sets in.  The use of sound rather than gory visuals is evocative and effective.  Finally we get a sense of passion, and the stoicism is truly moving.  But sadly we quickly soon lose him.  We also get one good shoot-out, but it’s a long time coming.     

If you’ve seen MEEK’S CUTOFF (2010), starring Michelle Greene, Bruce Greenwood and Paul Dano, this may all sound familiar; that film also involves an incompetent wagon-master leading a group of pioneers, and getting them lost.  But while MEEK’S had Rod Rondeaux as the menacing Indian following them, and a dramatic payoff, in GOLD, once we meet the men following the wrangler, they disappear until too late in the story to save it. 

The score by Dylan Carson is portentous and effective, but is often missing in scenes where it could have helped.  And not one of the voice-actors chosen to dub the film into English uses a German accent, a strange choice considering how much their ‘Germanness’ is a part of their character, and how everyone they meet immediately knows they are German.

GOLD will be available in May from Screen Media Films.

‘DOC HOLLIDAY’S REVENGE’ FIRST LOOK!

June 17^th will see the release of DOC HOLLIDAY’S REVENGE, from two very talented and prolific filmmakers, writer Rolfe Kanefsky and director/producer David DeCoteau (pronounced ‘Dakota’).  It’s exec produced by Barry Barnholtz (see my interview HERE  ) and Jeffrey Schenck, who previously produced WYATT EARP’S REVENGE among many other Westerns. 

The film features the very talented and busy Eric Roberts, and Tom Berenger, who won the Outstanding Supporting Actor EMMY for 2012’s HATFIELDS & MCCOYS. 

I’ll be sharing my interview with Kanefsky soon, but in the meantime, here’s the first trailer.

ANTHONY MANN RETROSPECTIVE ENDS SUNDAY 3/30

The final program of the UCLA/Billy Wilder Theater two-month retrospective entitled Dark City, Open Country: The Films of Anthony Mann, will be MAN OF THE WEST (1958) and THE TIN STAR (1957).

SEE YOU AT THE ‘COWBOY FESTIVAL’ APRIL 26 & 27!

After attending the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival and covering it for the Round-up these last three years, this year I’ll be a participant!  At the OutWest Buckaroo Book Shop, in the heart of Veluzat's Melody Ranch’s fabulous Western street, I’ll be moderating a couple of authors’ panels.  On Saturday from 1:30 to 2, the topic is THE WEST IMAGINED, and I’ll be talking with Western novelists Edward M. Erdelac, author of COYOTE’S TRAIL; Jim Christina, author of THE DARK ANGEL; and C. Courtney Joyner, author of SHOTGUN.

And on Sunday, from 1:30 to 2, the topic is THE WEST LIVED, and I’ll be talking to non-fiction writers Jerry Nickle, great-grandson of the Sundance Kid; JR Sanders, author of SOME GAVE ALL; and Peter Sherayko, author of TOMBSTONE – THE GUNS AND GEAR. 

On Saturday at 12:30, and Sunday at 2:30, I’ll be chatting with Miles Swarthout, who wrote the screenplay for THE SHOOTIST from his father, Glendon Swarthout’s novel.  Miles is also involved with the upcoming movie THE HOMESMAN, directed by and starring Tommy Lee Jones, from a novel by Glendon Swarthout.  You can learn all about the events at the Buckaroo Book Shop by going HERE.  

ADOPT A BURRO AT TRONA CENTENNIAL MARCH 28-30!

The mining town of Trona in San Bernadino County’s Searles Valley marks its first century with a historical symposium, parade, car show, street fair, and on-site Bureau Of Land Management Wild Burro adoption!  Learn more by calling 760-372-4091.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ‘RED SUN’ STAR URSULA ANDRESS!

Ursula Andress & Alain Delon in RED SUN

The first gorgeous Bond Girl turns 78 today! She starred in THREE Westerns -- RED SUN, 4 FOR TEXAS, and mexico on fire -- but to me she’ll always be SHE! When I was ten or eleven, and madly in love with her, she was in New York for the premiere. I had this goofy idea to send flowers to her hotel – I had no idea what it would cost – I called MGM’s New York office to find out where she was staying, AND THEY PUT HER ON THE PHONE TO ME! I’ve never fully recovered. Happy Birthday!

THAT’S A WRAP!

Have a great week! 

Happy Trails,

Henry

All Original Contents Copyright March 2014 by Henry C. Parke – All Rights Reserved

MARYLAND WESTERN ‘DAY OF THE GUN’ REVIEWED, PLUS ‘STARDUST COWBOYS’ TICKET GIVEAWAY!

MARYLAND-LENSED WESTERN ‘DAY OF THE GUN’ – A Film Review

Eric Roberts as Tanner

Over the years we’ve gotten used to seeing Westerns made in Spain and Italy; in Germany and Croatia – the Karl May films; Australia and New Zealand; and even the Canary Islands – okay, just once, with TAKE A HARD RIDE.  But somehow, making a Western in Maryland seems the most bizarre of all.  Yet Maryland-based filmmaker Wayne Shipley and his One-Eyed Horse Productions has recently completed their second Western feature there, DAY OF THE GUN.  GUN and his previous feature, ONE-EYED HORSE, along with several shorts, have all been set in the fictional frontier town of Singletree, Montana, and for this newest film, his crew actually ventured to Montana, though the vast majority was shot in that neighbor to New England, Maryland.   

For Shipley’s most ambitious, and I would assume most costly, film to date, he has reached outside of his stock-company of actors to Hollywood, and hired Eric Roberts to play a crucial role.  The story concerns a widow, Maggie Carter (LaDon Hart Hall), who has taken over the reins of the family spread from her late husband.  An opinionated and aggressive woman, she is not welcomed to the fold by the other local cattle ranchers, and when one of them (Jim Osborn) starts fencing in open range to combat rustling, a line has been crossed which she cannot forgive: a range war is inevitable.  Into this battleground comes her son (Ned Carter), still smarting from disfiguring face scars; and her daughter (Rachel McCall), just home from an eastern college.  And the daughter’s romantic interest is none other than the son (Jason Brown) of the fence-raising cattleman.  The son was once Maggie’s son’s best friend, and even introduced him to the girl who took a broken bottle to his face.

This is an unusually big story for recent westerns, especially low-budget ones, a throwback to family-centered Western stories like BROKEN LANCE and FLAMING STAR and TV’s BONANZA and BIG VALLEY.  Shipley succeeds in making the production seem big enough.  The Western town is extensive and well-detailed, the rolling stock and horse-flesh substantial.  The location is attractively lush and green, and the gun-action is long and loud, well-staged, with plenty of participants.  The weapons and, by-and-large the wardrobe, are attractive and, with the exception of some of the ladies’ hats, historically accurate.  

Cinematographer and editor Jeff Herberger frames his shots to good effect – sometimes spectacular effect in the Montana sequences – and edits well.  Standout sequences include an extended shoot-out with the rustlers, and an unusual climax filmed on a mountain-top.

Writer- director Shipley stages the action well.  His manner of writing dialogue is not the naturalistic style mostly favored today, but a much more literary one.  That calls for precise delivery to not sound stilted, and not all of the cast is up to that challenge.  And there is one bit of casting for a central role that seems so off-the-mark that it’s hard for the film to recover.  But when, late in the story, Eric Roberts appears as a hired gun with a personal stake in the events, the professionalism of the project is kicked up several notches. 

Very recently completed, DAY OF THE GUN is making the rounds of film festivals, and we’ll let you know when it’s available.  To learn more about One-Eyed Horse Productions, HERE’s the link to their site.  

WIN TICKETS TO SEE ‘THE STARDUST COWBOYS’ MARCH 20^TH!

The Stardust Cowboys, having played Western Swing at concerts, rodeos, conventions, fairs and cowboy gatherings all over Northern California for two decades, will make their much-anticipated premiere Los Angeles-area appearance on Thursday, March 20^th.  It’s part of the OutWest Concert Series at the Repertory East Playhouse, at 24266 Main Street, Newhall, CA 91321.   The Stardust Cowboys draw their inspiration from the fabled Bob Wills who, with his Texas Playboys, invented Western Swing, that delightful mash-up of cowboy and big band music.  They play a mix of traditional western songs as well as their own originals, and their live shows are full of humor and high energy.

You can buy tickets for $20 by calling OutWest at 661-255-7087. This concert is part of the OutWest series -- in case you haven’t noticed, we have a new sponsor here at the Round-up, the OutWest Western Boutique and Cultural Center in Newhall – just go to the top left corner of the Round-up, click their logo, and you’ll be magically transported to their wonderful store.  The doors open at 7 p.m., and the concert begins at 8, and Bobbi Jean Bell, purveyor of OutWest, tells me that Newhall is having their 3^rd Thursday of the month block party, SENSES (as in delighting the same), so you might want to arrive early for dinner from the food trucks, live music – and to find parking.   Bobbi also tells me that if you’re coming to the concert, you might want to dress up!  SCTV will be filming the show, and you just may be on TV! 

So you say you’d like to win a free pair of tickets to see The Stardust Cowboys?  Here’s what you need to do.  Number one, before you enter, make sure you live someplace where you can actually get to the concert from (I just checked, and right now folks are reading the Round-up in Thailand, The Netherlands and China, but I doubt most can make it here).  Number two, send an email to swansongmail@sbcglobal.net, with ‘Stardust Cowboys ticket giveaway’ in the subject line.  Make sure to include your name, snail-mail address, and phone number.  And here’s the challenging part: name the band leader other than Bob Wills, who was also called The King of Western Swing, and who used to be a movie stand-in for Roy Rogers!  Please be sure to send your entry by 11 pm Saturday, March 15th.  The winner will be selected randomly from all correct entries.  And below is a sneak preview of The Stardust Cowboys. 

SEE ‘3:10 TO YUMA’ MON. AT AERO WITH DIR.  JAMES MANGOLD

Monday, March 10^th, at 7:30 p.m., you can see one of the best and most important Westerns of recent years, 3:10 TO YUMA (2007), to be followed by a discussion with director James Mangold, moderated by Geoff Boucher.  The film stars Russell Crowe as an outlaw being transported to jail, and Christian Bale as the failing farmer who agrees to put Crowe on the train of the title, no matter what the cost.  Also starring are Ben Foster (who’s so good he steals the picture) and Peter Fonda.  One of those rare cases where the remake is comparable to the original, the Elmore Leonard story was first filmed in 1957, with Delmer Daves directing Glenn Ford in the Crowe role, and Van Heflin in the Bale role.  Go HERE for more information, and tickets. 

PAPERBACK SHOW MOVES TO GLENDALE!

DO go to the Paperback Collectors Show on Sunday, March 16^th, but DO NOT go to that hotel on Sepulveda where it’s been for a decade – now it’s at the Glendale Civic Auditorium, 1401 N. Verdugo Road, Glendale, CA 91208.   Parking is free, admission is five clams.  This is a great annual event, and a wonderful opportunity to fill in the gaps in your collection.  This is where I track down all my hard-to-find Luke Shorts and Donald Hamiltons and the like.  You can find not just westerns, but sci-fi, crime, horror, and lots of pulps.  The pristine stuff gets pricey, but speaking as a paperback slob rather than a snob, I’ve never paid more than $2.50 for anything.  Authors will be there to sign your books for free, and while there are no big  western guys, some of the civilian authors of note include Earl ‘The Waltons’ Hamner, George Clayton Jackson, David Gerrold, Ib Melchior, William F. Nolan, Larry Niven, and Harlan Ellison (Harlie will sign two of your books if you buy one from him – and don’t tell him I called him Harlie!) To find the authors signing times, go here: http://la-vintage-paperback-show.com/#sthash.bPAEwAhx.dpbs

ANTHONY MANN RETROSPECTIVE CONTINUES AT BILLY WILDER/UCLA

The two-month retrospective entitled Dark City, Open Country: The Films of Anthony Mann.  Which opened in January at the UCLA Motion Picture & Television Archive at the Billy Wilder Theatre, continues. Best known for his post-war western collaborations with James Stewart at Universal, he also directed many other excellent westerns, as well as gritty crime stories, at all of the major studios as well as the poverty row outfits.  On Wednesday, March 12^th, it’s T-MEN (1947) and RAW DEAL (1948).  March 15^th SIDE STREET (1950) and WINCHESTER ’73 (1950).  March 23^rd THE TALL TARGET (1951) and THE FAR COUNTRY (1954).  And finally, on March 30^th MAN OF THE WEST (1958) and THE TIN STAR (1957).

SANTA CLARITA COWBOY FEST BOOKSIGNERS ANNOUNCED

One of the high points of the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival, which will be April 26 & 27 at Melody Ranch, is the Buckaroo Book Shop, where author of Western fact and fiction will be signing their books and meeting their fans.  The Book Shop is run by the folks at OutWest, and they’ve just finalized their list of authors who’ll be attending.   Cheryl Rogers-Barnett (daughter of Roy and Dale), Margaret Brownley, Jim Christina, Peter Conway, Steve Deming, Edward M. Erdelac, J.P. Gorman, Dale B. Jackson, Jim Jones, C. Courtney Joyner (see my review of his SHOTGUN in next week’s Round-up), Andria Kidd, Antoinette Lane, Jerry Nickle (a descendant of Harry Longabaugh, alias the Sundance Kid), J.R. Sanders, Tony Sanders, Janet Squires, ‘Cowgirl Peg’ Sundberg, Miles Hood Swarthout (who scripted THE SHOOTIST), Rod Thompson, and Nancy Pitchford-Zee.  We’ll have a schedule as the date gets closer.

DESERT PAST COMES ALIVE AT 8^TH ANNUAL ‘VALLECITO DAY’ SAT. MARCH 15

Held at and around the original Vallecito stage station, this one-day event will feature tours, a reenactment of California soldiers’ historic march along the southern Overland Trail at the start of the Civil War, how-to demonstrations for throwing a tomahawk, archery, flint and steel fire making, soap-making and how to cook on an open hearth.  There will be mountain man demonstrations as well.  You are encouraged to come in 1850s and 1860s attire, and encouraged to bring food, as none will be available.  Learn more details, including how to get there. At this link: http://www.co.san-diego.ca.us/parks/press/VallecitoDay.html

 

‘ZORRO’ REBOOT IN THE WORKS AT SONY

 

According to Deadline Hollywood, Chris Boal has been signed to script a new Zorro, to be produced by Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald.  Playwright Boal has lately scripted three upcoming films: sci-fier OLD MAN’S WAR for Paramount, and Viking pic VANGUARD for Wolfgang Peterson, and CESAR for Warner Brothers.

NOT A HALLUCINATION!  NEW VIDEO STORE OPENS IN SHERMAN OAKS, CA!

Just about cracked up the Toyota on the way to Sharky’s when I saw the ‘Grand Opening’ sign!  The new Video Hut at 13326 Burbank Boulevard in Sherman Oaks 91401, has been open just a week, still getting organized, so they don’t have a Westerns section yet.  But a casual glance around showed more than a dozen Western titles, including DJANGO UNCHAINED, new and old TRUE GRIT, A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT, OPEN RANGE, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, SWEETWATER, LAST RITES OF RANSOM PRIDE, GOODNIGHT FOR JUSTICE – MEASURE OF A MAN, GUNDOWN, the HATFIELDS & MCCOYS miniseries, and Fred Olen Ray’s film on the same subject, TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARAH, 3:10 TO YUMA, ACE HIGH, ACES & 8S, APALOOSA, AMERICAN BANDITS – FRANK AND JESSE JAMES, AMERICAN OUTLAWS, BLAZING SADDLES, BROKEN BULLET, and LONE RANGER both for rent and for sale.  I rented DEAD IN TOMBSTONE on BluRay, and will soon have a review (take THAT, Universal, who wouldn’t answer my requests for a review copy!).  They also had multiples of the Oscar pics, and the HUNGER GAMES movies.  They’re open 7 days a week, from ten ‘til midnight, and all rentals are $1.50, $1.62 with tax.  Their phone is 818-994-5878.

THAT'S A WRAP!

Every time someone has a monopoly, the customers get burned.  We saw it when Blockbuster drove the mom and pop stores out of business with their huge selection, then dumped 3/4s of their films.  Blockbuster got killed by Netflix, and now Netflix is dumping tons of their content.  I tried to catch up with Oscar movies through VOD on DirecTV, it worked twice, and then it took 36 hours to download half of 12 YEARS A SLAVE – during which my internet was dead (wish I’d realized the connection sooner).  And have I mentioned lately that DirecTV dropped INSP?  My point is, the more choices we have, the better.  Support your local video store if you still have one!

Happy Trails,

Henry

All Original Contents Copyright March 2014 by Henry C. Parke - All Rights Reserved

‘DARK FRONTIER’ REVIEW, PLUS ANTHONY MANN RETRO, AND TARANTINO PULLS THE PLUG!

Updated 2/1/2014 see 'WHEN CALL THE HEART' story 

DARK FRONTIER – Video Review

Australia is a nation whose frontier history parallels that of the United States in many respects, so although the story of DARK FRONTIER does not take place in our West, I think it’s as legitimate for the Round-up to examine such Aussie pictures as it is to examine those set in Canada and Mexico.  Or are you going to tell me QUIGLEY DOWN UNDER isn’t a western?

Just recently released in the United States, DARK FRONTIER, first known as THE LUCKY COUNTRY, was released in Australia in 2009.  It is a dark and brooding story, elegantly scripted by Andy Cox, and dynamically directed by Kriv Stenders, who previously directed BOXING DAY, and has since helmed RED DOG, a true story about a dog’s search for his master, in which he casts some of his DARK FRONTIER stars.

Set in 1902, a year after the formation of the Australian Federation, it’s the story of a family of four that has staked their claim on farm land at the very edge of the frontier.  The father, Nat, has managed to build quite a nice house, filled with their possessions from their old life, but a month ago, his wife, his children’s mother, died.  Now the house seems like a mausoleum, a memorial to her that reminds them constantly of their loss.  His daughter and son, Sarah and Tom, despise the place and the isolation, even as they struggle not to blame their father.  God knows he’s doing the best he can, but his frequent statements of trusting God to provide bring them no confidence. 

In the midst of their trials, and as their few distant neighbors desert their own failed farms for the gold fields, three men ride in, returning from an unsatisfying sojourn with the gold-pan.  They are all recent veterans of the Second Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, arguably one of the darkest pages in Britain’s empire-building.  Henry is the eldest, or at least the father-figure of the three, Carver his inarticulate second, and Jimmy, perhaps not even out of his teens, is the youngest, and wounded.  The trio ask for shelter – they fear Jimmy will die if he cannot rest for the night.  Though initially suspicious, Nat welcomes them in, and his children, though dubious, go along. 

The presence of the three strong men, and the obliqueness of each one’s different intentions, shifts the power-structure of the six.   Not surprisingly, a desperately lonely teenage girl caring for a handsome, injured young man-of-the-world spells trouble.  So does the slowly emerging fact that one person in the group does possess hidden gold, which could change the fortunes of any one of them.

Most unexpectedly, as the story progresses, the center of it becomes twelve-year-old Tom.  Having just reviewed the first season of THE RIFLEMAN on home video, the comparisons are inescapable.  Both stories are about a widowed father trying to make a new life for his son – and in this case son and daughter – in a new and often savage and unforgiving environment.  Both stories are unusual in realistically showing life from the point of view of the loving son as much as the father.  The difference is that Mark McCain has seen that his father has the strength to do just about anything he sets his mind to.  In DARK FRONTIER, Tom and Sarah long to have that much faith in Nat, but they’ve seen their father fail again and again, and now they’re in a fight for their lives.  Because between gold and guns, not many people are going to survive.  To put it another way, in SHANE, how much chance would Van Helfin have, with Jean Arthur already dead, and no Alan Ladd to help? 

Director Kriv Stenders was fortunate to discover young Toby Wallace to star as Tom, who brings a wonderfully layered performance playing a lad forced to mature long before he is ready.  While his character has plenty to say, much of his performance is in his expression.  Many of his scenes are played alone, yet one never has any doubt of what he’s thinking; except when you’re supposed to.

Undoubtedly a low budget film, the filmmakers have wisely created a small, tight story that uses the limitations to their advantage, rather than trying to be ‘bigger’ than they can afford.  Well over 90% of the film takes place in and around the house, and except for brief glimpses at the beginning and end, there are only six characters.  That’s a lot of responsibility for each, and they are all fine actors.  The father, Aden Young, starred in Bruce Beresford’s wonderful 17^th century western THE BLACK ROBE (1991), and plays Victor Frankenstein in the current I, FRANKENSTEIN.  Hanna Mangan Lawrence, lately of the SPARTACUS series, plays the teenaged, miserably unhappy Sarah.  Englishman Pip Miller, of RETURN OF THE JEDI and SLIDING DOORS among many others, plays Henry, leader of the three prospectors, who under other circumstances might be a perfectly nice guy; but he’s done enough in war to be capable of anything in peace.   Neil Pigot plays Carver as a man who says he wants no trouble, but has a huge chip on his shoulder.  And Eamon Farren plays Jimmy, the young romantic with a hard edge.

 

The violence in DARK FRONTIER is not excessive, but it is unflinching.  Cinematographer Jules O’Laughlin, DP on the new BLACK SAILS miniseries, and editor Gabriella Muir handle the visuals and pacing with stylish but unself-conscious skill.  This is a tough, strong, frightening, involving, thoughtful film, and I strongly recommend it.  I will caution that, while the story is about a 12-year-old, I think it would be too upsetting for most 12-year-olds to watch. 

TARANTINO HUNTING FOR ‘HATEFUL A-HOLE’:  SHELVES WESTERN PROJECT!

Director Quentin Tarantino is so angry and depressed at having his script for HATEFUL EIGHT leaked that he’s shelving the project.  Originally set to film in winter, he’s decided instead to publish the script, and direct it in five years or so.   The downside of his nearly deified status among movie nerds is that it becomes impossible to keep wraps on his work until he thinks it’s in a condition to be shown.  The endless on-line analysis of his last two movies’ scripts, for years before the films were shot, no less released, was excruciating.  It’s ‘Round up the usual suspects,’ time and it’s a short list. 

He’s quoted in DEADLINE: HOLLYWOOD as saying, “I gave it to one of the producers on Django Unchained, Reggie Hudlin, and he let an agent come to his house and read it. That’s a betrayal, but not crippling because the agent didn’t end up with the script. There is an ugly maliciousness to the rest of it. I gave it to three actors: Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, Tim Roth. The one I know didn’t do this is Tim Roth. One of the others let their agent read it and that agent has now passed it on to everyone in Hollywood. I don’t know how these fucking agents work, but I’m not making this next. I’m going to publish it, and that’s it for now. I give it out to six people and if I can’t trust them to that degree, then I have no desire to make it. I’ll publish it. I’m done. I’ll move on to the next thing. I’ve got ten more where that came from.”  I hope at least one of the ten is a western, but I’m not holding my breath.

ANTHONY MANN RETROSPECTIVE AT UCLA – BILLY WILDER

Beginning on Friday night, January 31^st, the UCLA Motion Picture & Television Archive, will present, at the Billy Wilder Theatre, a two-month retrospective entitled Dark City, Open Country: The Films of Anthony Mann.  Best known for his post-war western collaborations with James Stewart at Universal, he also directed many other excellent westerns, as well as gritty crime stories, at all of the major studios as well as the poverty row outfits.  Focusing on his crime films and westerns, the program will open with the double feature THE GREAT FLAMARION (1945), starring Erich Von Stroheim, Mary Beth Hughes, and Dan Duryea; and THE FURIES (1950), starring Barbara Stanwyck, Walter Huston, and Gilbert Roland. 

On Saturday, February 1^st, the double bill will be DR. BROADWAY (1942) and TWO O’CLOCK COURAGE (1945).  February 5 it’s STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT (1944) and THE MAN FROM LARAMIE (1955), February 9^th, it’s HE WALKED BY NIGHT (1948) and THE NAKED SPUR (1953).  February 21^st it’s STRANGE IMPERSONATION (1946) and THE LAST FRONTIER (1956).  March 1^st it’s DESPERATE (1947) and RAILROADED (1947).  March 3^rd it’s BORDER INCIDENT (1949) and THE DEVIL’S DOORWAY (1950).  March 12^th, T-MEN (1947) and RAW DEAL (1948).  March 15^th SIDE STREET (1950) and WINCHESTER ’73 (1950).  March 23^rd THE TALL TARGET (1951) and THE FAR COUNTRY (1954).  And finally, on March 30^th MAN OF THE WEST (1958) and THE TIN STAR (1957).

‘HEART’ BEATS STRONG IN EPISODE 4 SATURDAY NIGHT

If you haven’t checked out the Hallmark Channel’s new DR. QUINN ON THE PRAIRIE-styled Canadian Western series, WHEN CALLS THE HEART, Saturday night’s episode is a good place to start.  The series concerns the town of Coal Valley at the turn of the last century, and the school teacher, Elizabeth Thatcher (Erin Krakow), who has come to serve the town, and finds it full of widows and orphans, as a result of a deadly mining accident.  Episode 3 concerned the mining company’s bought-and-paid-for minister, whose church was burned to the ground while mourners were attending a vigil at the mine.  At the end of that episode, investigating Mountie Jack Thornton (Daniel Lissing), sifting through the ashes, finds a clue the Pinkerton Detectives missed: the burnt can of whale oil that started the blaze.  In Episode 4, that can appears to point to a widow of the mine disaster as the culprit.  Is it coincidence, a frame-up, or did she do it?  Find out on Saturday night!  

MASTERS OF THE AMERICAN WEST OPENS FEB.1 AT THE AUTRY

'Mesa Drifters' by Logan Maxwell Hagege

The 17^TH annual MASTERS OF THE AMERICAN WEST EXHIBITION AND SALE opens Saturday, February 1, 2014, in the George Montgomery Gallery. This prestigious exhibition challenges nationally recognized artists such as Howard Terpning, Mian Situ, George Carlson, Bill Anton, Tucker Smith, Z. S. Liang, Robert Griffing, Morgan Weistling, Tammy Garcia, and others to exhibit their very best work. The juried exhibition and sale features 80 artists, including established Masters artists and emerging talent. Proceeds from Masters support the Autry’s dynamic educational programs, ongoing collections conservation, and much more.  The exhibition continues through March 16^th.

PREVIEWS OF COMING ATTRACTIONS!

Next Sunday’s Round-up will feature my visit to the set of THE MAN FROM DEATH.  Also coming soon to the Round-up, my review of C. Courtney Joyner’s new western novel, SHOTGUN, along with an interview; my review of the new western documentary THE LEGEND OF THE RENO BROTHERS; my review of the new Maryland-based western DAY OF THE GUN; and my review of the just-released THE RED SKELTON SHOW – THE LOST EPISODES (trust me, there is a western connection).

THE WRAP-UP

I’d hoped to review of the new northwestern mini-series KLONDIKE in this week’s Round-up, and I’ve DVR’d all six hours, but I haven’t had a chance to even watch the opening credits.  The trailer looked great.  I placed a request on the Round-up Facebook page for reactions from those who’d seen it.  Here are some of those comments. 

Don D. Wright: “ Great ! I watched all of it !

Chris John Curtis Raring: Loved it, thought it was well done!!!

Caroline Wilson- Sudduth: My family watched the whole thing...awesome...was a little predictable when the man fell thru the ice and lost his gold...jumping on ice that is melting is a  little stupid!..IMO

Roger Manley: Enjoyed it tremendously. WELL DONE!!

Cheryl Dubuque: Only watched parts... wasn't what I thought. I don't think I will use the right word, but it seems more docu-drama or documentary in some parts than I thought it would be... The previews looked great - but don't think the show lived up to the previews. (sorry folks!)

Leta Ann Goldston Burns: Watched it all...Speech garbled..hard to understand..

Tom Betts: I watched the first episode and found it a bit hard to follow, and it's awfully dark both in story and scenery. Seems to want to be part Deadwood part Hell on Wheels. All story with very little action. It's what I would expect from today’s Hollywood.

Col Kurtz: Watched it all and enjoyed it. The scenery, costumes, and props all were excellent. Since it was a mini-series, they didn't have time to develop nuanced characters or plot. But for a show "based on actual events", it was entertaining.

Barbara Moore: Something went wrong with our recorder. We got none of it. Just hope they repeat!

Dan Searles: Was watching Centenial miniseries on encore channel, missed Klondike

Gary Ledoux: I DVR'd it and watched the whole thing yesterday. It was awesome! One of the best mini-series ever. And from what I know about that period, was largely historically accurate. I found one major gaffe but I won't give it out and be a spoiler. Looking at some of the other comments here...yes it was kind of "gritty" like Hell on Wheels and Deadwood... but that's Ok because that time and place was indeed gritty. I was fortunate to have access to some first-hand journals of two men who took that same trip in 1898. Awesome to read.

My favorite two comments are from Sandra Bowers and Leo Pandro, because they touch on two real and growing problems on television in general:

Sondra Bowers: I love the series, but, the commercials make for tedious watching.

Leo Pando: I've been spoiled by HBO and SHOWTIME, shows without relentless commercials. The logos promoting other programs invading the screen are also a distraction. One might be better off watching this when it's available for streaming on Netflix.

So that’s it for this week.  If I manage to find six hours, I’ll let you know what I think of KLONDIKE.  And if you have an opinion, please post it as a comment here on the Round-up!

Happy Trails,

Henry

All Original Contents Copyright January 2014 by Henry C. Parke – All Rights Reserved