Bad Man's River

When I saw the billings for this, I admit that it piqued my interest. Who'd ever have pitched the epitome of style that is James Mason into a western with Lee Van Cleef? Well, Gene Martin did - and he made a mess of the whole thing. Mason actually features quite sparingly as "Montero", the gent who has pinched "Alicia" (Gina Lollobrigida) from her train-robbing husband "King" (Lee Van Cleef). Not only did she abandon him, but she managed to get him sectioned at the same time for being mad, and she absconded with all his loot. Anyway, he escapes and they rendezvous some years later on a river boat where she outlines a cunning plan to rob the Mexican government of $1m in gold. Philip Yordan wrote the screenplay, but perhaps he was only engaged for a few days because what we have is really a poorly scripted, stylised, collection of almost slapstick "comedy" scenes as they firstly destroy an arsenal and set about obtaining their treasure. Lollobrigida is the star here, she has her tongue firmly in her cheek and really does rescue this from the comedic doldrums to which it is heading. There are a few other fun scenes - turning an old Model T-type car into an armoured car by nailing planks of wood to, for instance; and they are undoubtedly aided by the Mexican troops who couldn't hit a barn door with a Howitzer at ten paces. It's colourful and it doesn't hang about - and the ending is little bit apt, but the film itself is all over the shop and struggles to engage above the puerile.

Goofy Spag Western with Lee Van Cleef, Gina Lollobrigida and James Mason

During the Mexican Revolution, a bank robber near the Southwest border (Van Cleef) marries a woman (Lollobrigida) that doesn’t end well. So, he gets involved with a scheme to blow up an arsenal of the Mexican army and rob those who bring the replacement funds. James Mason shows up in the last act.

A joint Italian/French/Spanish production, “Bad Man’s River” (1971) is a quirky Western comedy in the tradition of American ones, like "McLintock," "Cat Ballou," "Texas Across the River,” "Support Your Local Sheriff" and “Little Big Man.” This might be the silliest of them all and prefigures “Blazing Saddles,” albeit with the vibe and issues usually associated with Euro Westerns.

The soundtrack is puerile in a fun way and there’s lots of action amidst the amusing bits, plus both Gina and Diana Lorys (Dolores) are easy on the eyes. If I’m in the mode for a humorous Western, I’ll go with "Texas Across the River" and "The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox,” but I gotta respect the over-the-top zaniness of this flick.

The movie runs 1 hour, 31 minutes, and was shot in Spain.

GRADE: B-/C+