After not seeing this film for almost 30 years, I was surprised how good the cinematography was, since I had mainly just remembered this as another Western with a good cast of famous tough guys. The rugged Mexican countryside took my attention as much as the story.
Another big surprise was Robert Ryan. Noted for playing almost nothing but sadistic villains, Ryan turned an about-face here and plays the most humane person in the group, in contrast to other male leads' Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin and Woody Strode. All of these actors are fun to watch and Claudia Cardinale, although not the greatest of actresses, also fun to ogle.
This is one of those transitional films of the mid 1960s, one that still was under a morals code but was pushing it to the limit. Another year or two and it would be gone altogether. So, language started to get rougher including the Lord's name in vain which slips in here a couple of times; a plug for evolution (Big Bang theory) is given by Lancaster and there is a scene in which you see the side view of a woman's breast - all things that would prevalent in films in just a few more years.
All in all, just a so-so story elevated by the presence of some very well-known tough-guy actors.
Another big surprise was Robert Ryan. Noted for playing almost nothing but sadistic villains, Ryan turned an about-face here and plays the most humane person in the group, in contrast to other male leads' Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin and Woody Strode. All of these actors are fun to watch and Claudia Cardinale, although not the greatest of actresses, also fun to ogle.
This is one of those transitional films of the mid 1960s, one that still was under a morals code but was pushing it to the limit. Another year or two and it would be gone altogether. So, language started to get rougher including the Lord's name in vain which slips in here a couple of times; a plug for evolution (Big Bang theory) is given by Lancaster and there is a scene in which you see the side view of a woman's breast - all things that would prevalent in films in just a few more years.
All in all, just a so-so story elevated by the presence of some very well-known tough-guy actors.