Shalako (1968)

Saddle up for a raucous and robust western adventure (Variety) that packs strong action (Film & TV Daily) and the crackling chemistry of screen icons Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot! Based on the novel by Louis L Amour Shalako is a handsome (Variety) rousing western (Motion Picture Herald) that delivers nonstop thrills with both barrels blazing!Gutsy gun-slinging Shalako (Connery) is a loner who looks out for number one until he finds himself rescuing and falling for a beautiful countess (Bardot) under attack by Apache Indians. But when Shalako discovers that the countess is part of a European hunting party that refuses to be led to safety he must summon all his courage to fight the Apache and save the woman he loves or die trying!System Requirements: Running Time 113 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: WESTERN/MISC. Rating: PG UPC: 027616905796 Manufacturer No: M102769 Product Description

It Stinks

This was an all European production based on a Louis Lamour novel and that's the most decent thing I can say. Well, to be fair Connery does acquite himself well as a western hero. Everyone else is truly wasted. An oddity as a film at best. July 22, 2008

1968 Survival Western with Sean Connery & Brigitte Bardot (and Valerie French)

DIRECTOR: Edward Dmytryk
WRITERS: Louis L'Amour (novel) and Clarke Reynolds (screenplay)
CAST: Sean Connery, Brigitte Bardot, Sephen Boyd, Honor Blackman, Jack Hawkins, Woody Strode and Valerie French
RUNTIME: 1 hour 53 minutes
LOCATIONS: Spain
COUNTRY: UK/West Germany

THE STORY: A pompous group of European nobles on a hunting vacation in New Mexico are beset by a band of Apaches who don't appreciate them trespassing on their lands. After the Europeans are abandoned by their cowboy guides they are helped by an intrepid loner named Shalako (Connery). Can they make it out alive?

As you can see, this European film has a lot going for it. It's based on a Louis L'Amour novel and has a great cast. Yet, it bombed when it was originally released and I admit not liking it much the first two times I viewed it, but then maybe that's because I saw it on a crappy taped-from-tv vhs hampered by commercials. I decided to give it another chance and bought the excellent dvd; after all, how can you go wrong with Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot?

The opening is reminiscent of "Duel at Diablo" and the rest of the film resembles "Hombre," which were both released in the late 60s as well; so if you're a fan of those films you'll likely appreciate "Shalako."

Although there's quite a lot of good Western action, the story tends to plod along despite the mere 110-minute runtime (minus end credits). This is what turned me off the first two times I saw it, perhaps mainly because I didn't understand a lot of the heavily-accented dialogue. With the dvd, however, I was able to use the subtitles and understand the slow drama of the story. I highly recommend this.

The film is a story of arrogance and betrayal -- the arrogance of the Europeans who have no respect for the "lowbred" cowboys or the Indian "savages," and the betrayal of the American guides, headed excellently by Stephen Boyd (Messala in "Ben-Hur"). But to my pleasure, "Shalako" is mostly a survival story. For some reason I love survival stories, like "Sands of the Kalahari" and "Flight of the Phoenix". This brings to mind other survival-themed Westerns like "Escape from Fort Bravo," "They Came to Cordura" and "Duel at Diablo."

Can you believe Woody Strode, a black man, is cast as the main Native American antagonist? It works, believe it or not, as he looks convincingly Indian.

THE BABE REPORT: Of course, Brigitte Bardot is one of the most beautiful women to ever grace God's earth. With the exception of one bathing scene she's dressed to the hilt throughout. But -- man -- she has such a cute, pouty face and incredible locks of full blond hair. Honor Blackman, who played Pussy Galore in "Goldfinger," is also on hand. I never thought she was all that beautiful, although I like her as an actor.

Of great interest to me was the appearance of the underrated brunette Valerie French. She played the incredible hottie in "Jubal" (1956) when she was 28. "Shalako" was her final film and she was 40 at the time of release. She's mainly a background character but she does have some lines and you'll catch quite a few good glimpses of her. As far as I'm concerned she's just as beautiful as Bardot, if not more, albeit brunette. And, no, it makes no difference that she's 40.

FINAL ANALYSIS: In light of my initial bad impression of "Shalako" due to seeing it on a crappy taped vhs and the numerous mediocre reviews, I fully expected to not like "Shalako." I was wrong. This is a good late-60's Western. I don't like the Spanish locations (as Spain just can't cut it as a stand-in for the American West) and the story does tend to plod a bit, especially if you suffer from ADD; but, other than that, I found the film quite worthwhile for all the above reasons.

Some critize the ending as ridiculous, but I liked it. Would it likely happen in real life? Probably not. But I didn't find it all that unbelievable. In other words, the filmmakers pulled it off. It's a good MOVIE ending. That's why they went with it.

GRADE: B July 16, 2008

The worst film in which Conery worked !

Shalako was a film that gathered all the elements to be a master Western, a fabulous cast and an emblematic director as Dymytryk , but that lacked of the basi factor that makes a good movie, a believable script.

I just had thirteen years old when I saw in my favourite movie theatre and I still can remember my absolute disappointment.
July 5, 2008

75% Entertaining

Given its director (Edward Dmytryk) and its cast (Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot) it is rather odd that 'Shalako" (1969) is such an obscure film and that so many of the comments/reviews are totally negative. "Spaghetti" westerns (filmed in Italy or Spain) were quite the rage in the late 1960's and "Shalako" is about what you would get if "Hombre" (1967) had been given a mild "Spaghetti" treatment.

While not even remotely on the level of Monte Hellman's stuff, "Shalako" is an entertaining and comprehensible western that most viewers will get into and enjoy until about the ¾ mark when the wheels fall off and it drags along to a less than spectacular resolution.

Dmytryk was a veteran action director who occasionally ("The Young Lions") even did a good job of directing actors for the camera. This was one of his last efforts and he seems to have stayed focused on the action and paid little attention to the performances themselves.

Connery plays the title character, an experienced frontiersman who (like Paul Newman in "Hombre") is forced by circumstances into guiding a bunch of clueless civilians to safety. "Hombre" had Newman (a white man raised by Indians) in the moral dilemma of having to assist a group of people for which he has total contempt. Shalako ' s situation is simpler: he must extract a European aristocrat's hunting party who have ticked off the Apache's by coming onto their reservation and who have been betrayed by their cowboy hunting guides. Although he has little use for most of this group he has developed a grudging respect for a plucky countess (Bardot). There is decent chemistry in the early Connery-Bardot scenes but it does not sustain itself as the relationship begins to turn romantic.

As in "Hombre" there is an interesting twist with the young wife (Honor Blackman) of one of the aristocrats deciding to leave her husband for the dangerous cowboy (Stephan Boyd) who has just placed the group at the mercy of the elements (and the Indians). Blackman is excellent in this part , the only really challenging role in the production.

Dmytryk does an excellent job with his first three action sequences, including a surprisingly credible dawn attack on the camp of the hunting party and a more traditional stagecoach chase sequence. But as already mentioned, the film is extremely front-end loaded and he has dissipated all the tension before the climatic sequence even begins.

"Hombre" on the other hand withheld its best sequence until the end and managed to pack some nice irony into its resolution. You won't find this in "Shalako", in fact the final 20 minutes are so listless your mind begins mulling over the plot holes. Like how did Boyd's character manage to walk all the way to the top of the plateau without being detected by the Indians? When you have to insert a detailed verbal explanation for something totally inexplicable (that has happened "off" camera) a competent editor knows that it is time for some major trimming and a focused director begins revising his script.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child. September 1, 2007

Cool Bardot Western

What is more retro-cool than watching a late 60's western starring
Brigette Bardot and Sean Connery?

A European Hunting party gets trapped out west and surrounded by
Indians. Connery attempts to move them to safety. This is an
intense serious drama that is eerily realistic at times.

You feel a sense of dread as this hunting party gets deeper and
deeper into trouble.

Bardot looks stunning, and brings her natural charisma to the film
Her romance with Connery is actually minimal. This is a drama with
action, not a love story.

There is a very intense stagecoach chase later in the film, with
great camera work. Somehow this film got lost in the shuffle, but
it's a great adaptation of a Louie L'amour novel. July 31, 2007

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