Category: Adventure

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon: A magnificent John Wayne performance anchors this visually stunning John Ford Western

John Ford's classic Western, She wore a Yellow Ribbon(1949), is the second film in Ford's famed 'Cavalry trilogy'. It's also one of the most visually beautiful films ever made, with John Wayne giving an extraordinary performance in the lead role. "There are no nuances because Nathan Brittles, like Tom Dunson, is folklore and legend, They're … Continue reading She Wore a Yellow Ribbon: A magnificent John Wayne performance anchors this visually stunning John Ford Western →

Joe Kidd: John Sturges and Elmore Leonard crafted a lean, mean Western for Clint Eastwood

Joe Kidd(1972), starring Clint Eastwood in the title role was a Western directed by John Sturges and written by Elmore Leonard. It featured Robert Duvall and John Saxon in supporting roles Elmore Leonard , the revered American novelist and short story writer, is today known more for his crime fiction and suspense thrillers laced with … Continue reading Joe Kidd: John Sturges and Elmore Leonard crafted a lean, mean Western for Clint Eastwood →

Shalako: Sean Connery starred in this old-fashioned, all-star cast Western adventure that’s reasonably entertaining

Shalako(1968), starring Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot, is a Western adventure directed by Edward Dmytryk. Connery made the film during his temporary sabbatical from James Bond, and it's the only western he ever made. Sean Connery as a cowboy is as alien a concept as a British Western. But in 1968 both these unusual concepts … Continue reading Shalako: Sean Connery starred in this old-fashioned, all-star cast Western adventure that’s reasonably entertaining →

Mackenna’s Gold: Gregory Peck and Omar Sharif face-off in this totally bonkers Western high adventure

Mackenna's Gold(1969) is a western high adventure that reunited Gregory Peck with writer\producer Carl Foreman and director J. Lee Thompson after the stupendous success of Guns of Navarone(1961). The film, based on Will Henry's novel, features an all-star cast that includes Omar Sharif, Camilla Sparv and Edward G. Robinson Gregory Peck as a Marshall with … Continue reading Mackenna’s Gold: Gregory Peck and Omar Sharif face-off in this totally bonkers Western high adventure →

Gunaa: Kamal Haasan’s idiosyncratic amalgam of Rainman, Rambo and Devdas makes for compelling cinema

This piece on Gunaa(1991) is my new addition to  60 years of Kamal Haasan series. Gunaa is a truly unique and idiosyncratic film that was a flop at the time of its release, but has gone on to acquire a cult following. The film is also, perhaps , the greatest collaboration between Kamal and music director Ilayaraja, who has provided an … Continue reading Gunaa: Kamal Haasan’s idiosyncratic amalgam of Rainman, Rambo and Devdas makes for compelling cinema →

Moonraker: Roger Moore’s James Bond goes on a space odyssey in the grandest and the most grandly absurd of all Bond films

Moonraker(1979) is the eleventh James Bond film and the fourth starring Roger Moore as Ian Fleming's James Bond . This is the kind of ridiculous and ridiculously entertaining Bond spectacle that's unthinkable in today's times. After ruling the silver screen in the 1960s, James Bond was facing some tough times in the 70s. Bond, brought … Continue reading Moonraker: Roger Moore’s James Bond goes on a space odyssey in the grandest and the most grandly absurd of all Bond films →

Jubal: Glenn Ford and Rod Steiger play rival cowboys in this taut, psychological Western

Director Delmer Daves' overlooked masterpiece Jubal(1956), starring Glenn Ford, Earnest Borgnine and Rod Steiger, is a loose adaptation of William Shakespeare's immortal tragedy Othello transported to the old West Director Delmer Daves is most famous for his 1957 western 3:10 to Yuma. But for me, his masterwork is the 1956 film Jubal ; which transported … Continue reading Jubal: Glenn Ford and Rod Steiger play rival cowboys in this taut, psychological Western →

On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: George Lazenby’s sole outing as James Bond resulted in the most romantic Bond film

On Her Majesty's Secret Service(1969) was the sixth James Bond film. It introduced a new James Bond and it was very different from any Bond film that came before or after it. On Her Majesty's Secret Service(OHMSS), the sixth James Bond film from Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli's Eon Productions, started off with a … Continue reading On Her Majesty’s Secret Service: George Lazenby’s sole outing as James Bond resulted in the most romantic Bond film →

Ulzana’s Raid: Burt Lancaster and Director Robert Aldrich reunited after 18 years to create this gritty, revisionist Vietnam-era western

Director Robert Aldrich and star Burt Lancaster reunited after 18 years to make the gritty, revisionist 1972 Western, Ulzana's Raid , which plays out as an allegory of United States' involvement in the Vietnam War. Ulzana's Raid is the third film that Burt Lancaster and Robert Aldrich made together. The first two films, Apache and Vera … Continue reading Ulzana’s Raid: Burt Lancaster and Director Robert Aldrich reunited after 18 years to create this gritty, revisionist Vietnam-era western →

Vera Cruz: Burt Lancaster gives a scene-stealing performance opposite Gary Cooper in this colorful Mexican adventure that anticipates & influenced Spaghetti Westerns

Director Robert Aldrich teamed up Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster in his highly entertaining 1954 western, Vera Cruz. Apart from being the first of the the 'grey' westerns, it also happens to be the chief inspiration for the ultra-violent Euro-westerns of the Sixties. It's too bad that Burt Lancaster never did a toothpaste ad. With … Continue reading Vera Cruz: Burt Lancaster gives a scene-stealing performance opposite Gary Cooper in this colorful Mexican adventure that anticipates & influenced Spaghetti Westerns →

The Professionals: Burt Lancaster and Lee Marvin are at the top of their game in this rousing ‘Men on a Mission’ Western adventure

Director Richard Brooks' all-star cast 1966  film, The Professionals, starring  Lee Marvin, Jack Palance, Claudia Cardinale and Burt Lancaster is the kind of  intelligently written, beautifully photographed, western adventure that just isn't made anymore. The Professionals is a rousing adventure story set on the Mexican-American border in the year 1917. It's  about four mercenaries who … Continue reading The Professionals: Burt Lancaster and Lee Marvin are at the top of their game in this rousing ‘Men on a Mission’ Western adventure →

Sorcerer: William Friedkin’s visceral, minimalist epic is a mesmerizing exercise in pure cinema

When William Friedkin's  Sorcerer came out in 1977, it was rejected outright by both audience and critics. It was a very expensive, ambitious and idiosyncratic film , whose failure ,almost destroyed the career of Friedkin  But now , with the release of a restored print of the film personally supervised by Friedkin, it has  finally … Continue reading Sorcerer: William Friedkin’s visceral, minimalist epic is a mesmerizing exercise in pure cinema →

Goldfinger: Sean Connery’s James Bond is fully formed in this definitive Bond Blockbuster that set the template for the subsequent films in the series

 Goldfinger(1964) is the third film in the James Bond series and the first Bond Blockbuster. Apart from being the film that kicked off the Bond Phenomenon, it's also a very sleek, sophisticated  spy thriller in the  spirit of the best in the genre, with Sean Connery giving, what i consider, his most confident, well-rounded performance … Continue reading Goldfinger: Sean Connery’s James Bond is fully formed in this definitive Bond Blockbuster that set the template for the subsequent films in the series →

Where Eagles Dare: Clint Eastwood and Richard Burton join forces to battle the Nazis in this classic tale of wartime adventure

Where Eagles Dare(1968), the highly entertaining World War II adventure film that brought together the talents of British thespian Richard Burton and American superstar Clint Eastwood, is great fun even after 50 years. "The world is grown so bad / That wrens make prey where eagles dare not perch,” The above quote from Shakespeare's Richard … Continue reading Where Eagles Dare: Clint Eastwood and Richard Burton join forces to battle the Nazis in this classic tale of wartime adventure →

Django: Franco Nero and Sergio Corbucci took the Western to the next level with this politically-charged, ultra-violent masterpiece

Sergio Corbucci's iconic Spaghetti Western,  Django(1966), which made a star out of Franco Nero, looks better than ever  in a newly restored print. When one thinks of adaptations  of  Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo, the title that comes to mind first is Sergio Leone's A fistful of Dollars. Of course, it was the first of the Spaghetti … Continue reading Django: Franco Nero and Sergio Corbucci took the Western to the next level with this politically-charged, ultra-violent masterpiece →

Apocalypse Now: Francis Ford Coppola’s psychedelic Odyssey into Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is as hypnotic as ever

It was in 1979 that Director, Francis Ford Coppola premiered his long delayed, troubled production, Apocalypse Now, in Cannes. The film was not yet finished and it was shown as a work in progress. But still it won the Palme D'or. Looks like the film is still a work in progress for Coppola. He has … Continue reading Apocalypse Now: Francis Ford Coppola’s psychedelic Odyssey into Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is as hypnotic as ever →

The Towering Inferno: At the height of new-Hollywood, two golden age studios joined hands to create the ultimate film spectacle that remains the crown jewel in Disaster film genre

Though 1970s is considered to be the height of dark, serious auteur-driven cinema, Two old-Hollywood studios, Warner Bros. and Twentieth Century-Fox joined hands to make the big budget spectacle, The Towering Inferno(1974). The spectacular disaster film brought Steve McQueen and Paul Newman together on screen for the first time,  along with an assortment of stars … Continue reading The Towering Inferno: At the height of new-Hollywood, two golden age studios joined hands to create the ultimate film spectacle that remains the crown jewel in Disaster film genre →

The Searchers: John Wayne’s greatest performance powers John Ford’s seminal Western magnum opus

May 26th marks John Wayne's birth anniversary. To commemorate this moment, here is a look back on his greatest performance in his greatest film. John Ford's Magnum opus, The Searchers(1956), is universally considered the greatest, and the most influential, Western of all times, and often makes it to the top ten list of the greatest … Continue reading The Searchers: John Wayne’s greatest performance powers John Ford’s seminal Western magnum opus →

The Guns of Navarone: Gregory Peck leads an all-star cast in the first of the WWII ‘Men on a Mission’ epics

The Guns of Navarone(1961), adapted from Alistair Mclean's eponymous novel, Directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Gregory Peck, David Niven and Anthony Quinn in lead roles, is an Oscar Nominated epic, adventure film, which was the first of the 'Men on a Mission' movies set in the backdrop of World War II. "You have … Continue reading The Guns of Navarone: Gregory Peck leads an all-star cast in the first of the WWII ‘Men on a Mission’ epics →

Jeremiah Johnson: Robert Redford is sublime as the Mountain Man who became a legend in his own time

Sydney Pollack's 1972 film Jeremiah Johnson is one of the most poetic and atmospheric westerns that is at once mythical and a myth-shattering visceral experience. Jeremiah Johnson has one of my most favorite movie openings of all time:  Robert Redford, wearing an Army uniform, is seen stepping off a barge into a rustic settlement- what … Continue reading Jeremiah Johnson: Robert Redford is sublime as the Mountain Man who became a legend in his own time →