Roger Corman likes to give this film as an example as a New World film that didn’t take off at the box office. It’s a disingenuous answer in a way because this has become a cult film: the director was Monte Hellman, who worked with Corman on and off throughout his career.
The milieu alone ensures this is always maintains some level of interest; Warren Oates plays a cockfighter who has taken a vow of silence until he’s made it to the top. It starts with his bird losing a fight against Harry Dean Stanton. Then we flashback to him losing another fight against Harry Dean Stanton, then in sports movie tradition he sets about on the road to the top. He gets money to buy a new rooster, gets a trainer (Richard Schull), starts playing smaller gigs, ignores the love of a good woman, builds up to the big game.
Interesting cast: there’s also Troy Donahue (looking dishevelled and pudgy), Millie Perkins, Ed Begley Jnr and Steve Railsback. It was shot by Nelstor Almendros and edited by Lewis Teague and has an evocative atmosphere. But the film was problems – the muteness of the hero becomes irritating (although they use narration; it limits the character’s ability to interact with others, which hurts for a lead). The narrative lacks urgency – it becomes boring. And the big problem, which Corman didn’t realise until the film came out - who cares about cockfighters? Or Oates’ character?
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