Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Movie review - "Posse from Hell" (1961) **

As the 1960s were ushered in, Westerns were becoming more psychologically complex and, well, neurotic - so when Audie Murphy gets together a posse to chase after a bunch of outlaws who've shot up a town, said posse all squabble amongst themselves - it consists of a townie, vengeful brother, Indian who suffers racial prejudice, pompous old fool and, later, a rape victim. No wonder Audie would rather get the baddies by himself.

It's quite dark material - the girl abducted by the outlaws is raped, it starts with a bunch of townspeople being innocently gunned down (including the marshall), several of the posse die, there is a kind of "arc" involving Audie learning to find the good in people or something. But after a promising beginning and despite a cast including Lee Van Cleef and John Saxon (townie with whom Audie has a bromance) it proves to be slow and uninvolving. The handling isn't particularly inspired, and it feels too much like television.

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