Diagonaldi Very well executed

Titreenp SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

SeeQuant Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

Calum Hutton It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

deickos Actually this cannot be a typical old western, but rather one of the first modern ones. There is so much humor and Brando's performance enhances further the result. Of course, the main source of humor is not Brando's misfortunes, but rather the macho comparison between women and horses. The irony derives from the old belief that horses are more valuable in men's eyes and that is the first scene and the opening of the story.

campo_smokie-citrus This is a good, compelling, gritty western that kept my attention from beginning to end. I saw it back in 1970 as a youngster and it made a huge impression on me. This was my introduction to Marlon Brando and John Saxon and made me a big fan of both actors. The story is a good one that provides plenty of adventure and suspense as Brando's character (Matt Fletcher) heads south of the border to the Cuchedland to retrieve his stolen Appaloosa horse and avenge himself of the notorious bandito leader, Chuy Medina, well played by John Saxon. I loved how it began, with a joyful reunion between Matt and some dear friends with whom he plans to settle down. Then a strange woman shows up and trouble soon follows, as so often happens. There are memorable scenes and dialogue, especially the scene in the cantina where they arm wrestle over cups of pulcha and scorpions. Yes, there is a lot of Sergio Leone influence and the accents are laid on thick but that's classic and adds to the fun. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre did the same thing and it's a masterpiece. Just get comfortable and enjoy the ride. For fans of gritty westerns, Marlon Brando and John Saxon, you don't want to miss this one.

Robert J. Maxwell Chuy Medina (Saxon) and his thugs steal the Appaloosa belonging to Brando. Brando chases them across the border into Mexico and after many tribulations brings back both the horse and Anjanette Comer.Somebody in movies like this is always racing across the border to escape justice or wreak revenge or retrieve a stolen horse or something. Mexico is "the other". It's usually "bad" in the way that California is a pipe dream of paradise. Both honor and treachery rule in Mexico. It's a Hobbesian universe. "No arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death: and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short." Brando's compadre advises him, "Trust no one in Mexico, Matteo." Brando can trust Anjanette Comer, though. She's truthful and entirely candid. Not that she looks anything like a Mexican woman though. She's groomed like a Hollywood actress playing a Mexican woman.That's the responsibility of Bud Westmore, who was in charge of make ups. He must have been asleep at the wheel. A hard-working rancher's wife is given a close up of her fingers fondling a crucifix, and her fingers are immaculate and her nails perfectly trimmed and polished. She could perform surgery without gloves.Westmore has also thoughtfully seen to it that the principal actors, the ones not wearing raggedy beards, have cheeks and chins as smoothly shaven as Anjanette Comer's, even if they've been recovering from scorpion venom. That would be Brando. He's been stung by a scorpion from Durango after losing an arm-wrestling contest with Saxon. (John Wayne could never have played this role because John Wayne couldn't possibly lose an arm-wrestling contest.) Actually, Durango is noted for its scorpions. They're not even called escorpio, at least not according to my Durango informant. They have a special name, alacran, and the people of Durango are generally known as Alacran de Durango.This was directed by Sidney J. Furie, who must be phobic for traditional movie shots. There are no more long shots than are absolutely essential to an understanding of the plot. Medium shots are invariably broken by objects in the foreground -- pillars, posts, pitchers, and in one scene all five of Marlon Brando's fingers block most of the camera's view. The close up are really CLOSE ups. A typical reverse angle shot, involving, say, two people conversing at a table will alternate chokers in which we see a person's features from his eyebrows to his lower lip. More than once, we see only a single eyeball. But there are plenty of teeth that are not just white but blindingly so, like arc lights, cleaned, polished, buffed, and in those dark, scarred faces they glow with an inner luminescence.Other director's tics: When people drink or eat, whatever they are drinking or eating tends to dribbled down their chins onto their clothing or gets clotted in their facial hair. A very artistic shot of Anjanette Comer's incandescent incisors squishing on a wedge of lime after a shot of tequila. And when someone walks, we don't see them walk. We see their jangling spurred boots moving step by step through the dust or snow.I don't know how much it cost to hire Marlon Brando for this Mexican adventure but he didn't put an equivalent amount of effort into the role. There was a time (and there would be a time again later) when he invested his roles with intelligence and energy, but by 1966 he seemed to be sleepwalking, tired, bored, resigned -- just another actor. Comer is miscast. She seems city bred. John Saxon does surprisingly well by the role of the local strong man. And Alex Montoya is given a novel touch of humanity -- shot full of holes by Brando, he looks agonized and cries, "Senor!", before collapsing.Nice location photography and a potentially interesting story, mostly ruined by superheated direction and a flat performance by the star.

Herowithgreeneyesandblue I'm being nice and giving it an even five stars just because the women and scenery are so beautiful. In Chicago there used to be a movie theater that ran Mexican produced westerns every weekend. They came out of a sardine can for the most part, when you got really lucky they had a special three banger like, "The Horsethief", "The Man Who Stole Horses" and finally, "That Man Stole My Horse!" Granted they were different movies but...Appaloosa seems to be an American adaptation of of of these movies but it's anybodies guess which one. These movies are fun though, I guess thats why they made so many of them. This one however should have been put in a tuna can. Marlon Brando is bored out of his mind. He perks up when he visits a married couple who are his friends. He flirts with the woman, lovely Mexican MILF Miriam Colon, but he's clearly more interested in her husband Emilio Fernandez.I can't pick on John Saxon, he's not the greatest actor but he earns his paycheck every time like the pro he is.Anjanette Comer is gorgeous but not in a steamy Mexican kind of way. She was perfect in The Loved One. Born to do campy sexy roles in short dresses. She's miscast here.Unless you can't get enough of your favorite actor, watch something else.