You know, the rhythm of this title really makes me think of "Catch Scratch Fever", and you know, I'll run with it, because it's better than getting the Beastie Boys song stuck in my head. The movie concerns awell, drifter who wonders into a small town from the high plains. original, Release Date (Streaming): The leading role is Christs. High Plains Drifter is a morality tale carved out of the harsh Western desert and directed with a panache that synthesized the styles of Sergio Leone and Don Siegel, two directors who had worked with Eastwood frequently. The Stranger replies, "Yes, you do." Clint Eastwood is the ultimate thinking mans cinematic killing machine. The film had its share of detractors. This would explain why nobody in the town recognized him, but he knew how exactly the Marshal was killed and he was able to kill the three men . The next morning, Sarah tells the Stranger that Duncan cannot rest in peace because the town buried him in an unmarked grave. Coming Soon. It exalts and delights in a kind of pitiless Old Testament wrath. High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Whipped to Death, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Whipping the Outlaw, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Blowing Up The Hotel, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - The Sheriff and the Mayor, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Shave and a Shootout, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Shooting Up Hell, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Killing the Outlaws, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Target Practice, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - The Stranger Rides Away. Even when the film is traditional in structure, it's often distancing, for Eastwood's quiet directorial intensity is often more quiet than intense, and therefore more dry than Eastwood can handle as a sophomore directorial storytelling, resulting in dullness that is the biggest issue of the final product. Still from High Plains Drifter In Rabbinical literature, the angel of death, a creation of God on the first day, exacts slaughter, in the manner ordained by God, to restore the honour of mankind. The CulturalRites article on his most interesting film is available here. A film version broadcast on the Sundance Channel in 2020 has a few words noticeably cut out. The film stars Eastwood as a mysterious stranger who metes out justice in a corrupt frontier mining town. When the attractive, blond townswoman Callie Travers flirtatiously insults him, he rapes her in the livery stable. Bach, Cantata 6, at the Second Day of Easter Light and Darkness of Existence, The Ferryman's Obolus Mahler and Freud Meet in Leiden II:III, J.S. Dee Barton's score is genuinely refreshing, capturing the supernatural feel of the film through a fusion of classic western themes and a whimsy which ranges from colorful to rather intense, while Bruce Surtees' cinematography, despite being not quite as playful as Barton's still-underused efforts, is also attractive in its bleakness, with a rugged palette over gritty art direction by Henry Bumstead. It's never revealed who the drifter is, but it's implied that he's the Devil, or the Angel of Death, or the ghost of Marshal Duncan - either way, it's at least a little supernatural, and very. The Clint Eastwood 3- Movie Western Collection on Blu-ray is the perfect Father's Day gift that features the Academy Award winning actor in 3 iconic roles. The supporting cast is all of humanity. "[19] John Wayne criticized the film's iconoclastic approach; in a letter to Eastwood, he wrote, "That isn't what the West was all about. But he has a score of his own to settle. Check box if your review contains spoilers, High Plains Drifter: Maybe You Think You're Fast Enough, Now Playing: High Plains Drifter: Maybe You Think You're Fast Enough. . He favored a less explicit and more supernatural interpretation, and excised the reference. Eastwood knew nothing about Leoneand frankly, there wasnt much to know yet. There's a boldness, confident stylisation, and genuine weirdness to the movie that totally escaped other post-spaghetti American Westerns, with a real sense of exorcism running both through and beyond it. High Plains Drifter. This 10-digit number is your confirmation number. Link to Are You There God? Maybeand this is where the movie gets really interestingbecause he is Duncan. But once he shows his skills with a pistol, the locals realize he may be able to help them fend off a band of criminals who have been terrorizing the town. Dynamite, used in the narrative to kill the cowardly and stone the murderers is the sulfur that presages the second death. Book: Hughes, Howard. Over the years, a number of fans have asked where was High Plain Drifter filmed. I also think George Pickens will be our It's Me, Margaret. Callie and several men, including Morgan Allen, decide to kill the Stranger. Anyway Clint Eastwood stars in and directs HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER which is a mystery western and quite dark, bloody and cool. Its first image is of a stock Western landscape, a barren southwestern American desert, our view distorted by waves of heat. High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film directed by Clint Eastwood, written by Ernest Tidyman, and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Company and Universal Pictures. A gun-fighting stranger comes to the small settlement of Lago and is hired to bring the townsfolk together in an attempt to hold off three outlaws who are on their way. 20th highest-grossing film released in 1973, American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood, http://powergrid.thewrap.com/project/high-plains-drifter, https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=highplainsdrifter.htm, https://www.theguardian.com/film/2003/oct/07/guardianinterviewsatbfisouthbank, Kino: Clint Eastwood's High Plains Drifter Detailed for Blu-ray, Metallicas Kirk Hammett Soundtracks a Six-String Shootout on New Song High Plains Drifter. The original script identified him as the marshal's brother. Privacy Policy Cracks in the Pedestal Ideology and Gender in Hollywood . It seems the residents are the only ones in town. For the first and last time in his career, High Plains Drifter would prove that he might just want to be both. Supported by Eastwood casting his own stunt double as the dead marshal. Find a list of the best recent and upcoming film and TV titles added to Music title data, credits, and images provided by, Movie title data, credits, and poster art provided by. Amid shoot-outs and existentialism, a stranger is hired to protect a town from outlaws -- but his recipe for defense could be a deal with the devil. High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film directed by Clint Eastwood, written by Ernest Tidyman, and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Company and Universal Pictures. This is even true for the DVD version. Belding, aiming a shotgun at the Stranger's back, is shot dead by Mordecai.The next morning as the Stranger rides past Mordecai in the cemetery. The next morning, Sarah tells the Stranger that Duncan cannot rest in peace because the town buried him in an unmarked grave. When the attractive, blond townswoman Callie Travers flirtatiously insults him, he rapes her in the livery stable. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. [9], The character of Marshal Duncan was played by Buddy Van Horn, Eastwood's long-time stunt double, to suggest that he and the Stranger could be the same person. After having sex with him in his room, Callie slips out as three men enter. He passed through this small town a long time ago. The historicity of the name, in Persian, suggests the meaning little boy; in Aramaic, follower or servant, or follower and servant of God. Bach: Cantata 182, at Palm Sunday Hope Returns to Rejoice, J.S. High Plains Drifter (1973) on IMDb: Movies, TV, Celebs, and more. But more than anything, its a ghost story (if you choose to see it that wayand I do) in frontier drag. Book: Gentry, Ric . These people want protection, but theres no salvation for them. The Stranger lures one of the Carlin brothers outside and whips him to death, then kills the remaining outlaws one at a time. One of my absolute favorites. The best thing about western is that they have good story, and this one is no different. "@shane130 @JFowlerESPN I disagree he would be good in 1975. Clint Eastwood became a star starring in Westerns, so it wasn't new to see him in this role. After Belding says "It couldn't be worse if the devil himself had ridden into Lago!" Id argue that the movie is just as brutal and cynical as Leones westerns if not more. Wayne, who it turns out wasnt a fan of the film, wrote an angry letter back, saying that High Plains Drifter isnt what the West was all about and that it isnt the American people who settled this country. The Duke may have thought that he was putting the young Eastwood in his place. among the people watching him get whipped to death in the flashback. That night, in his hotel room, the Stranger dreams of Jim Duncan, a federal marshal, being whipped to death by outlaws Stacey Bridges and brothers Dan and Cole Carlin, as Lago's citizens watch in silence. This movie is definitely a different kind of western. The sleepy Wild West mining town of Lago, named after a local lake, is shaken up when a tough stranger (Clint Eastwood) stands up to the local gun champions and kills them in an uneven duel. Callie and two men watching from inside their houses look shaken by Duncan's fate, while most other people seem unaffected or grimly pleased. High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Lago is Hell, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - I'm the Sheriff and the Mayor, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - A Whipping Revenge, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - He Shot My Ear Off, High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - A Shave and a Shootout. He was mellow on the set, never asked for more than one or two takes, and made a habit of coming in both under-schedule and under-budget on his filmsalthough he probably would have preferred to call them movies rather than films. He found out the mine was on government land and was going to report it, which would result in it being closed. "[16], Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called it "a stylized, allegorical western of much chillingly paranoid atmosphere and considerable sardonic humor that confirms Eastwood's directorial flair. [22], High Plains Drifter was first released on DVD by Universal Studios Home Video on February 24, 1998. Read our extensive list of rules for more information on other types of posts like fan-art and self-promotion, or message the moderators if you have any questions. Portions of the town aflame in the night produce the backdrop of the lake of fire. Much is explored in regards to the townsfolk not doing anything when they are oppressed or when oppression becomes apparent to them. Its also a film that deserves to be seen by anyone who has a sweet tooth for the genre or thinks they have a bead on Eastwood as a filmmaker. The next day, Lago officials offer the Stranger "anything you want" to protect the town from Bridges and the Carlins, who will soon be released from prison. The Malpaso Company, Rank Clint Eastwoods 10 Best Movies as Director, Some Juicy New Tidbits on the "DOA" Action Flick, RT25: Celebrating 25 years of Rotten Tomatoes. There's always retribution for your deeds. The film was shot on location on the shores of Mono Lake, California. Impressed by his abilities, the townsfolk hire him to protect the town, but start to second-guess their hire when he begins to take advantage of them. 106 (1818), Dante: Paradiso 1 Congruence of the One and the Many, Giuseppe Verdi Luisa Miller (1849) Power and Violence, Beethoven Piano Sonata 27 in e, Op. High Plains Drifter is a 1973 Western directed by (and starring) Clint Eastwood, with a screenplay by Ernest Tidyman (The French Connection, Shaft). Which brings us to 1973s High Plains Drifter, a movie thats so frequently overlooked and uncharacteristically strange and surreal that it sticks out like a sore, red-painted thumb in the long sweep of Eastwoods filmography. After scouting locations alone in a pickup truck in Oregon, Nevada and California,[6] he settled on the "highly photogenic" Mono Lake area. And maybe it stung the young director at the time. Clint asked John Wayne if he wanted to be in a Western together. we cut to a shot of the Stranger, seemingly implying. All we know is it is very difficult to side with him as a protagonist and as such we are left with an uneasy feel throughout the film from which we can only be unburdened after knowing just what he wants and why hes doing it but we never do, which is probably why I was left with such an uncomfortable feeling after the film was finished. Nowadays, we tend to think of Eastwood as a pretty conservative filmmaker. 0786484217 . Meanwhile, the best you can say for High Plains Drifter is that the title is a low pun. >> http://bit.ly/24NeaTM 367 42 comments 73 shares Most relevant Wendy Banks Nice 2y Eastwood reportedly liked the offbeat quality of the film's original nine-page proposal and approached Universal with the idea of directing it. TVTropes is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. "It's just an allegory," Eastwood said, "a speculation on what happens when they go ahead and kill the sheriff, and somebody comes back and calls the town's conscience to bear. It adds to the argument that High Plains Drifter is a deconstruction of the myths of the old west. [3] The film was influenced by the work of Eastwood's two major collaborators, film directors Sergio Leone and Don Siegel. Eastwood reportedly liked the offbeat quality of the film's original nine-page proposal and approached Universal with the idea of directing it. The character of Marshal Duncan was played by Buddy Van Horn, Eastwood's long-time stunt double, to suggest that he and the Stranger could be the same person. Book: Cornell, Drucilla . He then rides out of town without explanation, following the wounded Morgan. Meanwhile, after spending a night in a hotel bed together, Sarah Belding tells the Stranger of her belief that Jim Duncan cannot rest in peace nor depart the physical realm because he was buried in an unmarked grave. As a freshly minted red-hot commodity both at home and abroad, Eastwood quickly parlayed his new-found bankability into a handful of macho and muscular studio pictures like the fish-out-of-water cop thriller Coogans Bluff and the bloated WWII action-adventure Where Eagles Dare. The film stars Eastwood as a mysterious stranger who metes out justice in a corrupt frontier mining town. The film often intercuts with a blurry flashback of a Marshall being whipped by three gunmen with close to the entire town standing by watching, doing nothing to help the poor fellow. Wayne wrote back saying this movie is terrible because of the violence and it's revisionist portrayal of westerns. This particular revisionist western is characterized by trippy, almost abstractionist artistic touches that are admirable as unique, and not even all that overwrought, yet the occasions in which the offbeat meditations are overplayed stand, distancing subjective value with artistic non-conventions to storytelling. Fordham University Press . Not in 2023" Too bad, this movie is better than 95 percent of John Wayne's movies. High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - Who Are You? It was a hit. As the Stranger trains the townsfolk to take arms and the gunmen draw closer, the hidden secrets and corruptions of the town begin to unravel, and the truth behind Lago's feud with the outlaws and their culpability in the death of a federal marshal, with whom the Stranger has a connection soon comes to light A Deconstruction of the Western genre with supernatural overtones, High Plains Drifter is one of Eastwood's most popular and acclaimed films. [7] Over 50 technicians and construction workers built an entire town14 houses, a church, and a two-story hotelin 18 days, using 150,000 feet of lumber. There is the unusual, The characterization, on the stage, eminently well contrasts the well intentioned and truehearted peasant Luisa with the, From time to time, I revisit the 1932-37 recordings of the Beethoven piano sonatas by Artur Schnabel. Holes in the plot were filled in with black humor and allegory, influenced by Sergio Leone. Menu. Cinemark I was mostly satisfied by the story as the more it went on the more I got interested. It wasnt a hell of a thing killing a man yet. In this Western, a drifter with no name (Clint Eastwood) wanders into a small town, where his gun-slinging abilities are in high demand. It was one generations Great Western Star reaching his hand out to the previous generations. "[10] The graveyard set featured in the film's final scene included tombstones inscribed "Sergio Leone" and "Don Siegel" as a humorous tribute to the two influential directors. Additional scenes were filmed at Reno, Nevada's Winnemucca Lake and California's Inyo National Forest. "Eastwood Again". Robert Daley, Writer: It's also a pretty violent business that won't disappoint the millions who flocked to the Leone westerns. 2013 . He looks like the tight-lipped, cigar-chewing sharpshooter of Hang 'Em High or Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy, and on paper High Plains Drifter certainly reads like your typical Clint Eastwood western. High Plains Drifter: Official Clip - He Shot My Ear Off! Zito, Tom (May 29, 1973). The three gunmen all get what they deserve, but the first one to die, Cole, is whipped to death just as the Marshal was. Of course, the townspeople themselves aren't exactly innocent either so much as punishing them, along with the three gunmen, for their role in the marshal's death. For more information, please see our Theyre already in hell for their sins (at least everyone other than Verna Bloom, who was the only person who tried to help Duncan). This is the film of a magnificent intellect. That fact that we cant identify with the silent mysterious main character like we usually do during westerns puts us more into the shoes of the agitated townsfolk, which was a nice twist. 1558491201 . Coming Soon, Regal Machoism is also a meaty theme of most westerns but that is given a slap to the face also in the film. "[17] Tom Zito of The Washington Post called it "an enjoyable, well-constructed work that suffers only from a slightly tedious tone that makes the film seem longer than its 105 minutes. University of Massachusetts Press . "[14] Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 3 stars out of 4 and wrote, "What does work very well indeed is Eastwood's presence, personal style, and direction. A nameless stranger rides into a small town and immediately kills three gunmen. Your Ticket Confirmation # is located under the header in your email that reads "Your Ticket Reservation Details". Then, upon the Stranger's final departure from Lago, the midget Mordecai is seen tending to an unmarked grave which now bears the name Jim Duncan. He. This content is imported from youTube. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film directed by Clint Eastwood, written by Ernest Tidyman, and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Compa. 2004 . New York . After the film came out and wound up being a big box-office hit, Eastwood wrote a fannish letter to John Wayne, suggesting that they make a movie together. From a moviemaker's point of view, they're not necessary to drive the plot. The film was well received by many critics, and rates 93% positive on Rotten Tomatoes based on 27 reviews. Jefferson, N.C . Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story: Season 1. The Stranger accepts the job and takes full advantage of the deal: He appoints a downtrodden dwarf named Mordecai as both sheriff and mayor, provides a Native American and his children with blankets and candy when the shopkeeper refuses to serve them, gets a new saddle and boots, and forces the saloon to serve everyone free drinks. [] Eastwood, Clint: High Plains Drifter (1973.) [19] Jon Landau of Rolling Stone concurred, noting "thematic shallowness" and "verbal archness"; but he expressed approval of the dramatic scenery and cinematography. This film just feels mean, and the nastiness all comes from the character of the stranger. | In Biblical accounts, Mordecai sat in the kings gate to signify his intimacy to the ruler, or, in the film, the stranger. Yes, there are subtle problems throughout the film, but there are also considerable strengths, and they stood a real chance of taking a small-scale narrative and molding it into a rewarding thriller, only to go overpowered by the cold spells which, when combined with those subtle missteps, ultimately secure the final product shy of its potential. Clint Eastwood, Producer: It uses material from the Wikipedia article "High Plains Drifter". Stacey Bridges (Geoffrey Lewis), Bill Borders (Scott Walker), and Cole Carlin (Anthony James), who have been released from jail after they brutally whipped to death the town's local lawman Marshal Jim Duncan (Buddy Van Horn) who is in his grave with an unmarked gravestone, set out to return to "Lago" to get their vengeance. Regarding power and authority, these depictions favour critical views of big business, the American government, masculine figures (including the military and their policies), and a turn to greater historical authenticity. A gun-fighting stranger comes to the small settlement of Lago and is hired to bring the townsfolk together in an attempt to hold off three outlaws who are on their way. The Stranger finds Bridges and the Carlins, who just "finished off" Morgan, and harasses them with dynamite and rifle fire, leading the outlaws to believe the townspeople are responsible. Its plot is nothing out of the ordinary but its given a supernatural and sadistic treatment that makes it stand out from the crowd. The narrative concept is minimalist in scale, and the interpretation gets flimsy, but this story of a stranger gracing, then growing to corrupt ad plague and strange land carries intriguing mystery, in addition to thought-provoking themes on temptation and placing faith in unpredictable features that are stronger than the film itself. When Clint Eastwood was on "In the Actors Studio" he said the stranger was Marshall Duncan's brother. Is 'High Plains Drifter' based on a book. Why Were Blade Runner and The Thing '80s Bombs? | High Plains Drifter 1973 | Maturity Rating: 16+ | 1h 45m | Westerns Amid shoot-outs and existentialism, a stranger is hired to protect a town from outlaws -- but his recipe for defense could be a deal with the devil. 978-1-84511-902-7 . That isn't the American people who settled this country. When the drifter rides into Lago, he is met with incredulity and disapproval by the townspeople. [5] In addition to Eastwood, the film also co-stars Verna Bloom, Mariana Hill, Mitchell Ryan, Jack Ging, and Stefan Gierasch. One of the three gunmen shares his fate later in the film. The residents of Lago at first view the stranger with suspicion, but when news that some outlaws that are out for blood are on their way to town, they ask the stranger for his help. Slaughter may be by burning, beheading, or throttling. 6275 . "Film Reviews: High Plains Drifter". It's also a pretty violent business that won't disappoint the millions who flocked to the Leone westerns. Schnabel, a consummate, For many years my wife and Iwould hike the mountainsthe Rockies when we lived in Alberta, and the North Shore and, Copyright 2002-2023 Hendrik Slegtenhorst. 978-0823230143 . "[15], Arthur D. Murphy of Variety called it "a nervously humorous, self-conscious near satire on the prototype Clint Eastwood formula of the avenging mysterious stranger.