The legendary Roger Corman began his impressive directing career with this entertaining Civil War era Western. It's not memorable in any way and it doesn't really hint at any future greatness but it served to show how Corman was able to work with limited budgets and brief shooting schedules (a mere nine days in this instance).
The performances are basically good in a tale of five outlaws hired by a Confederacy desperate for personnel. Their job is to intercept the path of a traitor named Jethro (Jack Ingram) and deliver him to the authorities. Adding incentive is the fact that Jethro is in possession of a substantial amount of gold. The stoic, low key Govern Sturges (John Lund) appoints himself leader of this group, and he finds that it's hard work dealing with the strong personalities of his accomplices. Complications arise when he takes a liking to Shalee (lovely Dorothy Malone), who runs a stagecoach station with her uncle Mime (James Stone).
The action is unfortunately a little underwhelming as the story plays out; clearly, Corman wasn't very well suited for the Western genre and had yet to find his voice as a creator of entertainment for the youth market. Still, the scenery (reverently photographed by Floyd Crosby) is beautiful, the music (by Buddy Bregman) is nice, and some of the performances are colourful. Lund is a little TOO low key in the lead, but Malone is feisty and appealing, and future 'Mannix' star Mike Connors is fun as lusty, greedy gambler Hale Clinton. Co-starring are Corman stock company player Jonathan Haze, screenwriter R. Wright Campbell, and Paul Birch (the evil alien in Cormans' "Not of This Earth") as the rest of the gang. A young James Sikking, future co-star of TV's 'Hill Street Blues' and 'Doogie Howser M.D.', makes his film debut as a Union sergeant.
Overall, "Five Guns West" is reasonably engaging, if understandably not too well known. It is worth a look for those who want to see the earliest efforts in Cormans' career.
Seven out of 10.
The performances are basically good in a tale of five outlaws hired by a Confederacy desperate for personnel. Their job is to intercept the path of a traitor named Jethro (Jack Ingram) and deliver him to the authorities. Adding incentive is the fact that Jethro is in possession of a substantial amount of gold. The stoic, low key Govern Sturges (John Lund) appoints himself leader of this group, and he finds that it's hard work dealing with the strong personalities of his accomplices. Complications arise when he takes a liking to Shalee (lovely Dorothy Malone), who runs a stagecoach station with her uncle Mime (James Stone).
The action is unfortunately a little underwhelming as the story plays out; clearly, Corman wasn't very well suited for the Western genre and had yet to find his voice as a creator of entertainment for the youth market. Still, the scenery (reverently photographed by Floyd Crosby) is beautiful, the music (by Buddy Bregman) is nice, and some of the performances are colourful. Lund is a little TOO low key in the lead, but Malone is feisty and appealing, and future 'Mannix' star Mike Connors is fun as lusty, greedy gambler Hale Clinton. Co-starring are Corman stock company player Jonathan Haze, screenwriter R. Wright Campbell, and Paul Birch (the evil alien in Cormans' "Not of This Earth") as the rest of the gang. A young James Sikking, future co-star of TV's 'Hill Street Blues' and 'Doogie Howser M.D.', makes his film debut as a Union sergeant.
Overall, "Five Guns West" is reasonably engaging, if understandably not too well known. It is worth a look for those who want to see the earliest efforts in Cormans' career.
Seven out of 10.