Sergeants 3 (1962)
6/10
Entertaining and funny ¨Rat Pack¨ vehicle in which known actors battle Indians in the Old West
29 May 2013
Diverting Western satire in which several nutty characters attempt to stop an Indian rebellion . The ¨Rat Pack¨ is the Wildest Characters in All the West . Amusing take off on cavalry-and Indian movies in which a rambunctious temperance Sergeant called Mike Merry (Frank Sinatra) along with his cronies decide to stop Indians revolts . As Mike (Frank Sinatra) , Chip (Dean Martin) , and Larry (Peter Lawford) are three likable , brawling U. S. Cavalry sergeants stationed in Indian Territory in 1870 . Meantime , a telegraph office being attacked by Indians led by Chief Mountain Hawk (Henry Silva) , then chaos and wreak havoc ensue . One night the three partners befriend a trumpet-playing former slave , Jonah Williams, who dreams of someday becoming a trooper soldier . A tribe of fanatical Indians begin terrorizing the area, and the obstinate , lusty Chip decides to try the capture of their chief.

Demystified as well as amiable Western was one of a group of diverse characters changed the concept of this particular genre each bent on disproving a popular myth , yet tinged with humor , spoof and combining with anti-heroes , crazy Indians and many other things . W.R. Burnett's screenplay besides having more than its fair scraps of funny lines , throws up rich characters . Entertaining and funny Western but too dependant on the charisma of main players . This wacky Western is packed with mayhem , lots of silly laughters and great entertainment and fun . The picture is basically a remake of Gunga Din set in the American "Wild West" ; after filming was completed, the producers discovered they needed to secure the rights to the original story. They were forced to pay a large fee to the copyright owners before the film could be released . This is an amusing Western with some Hollywood major stars reunited by Frank ¨Robbo¨ Sinatra , incarnating a first Sergeant and his friends . It's a ¨Rat Pack¨ version of Old West with Frank Sinatra and his boys as good Sergeants in their last outing . This movie was well featured for three swaggering Sergeants as Sinatra , Dean Martin , Peter Lawford along with the soldier Sammy Davis Jr . This is a typical Rat Pack vehicle such as ¨ Ocean's eleven(1960) ¨, ¨ Four for Texas (63)¨ and finally ¨Cannoball run II (1984)¨ with the sympathetic trio Frank Sinatra-Sammy Davis Jr-Dean Martin .

The motion picture was professionally by John Sturges , though no originality . This is one of various and inferior works of his long career as filmmaker , shooting splendid westerns . ¨Three Sergeants¨ is very funny though lumbering flick . Sturges began his directing career at Columbia Pictures, where from 1946-49 he he worked on "12-day wonders" ("B" pictures shot on a 12-day schedule). From there he moved on to MGM where he filmed more "B" pictures, albeit on a larger budget . He established an independent production company in 1959, releasing through United Artists. From 1960-67 he worked under contract for United Artists. His first major hit was the western Dog Day at Black Rock (1955) , which he shot in just three weeks, wrapping up virtually every scene in a single take . He specialized in robust action pictures, particularly westerns. He excelled at bringing to life tautly written stories about tough characters facing difficult circumstances . Throughout his career he regularly alternated hits with misses . He has also been criticized for his lack of stylistic trademarks , though his best films remain exciting to watch . Sturges was expert on all kind of genres , but especially warlike such as : ¨Great Escape¨, ¨Ice Station Zebra¨ and ¨Eagle has landed¨ and Western such as ¨Last train of Gun Hill¨, ¨Magnificent Seven¨, ¨Backlash¨, ¨Hallelujah trail¨ , ¨Law and Jake Webb¨, ¨Joe Kidd¨ and Chino¨, among others . This acceptable Western parody will appeal to Frank Sinatra , Dean Martin and Sammi Davis Jr fans .
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