Look, I had to work to get through this one, despite the unlikable broken characters,wooden acting, the fantasy historical story and plot that is over the bazillion level of improbability as I discovered on wikipedia
Melvin Frank said at the time
"This is no time to satirize western myth; people won't stand for the making fun of something sacred. Actually, why The Jayhawkers is in the outdoor category and has outlaws and guns and horses, it's a western only in that it takes place on the then-frontier of 1859. Something frightening happened in Kansas on the eve of the Civil War... A man on horseback tried to become A Man on Horseback. He took over only a few towns- but what would've happened if he'd seized Kansas for his empire and the Civil War had allowed him to set up a kingdom in the West? The power mad character has always threatened freedom. We had long wanted to use this theme in a story about the American past and when we found this story... it clicked."
so perhaps there is more to this story than meets the eye.
Nevertheless, this is just an OK show in my book. The ultra violent misogynistic megalomaniac Chandler is weighed down by the others and the repulsive role. Fess is avuncular to the point of being miscast. The rest try hard and as always Henry and Leo deliver the goods but it all to no avail.
The fact of the matter is for mine the weakest part of this film is Jerome Moross music score! It is just inappropriate in places derailing the tension such as it is. That is not to say this film would be better if Gershenson, Bakelienkoff or Mancini worked it over but I reckon it would get it another star.
Ultimately a nasty story about disturbing misguided immoral people and actually quite gloomy and upsetting. But hey, it's a western! Enjoy it, I did!
Melvin Frank said at the time
"This is no time to satirize western myth; people won't stand for the making fun of something sacred. Actually, why The Jayhawkers is in the outdoor category and has outlaws and guns and horses, it's a western only in that it takes place on the then-frontier of 1859. Something frightening happened in Kansas on the eve of the Civil War... A man on horseback tried to become A Man on Horseback. He took over only a few towns- but what would've happened if he'd seized Kansas for his empire and the Civil War had allowed him to set up a kingdom in the West? The power mad character has always threatened freedom. We had long wanted to use this theme in a story about the American past and when we found this story... it clicked."
so perhaps there is more to this story than meets the eye.
Nevertheless, this is just an OK show in my book. The ultra violent misogynistic megalomaniac Chandler is weighed down by the others and the repulsive role. Fess is avuncular to the point of being miscast. The rest try hard and as always Henry and Leo deliver the goods but it all to no avail.
The fact of the matter is for mine the weakest part of this film is Jerome Moross music score! It is just inappropriate in places derailing the tension such as it is. That is not to say this film would be better if Gershenson, Bakelienkoff or Mancini worked it over but I reckon it would get it another star.
Ultimately a nasty story about disturbing misguided immoral people and actually quite gloomy and upsetting. But hey, it's a western! Enjoy it, I did!