It always strikes me as odd when a well known and celebrated white actor is given a Mexican or Indian role in a Western. It seems like the man's celebrity overwhelms the characterization to a distracting degree. Other examples would be Paul Newman as "Hombre" (1967) and Chuck Connors as "Geronimo" (1962). I guess it was customary for the era, and for the most part the actors made it work, but the idea always jolts me just a little bit.
There's another thing with Burt Lancaster here to go along with the above. When Bob Valdez (why not Roberto?) puts on his former Apache-hunting military garb, he looked like the exact spitting image of character actor John Dehner. If you don't know him or can't picture Dehner right off, the next time he shows up in a Western you're watching, you're going to go hey, that looks like Burt Lancaster from "Valdez is Coming"; I guarantee it.
I guess you'd have to call this a revenge Western of sorts after Valdez is entrapped into shooting an innocent black man for a propertied, belligerent rancher. Speaking of resemblances, didn't Jon Cypher look a little like Warren Beatty portraying Frank Tanner? Tanner was one of these arrogant know-all types who refuses to share compensation for the pregnant widow of the man killed by Valdez. If you tally up the damage done for the sake of a hundred dollars, even by late 1800's standards, you'd have to say the C-note would have been a bargain at half the cost. Tanner's woman Gay Erin (Susan Clark) described him best - "Sometimes you're human. Sometimes."
A unique element in the story that I hadn't seen before had to do with the 'crucifixion' of Valdez at the hands of Tanner's henchmen. The makeshift cross tied to his back carried just enough symbolism to suggest that Valdez would earn his redemption the hard way. Eleven dead men later and his mission would be complete.
There's another thing with Burt Lancaster here to go along with the above. When Bob Valdez (why not Roberto?) puts on his former Apache-hunting military garb, he looked like the exact spitting image of character actor John Dehner. If you don't know him or can't picture Dehner right off, the next time he shows up in a Western you're watching, you're going to go hey, that looks like Burt Lancaster from "Valdez is Coming"; I guarantee it.
I guess you'd have to call this a revenge Western of sorts after Valdez is entrapped into shooting an innocent black man for a propertied, belligerent rancher. Speaking of resemblances, didn't Jon Cypher look a little like Warren Beatty portraying Frank Tanner? Tanner was one of these arrogant know-all types who refuses to share compensation for the pregnant widow of the man killed by Valdez. If you tally up the damage done for the sake of a hundred dollars, even by late 1800's standards, you'd have to say the C-note would have been a bargain at half the cost. Tanner's woman Gay Erin (Susan Clark) described him best - "Sometimes you're human. Sometimes."
A unique element in the story that I hadn't seen before had to do with the 'crucifixion' of Valdez at the hands of Tanner's henchmen. The makeshift cross tied to his back carried just enough symbolism to suggest that Valdez would earn his redemption the hard way. Eleven dead men later and his mission would be complete.