The Badlanders (1958)

Director:

Delmer Daves

Writers:

Richard Collins (screenplay)
W.R. Burnett (novel)

Release Date:

18 December 1958 (West Germany)

Genre:

Romance | Western

Plot:

Two men are released from the Arizona Territorial Prison at Yuma in 1898. One, the Dutchman, is out...

Plot Keywords:

Gold | Scheme | Gold Theft | Arizona | Stagecoach

Cast

Alan Ladd	...	Peter Van Hoek ('The Dutchman')
Ernest Borgnine	...	John 'Mac' McBain
Katy Jurado	...	Anita
Claire Kelly	...	Ada Winton
Kent Smith	...	Cyril Lounsberry
Nehemiah Persoff	...	Vincente (The Powder Monkey)
Robert Emhardt	...	Sample (bar owner)
Anthony Caruso	...	Comanche
Adam Williams	...	Leslie
Ford Rainey	...	Arizona Territorial Prison warden
John Daheim	...	Lee (as John Day)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Barbara Baxley	...	Diane (scenes deleted)
Zina Provendie	...	Dorothy Lounsberry (scenes deleted)

Runtime:

85 min | UK:83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Perspecta Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

West Germany:16 (nf) | USA:Approved (PCA #19001) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Imperial County, California, USA

Company:

Arcola Pictures

Quotes:

Cyril Lounsbery: How much would you love me if I wasn't rich?
Ada Winton: Not as much.
Cyril Lounsbery: I didn't think so.
Ada Winton: How much would you love me if I weren't pretty?
Cyril Lounsbery: Well, that's a different cup of tea.
Ada Winton: No it isn't. A man being rich is exactly like girl being pretty. So there!

Movie Connections:

Version of Cairo (1963)

location photography

A notable aspect of this western, particularly when seen in a good PAL version, is that the location photography is extremely well lit and balanced with good use of minimal lighting and the use of pincushion rather than Bush & Lomb lenses in the location photography (it is possible to see the difference). This shows up well in the end sequences. However the studio work is lit using the standard studio methods and shows little of the location cameraman's skill.

The colour is well balanced and the sound is okay, not as good as some. At this tiem Cimemascope was losing its exclusivity and so was being used more and more in lower budget westerns.

As far as Alan Ladd being in the doldrums, he was working solidly but appeared to be working at his best in British productions where they appeared to provide him with enough challengingly good actors to keep him ocuppied. A good afternoon film, enjoyable.