Wagons East (1994)

User Rating:

4.2/10   

Director:

Peter Markle

Writers (WGA):

Matthew Carlson (screenplay)
Jerry Abrahamson (story)

Release Date:

26 August 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Western

Tagline:

They came, they saw, they changed their minds.

Plot:

In the 1860's Wild West, when a ragged bunch of misfit settlers decide they cannot stand living in their current situation, they hire a grizzled cowboy to take them on a journey back to their hometowns east. |

Plot Keywords:

Tied Up | River Crossing | Wagon Train | Homosexual | Satire

Cast

Joe Bays	...	River Townsman
Abraham Benrubi	...	Abe Ferguson (as Abe Benrubi)
Jill Boyd	...	Prudence Taylor
John Candy	...	James Harlow
Douglas Carlson	...	Bar Patron
Melinda Culea	...	Constance Taylor
Ryan Cutrona	...	Tom
Bud Davis	...	Desperado Leader
Billy Daydoge	...	Elder (as Bill Daydodge)
Thomas F. Duffy	...	Clayton Ferguson
David Dunard	...	Harry Bob Ferguson
Steve Eastin	...	Bartender
Roger Eschbacher	...	Reporter
Rodney A. Grant	...	Little Feather
Stuart Proud Eagle Grant	...	White Cloud (as Stuart Grant)

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 (NO. 33021) | Australia:PG | Spain:T | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Condado De Chavez, Durango, Mexico

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Trivia:

The character of 'John Slade' is a reference to the character of 'Cactus Jack Slade' played by Kirk Douglas in The Villain (1979)

Goofs:

Factual errors: While Harlow and Larchmont are fighting, the camera cuts to, among other events, a woman giving birth. The baby is withdrawn from the womb, but the umbilical cord is missing.

Quotes:

The Chief: [in Sioux] Untie them, Little Feather.
Little Feather: [in Sioux] Father, I hate that name.
The Chief: [in Sioux] Ah, my son.
[waves his hand in front of his crotch]
The Chief: [in Sioux] Untie them, Big Snake That Makes Women Faint!

Great fun, tinged with great sadness for John Candy's last hurrah

A lady enters a bar somewhere in the wild west. She looks very refined and is, in fact, seeking the man who bought her as a mail-order bride. When she learns a group of men pooled their monies together, she sits down at the bar and orders whiskey. Chalk up one more disillusioned traveler to the land beyond the Mississippi. Phil (Richard Lewis) and others are also fed up with the harsh living conditions. Why don't they all get a wagon train to go back to civilization? They find a wagon train leader (John Candy) who says he's the man to take them across the mountains, prairies and whatever other terrain is necessary to see the good life again. But, he is harboring a big secret. Also, once news goes to St. Louis that people are heading in the wrong direction, an army officer vows to keep these people from telling others how bad it really is. The Indians, however, may be happy indeed that settlers are leaving their territories! From bathroom stops in the bushes to campfire revelations between the manly men, this journey has it all. Can it succeed? This movie is fun, fun, fun, as the Beach Boys say. There is so much to spoof about the rough and tumble western frontier that the humor is never forced and gives way to many a giggle. The scenery is quite beautiful and the film sports an authentic look. Most of the actors are fine but Candy, who died during the filming and whose part was digitally completed, never seems like himself. His usual go-for-broke spirit is just not present. That said, the film still works beautifully and is a great view for any Saturday night of fun. If you love Candy, however, be prepared to cry a few tears for his loss from the world which dearly loved him.