Chato's Land (1972)

In 1870s New Mexico, a half-breed kills a bigoted sheriff in self-defense but the posse that eventually hunts him finds itself in dangerous territory.

Director:

Michael Winner

Writer:

Gerald Wilson

Stars:

Charles Bronson, Jack Palance, James Whitmore

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charles Bronson	...	Pardon Chato
Jack Palance	...	Capt. Quincey Whitmore
James Whitmore	...	Joshua Everette
Simon Oakland	...	Jubal Hooker
Ralph Waite	...	Elias Hooker
Richard Jordan	...	Earl Hooker
Victor French	...	Martin Hall
Sonia Rangan	...	Chato's Woman
William Watson	...	Harvey Lansing
Roddy McMillan	...	Gavin Malechie
Paul Young	...	Brady Logan
Raul Castro	...	Mexican Scout
Lee Patterson	...	George Dunn
Roland Brand
Peter Dyneley	...	Ezra Meade

Storyline

After Pardon Chato, a mestizo, kills a US marshal in self-defense, a posse pursues him, but as the white volunteers advance deep in Indian territory they become more prey than hunters, leading to internal strife.

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Plot Keywords:

arizona | arizona territory | apache territory | cochise | sonora mexico | 

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Taglines:

What Chato's land doesn't kill, Chato will.

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

UK Spain USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

June 1972 (UK)

Also Known As:

Chato

Filming Locations:

Balsicas de Alfaro, Rioja, Almería, Andalucía, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Scimitar Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

By68 Losely based on Burt Lancaster's Western Lawman 1971 also directed by Michael Winner

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Goofs

Several times as the posse rides through the desert, the saguaro cacti props in the background can be seen jiggling and flapping their arms in the wind.

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Quotes

Joshua Everette: All we got here is a handful of nothing... dirt and dry mouths.

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Alternate Versions

Comparison between VHS WARNER HOME VIDEO FRANCE EDITION 1986 / DVD REGION 1 MGM/UA. 1) Rape scene of Chato's wife can be found on two versions:

• Director Michael Winner had shot 2 versions of the same scene: A cut "soft" version (Region 1 DVD MGM / UA) and another violent version version that can be seen on VHS French version.
• In Warner Home video France VHS (1986 release):
• The assaulters of Chato's wife are grabbing her and they're tearing her clothes off. Then they're carrying the mooned unlucky and completely naked woman into her house. In the next scene, she's tied up to a little tree by these brutes and she is lying down completely naked.
• In DVD REGION 1 MGM / UA:
• This passage is shown on Region 1 DVD but Chato's wife keeps her clothes on during the whole scene. She is also tied up afterwards but her body is completely covered up with a large blanket.

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Connections

Referenced in The Embalmer (1996)

User Reviews

One of My Favorite Bronson Flicks

A tale of western revenge, "Chato's Land" has a cast of many well known actors including Jack Palance, Richard Basehart, Simon Oakland, Ralph Waite, Victor French and James Whitmore as well as Bronson in the lead role as Pardon Chato.

Chato is a half-breed Apache who makes the mistake of visiting a town that is hostile towards Indians. Being set upon by the sadistic town Marshall, Chato kills the lawman in self defense and must run from a posse of the town's people led by Jack Palance as Quincy Whitmore. Palance is excellent as Whitmore, an ex-Confederate officer who still longs after the excitement that comes from waging war. Leading the town's men in pursuit of Chato, Whitmore is decked out in his Confederate officer's jacket and plummed hat. Along with Whitmore is Nye Buell (Basehart) dressed in top hat and frock coat offering his whiskey laden salty commentary along the way. Simon Oakland also does a fine job as Jubal Hooker, the vicious elder of the degenerate Hooker clan who takes control of the posse from Quincy and ultimately cause the death of several of the posse members.

This movie has some beautifully set scenery that captures the harshness of the desert land that Chato takes refuge in. Whitmore comments that the harsh land is something that a white man would just damn off to hell and forget, but to Chato who doesn't ask much or take much from the land, it is almost a living thing.