Joe Kidd (1972)

An ex-bounty hunter reluctantly helps a wealthy landowner and his henchmen track down a Mexican revolutionary leader.

Director:

John Sturges

Writer:

Elmore Leonard

Stars:

Clint Eastwood, Robert Duvall, John Saxon

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clint Eastwood	...	Joe Kidd
Robert Duvall	...	Frank Harlan
John Saxon	...	Luis Chama
Don Stroud	...	Lamarr
Stella Garcia	...	Helen Sanchez
James Wainwright	...	Mingo
Paul Koslo	...	Roy
Gregory Walcott	...	Mitchell
Dick Van Patten	...	Hotel Manager
Lynne Marta	...	Elma
John Carter	...	Judge
Pepe Hern	...	Priest
Joaquín Martínez	...	Manolo (as Joaquin Martinez)
Ron Soble	...	Ramon
Pepe Callahan	...	Naco

Storyline

Joe Kidd is a former bounty hunter and all-around tough-guy in the American Southwest. When a band of Mexicans find their U. S. land claims denied and all relevant records destroyed in a courthouse fire, they turn to force of arms. Luis Chama is their charismatic leader, spouting revolutionary rhetoric and demanding land reform. A wealthy landowner with interests in the disputed area, Frank Harlan, decides to settle things his own way. He hires a band of killers and wants Joe Kidd to help them track Chama. Initially, Kidd wants to avoid any involvement, until Chama makes the mistake of stealing Kidd's horses and terrorizing his friends.

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Plot Keywords:

gunfighter | arizona territory | arizona | character name as title | characters murdered one by one | 

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Taglines:

If you're looking for trouble - - - he's JOE KIDD

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

19 July 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sinola

Filming Locations:

North Santa Teresa Wilderness, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$5,800,000, 31 December 1972

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Malpaso Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Need to update the factoid about time when Joe Kidd was set - prior commentary said after 1896 & before 1912, but also referenced that New Mexico was the 46th state - actually, that's an error, it was the 47th; Oklahoma was 46th, entering the Union in 1907. So that narrows the range of when Joe Kidd would have taken place - between 1896 & 1907, not 1912. Just an FYI

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Goofs

The US flag has 50 stars.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Mitchell: Well, that settles that. Anything I can do for you, Joe?
Joe Kidd: [punches him in the nose]
Mitchell: Joe, you shouldn't 'o done that.
Joe Kidd: Next time I'll knock your damn head off.

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Connections

Referenced in Private Valentine: Blonde & Dangerous (2008)

User Reviews

Just don't kid around with Joe Kidd, okay…

Just another vehicle for Dirty Harry in the west? Well, not quite. This time round, Clint plays the title role – an individualist, of course, and one with a sense of justice not unlike Dirty Harry; where Joe Kidd differs is that he has no truck with the law and prefers the hunter's life on the range.

Which, in turn, causes him to wind up in jail because, in the opener, we find Joe in jail having been charged with hunting deer on reservation land. After being summarily fined $10 and deciding to work out the fine in jail instead, the court proceedings are interrupted by a large band of Mexicans desperately seeking justice about land claims in the area.

During the subsequent shooting melee when the Mexicans attempt to kidnap the county judge, Joe takes the initiative and gets the judge safely away, and out of harm. After the bandits run, Joe settles down to work off his jail term of ten days – only to be hauled out of that predicament by Robert Duvall's nasty business tycoon, Frank Harlan, who wants to hunt down, with his own band of killers, the leader of the Mexican band, Luis Chama, as portrayed by John Saxon.

Thereafter follows an inventive narrative and denouement as written by one of America's best writers, Elmore Leonard, involving a hunt to the high sierras and a Mexican standoff – and a Mexican standoff - between the Mexican bandits, the American bounty hunters and finally Joe who escapes the clutches of the bounty hunters to try to persuade Chama to plead his case in a court of law.

To say more would ruin the plot for you. Clint does his usual laconic, iron-fisted turn with revolver, rifle and now pistol – an automatic German C96 Mauser, no less (the setting is in 1897 or so, and that pistol began production in 1896). Robert Duvall is suitably slimy and duplicitous, hell bent on killing whomever he wishes to get his way; perhaps a bit of a parody of bad guy, but what the hey! The real parody, however, is Don Stroud, as Lamarr, the gunman who just can't behave while Joe Kidd is around. While John Saxon's Mexican bandit, Luis Chama, is sympathetically done.

The setting is simply and starkly beautiful – snow capped peaks in the sierra, the undulating plain, a frontier town, rocky outcrops, a small village with the inevitable church and bell tower which plays an important and somewhat comedic part in the battle between the competing bands. Director Sturges certainly took advantage of the natural splendor to make this film all that more enjoyable.

As always, though, my criticism with Hollywood Westerns made from the fifties to the seventies generally is that the characters are way too clean: these were rough conditions, dirty times, filthy streets. I know there were exceptions, but that just proved the rule. Eastwood's Unforgiven (1995), Jamurschs' Dead Man (1996) or Cimino's Heaven's Gate (1992) redressed that aspect very nicely, however.

For 84 minutes you'll enjoy a good story, well acted and with appropriate action. See it if you can. Recommended for all.