It's 1878 in Lincoln, a small village in the Territory of New Mexico. The big man in town is horse 'n' cattle rancher John Wayne (as John Simpson Chisum). When bandits try to steal Mr. Wayne's horses, a shoot-out ensues. Wayne is helped by handsome young newcomer Geoffrey Deuel (as William "Billy the Kid" Bonney). Due to the latter's gun-slinging reputation, Wayne regrets his initial invitation for the infamous Mr. Duel to meet pretty niece Pamela McMyler (as Sallie Chisum). However, the young'uns meet and are mutually attracted. Meanwhile, wicked capitalist Forrest Tucker (as Lawrence "L.G." Murphy) begins buying up all the businesses in town. He wants to take over the area and drive Wayne out of business. It looks hopeless when Mr. Tucker installs steely-eyed bounty hunter Christopher George (as Dan Nodeen) in the sheriff's office...
Of course, Wayne is not going down easily...
"Chisum" seems cluttered, at first. The opening shoot-out appears to be merely attention-getting, and there are a superfluous amount of characters. However, the introduction does allow us to see the importance of Deuel's character; note, for example, how the camera zooms in on the young actor's face. Very much Wayne's co-star, Deuel finally threatens his brother Pete Duel as the biggest star in the family. And, while there are many characters to keep track of, they do each have a reason to be there. Wayne troupe member John Agar has a meaningful cameo (as the grocery store owner leaving town) while Ben Johnson (as Pepper) is part of the chorus; it's nice to see them all...
Director Andrew V. McLaglen and writer Andrew J. Fenady combine the western legends Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid with the legendary Hollywood actor John Wayne very effectively. John Chisum was a real person, too, but is less remembered. The specifics and historical inaccuracies aside, John Wayne and Billy the Kid coexist quite comfortable in the same story. It's a little unnerving to see Wayne, given his health problems, smoking. But he swaggers appealingly on screen, and looks tough in spite of an added toll in weight and age. Stay tuned because it all builds to an exciting climax, with everything and everyone falling into place. Directed with some majesty by Mr. McLaglen, "Chisum" is a bang-up western.
******* Chisum (1970-06-24) Andrew V. McLaglen ~ John Wayne, Geoffrey Deuel, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George
Of course, Wayne is not going down easily...
"Chisum" seems cluttered, at first. The opening shoot-out appears to be merely attention-getting, and there are a superfluous amount of characters. However, the introduction does allow us to see the importance of Deuel's character; note, for example, how the camera zooms in on the young actor's face. Very much Wayne's co-star, Deuel finally threatens his brother Pete Duel as the biggest star in the family. And, while there are many characters to keep track of, they do each have a reason to be there. Wayne troupe member John Agar has a meaningful cameo (as the grocery store owner leaving town) while Ben Johnson (as Pepper) is part of the chorus; it's nice to see them all...
Director Andrew V. McLaglen and writer Andrew J. Fenady combine the western legends Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid with the legendary Hollywood actor John Wayne very effectively. John Chisum was a real person, too, but is less remembered. The specifics and historical inaccuracies aside, John Wayne and Billy the Kid coexist quite comfortable in the same story. It's a little unnerving to see Wayne, given his health problems, smoking. But he swaggers appealingly on screen, and looks tough in spite of an added toll in weight and age. Stay tuned because it all builds to an exciting climax, with everything and everyone falling into place. Directed with some majesty by Mr. McLaglen, "Chisum" is a bang-up western.
******* Chisum (1970-06-24) Andrew V. McLaglen ~ John Wayne, Geoffrey Deuel, Forrest Tucker, Christopher George