Revisionist Westerns - 1960s Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Magnificent Seven

"The Magnificent Seven" is a remake of Kurosawa's classic "Seven Samurai". The movie moves the action from feudal Japan to a Mexican village in the Wild West and features gunfighters instead of samurai. In many ways the gunfighters of the Old West were the samurai of their time. In both movies, the warriors defend a helpless village against attack from a bandit gang. The seven are Yul Brynner as Chris Adams, Charles Bronson as Bernardo O'Reilly, Steve McQueen as Vin, Robert Vaughn as Lee, James Coburn as Britt, Brad Dexter as Harry Luck, and Horst Buchholz as Chico. Eli Wallach plays the bandit leader Calvera. Only three of the seven survive the final battle - Chris, Vin, and Chico.

The movie is a Revisionist Western because it takes seven men who are cold blooded killers and seek nothing but their own self-interests and turns them into heroes willing to sacrifice themselves to defend the defenseless. In so doing they inspire the weak to become strong and perhaps by doing so redeem themselves from the lives they had led.

Answer: John Ford

John Ford is considered one of the great directors of the Traditional Western but in these two movies he takes a less than traditional view of the West. Although "The Searchers" is considered a Traditional Western, Ford began to deal with the issue of racism as it related to Native Americans in the film. The movie deals with the abduction of children by Comanches and their subsequent acceptance into the tribe. It delves into the attitudes of both the Whites and the Indians and why their enmity existed. The movie is based on the novel of the same name by Alan Le May who researched 64 real-life cases of this happening in order to write the novel. "The Searchers" stars John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, and Natalie Wood. In 1989 it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation because of its cultural significance.

"Sergeant Rutledge" goes one step further, becoming a true Revisionist Western, and looks at how African American soldiers were treated during this time period and the racism that existed. Considering that it was made during the 60s, the movie had considerable relevance to the time period in which it was made. Although it has been maligned for not going far enough, the movie portrays Sergeant Rutledge in a favorable light after all is said and done. Rutledge had been accused of murdering his commanding officer and raping and murdering his daughter. Even while in jeopardy because of the crimes he has been accused of committing, Rutledge shows great courage and saves his men from an ambush. He is found innocent when a White man confesses to the crime. For further information on the subject of African American cavalry, Buffalo soldiers, in the Old West check out my quiz "Buffalo Soldiers - A Proud Tradition".

Answer: One-Eyed Jacks

"One-Eyed Jacks" came out in 1961. Brando stars in and directs the movie. Originally, Stanley Kubrick was supposed to direct the movie but that fell through. The movie tells the story of two bank robbers, one who gets caught in Mexico (Brando as Rio) and the other who left him behind (Karl Malden as Dad Longworth). Years later, Rio escapes from prison and goes looking for Dad. He finds him in Monterrey, California, acting as the sheriff. The two play a cat and mouse game that ends when Rio is maimed and Dad is killed.

The movie is a Revisionist Western because neither of the two main characters are the typical good guy. It is also noted for the gritty, realistic violence that takes place. The phrase one-eyed jack in this context is used to explain how both characters show only one side of themselves and hide their true motives.

In poker, the Jack of Spades and the Jack of Hearts are One-eyed Jacks, meaning they are shown in profile instead of head on. The Queen of Hearts is historically related to Helen of Troy or Judith from the "Book of Judith", a Biblical book found in the Septuagint and the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Old Testaments but not in the Protestant or Jewish. The Suicide King is the King of Hearts who looks like he is stabbing his sword through his head. Deuces are Twos. In games where wilds are used, Deuces are many times chosen.

Answer: John Wayne

James Stewart plays Rance Stoddard, an Eastern lawyer who believes in the rule of law and not violence. John Wayne plays Tom Doniphon, a rancher who believes a gun is the only law in the West. Lee Marvin plays Liberty Valance, an outlaw who uses intimidation and force to get his way. Lee Van Cleef plays Reese, one of the outlaws. Stoddard is forced by circumstances into a gunfight with Valance, a fight he is ill-prepared for and will most certainly lose. Instead, Valance is killed and everyone assumes Stoddard got lucky in winning the duel. Later on, Doniphon reveals to Stoddard that he shot Valance from a place of hiding so that it would look like Stoddard had done it. Doniphon did it for the woman (Vera Miles as Hallie) he loves who is actually in love with Stoddard. From this event Stoddard goes on to get the girl and rises to Governor and then US Senator from the newly formed Western State and Doniphon goes on to obscurity and loses the girl. In 2007 it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation because of its cultural significance.

The movie is a Revisionist Western because Stoddard is a hero for a deed he did not do and the real hero, Doniphon, is a hero for committing what would have been considered murder in the ethics of the Old West. Although Valance may have deserved what happened to him, he did not deserve the way it happened to him. In Traditional Westerns, villains get what their deeds deserve according to the code of the West, either by being tried and convicted or by being killed in a fair fight, and are not gunned down from hiding. The movie is another example of where director John Ford departed from his more traditional view of the West to tell a revisionist tale.

Answer: The Professionals

"The Professionals" features Lee Marvin as Rico Fardan, a weapons specialist, Burt Lancaster as Bill Dolworth, an explosives expert, Robert Ryan as Hans Ehrengard, a horse wrangler, and Woody Strode as Jake Sharp, a scout and master in Apache warfare. The team is hired to rescue the wife (Claudia Cardinale as Maria) of a Texas rancher (Ralph Bellamy as Grant) who has been kidnapped by Mexican bandits who used to be Revolutionaries. The bandits' leader is a man named Raza (Jack Palance). During the raid the team learns that the wife, Maria, was not kidnapped but returned to Mexico willingly to be with her true love, Raza. True to their word the team returns with the wife and a captured Raza who would not quit pursuing them. Once they fulfill their contract the team stops Grant from killing Raza and allow Raza and Maria to return to Mexico, with the team following behind.

As is typical of Revisionist Westerns, not everything is as it first appears in this movie. Grant appears to be a loving husband seeking the return of his wife but turns out to be a controlling, evil man standing in the way of true love. The supposedly evil Raza turns out to be a man driven by true love willing to sacrifice his life for that love. Maria the supposed victim of Raza turns out to be the victim of Grant. Stuck in the middle is the team of mercenaries bound by professional ethics to finish a job that they don't agree with. But in true Western fashion they live up to their code while allowing the good to triumph in the end no matter how messy the process.

Answer: Ride the High Country

"Ride the High Country" features Randolph Scott as Gil Westrum and Joel McCrea as Steve Judd, two former lawmen who are reduced by circumstance and their age to acting as guards for the gold shipment. Westrum plans to steal the shipment and tries to get Judd to go along with him. Tensions rise when Judd will not go along with the plan but circumstances force the two to put aside their differences and fight a common enemy. In the battle, Judd is mortally wounded and Westrum promises to deliver the gold just as Judd had intended. In 1992 it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation because of its cultural significance.

"Ride" is the second movie directed by Peckinpah, the first was "The Deadly Companions". In that movie he did not have control over the script and vowed to never direct a movie where he did not have control again. Peckinpah is legendary as a revisionist director. Although the movie was not initially successful in the US, it was a huge success in Europe and has since gained greater acceptance as time has gone on. The movie is the first portrayal of several themes that would continue throughout Peckinpah's career. These are loyalty above all else, the way circumstances influence one's ideals, and struggle to do what is right in a world filled with injustice.

Answer: Elmore Leonard

"Hombre" is based on the novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard. Martin Ritt directed the film that stars Paul Newman as John Russell. The movie tells the story of a White man, Russell, raised by Apaches in the last part of the 19th century. It takes place in Arizona where Russell faces prejudice from the Whites he is traveling with on a stage coach because he is an 'Indian'. When the group is stranded after being robbed by a gang of outlaws, they must rely on Russell's skills to survive and make it back to civilization. In the end, Russell dies saving the people who wanted nothing to do with him.

Elmore Leonard's writing style of gritty realism fit well into the Revisionist Western. Ritt's background as a victim of blacklisting in the 1950s influenced his later work and fit well with the alienation that was a theme of many Revisionist Westerns, including this one. Ritt also directed Newman in "Hud", a modern cowboy who would fit well in the revisionist mold. Many of Newman's films have the edge that most Revisionist Westerns possess. The three together combined to make a film that portrayed the plight of the Native American and the hypocrisy of the Whites in stunning detail.

Answer: Hang 'Em High

"Hang 'Em High" is the first American Western Eastwood made after the success of the "Dollar" Trilogy. His production company produced the movie and long time friend Ted Post, who directed him on the TV show "Rawhide", was picked by Eastwood to direct the movie. In a case of mistaken identity, Jed Cooper (Eastwood) is lynched for a murder he did not commit. Fortunately for him, a US Marshal comes along and cuts him down before he dies. Cooper is appointed as a US Marshal by Judge Fenton (Pat Hingle) and sets out to bring the men who lynched him to justice. Bruce Dern, Ed Begley, Inger Stevens, Ben Johnson, Alan Hale Jr. (Skipper from "Gilligan's Island"), and Dennis Hopper all appear in the movie.

Although the judge in the movie is fictional, he bears close resemblance to the historical Judge Isaac Parker, known as 'The Hanging Judge'. The movie takes place in Oklahoma, a territory over which Judge Parker had jurisdiction and the fictional Fort Grant bear close resemblance to the real Fort Smith, Arkansas, where Judge Parker was located.

Many think the movie is revisionist because they see it as an indictment of capital punishment but in reality it is an indictment of mob mentality and the need for the rule of law. In this way, it is true to the heart of the Traditional Western. It is revisionist in that the posse that lynches Cooper is made up of supposedly law abiding citizens and pillars of the community. But in lynching Cooper they have become outlaws.

Answer: The Wild Bunch

Butch Cassidy's outlaw gang was called the Wild Bunch but the Peckinpah movie of the same name is not about that group. The movie is about an aging gang of outlaws, led by Pike Bishop (William Holden). Bishop plans one last big heist before retiring but is thwarted by his former partner, Deke Thornton (Robert Ryan), and his group of bounty hunters. Bishop and his men escape to Mexico where they are hired by a Mexican General to hijack a shipment of American weapons. Thornton and his group again thwart the robbery and continue to pursue the gang. The gang returns to the Mexican General who is displeased they have failed and another gunfight breaks out in which the gang is all killed, along with many Mexicans and the General.

At the time of its initial release, the movie was one of the most violent movies of the time. The total lack of any redeeming qualities in the main characters and the wholesale slaughter makes the movie a true Revisionist Western. In 1999 it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation because of its cultural significance.

Answer: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

"Rain Drops Keep Fallin' on My Head" is an Oscar winning song from "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid". It was written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. The song was a Number One on three US charts (Billboard Hot 100, Billboard Adult Contemporary, and Cash Box Top 100), two Canadian charts (RPM Top Singles, RPM Adult Contemporary), and the Norwegian Singles chart.

The movie stars Paul Newman (Butch) and Robert Redford (Sundance). It follows the exploits of the outlaws through the years as they rob trains and then are hunted by Pinkertons. They then leave for Bolivia where they die after robbing a payroll mule train and are cornered by Bolivian police and cavalry. In 2003 it was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation because of its cultural significance.

The movie is considered Revisionist because the outlaws are the heroes and are portrayed as fun loving characters when in reality even if they were not killers themselves, they ran with men who were. Together the pair along with other members of the Wild Bunch performed the longest string of successful bank and train robberies in the Old West.