Instant Favorite.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Warren Oates and his gang need to be portrayed as ruthless killers; we understand that. But the town massacre in the opening scene just goes on and on, with senseless killings of innocents. That violence overshadows the epic performances of Lee Van Cleef, Warren Oates, Forrest Tucker, Kerwin Matthews, John Davis Chandler, and Marie Gomez. Perhaps there is an edited version available that shortens the opening sequence. I would have given this an 8 or 9 rating, but I simply cannot recommend a movie that needs dozens of murders to set the stage.

Lee Van Cleef pulls a barge across the river for a living. Things get turned upside down when Warren Oates and his men kill a whole town and steal a bunch of guns. They then head for the boat with a plan of crossing the river then burning the barge. The two sides finally meet with each one on opposing sides of the river. Warren needs the boat and Cleef won't give it to him to protect the town.The two actors switch roles as Lee Van Cleef plays a good guy while Warren Oates is the bad guy. Warren of course steals the show with his I don't care about anything attitude. Cleef gives his cold stares and quips a line or two.If you get a chance to see this please do. It's almost 2 hours but worth the time invested.

Over the top, cheesy performances by the actors who are walking, talking caricatures of Western villains and heroes. Watching this movie was like watching a cartoon. So bad it's good, but very very good. The town slaughter was literally unbelievable, but so ultimately predictable it was perfect and sped the plot forward. The standoff at the river was simple good vs evil, with goodness and evil on both sides. Saw this on TV last night and couldn't turn it off. My wife wondered what I saw in it. I couldn't believe how brilliant the colors were and how clear the picture was after all these years. It was good to see Mariette Hartley in such a naughty role talking DIRECTLY into the camera about what qualities constitute the essence of a REAL WOMAN. Wow, wow, wow.

I couldn't remember if I had saw it or not, but watching it again I can see possibly why. An interestingly hearty western, that's a little more than your copy and paste genre effort and helping out are the imposing two leads Lee Van Cleef and Warren Oates. Oh they were outstanding adversaries, but when it came to shove they were given too little to do as they basically stand-off against each other from across a river. Yep that's right. After an ear-splitting gunfight to open up proceedings, it really does slow up mid-way and even stalls before reaching a crackerjack climax where Cleef and Oates come to blows. It's all about the slow winding suspense of the morality situation, than just cracking out the gritty and bloody violence. The script tends to focus on the struggle for control, where it's a game of tug of war to grab the upper hand. Quite a personal angle too with an odd sense of humour. It could've have been more memorable, even compelling if it wasn't as well-worn in its occurring developments.A highlight of the feature would be the professional scope of the cinematography as it captured the glittering river and beautiful backdrop. The leering camera-work would focus on the faces and actions just as well. At times it feels like a TV movie, but director Gordon Douglas' accessibly tight handling and patient style seemed to be influenced by the material's drawn out structure. The support cast are fine additions with a lively Forrest Tucker giving the best performance.