The Worst Film Ever

Instant Favorite.

The movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

A curious little western with only three things going for it: Marlon Brando in the lead role, an energetic, though somewhat stereotypical supporting performance from John Saxon as his Mexican adversary (he went on to play further Mexican roles whilst not being of Mexican heritage) and the fine looking steed of the film's title (though oddly, it really only appears in limited scenes).Unfortunately the film ends up being quite dull with little action and interminably long and repetitive conversational scenes that annoy through the overuse of extreme close-ups of the characters' faces. Director Furie was obviously attempting to ape Sergio Leone, but fails miserably, particularly in his staging of the few "action scenes" in the movie. As he did in his previous film, The Ipcress File, he insists on filming at odd angles, long distances and behind other objects to virtually empty these scenes of any excitement they may have fostered, if handled by more talented directors.The film ends up being drained of all life and I for one can understand why Brando apparently had very little time for it. Be prepared for disappointment.

Actually this cannot be a typical old western, but rather one of the first modern ones. There is so much humor and Brando's performance enhances further the result. Of course, the main source of humor is not Brando's misfortunes, but rather the macho comparison between women and horses. The irony derives from the old belief that horses are more valuable in men's eyes and that is the first scene and the opening of the story.

or Boy meets horse,boy loses horse,boy finds horse again after adopting a comic book Mexican accent of the "I'm gonna keel you,greengo!" variety and apparently being fitted with brown contact lenses.Mr Brando's concern with respecting minorities clearly didn't stretch to refusing to stereotype the way they speak or paint himself with coffee grounds to darken his skin so he can "pass". At times he seems barely conscious as he brings the phrase "going through the motions" to a whole new level. Frankly,by 1966 he was already "Yesterday's Man"and beginning a cycle of movies that would see him happily guying his former persona to keep him in pizza. Starting off with blue eyes and a beard that looks as if it was constructed of goats' hair,Mr Brando does his hoarse - whispering schtick in the Confessional before being confronted by Mr John Saxon, a man to whom subtlety is an unexplored territory.Mr Saxon wants to buy Mr Brando's horse for $500.A refusal clearly offends Mr S.and a revenge story creaks its way through the next ninety or so minutes. Mr Saxon steals Mr Brando's horse whilst he is very unconvincingly drunk- Mr Brando,not the horse who might have made a better fist of it. The rest of the movie concerns Mr Brando's efforts to restore the horse to his bosom. After "browning up",Mr Brando sets off to find his horse and "keel" Mr Saxon,on the way adopting an accent nearly as bad as his opponents. Er,that's about it,really. In recent years,sleep - walking has become a recognised defence against murder charges here in the UK(well,I never said we were clever). Despite this,I find Mr Brando guilty of murdering "The Appaloosa"in his sleep.

The Appaloosa (AKA: Southwest to Sonora) is directed by Sidney J. Furie and adapted by James Bridges and Roland Kibbee from Robert MacLeod's novel. It stars Marlon Brando, Anjanette Comer, John Saxon, Emilio Fernández and Miriam Colon. Music is by Frank Skinner and cinematography by Russell Metty.Plot finds Brando as Matt Fletcher, a Mexican-American buffalo hunter who returns to his home town of Ojo Prieto seeking to start a cleaner life. But when he is accused of a crime he didn't commit, he is harassed and humiliated by bandit general Chuy Medina (Saxon) who steals his horse - the appaloosa of the title - this puts in motions the wheels of revenge as he sets about recovering his beloved horse and lost pride.Few things are as divisive when talk turns to Marlon Brando as that involving his Western output. One person will often stand up to announce One Eyed Jacks as being near genius, the next guy will call it a garbled mess. The Missouri Breaks receives much scorn, but some, myself included, actually like the quirky nature of it. The Appaloosa is not a great film, interesting for sure, with the odd fleeting moment of inspiration, but otherwise it's a dull affair.Brando is actually darn great in it, Matt Fletcher calls for a brooding, almost morose like, portrayal, so who better than Marlon? Saddle him up with a vengeance driven motive and bingo! You got Brando lifting the picture to at least watchable heights. But Furie seems to think he is Orson Welles, and you sense that Brando thinks the director is as well. Up close and personal camera work and angled shots are clearly meant to infuse picture with sweaty claustrophobia and psychological smarts, but they just come off as being in the wrong film since story just isn't that interesting to begin with and many scenes just taper off into nothing.Metty's Technicolor photography is most appealing at what looks to me like Durango, Mexico, further adding irritants that the picture as a whole is not better. Rest of the cast are fine, with the Latino actors holding their own with their parts of an uninspiring script and Saxon turns in a good one as a bandido bastard. An arm wrestling scene over a scorpion is genuine class, and tension driven, while the snow capped final shoot-out is not without merit. But ultimately the highlights are rare and not even a brooding Brando can make this a safe recommendation to Western fans.Character's motivations and inspiration is strong. Film, however, is not. 5/10