How sad is this?

Fantastic!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The Canadian TV movie "The Gunfighters" was apparently made to also be a pilot for a prospective weekly television series. Apparently the network decided against this, and I have to say, "Thank goodness!" This is a really bad TV movie, pilot or not. The production values are really poor, ranging from clothing that looks nothing like cowboy garb found in the 1800s to cheesy indoor sets. The musical score is sour, and at one point plagiarizes several bars from Ennio Morricone's score for "A Fistful of Dollars". The acting is sub par, with even George Kennedy (who obviously knocked off his scenes in a few days) unable to generate much enthusiasm. But the worst thing about the movie has to be the script. It is filled with one cliché after another, from the actions of the characters to their dialogue. The icing on the cake is the unbelievable final few minutes that gives us a deus ex machina resolution of sorts (though leave some plot points unresolved.) I find it hard to believe any western fan would be entertained by this.

Jeez these nitpickers. They don't go for the entertainment, they go to - well - pick nits. The scenery ain't right, the haircuts ain't right, the jeans ain't right, etc. The capper was the yokel who called the fine theme inappropriate for the time. Hey, Jasper, next time you watch "High Noon" turn down the volume when you hear that theme.I gave "The Gunfighters" a big, ole western ten - enjoyed it from beginning to end. The story was intelligent and easy to follow, the characters were very well developed. The fight scenes were among the most convincing, the way they handled the guns were fantastic, the bullwhip fight was outstanding (shades of Lash La Rue but with more conviction).The women were lovely and convincing, the story had a sort-of moral to it. The trio of leads, who kept their hair neat through the melees, were as honest as any of the major actors who made westerns. I was particularly impressed by the German-raised lead whose presence was so commanding.Side note: Art Hindle's uncle is Michael Caine, and the name of the governor in the movie was Michael Kane.George Kennedy was never more obnoxious (and I mean that as a compliment)."The Gunfighters" has quickly become one of my favorite westerns, even though Alberta did not resemble Kansas. Heavens to Betsy!

Level-headed rancher Art Hindle, his hot-headed younger brother, and their Dutch immigrant cousin are forced into a confrontation with evil land-baron George Kennedy, when Hindle's brother shoots a man in self-defense and is framed by the local authorities under Kennedy's instruction. Soon, the ranch is torched and the whole family is turned into desperadoes.There's really nothing new here and some of the performances are a little overwrought at times, but the story is straight-forward, unpretentious and entertaining, with a few timeless themes that are worth repeating. If you're expecting something slick though, you may be disappointed.It's nice to see Canadian character actor Art Hindle in a starring role for once, instead of his usual appearance as second or third banana to some other star.Some interesting moments involve a duel with whips, the outlaws being forced to birth a baby, and the satisfying, though open-ended finale that looked to me like a setup for sequels, or perhaps a TV series that never materialized.

Like most Westerns I've viewed lately, this came in a cheap 10-movies for ten bucks DVD pack. I figured when the credits rolled that as it had George Kennedy in it, it had to be good viewing. And such was the case; a simple good verses bad story, an interesting script and intelligently underplayed performances by a likable cast.As someone else pointed out, the locations didn't seem appropriate but it didn't seem to matter. The story maintained my - and my viewing companion's - interest from start to finish. The actual print wasn't the best being rather washed out, unless that was the intended effect!So all in all, a Western in the vintage style, more akin to what you'd see in a movie house in the late 1930s, if a bit more realistic. And for the dollar cost, a bargain.