Ambush at Cimarron Pass

First, would I recommend this movie to average Joe? No But to a moviebuff I will.

Let's get Clint out of the picture first. Trademark speak between his teeth: CHECK! Grumpy: CHECK! But here is were the fun begins for me as a movie buff, knowing well that he was told that he was going nowhere delivering his lines like that I agree. Line delivery by Clint in this movie is bad, youthful, stiff and over the top. If someone would have told him that in 10 years he would be a rising star and in 50 he would be known all over the world, I belive he would've smacked that person in the face, writing it down to an insult.

He performs better when the characters emotions are toned down which is highly noticable and the star shines through just a brief notice of what's to come.

Regarding the film and script it's stupid. Trained soldiers doing all kinds of stupid stuff that if this was a modern war epic would make people cringe.

The version I was watching had subtitles that were totally of with the dialogue, something that just added another dimension to it.

Not for everyone, will not watch ever again.

4/10.

Let's face it - the only real reason to catch this pedestrian oater is to get a glimpse of a 27 year old Clinton Eastwood. The future star is still coltish in his acting craft here, and he hasn't fully developed his excellent timing and intensity as in "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" and "Dirty Harry", but the B western does show why this film was a good reason that he pursue acting. His scenes with Margia Dean are the best in showing a charisma which would one day make him box office.

Made in 1958, Eastwood looks very youthful. He holds his own in scenes with a sturdy and sullen Scott Brady, and is somewhat confined by a script that has him cast as the young fool. But Eastwood does well with what he's got, and exhibits a star quality as a young Hollywood actor.

This film essentially begins with a squad of cavalry escorting a prisoner known simply as "Corbin" (Baynes Barron) through Apache territory to a fort to stand trial over 100 miles away. However, on the way there, their squad is decimated by an Apache war party which leaves a man named "Sergeant Matt Blake" (Scott Brady) responsible for the delivery of his prisoner. As luck would have it, the cavalry squad comes across a few former confederate soldiers were taking part in a cattle drive but encountered a separate Apache war party on the way. That being said, while none of the former confederates have any great desire to serve with these cavalry soldiers, they realize that their only hope of survival depends on doing just that. It is then revealed that, along with their prisoner, the cavalry squad also has a great number of repeating rifles which Corbin had been planning on selling to the Apache. Needless to say, knowing how badly the Apache want these rifles, everyone now realizes that time is not on their side and that, if they are going to survive, they must make it to the fort as quickly as possible. What they don't realize, however, is that the Apache are equally determined to slow them down--and they have an idea on how to do just that. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was an okay Western which suffered to some degree by its rather low budget. As far as the acting was concerned, everyone played their parts well enough but nobody--to include Clint Eastwood (as the bitter confederate cowboy named "Keith Williams")--really impressed me that much. To be sure, he wasn't necessarily bad, by any means. It just wasn't one of his better performances. Regardless, while certainly not a great Western, it managed to pass the time well enough, and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

1st watched 9/14/2007, 6 out of 10(Dir-Jodie Copelan): Watchable story of former confederates and Yankees joining forces to thwart off some Apache's trying to get some repeating rifles that a traitor had sold to them. This is a very simple story that is executed very well by all involved. The idea behind it is that the Civil war has just ended but there are still hard feelings between the sides. The Yankee(northern troops) are trying to transfer some rifles and a prisoner to a nearby fort but are intercepted by some southern-folk that they think are Apache's dressed up like them(they had been fooled by the Apache's earlier this way). The Apache's then steal the whole combined troops horses and have to travel by foot six days the rest of the way. The conflict in the movie has to do with these two groups getting along while the Apache's slowly figure out how to overcome them and get the rifles. There is eventually a showdown but by this time the hard work of reconciliation has been done and the fight with the Indians is kind of anti-climatic. Clint Eastwood, in an early role, plays a young hard-hearted southern man who eventually turns to help out the crew and does a good job, but's its the story that keeps you interested. An abrupt end is the only real downside to the movie(which appeared to be mainly because the small film company ran out of money more than anything else), but this small film delivers otherwise and is enjoyable viewing.

'Ambush at Cimarron Pass' is a bit of a bore.

Even though I don't think it's as bad as one Clint Eastwood reportedly does, I do agree in the sense that this 1958 production is a limp effort at making a western. I found none of the characters to be likeable, not that they're necessarily unlikeable per se, and the events depicted onscreen failed to give me any form of entertainment/enjoyment.

Eastwood is solid in arguably his biggest role at this point in time, though the rest of those alongside the aforementioned aren't noteworthy to me - at a big push, Scott Brady is the standout of the others. Eastwood didn't return to film acting after this until 1964, but arrived back with a bang with the start of the Dollars Trilogy - I look forward to watching those!