Killer Cain

There are many films which the great actor Clint Walker made and a few became the foundation for the rest. In this film, which is one of his best, called " More Dead than Alive " is directed by Robert Spar and written by George Schench. It relates the unusual story of a multiple murderer, called Cain, (Clint Walker) who has paid the standard price for murdering several men, by serving nearly twenty years in prison. Now that he's out, he finds a job with Dan Ruffalo's (Vincent Price) wild west show. Earning honest money, Clain decides to capitalize on his infamous legacy while at the same time trying to go straight. Unfortunately, Cain's past is slowly creeping in on his peaceful life-style and it only a matter of time before it catches up to him. At the same time, Clain tries to teach Billy Valence an envious and arrogant reputation-seeking gun-slinger (Paul Hampton) not to make the same mistakes he made. The story is a moral one which has influence many a writer and director in the following movie years. For Walker, the least we can add is that this film has become a Classic. ****

This actioner Western packs emotion , adventures, fights , crossfire , twists and turns . Famous gunslinger 'Killer' Cain (recently deceased Clint Walker) is released from prison after 18 years, he wants to settle down as a rancher in Las Rinas and never touch a gun again , as well as look for a job to carry a quite life and peace . Cain has a particular code of survival and lives in a brutal land of violence , being dogged by foes , but he is having difficulty adjusting to life back on the outside . However , nobody wants to give him a job, some nasty people also wish to pay him back. So he has to accept the offer of showman Ruffalo (Vincent Price) to perform as "Killer Cain" in his traveling shooting show and in his World Museum . As the horse-drawn carriage has a museum where exhibits various ítems : Guns from St. Louis train robbery , Cochise knife , Lincoln colt and Cain gun . As Cain participates at the sensational , phenomenal spectacle as a sharpshooter, an infamous gunman with his 12 notch colt . Meanwhile , Cain falls in love for two men , a Golden Condor Saloon girl and the painter named Monica Alton (Anne Francis) . Nevertheless , after 18 years without practice even Ruffalo's young assistant Billy (Paul Hampton) shoots better than Cain. Furthermore , Cain is being chased by a mysterious stranger and then old troubles resurface .Gunslinger Rebellion -Winner kill all! Killers in pairs... death by the dozen... They left the west... More Dead than Alive.

It is a pretty nice film , though a little bit slow-moving , that could become another western worthy of any anthology due to its offbeat , outlandish elements . The film is divided in year seasons : Winter , Spring ... and it has a twilight style in which Old West has died and the starring cannot adapt to the modern West where there are bicycles and some unpaid moral debts . Highlights of the movie are the impressive images at the beginning , when takes place a spectacular prison break-out with machine-gun included , and a lot of grisly killings . Interesting and stirring screenplay by the notorious George Schenck , still working . Clint Walker gives an acceptable acting as the ex-cold hearted , and multiple killer who he is forced to take a job with a traveling sideshow earning a living off of a past he wants no take part . Along the way Cain/Clint Walker stumbles upon an opportunity for love with the always beautiful Anne Francis . Clint had a long career , his film debut was Ten Commandments (195) , as he met actor Henry Wilcoxon, who introduced him to director Cecil B. DeMille, and Walker found himself playing the part of a Captain of the Guard . Someone from Warner Bros. saw the film , found out that Walker was under contract to producer Hal B. Wallis, bought up Walker's contract and gave him the lead in "Cheyenne" , this series was a huge hit . However, Walker was dissatisfied with the way Warners was handling his career -- they would let other contract players make films, for example, but he wasn't allowed to -- and that triggered a dispute which ended up with him taking a walk from the show. He and Warners eventually settled their disagreements . When the show ended Walker began to get supporting parts in features, his biggest and most successful one being Dirty Dozen (1967). He starred in the not-so-well received None but the brave (1965), a WWII film that was Frank Sinatra's one and only stab at directing. The tall Clint did his own stunts and performed a lot of westerns and TV series as the successful Cheyenne , Yuma, White Buffalo , Pancho Villa, The bounty man, and the well-received the Night of Grizzly (1966) by Gordon Douglas and Baker's Hawk (1976), and turned in a good performance as a villain in the TV movie Scream of the Wolf (1974) .He is accompanied by the great Vincent Price as a propietor of a World Wide Museum , the biggest little show in the territory . Along with a good support cast such as Paul Hampton , Craig Littler , Mike Henry and Emile Meyer .

The motion picture was well directed by Robert Sparr , at his best . He was an artisan who directed speciallly for TV , making several episodes from famous series as Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea , Batman , Jim West , Star Trek , Bonanza , The Dakotas , Gallant men , Lassie , The outcasts , The Roaring 20's , and Cheyenne that spawned countless other western series, from Warners and other studios . And eventualy he directed for Big Screen, such as A Swingin' Summer and this More Dead Than Alive . Rating : 6/10 . Passable and acceptable .

More Dead Than Alive might not do much for a lot of western fans, and the reason for that is that it's so different from the rest of the genre. The western hero is meant to be big, strong, uncaring and a real sharp shooter; and in this film, that is everything that our central character used to be, and now he's going straight. For that reason, it might be more advisable to go into this film expecting more of a drama than a western as that's essentially what it is; a drama set in the once-wild west. Our central character is a man named Cain, who earned the nickname 'Killer Cain' thanks to the twelve notches on his revolver. After eighteen years behind bars, the killer is released but while he's no longer on the run from the law; he faces a different challenge as the West that put him behind bars is not the West that he's being released back into, and he quickly discovers that getting a job with his reputation is not the easiest thing to do. The only man who wants to employ him is circus ringmaster Ruffalo; but Cain lacks practise and the young assistant Billy is a better shot.

Aside from provide a different sort of western, the film also tries to do a few other things and unfortunately there just isn't time for it all. There's a romance angle which stems off the main plot and that doesn't get nearly enough time spent on it, while the action sequences we do get feel more like an afterthought. My main reason for seeing this film is undoubtedly the presence of the great Vincent Price, who gives a memorable performance in a supporting role. Clint Walker takes the lead role and while it's not a standout performance and he looks a little young and clean to have been behind bars for eighteen years; he does make for a likable lead. Paul Hampton is a real standout, however, as the cocky young villain of the piece. The film provides good entertainment for the duration and it's not exactly taxing stuff, which ensures that the film is always enjoyable enough. The ending was a bit of a disappointment to me as certain characters were killed by the wrong people; but all in all, this is a memorable film and is recommended if you want a decent hour and a half of entertainment.

The title is misleading (as though it's some kind of zombie horror film), but this is definitely my kind of western. It's dark, sadistic, and action-filled. Clint Walker fans won't be disappointed, and I love the ending. Vincent Price seems to be having a great time in his role, and although Mike Henry is underused, he does a great job with his small, but important role, playing one of the villains. Hampton looks the part, but tends to overact a little (though not to the extent some have said) and ultimately he does well. I would rather have seen a tougher-looking guy in his role, such as Dean Smith, but it's not that big an issue.

In short, this is a dark, action-packed unique western, and I'm delighted that it's now on DVD in widescreen.

Clint Walker is just out of prison after 18. He murdered a man and paid the price. Actually, he murdered a dozen, and so his hopes of getting a job, buying a ranch and never strapping on a gun again are futile. Instead, he becomes an attraction in Vincent Price's traveling shooting gallery. Because he hasn't handled a gun in almost two decades, he's slow and has poor aim; Price's assistant, Paul Hampton, is much faster and more accurate, but he has no reputation, and it eats at him.

The closing of the west was a frequent theme of the more ambitious American westerns of the 1960s, and ths is an examle of one; it's not just the west that's closing down, but its myth, of two-fisted fighters who face each other in the street, with only one walking away. This is a lesser example of the subgenre, but it's still good to watch, especially the scenes with Anne Francis as the woman Walker is sweet on, and who returns the feeling.