Garden of Evil

If you have never seen Susan Hayward, Gary Cooper and Richard Widmark together, this will be a treat! First of all, the story works....

Next, the lines work and the performances are perfect: Susan Hayward's voice is the feminine equal of the stoic, knowing and forceful sound of Gary Cooper's voice: those voices are the trademarks of both of their film careers, and in this movie the interplay of their vocal tracks are very significant, definitive performances in both their careers....just listen to their lines and you will appreciate the fact that this movie is one of the high points of the dramatic art of two great performers...

You will also enjoy the visuals in this movie....Hayward is sexy, and backed by beautiful vistas. Cooper is strong and incorruptable, as are the stark and clear views that back his appearances....

Richard Widmark creates an excellent "gambling" persona...with a bit of backbone.

If you haven't seen it...DO!

If you like it, check out "The Big Sky" starring Kirk Douglas...it is black and white if I remember rightly...but well worth checking out!

This brooding western has an uneven pace and meanders in places but is no less interesting because of the star power of Gary Cooper, the film's centerpiece. The movie is a grim, spare adventure of a party of mercenaries who journey into Indian country for the promise of gold to save a woman's husband who's trapped in an abandoned mine. Susan Hayward has her own personal demons and searches for redemption for destroying her husband's self-esteem and private demons weigh her down throughout the picture. The film tends to preach at times and has a moral about gold, greed and sacrifice. Richard Widmark has a role that seems to have been tailored for him as a cynical cardsharp and quick-draw loner who's as much a mercenary as is Cooper but not quite as noble. Cameron Mitchell has a thankless role as a weak-willed bounty hunter who seems tough enough until his bluff is called. Rita Moreno appears briefly and warbles a pretty tune in a saloon, and Bernard Herrmann contributes a fine music score.

Gary Cooper, Susan Hayward, and Richard Widmark are on a trip through the wilds of Mexico in search of gold. Hayward's husband was injured in a cave-in at the mine, and she has offered the party a share of the wealth if they will help her injured husband. It sounds simple enough, but there's only one small problem--a band of Apaches that are on the hunt for white scalps. However, the lure of the prospects of wealth spur the group on to the mine, and they reach the mine, save the husband, but now face the dangers posed by the Apaches.

Each character offers some sense of presence to the film; Cooper is able to portray the silent, strength of character person, while Widmark adds a philosophical, yet cynical, view of life in his role as Fiske, a gambler. Cameron Mitchell and a Mexican guide are along, with each hoping for the gold, and the good life it will bring. And, each person has to face the danger posed in the "Garden of Evil." Susan Hayward manages to keep the group together, but only till they reach the mine. After that, it becomes a tale of who will survive.

This is a hugely underrated western as eccentric and individual as anything by Peckinpah or Boetticher. One of the early Cinemascope adventures from Fox, GARDEN OF EVIL has a superb cast at the top of their respective games, fantastic special effects, wonderful widescreen photography, and one of house composer Bernard Herrmann's very best scores (which is saying a mouthful). Best of all, it showcases an utterly unique screenplay full of strange, world-weary philosophy that sounds like Hemingway on acid. (Ironically, the chief writer, Fred Frieberger, is best known for producing the third and weakest season of the original STAR TREK -- notorious for its bad writing). At any rate, check this one out the first chance you get. Years of bad pan & scan showings on TV have destroyed its reputation -- but if you ask me, GARDEN OF EVIL is a gem waiting to be discovered, if not a cult waiting to be born!

While Garden of Evil is not known to most film fans, it is a favorite of many. Everything about this film is great. The scenery, the music, the incredible cast. Unlike today's films it has lots of say about greed, heroism, love between men, loyalty, and betrayal. It also has more great lines than most movies - all

delivered brilliantly by Susan Hayward, Gary Cooper and Richard Widmark.Here are some as I remember them (not necessarily accurate). Susan to Coop: You need me. Because without me, Mister, you're lost. And when you're lost in this country, you're dead. Widmark to Coop: See that. Every night the sun goes down, and it always takes someone with it. Tonight it's me. Coop to himself: If the earth would made of gold, men would kill for a handful of dirt.

This should be on list of the ten best westerns, right up there with Shane and The Searchers