Tierra ensangrentada

Released in 1974 and directed by Terence Young, "The Klansman" is a melodrama with thrills starring Lee Marvin as a sheriff in a small town in northern Alabama trying to keep the lid on racial tensions after a black man rapes a white woman (Linda Evans). Richard Burton co-stars as Breck, an alcoholic who sympathizes with the black community while opposing the local Klan, which is made up of whites in prominent positions, like the unprofessional deputy (Cameron Mitchell) and the rotund mayor (David Huddleston). Lola Falana plays Breck's black spiritual daughter while OJ Simpson (in his first role) plays a vengeful man turning to radical measures to fight the racism. Italian beauty Luciana Paluzzi (from 1965's "Thunderball") is on hand as the Sheriff's assistant at the station, although her lines are dubbed by Joanna Moore.

With such a noteworthy cast and a tried-and-true director (who impressively shot the first three Bond films) "The Klansman" should be superlative, but it's not. The plot is great (based on William Bradford Huie's novel), but the screenplay is horribly melodramatic, sometimes to the point of being laughable, like the dreadful (and thoroughly unbelievable) church sequence. The movie comes across as a late-night TV soap opera with edge. I'm assuming that most of the $5 million budget went toward cast & crew wages because the script needed a LOT of kinks worked out, which isn't helped by amateur editing that's often abrupt and awkward. Take, for instance, the fight at the bus station; it has to be seen to be believed. "The Klansman" is an obvious exploitation piece, as these type of films were the ones getting revenue during this low point in Hollywood after bloated-budget films sank a lot of the major studios.

Lee Marvin is solid as the protagonist, easily carrying the movie, and Burton still has his charisma, but both were plagued by personal troubles at the time and allegedly drinking heavily. Richard was constantly fighting with Elizabeth Taylor during the shooting, reportedly over Burton's flirtations or affair with a young waitress or an older married woman. There were shouting matches and items flew through the air at their rented house, leading to the destruction of the interior. The crew stayed in a local motel where one full room was filled with cases of alcohol from floor to ceiling. While Marvin and Burton were professionals and always showed up on time the latter clearly slurred lines at times and had to be filmed in a reclining or sitting position to pull off his scenes. Burton was 48 during filming but easily looked a dozen years older.

Despite all these negatives, "The Klansman" IS entertaining as a what-were-they-thinking period piece. Speaking of which, look for Evans' camel toe sequence at the bus station (I don't mean to be crude, but – like I said – what were they thinking). If you choose to watch this movie, whatever you do, DON'T expect "Mississippi Burning."

The film runs 112 minutes (104 minutes cut) and was shot in Oroville, California, 75 miles north of Sacramento.

GRADE: Borderline C-/D+ (3.5/10 Stars)

Mr. Mike's Couch Time Movie Review: I just watched a budget DVD version of this picture. All the curse words but not the "N" words were all edited out. This is easily the worst piece of film that Lee Marvin has ever been associated with. In fact, it's the worst piece of film HOKE HOWELL has ever been associated with! At least Howell can tell his grand-kids that Linda Evans played his wife in a movie....(Hello, get me casting....) The entire plot of the film is edited out of this version. Did they make a TV cut to capitalize on the mini-series Roots? Maybe that explains this. I can't believe that an airline movie print exists either of this monstrosity.

Lots of familiar faces for stereotyped celluloid of the Old South: Cameron Mitchell, David Huddleston (if you guessed the corrupt Mayor give yourself 5 points!), Howell. But some of the oddest casting ever: Richard Burton co-stars with Marvin, as a left-leaning liberal, peace-loving friend to all races (at least all the women of all the races.) Early on, he's in the sack with Luciana, the local policewoman. There's an implied relationship (this is 1974) with Lola Falana. And after (unbelievably) trying to persuade a hippie clergyman to seduce the recently raped Linda Evans (?), Burton has to dirty his hands with this one too. I mention Falana. She's very good in this movie. As is (drumroll) OJ Simpson, Simpson plays (in this version) just a guy whose fed up with the Klan. Maybe in the complete version, it's Simpson who turns out to be the undercover FBI agent, since Marvin, the Sheriff, repeatedly catches Simpson only to let him go. Who knows? Who cares. The soundtrack is not to be missed either (insert sarcasm here) Memorable scenes: the Klan funeral interrupted by sniper fire, a high-speed herse chase, and 2 car explosions. Then there's the comedic (?) fight scene between Mitchell and Richard Burton and Richard Burton's stand-in.

I just love bad film making. And this didn't disappoint. The Klansman gets 3 potatoes one for Richard Burton's stand-in, one for Richard Burton's on-again, off-again southern (?) accent, one for Richard Burton's on-again, off-again limp

I'd heard a lot ABOUT 'The Klansman' but had never seen it before, and hearing the behind the scenes stories (original director an co-writer Sam Fuller walking off set, stars Lee Marvin and Richard Burton both being allegedly so drunk they couldn't remember making it!) I imagined that it was going to be one of the worst movies ever made. It isn't. Now it isn't all that good, mind you, but it's watchable b-grade trash, and Marvin puts in a good performance, drunk or not. Burton's accent is I agree not too good but he is okay, especially if he like Marvin was as drunk as they say he was. The rest of the cast includes the notorious O.J. Simpson as a one man black revolutionary with a gun and an attitude, 'The Big Lebowski's David Huddleston is a racist mayor, and legendary character actor Cameron Mitchell ('Hombre', 'Ride In The Whirlwind', 'The Rebel Rousers',etc.) as the wonderfully named Butt Butt Cates, the later two both being members of the KKK. Linda Evans also appears as a rape victim who sets off a chain of events which end off in violence and tragedy. The main problem with the movie, and this is most likely because of the drama off camera, is that the movie can't decide whether it's trying to be a serious message movie or an exploitation film using racism as an excuse for some sensationalistic thrills. 'Mandingo' made the following year (and its sequel 'Drum') managed to juggle both approaches with a little more success, but 'The Klansman' suffers for its lack of a clear direction. Even so, this movie is nowhere near as bad as many people claim (people who I imagine have never actually WATCHED it) and is still reasonably entertaining, especially if , like 'Reservoir Dogs' Mr Blonde, you are a big Lee Marvin fan.

A famous Hollywood story goes that sometime in the mid-to-late 70's, Richard Burton was at a party and got talking to Lee Marvin, whom he thought he had never met. Eventually Burton remarked that the two men should work together at some point, to which Marvin simply stated, "we have."

That Burton forgot making 'The Klansman' is unsurprising, considering his unintentionally hilarious and obviously intoxicated performance in the film. He stars as a liberal Southern landowner named Breck Stancill, who is brought into the local furore after a white girl makes allegations of assault against a black man. Marvin co-stars as the town Sherriff, Track Bascomb, who tries in vain to quell the uprising of racially motivated violence that ensues. Also, in his first credited role, OJ Simpson plays a vigilante who uses the situation to start a one-man revolt against the Ku Klux Klan.

An adaptation of the 1967 William Bradford Huie novel of the same name, the film had a troubled production history. Adaptation rights were first purchased that same year, but were then passed around for the next couple, with no projects ever getting off the ground. At one point Samuel Fuller was attached to write and direct, but that too never transpired. His screenplay was eventually rewritten by Millard Kaufman and Terence Young took over as director. Burton and Marvin were then brought in and proceeded to drink their way through the shooting process.

The finished film is a tonally confused, visually unexciting and oftentimes very funny concoction that doesn't have a lot going for it on paper. Huie's hard-hitting story about racial violence is diluted and obfuscated by camp moments like a fight scene where Burton drunkenly karate chops people, throwing many through doors. The dialogue sounds stilted and preacherly when it isn't hilariously over the top.

The movie is cheap looking, even for something billed as a work in the exploitation genre, looking like cinematographer Lloyd Ahern forgot to clean his camera lens before shooting began. As well as all that, many of the supporting actors have had their voices dubbed in post-production and it's not a subtle or decent piece of work (with the dubbing of Luciana Paluzzi being the most notably inept).

Which is not to mention Burton's performance at all. In every scene it is obvious he's four sheets to the wind and clearly has no interest in the material. Struggling with his Southern accent, he's like a poorly drawn, very funny caricature. Though reports say he was doing an equal amount of drinking, Marvin actually delivers a steady, interesting performance as the Sheriff, not once appearing intoxicated. There is much pleasure that can be drawn from watching Burton act in 'The Klansman', but none of it was intentional.

Having listed all those detractions, it may surprise you that 'The Klansman' is actually a very entertaining movie. There are moments where the themes and sequences from Huie's novel are treated with a measured hand, like the rape scene and some of the locals' ignorant conversations, as well as the finale. These are visceral, powerful and neatly directed by Young.

Burton and Marvin's characters are well drawn, with the Sherriff being one of surprising depth- again, thanks in large part to Marvin's performance. The OJ Simpson character is intriguing, even if his story is not fully explored, and the local racists- led by David Huddleston- have some great scenes that are genuinely affecting.

At the end of the day- whether they wanted it to be or not- the film is funny, and anything that makes you belly laugh in these dark times is a positive experience. 'The Klansman' is not a hard-hitting story about racial prejudice and violence in a small town, nor is it a good adaptation of William Bradford Huie's source material. It has dark elements that are well realized for the screen, and are quite difficult to watch- brutal racism is never palatable- but, overall, it's a joyride piloted by a drunken Welshman that's very entertaining.

Awful film altogether about racial tensions in a small southern town that bring the hooded KKK out to terrorize and harrass. There is no chemistry between sheriff Lee Marvin and simple landowner Richard Burton. I don't even know why Burton is in the story, let alone the film.