Chino

Chino is the story of the typical loner who doesn't fit into society. Typical Bronson film with an un-typical Bronson ending. Bronson plays Chino who breaks and sells wild horses. After taking a young boy in as a ranch hand things start to get better for Chino. He falls in love with a rancher's sister and things deteriorate from that point. Can recommend this film for Bronson fans.

Some of the best films in which Charles Bronson stared in can said to have been the very best. However, there are a couple which are never off the mark. This is one of them. The movie is called " Chino " and in this reviewer's opinion is like a item of wet clothing, hung out to dry. Charles Bronson plays Chino Valdez a native America who has am isolated ranch in the New Mexico plains. One day a teen age lad named Jamie Wagner (Vincent Van Patten) arrives on his ranch looking for work. Reluctantly, Valdez hires him and set about to teach him the horse trade. At nearly the same time Valdex is smitten by an English woman called Catherine (Jill Ireland) who falls for him. Despite the rest of the town clamoring for Chin to stay away, thing on his ranch never do get off the ground as the Catherine's brother is someone who decides Chino is not the right man for his sister. Despite the Bronson presence and the fact that this is a John Sturges film, it lacks the magic of their combined efforts in other movies. Still, much can be garnered from this offering. In this case, Van Patton does add his youthful presence and conspires to ask the question, why does it end the way it does. This is very unlike Bronson. ***

After directing Clint Eastwood in the western caper "Joe Kidd (1972)" (which I really like), the following year director John Sturges' helm the European western "Chino (1973)" that starred Charles Bronson. However these two films share very little in common. Sturges ably directs, but this one relies heavily on Bronson's presence and the unusual way things go on to play out in this very fragmented story. Nonetheless I didn't find it to be like your standard western / spaghetti item. It was broodingly slow, and the action saw very little to no daylight. It had a strange emotional and at times spiritual pull (like a stirring dream sequence) between the characters, that kind of made it unpredictable and primarily dreary. The material never sticks to one story, but moves about quite a bit in a typically mellow and subdued fashion. More often it focused on the convincingly growing relationship between Bronson and Van Patten, and their laboured effort on the ranch. Some of these plots don't add anything to the central idea, but still manages to compel (while not be completely satisfying) by giving the main characters some personality and weight. Bronson's performance bares someone who's genuine, and with a manner that still intimidates, but can show that warm side with not a care in the world to get into any sort of conflict. The unhinged ending beautifully paints that angle. Quite a curious turn on his part. Working alongside him was an exceptional show-in by Vincent Van Patten and his fellow squeeze at the time Jill Ireland provided some fire to the chemistry. Sturges simply knows how get striking location choices in the framing, and cinematographer Armando Nanuzzi formulates it accordingly with the on-screen action. Although the thing that hit me was Guido and Maurizio De Angelis' folksy casual music score of soothing attraction and swing. Creaky, but oddly intriguing little-known western.

I watched this movie a few days ago and at the time wasn't overly impressed. However, I find myself still thinking about it and therefore I can't deny it made a lasting impression. This is certainly one of the more unusual westerns you will ever watch and I would add this is definitely one of Bronson's better films. I watched a really bad print of this on VHS and wish I had something better to view this film again. I'm sure I would like it even better second time around.

I think that maybe the real genius in this movie is the way it accurately captured the isolation early pioneers actually encountered in the vastness of the old west. Bronson is a man living alone on a horse ranch and "living" is about it. Unexpectedly he befriends a young drifter and then even more unexpectedly falls in love with a very beautiful woman. Then his life really become complicated. However, all the while, you sort of sense that he expects things to work out wrong because that is just the way life goes for a man like him; someone who learns to mostly just depend on himself and just accept whatever comes as whatever comes. In a way its a sad film...but you have to realize that life out there on the frontier battling the elements, ruthless land barons, and loneliness wasn't exactly a bowl of cherries. The landscape, overcast skies, and the sets do a fabulous job helping create the somber atmosphere that is, in my opinion, the real star of this film. This is a spaghetti western but this time around the various elements of Italian films are brought out in their better light. This is a serious piece of film and worth watching for a number of reasons. It is not an action filled shoot em' up but rather a character study and realistic portrayal of how hard times and hard living were in the tough old west. Nicely photographed too. This movie reminds me of stuff like Will Penny, Tender Mercies, or even Monte Walsh. Not as good as those but pretty close. Yes, there are flaws but its still interesting and unique...and fun to look at I might add.

'Chino' is a surprisingly engaging western which stars Charles Bronson as the haggard central character, trying to tame wild horses, and the young protégé which sort of falls into his lap, played by 1970's stalwart Vincent Van Patten). Bronson tries to keep his business in order, when meanwhile, a guy with an impossibly long Italian name tries to fence him in! And to make things worse, he falls in love with impossibly-named Italian guy's sister (played by Jill Ireland). Amazingly, this actually is a bit of fun, because Bronson is well, Bronson, and it's fun to see a real life couple such as Bronson and Ireland blow sparks off of each other. The ending is verrrrrry 1970's, absolutely nothing is resolved, I mean, NOTHING! It's quite an interesting movie. Check it out!