High Plains Drifter

One of the great western plots is the outsider stranger who comes to a town and one way or another rids it of its bad elements. A cliché best typified by Shane. In High Plains Drifter we have the town of Lago which sure doesn't look like much. A mysterious stranger comes to town played by Clint Eastwood and he's certainly up for the role of town savior. But as the film unfolds is Lago a town worth saving?

The funny thing is that Eastwood himself did a variation on the plot of Shane in Pale Rider. He's as noble there as Alan Ladd was in Shane. But in High Plains Drifter his gunfighter skills are almost superhuman. And he's far from noble. His brooding presence frightens the town people but he might be their savior so like it or not, they put up with it though they don't like it.

In fact the town's leading citizens are really a scurvy lot and the town has a lot of secrets. As you watch High Plains Drifter you wonder if the crowd is worth saving.

It all works out the same as it does for Shane, but with one supernatural twist. In fact there's not another Clint Eastwood movie let alone western film where the supernatural comes in. It truly is a star vehicle for Eastwood, most of the supporting cast don't have enough to work with to create memorable characters. An exception is Barry Curtis, a midget who Eastwood elevates to prime importance and is really the only true friend the High Plains Drifter has.

In fact High Plains Drifter has a ride into the sunset like no other.

In the coastal town of Lago, a drifter (Clint Eastwood) arrives and is bullied by three "bad guys". He kills them and soon he is invited by the locals to protect the city against three outlaws that would leave a nearby prison in a couple of days. One year ago, these criminals killed Marshal Jim Duncan using whips. The marshal asked for help and the coward towners did not help him. The killers were sent to jail and promised to come back to burn the city when they leave the jail. The citizens offer anything the stranger want "free of charge" for the protection against the rage of the criminals. Who might be the stranger with no name?

"High Plains Drifter" is a great movie about revenge. The viewer never knows whether the "stranger with no name" is a brother or a friend of Marshal Jim Duncan, or whether he is the avenger angel of Jim Duncan himself looking for revenge. In the last scene, when Mordecai asks for the name of the stranger while carving the gravestone of Jin Duncanin the cemetery telling that he did not know his name, the drifter responds that Mordecai does know his name. In the gravestone is written "Marshall Jim Duncan - Rest in Peace". Fans of western movies will not be disappointed with this film, no matter whether he is a cowboy or a supernatural character. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Estranho sem Nome" ("The Stranger without a Name")

Note: On 01 Sep 2020, I saw this film again.

A lone gunman with no name and seemingly with no past, rides into the dusky town of Lago. The residents of Lago at first view the stranger with suspicion, but when news that some outlaws that are out for blood are on their way to town, they ask the stranger for his help.

This is Clint Eastwood's first Western film that he directed, and it's clear and evident that the guy not only loves the genre that made his name, he also knows what makes it work. Obviously having worked for Sergio Leone, Eastwood was making notes because High Plains Drifter oozes the mythical aura of many of Leone's finest genre offerings. To which, with thanks, the result is one of the best offerings in the 70s for the Oater enthusiast.

The film opens with our mysterious drifter slowly coming out of the beautiful sprawling haze and into Lago, it's ethereal, then there's just the sound of the horse breathing and the clop of its hooves that can be heard (the sound mix here is incredible), it's a gloriously mysterious opening that sets the tone perfectly. Yet Eastwood is just toying with us though, for a quick jolt of sex and violence snaps us out of the beatific warmth and into a quite hauntingly cold and morally challenged place. From here on in the stranger will demand all manner of odd things from the residents of Lago, he seems to be toying with them and revelling in their discomfort, with Lago quickly resembling an arid hellhole. You see, Lago has a dark secret, and our mysterious stranger has a purpose, and it's this purpose that makes High Plains Drifter an intriguing and gripping experience.

A well known fact now is that the great man of the genre, John Wayne, wrote Eastwood to strongly complain about his harsh vision of the West, one can only think the Duke failed to grasp the post Vietnam feel of a 70s made Western. It's a great directorial effort from Eastwood, more so when you marry up his acting performance to his directorial duties. Very much the perfect role, it lets Eastwood accentuate his rugged Western leanings. Eastwood would direct the similarly themed Pale Rider in the 80s and then the genre crown topper Unforgiven in the 90s. A Western great in each decade? Well that will always be debatable, but what we do know is that the Western genre was considerably lucky to have had such a man to keep the genre going for the newer interested wanderers into the Wild West.

Beautifully photographed (Bruce Surtees) on the shores of Mono Lake, California, it's a film pungent with sex, sadism, retribution and risks. High Plains Drifter is mystical and magnificent and essential Western fare. 9/10

"High Plains Drifter" is probably Clint Eastwood's darkest western and that says quite a bit. It has similarities with "Pale Rider", his other western gem. The hero is a mysterious, ghost-like figure and he fights against the evil and corruption that infests a small town in the middle of nowhere. What sets these two films apart is that here Eastwood is fighting a lone battle , and his only sidekick is the midget Mordecai, while almost all other inhabitants of Lago are corrupted or/and cowardly.

Eastwood delivers one of his strongest performances here and manages to be charming and humorous besides exacting cool-blooded vengeance. His interactions with the two women (Marianna Hill and Verna Bloom, both solid in their roles) who are very different draws comparisons to his earlier film "Hang 'Em High". But what sets this apart from the typical Eastwood fare is the dark nature of this movie. Anthony James, the man with the unforgettable face, is once again back as one of the main villains. The rest of the cast are quite forgettable and lesser known names, which adds credibility to this movie, making it a film to be taken seriously and not just a gathering of famous faces.

This film's perhaps strongest asset is the excellent screenplay by Ernest Tidyman, the Oscar-winner for "French Connection" and it is probably the best screenplay ever written for an Eastwood-directed western. The storyline never ceases to surprise and is full of suspense and great dialogue. As always, Clint knew who to pick. As always in the Clint films, this movie is not about love. Clint and Bloom's affair almost results in love, but it never gets the chance to develop. The surprise ending adds a great touch. This film really is a delight for fans of Clint Eastwood and unusual, film-noirish westerns.

The classic picture, shot by Clint Eastwood, who himself played the main role of a stranger without a name. For me, this picture is certainly not the pinnacle of creativity, directorial and acting, the inimitable K. Eastwood, he just has a lot more work to do. But the film definitely deserves to be seen by many.

At first glance, it seems nothing new as regards westerns, having taken it in view, the viewer will not see. But it will be so only when viewing the first half of the picture. In the future, all the actions taking place in the film will acquire a raid of mysticism, which will intensify from one action to another and acquiring clear outlines of the supernatural with the development of the storyline. The fact that a stranger appears and disappears in the end of the tape will obviously hint at the mystical interpretation of the picture. And Eastwood himself hinted at the mystical aspect of his work in his interviews. Therefore, this tape will also be interesting to those who love not only the standard work in this genre. It will definitely appeal to lovers of the mysterious and mysterious.

In the picture itself, by and large, there is nothing to complain about. Everything in it is made to last. It could not be otherwise. Just look at the team working on the film. Here there are only one professional and aurochs of their business, who set and put into practice more than one picture of this genre. Separately, I would like to mention two people, I don't take Clint Eastwood a priori into account, because everything is clear with him, he is a pro in his field, especially as regards Westerns. First of all, I note the operator Bruce Surtis, who has done an amazing job. His camera is fascinating, he showed a small town in all its glory, the viewer sees it in full view. At the right moment, he pulls out close-ups, thereby creating a lot of stress. The locations that B.Sertes shows are pleasing to the eye, they are amazing. Here, an important factor plays the role of the place where the place was chosen for filming, the endless plains, the scorching sun, the small town. The viewer will see the wild west in all its glory, against which a bloody spectacle will unfold. And the second is noted by composer Dee Burton, who wrote beautiful and very beautiful music for this film. Of course this is not Ennio Morricone. If you compare with it, many composers immediately fade away, so for me, a comparison here with the greatest meter of their work will not be appropriate. And therefore Dee Barton created classical music for this western. For me, this composer stands on a par with the great L. Bokalov.

Shootings, for which they love this genre, there is not much. But without them, the film has something to see. Perfectly written out all the characters without exception. Whether major or minor. Each will play an important role, regardless of the time interval occupied in the tape. And be sure everyone here will be rewarded according to merit. The picture does not sag, it was interesting to watch the development of events throughout its entire length, the well-written script clearly contributes to that.

The output was a harsh and merciless picture, seasoned with a touch of humor and irony, like many other works of this genre by C. Eastwood. But it may seem ambiguous to many people, so of course, it's your decision to look or not.