Apache Uprising

A motley assortment of passengers take the stage for Lordsburg and Apache Wells; two of them -- Rory Calhoun and Arthur Hunnicutt -- tell Richard Arlen that the Apaches burned a wagon train. I was all prepared for an A.C. Lyles produced remake of STAGECOACH. Instead, it switched halfway through and turned into something quite different.

It's still a Geezer Western, with all the actors of an earlier era, happy to pick up a paycheck: Red Barry. Jean Parker and Johnny Mack Brown in small parts, Lon Chaney Jr. as the coach driver, DeForest Kelly as the psycho gunman ... but in the end it switched gears often enough in surprising but sensible ways to keep up my interest, and turned into a tough, hard western.

I have been on an A.C. Lyles kick recently--seeing about a dozen of his movies in the last week. This producer was known for making low-budget westerns in the 1960s that feature actors who were well past their prime. In other words, old guys--VERY old guys. Sometimes this didn't work very well (such as during fight scenes between VERY aged actors) but generally I like the films, as the actors, though out of fashion, still have it in most cases. And, interestingly, Lyles used many of the same actors in many of his films--and Richard Arlen in apparently ALL of them! This film stars Rory Calhoun and also features the likes of Lon Chaney, DeForrest Kelley, John Russell (all frequent Lyles performers), Gene Evans, Corinne Calvet, Johnny Mack Brown, and Red Barry. Brown, Kelley and Barry both were once big names in TV and B-westerns and it's nice to see them here.

The film begins with Jim Walker (Calhoun) and Bill Gibson (Arthur Hunnicutt) being attacked by Apache warriors. They manage to fight their way out and discover among the Indian dead souvenirs the Apache took of recent attacks on the US Cavalry. They soon meet up with some soldiers (led by Arlen) and inform them of what they found. Well, oddly, no one in town seems to believe them--thinking Walker and Gibson are over-blowing the problem. And so, the local stage decides to go anyway--even with the possibility of crazed Indians waiting to attack. Oddly, Walker and Gibson agree to go along on the stage to help protect the passengers. Unfortunately, a super-crazy hired gun (Kelley) is on board--and he's a born trouble-maker. You just KNOW that sooner or later, he and Walker are going to have it out once and for all. However, it becomes a lot more interesting when the gunman, his friend and his boss suddenly take everyone hostage. Now, the folks might not need to worry about the Apache. What's next? See the film and find out yourself.

In many ways, this film seems a bit like a reworking of the film "Stagecoach". It is NOT a remake--it just has a LOT of similarities--such as the 'hooker with a heart of gold' (Calvet) and the embezzler. Because of this, there's not a lot of originality here, though it was made more enjoyable due to Kelley's VERY florid performance. While not quite as enjoyable, Chaney was also quite good as a grizzled old coot. But, if the you watch the film, understand it is NOT high art! There are lots of sloppy problems with it--more than you'd usually find in a Lyles film. For example, there is a scene where Evans and Calhoun have a fist-fight--and it's VERY obvious they're using stunt-men. Heck, while Evans is balding, his stuntman has a full head of hair. Also, there is a HUGE rainstorm in the film--huge. And yet, the next day, the ground is completely dry--and I am talking about dusty dry! Obviously the director, R.G. Springsteen, was no genius.

Worth seeing if you love the genre or Lyles' productions, though this is not an especially great western.

I had the pleasure of seeing every one of the Lyles' westerns on original release here in London, dear old Blighty. I was never much interested in the main attractions of the double feature programmes where AC's cracking little cowboy pictures always took second billing. " Apache Uprising " however, broke the mould and played main feature, with " Beach Ball " in support, at the splendid Paramount Plaza at Piccadilly Circus - although only for two weeks, after which it was relegated to the usual spot for general release. I wrote to dear AC and got a couple of letters back from him, where he told me all about how he was moving away from westerns into dramas and was working on " Rogue's Gallery ". A true gentleman. It must have been a joy working with such an array of talent from yesteryear.

A rather mean-spirited A.C.Lyles potboiler shot mostly indoors with plenty of sixties-style violence in which nasty people do nasty things to each other (none nastier than a pre-Star Trek DeForest Kelly, who shoots one guy in cold blood).

As the lady with a past, Corinne Calvert is there to incur the disapproval of a bunch of "miserable old biddies" led by Jean Parker and be fought over rather than wooed.

I've a real affection for the A.C. Lyles westerns which gave employment to a lot of old time players who were finding work increasingly hard to get because of the decline of the studio system and in some cases a refusal to work in television. But Apache Uprising took elements from Stagecoach, Rawhide, Broken Arrow, Coroner Creek, with a little bit of English Gothic thrown in the mix and it didn't come out well.

The English Gothic gets into it when the passengers of a stagecoach get held hostage in a relay station by three outlaws, with thunder and lightning flashing outside together with Apaches on the warpath. It comes right out of innumerable old English murder mysteries.

Funny thing that with all the old stars like Rory Calhoun, Corinne Calvet, John Russell, Lon Chaney, Jr., Johnny Mack Brown, the one you will remember from this film is DeForest Kelley. The original Star Trek was debuting this year and I'm willing to bet this was Kelley's final work prior to becoming wise old Dr. Leonard McCoy. Toby Jack Saunders is as far from McCoy as you can get. He's reminiscent of the outlaw that Kelley played in The Law and Jake Wade. He's one hateful punk with some serious self esteem issues.

I've seen every member of this cast do better work, even better work for A.C. Lyles and it's too bad the film was beneath the talents of all of them.