Bad Lands

A topnotch ensemble cast and brilliant photography by Frank Redman make this little-known RKO western a sleeper that can only be compared to John Ford's Stagecoach, released the same year.

A posse pursues Apache Jack (played by John Payne) into the dessert, in a western variation of The Lost Patrol. The result is a nice variety of types played by veteran -- and up-and-coming -- character actors.

While Ford had begun using Monument Valley at this time, this movie was shot at Mount Whitney -- after seeing it in a hundred movies from Gunga Din, released the same year, on downward, you get so you can recognize the boulders. But while the prints of Ford's movie are pretty battered, this one is nearly pristine: the beautiful shadows producing shots like Hurrell portraits. See what a black and white movie is supposed to look like!

So this goes to the top of my list of sleepers. If you get a chance to see it, do so and let me know what you think.

To say that "Bad Lands" is a remake of "The Lost Patrol" isn't exactly the case--it's more a case of a reworking of this earlier film. So many things have been changed (the location, the enemy, the discovery of silver, etc.) that it is worth seeing on its own. Oddly, however, I am not sure why I recorded it to watch later--but as long as I did, I decided to give it a try--mostly because I liked the no-name cast. Several of the actors (in particular, Robert Barrat) were very good supporting actors who never got a lot of fame--and it's nice to see him in a starring role. Plus, while it is a B-movie (with a low budget and relatively low production values), it has a more adult theme and style than the average B-western. As another reviewer put it, you won't find this theme in a Roy Rogers or Gene Autry film!

A posse tracks a man who is accused of rape into the desert. Eventually they find an oasis where they strike camp. Soon, a couple in the party discover a huge bein of silver and they imagine great wealth. However, when someone steals their horses and then they are attacked, it looks like their find is in vain (vein....get it? Oh, never mind...it's not that funny). Can any of them escape with their lives...let alone claim the silver?

While there are obvious similarities to "The Lost Patrol", one obvious improvement is in the characterizations. While John Ford was a genius director, in "The Lost Patrol" the characters (particularly the obviously insane Boris Karloff--who chewed scenery unmercifully in this film) were often far from subtle in their portrayals. While it's considered a minor classic, several reviewers (including myself) think it's aged poorly because of this. While lacking originality, at least "Bad Lands" does not have the cartoony characters the other film had. As a result, I actually preferred "Bad Lands"--as it offered more bang for the buck and excelled in its realistic portrayals--even if it is a tad slow.

It's 1875 Arizona. Sheriff Bill Cummings (Robert Barrat) leads a posse through the bad lands in search of the renegade Apache Jack. Some are more driven to find Jack who leads them into Indian territory where they find silver. Somebody takes their horses and starts shooting.

The thing that I love the most is the outdoor filming. Initially, I am almost mesmerized by the clouds in the big sky and I don't even pay attention to the characters. I do lose track of some of them. It is dusty and sweaty by definition. There is shooting and horse riding. It ends up being an interesting survival story with good isolation.

One would think that if a reviewer that knows the name and face of an actor in a film (when he is seen), then such reviewers would not go to great lengths in adding little tidbits about that actor, in their review, when that actor...John Payne...is not in the film. John Payne did not play "Apache Jack" in this film. That role was played by a one-and-done actor named Jack Payne. Perhaps those reviewers that pointed out the fabrication John Payne is in this film would go back and edit their reviews. But, the chances are very high that, rather than delete/correct their reviews, they will just mark this with a 'don't like'. Be my guest.

Apacheria Land of the Apaches is the setting for this remake of the Lost Patrol which was set in... Iraq! Here frontier characters duel the Apaches and each other for survival in a merciless landscape. Except for the setting and the Americanization of the characters it is a scene by scene retelling of John Ford's film. The cast members are all familiar faces film character actors with the emphasis on actor instead of Star. The film was probably a second feature tryout for its director and some cast members. Solid but not top drawer. A nice change would've been showing the warriors of Apache Jack's band of renegades reactions to their own losses. This film and it's predecessors the Ford film and the Soviet film that may have inspired them Ten would be seen in Zoltan Korda's Sahara with Humphrey Bogart, The Seven Samurai, The Magnificent Seven, Duel at Diablo,and Ulzana's Raid.