A Caveira que Assobia

I was never a western fan. It was made worse when we first got cable back in 1976 and several of the stations were heavily running the black and white programmers where only the names changed slightly from film to film. What ever it was never hooked me into liking westerns. John Wayne was never a favorite of mine as a result.

But as time went on I did find I will watch a western now and again and have raved about several, Unforgiven, Tombstone and Silverado for example, when really good ones come along.

But I've never been a fan of the genre, so when Sinister promised something different in their catalog I jumped.

The film is one of the Three Mesquiteer series that came from a a long running series of novel and was turned into a long running series of films. John Wayne was one of the original trio of ranch hands who do good in the West.

The plot involves an expedition to find a lost Indian city and a lost pair of scientists who earlier went looking for it. Supposedly its located in a Whistling Skull. Just as the party is to leave one of the scientists shows up speaks of finding the city and being taken prisoner only to be killed before revealing the exact location. The Mesquiteers, who had found the now dead scientist, tag along as the party sets out in order to find the city and the one remaining scientist.

The movie moves like the wind, running in this print only 53 minutes, and has just about every western cliché you can think of and then some. Assuming you haven't seen a bunch of these in a while its worth seeing, and even if you have seen a bunch of these its still fun.

Its simply a fun frantic mystery western, recommended.

Plot - The 3 hero buddies join a girl (Russell) and others, all determined to find her missing archaeoloist dad in a strange Indian land far from settler civilization.

The flick's a genuine oater oddity. The 3 Mesquiteers and their allies are arrayed against a mysterious rock skull and its hostile Indian cult, with hints of preternatural happenings surrounding the ugly skull. For example, there's the apparently dead Indian woman suddenly and jarringly coming to life. Now, oaters of old may not have been known for their realism, but here there's a strange air of an 'other world' that may be lurking behind the disappearance of the archaeologist.

And dig that spectacular Technicolor cliff-scape, whose jagged rocks the two warring sides climb, clamber, and fall from. It's a landscape from Mars and unlike the usual cowboy wilderness. Oddly, the effect is all from inspired location filming, with no studio backdrops in sight. And catch the many creative camera angles and set-ups that magnify the strange visual atmosphere.

There's also plenty of action that largely replaces the usual talk or character development; instead, it's the rocks and cliffs that get center stage. Then too, shouldn't overlook that big rock-slide near the end that still has me wondering how they did it, and in only an 8-day filming schedule. My only complaint is the apparent use of a trip-wire to bring down two horses head-over-heels and probably to their doom. Good thing the movie practice was soon outlawed.

I suspect the flick's been generally overlooked because of a strangeness that doesn't easily fit into the matinee cowboy genre. Now, I'm not saying the flick's a sleeper classic or hidden gem. Instead it's definitely a weird one-of-a-kind and should not be missed. So catch it if you can.

The Three Mesquiteers accompany an archeological expedition to a lost Indian city of gold called Lukachuke in a mystery western full of humour, intrigue and rollicking action, especially at the end with a landslide. It's called a horror-western but apart from the cursed lost city there isn't much horror. What there is is great landscape, a well-designed lost city and plenty of fun. Definitely top tier of its type.

This film essentially begins with a young woman by the name of "Betty Marsh" (Mary Russell) coming out West in search of her father who has gone missing while searching for an ancient city rumored to have vast sums of gold. As luck would have it, while riding in that area, the Three Mesquiteers come upon an elderly man who was with Betty's father and just happens to have a book which contains directions to the lost city. Unfortunately, not long after regaining consciousness, the man is murdered and, as a result, the Three Mesquiteers, along with Betty and her companions, set off to find the lost city and rescue Betty's father. To get there, however, they not only have to travel through an extremely hostile territory, but they also have to contend with a murderer within their group who is willing to do whatever is necessary to have the gold all for himself. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that, not counting three other films from other various studios, this was the 4th film in the Three Mesquiteers series produced by Republic Pictures. In that regard, like all of its predecessors, this movie has a rather short running time (approximately 58 minutes) as well. Admittedly, the acting is rather basic but, even so, the supernatural element adds a bit of suspense not normally found in any of the others (except possibly, "Ghost Town Gold") and, for that reason, I have rated the film accordingly. Average.

The Three Mesquiteers (Stony, Tucson, & Lullaby) ride with a band of explorers searching for Professor Marsh an archeologist, the father of the female lead, who has discovered a lost city with hidden treasure, but who has been held by a prisoner by an Indian tribe, who has killed Marsh's partner, through a traitor amid the archeology party. Its up to the Mesquiteers to discover the villain among them and save the party from thirst and the murderous rampage of the tribe. Very enjoyable 3M film with nice emphasis of the comradery between the three friends, and also gives a nice glimpse of the style Republic used in their westerns and serials set out west. Wright's direction is quicker than what else I've seen of him, but he rushes through the end which is the drawback of the film. Nice location shooting in Nevada, and a good supporting cast make this one a winner. Rating, based on B westerns, 9.