Três Amigos Implacáveis

I did not expect a so good script from a western produced by the greedy, stingy Sam Katzman, who offered us far far worst in the past, and even since this Fred S Sears' stuff. Good script, maybe xanks to western novelist Louis L'Amour which it is inspired from. Not a really new topic, but fairly well done, with a good characters symphony. Rory Calhoun excellent but maybe a most known villain would have been welcome, such as Leo Gordon, Robert Wilke or Neville Brand. So, try to watch this movie, it is a good time waster for western buffs, fast paced, with no length and not particularely diminished by the Sam Katzman's trademark, that I usually recognize at first sight. Here, Sam Katzman's name is only shown on the opening credits.

The cinematography, music, storyline, sets & scenery, and plot remind me of the later episodes of Gunsmoke. Definitely 1950s "B", with television type lighting and a hidden trap door to the fake basement. However, the mostly familiar cast adds strength, and the depth of their characterization makes this western very interesting & watchable. I recommend it when there's no great "A" film available. The bad guys are not too evil, and the good guys are not saints. Snappy dialog may be in short supply, but the typical cowboy clichés are few and far between, and there's no lack of action here! Incidentally, this movie falls into the category of westerns made before John Wayne (or spaghetti), eccentric wiseacres, and every scene a colorful climax were box-office requirements. Follow the intelligent & well-written story and you realize that B&W is the perfect genre for Rory Calhoun with a 3-day beard and two six-guns blazing. My only complaint: too much gray and not enough black or white. I miss "High Noon".

Watch the GRIT cable channel if you want to find a lot of short-running-time B westerns you never heard of or saw before.

UTAH BLAINE is one of them---same old plot but plenty of gunplay as Calhoun gets involved in a land-grab war as a side bet to getting his hands on the guy who double-crossed him in Mexico (George Keyans).

Susan Cummings,as a feisty young frontierswoman,certainly gives the most LIVELY performance---everybody else just looks like they're in it for the paycheck;including Calhoun.

I thought it was Lon Chaney Jr.---but it was old ex-heavyweight champ Max Baer as the big,BIG guy who joins Calhoun's side. The novelty value of this may be another reason to watch this film.

The bad guys may have the numbers on their side,but they don't know beans about strategy--and Calhoun does.

I love Rory Calhoun. Especially the guns he wears in this movie. I love Westerns. Especially when it comes to the Christian values that are long gone in this country today. Two of my favorites were The Rifleman and Bonanza where you would hear frequent and "liberal" (pun intended) mentions of "God", "prayer" and "the Bible".

And when it comes to the background music in Utah Blaine, isn't that the same as what was in a Glenn Ford movie? I can't remember the name.

Like I have with most of the Western movies I've seen, I watched the preview for this film on the Westerns Channel and decided that since it was on next and I had nothing else to do, I watched it. Rory Calhoun leads the screen and he did a fine job as Mike 'Utah' Blaine. This movie has the same kind of plot you'd expect from the old 50s B-grade Westerns, however, I say that this one is better than some of the others. The actors are a little bit better than some I've seen in other movies like this. And also, this movie has some pretty decent gunfights for its age. I found this movie to be a pretty enjoyable black-and-white Western.