Terra Selvagem

A sad and dismal almost final ending for Robert Taylor. His handsome looks faded by time, drink, and possible lung cancer, Robert Taylor presents a depressing lifeless figure in this 3rd rate South American produced Western. As a big fan of Taylor, I really don't want to remember him in this film. Of course, this is easy to do, as this movie has virtually been lost to time. It's clear that Robert Taylor didn't have his heart in the role of "Captain Martin". He looks weather beaten, tired, and just plain worn out. His build is just too thin and he appears in ill health. Even the feel of this whole movie is that of people "Beaten-Up" by the passing of time and hard living. Savage Pampas is "savage" to watch. There is little to like and it's not even a pleasant night at the movies. Savage Pampas is just a dismal footnote in the faltering career of Robert Taylor.

Tittilating and exciting describe this movie, which has a opiate effect of luring the viewer in and addicting the viewer. Its a South of the border Western with Robert Taylor portraying an anti hero in charge of a group soldiers who are drafted from the prisons and gallows. He has his hands full just trying to keep them all from deserting. Ty Hardin plays an anarchist who slowly wins over Taylor's confidence and possibly respect. They are among a handful of men who transport beautiful women to the fort to help keep the number of deserters down. Meanwhile, former deserters unite with local natives and try to steal the women. Taylor plays the sort of anti hero who is much more believable and identifiable than the clownish ones of later spaghetti Westerns. Taylor, like Eastwood, wasn't as gifted an actor as his fellow cast members in most cases, so his stoic look serves as that of observer-cynic. However, the writing of "Savage Pampas" is far superior to that of the spaghetti Westerns. The characters are well defined and written well enough that you don't need an Eli Wallach or Lee Van Cleef to pull them off. Still, Hardin was never a slouch in the acting department. His anti hero has more heart than Taylor's, but Taylor's character is still convincing. Like true anti heroes, they're not superhuman murderous machines, but much more in line with the old West. The ending is totally unpredictable, and as far as I know, an unusual fate for Robert Taylor, and Ty Hardin. The music has a fascination to it, and it helps lure you in. One of the great Westerns.

Western fans may or may not find enjoyment in this dusty, violent mini-epic. Fans of Spaghetti Westerns will likely enjoy it more. The film, which primarily involves the transportation of hookers across Argentinian terrain beset by Indians and rebellious deserters, has a lot going for it and a lot against it. Taylor, in one of his last roles, plays an Army Captain whose chief duty is to defend a fort and keep his men from running off and joining the opposing forces led by renegade Randell. Taylor, an actor who methodically and deliberately did everything he could to ruin his pretty-boy looks, appears wax-like and worn in most of his scenes. His growly voice comes across pretty effectively, but he is almost unbearably stoic through most of the film. However, he is put through some grueling physical torment (when his stunt double isn't doing it) that's somewhat remarkable for someone his age. He also gets off a few decent sarcastic lines, but is hard-pressed to overcome his Abraham Sofaer look and costuming. (At times his hat cord blends in with his goatee making him look like he has a long braided beard! He also has a series of unflattering head scarves which are probably authentic, but don't lend themselves to cinematic authority. Most of the cast wear diaper-like rugs between their legs....another authentic aspect which cuts down on the expectations one may have for a western style film. Some will see this as appealingly different, others may scoff at it.) Randell gets to ham it up a bit in the style that was made famous by Eli Wallach and other stronger actors (with better written parts.) Hardin (bizarrely dressed like a sexy Abe Lincoln) comes along late in the game as an anarchist who is being remanded to Army duty. He has a couple of interesting moments (and a great final scene!), but is mostly wasted. WHY wasn't he in the river with the hookers when they were bathing?? The hookers are a motley group of international actresses. It's hard to drum up much interest in most of them as their characters are only scratched upon. One thing setting apart the interest level in anyone who isn't a name brand star is the atrocious dubbing of the film. This is why those accustomed to Spaghetti Westerns may give the movie higher marks than other viewers. One male actor has a creepy, whispering sound to all of his lines. The ladies mostly have shrill, loud or gravelly voices assigned to them. Any sort of bit part sounds like it was recorded off the street. What's good about the film is it's unusual setting and it's desert scenery. Also, there are certain story elements which come across as unique or at least not overdone. (The Indians use these nasty little ball & rope weapons which are intriguing to see.) A couple of confrontations and action scenes are memorable, even if on an amusing level. (Look out for that head!) What's bad about the film is the aforementioned dubbing, the disjointed nature of the script which makes it hard at first to understand the story, and the choppy editing, unfocused direction and amateurish acting by some of the supporting players. Western diehards should find something to like, but most mainstream filmgoers will find it rough to get through.

Savage Pampas is a film with an unusual setting for the English speaking world, the pampas plains of Argentina at the end of the 19th century. The film is based on a novel Pampa Barbera and was filmed in Argentina before.

Robert Taylor is a captain in command of a garrison on the frontier, a whole lot like the American West. But he's having some big troubles. Taylor has a morale problem at the fort, the men are deserting him bit by bit because outlaw chief Ron Randell gives them an outlet for their sexual frustration, women. It's strictly stag at Taylor's post no matter how much he tries to convince the high command in Buenos Aires that his men have needs. It's also to be remembered that most of the men aren't the best quality around. They're not king and country volunteers as Clark Gable put it in Mutiny on the Bounty. In fact a whole lot of them are criminals and were given the choice of the army or prison.

Finally he does convince higher ups that some women are essential for morale, so Taylor is given an assignment of escorting some prostitutes let out for that purpose. Of course all this leads up to the inevitable showdown between Taylor and Randell.

Taylor in his one and only appearance in a spaghetti western covers some familiar ground. In Westward the Women he escorts some brides to be across the American west. He's the stern and rugged Taylor we've come to know in his later films, tough, but compassionate.

The film was photographed in Spain and two other American actors appear in it with Taylor. Marc Lawrence is a sergeant in Taylor's command and Ty Hardin plays an anarchist newspaper editor who accompanies the prostitutes because he's been given a choice, army or jail. Hardin has some biting lines, some of the best in the film and he makes the most of them.

It must have been an interesting set on Savage Pampas. On one hand we have Robert Taylor who was a friendly witness at the House Un American Activities Committee. And also Marc Lawrence who's career suffered the effects of the blacklist. I imagine things must have been tense.

Other than knowing about Evita Peron and her husband, Argentina or for that matter Latin America in general, is not a history that most Americans are taught. It's still said that Argentina is a frontier country built around a capital city. This picture shows a slice of their frontier life you might not normally be exposed to.

For that reason I recommend seeing Savage Pampas. For that reason and because it's one of the last films of one of Hollywood's truly great stars who in his last years was somewhat at sea due to the decline of the studio system.

An Argentinian Western and Taylor's oddest film, Savage Pampas is a remake of the 1946 Argentinian film Pampa Barbera. Taylor is the guardian of a wagon train of women heading for a lonely outpost in the interior in 1870. The plot is reminiscent of his Westward the Women (1952) with the difference that this time the women are prostitutes, intended to be morale boosters to stop the men of the outpost from deserting. Shot by Hollywood veteran Fregonese who co-scripted it with a strong emphasis on realism, the film got lost in the flood of Spaghetti Westerns.

Phil Hardy