Heróis do Velho Oeste

Until recently, "Showdown at Eagle Gap" (aka Quell and Co.) did not show up in any William Witney filmography, not even the one in his own autobiography. My thanks to Francis M. Nevins for his insights into this film, a German-US co-production which received minimal release. In fact, I completely failed to recognise that Witney, the man himself, has a touching cameo at the very end of the film. He (pseudonymously) plays a sheriff who checks in on Quell and his two friends and he wishes them good luck when he salutes them as if giving them a blessing. Mr Nevins pointed out to me as well that it was fitting that Witney's first and last films centred on western trios, a mainstay of classic B grade westerns. His first feature film as a director was the excellent action-packed Three Mesquiteers entry, "The Trigger Trio". I have previously written that this was "an unusually bland film for Witney, but a lesser Witney film is still pretty good. It is an engrossing yarn rather typical of 1970s American television." I stand by those comments, but Mr Nevins' insights have me enjoying "Showdown at Eagle Gap" in different ways. If you like Witney's pictures or westerns in general, it is worth checking out.

This oater serves up a paint-by-numbers plot that works because it offers likable protagonists, and just enough good dialog to set the stage and secure our essential empathy levels. The tone, and aspects of the story, give this the feel of a pilot for a TV series that never took off. About a decade earlier, further chapters could have fit nicely into some network's prime-time schedule. What we have here works well as a self-contained story, but invites further time with some of the characters, had anyone come along with a checkbook.