Soleil rouge

One thing's for sure, this is the only movie where you get to see a Samurai fight a Comanche. Charles Bronson plays an outlaw who robs a train. Among the passengers on the train is the ambassador of Japan and his samurai bodyguard, played by The Seven Samurai's Toshiro Mifune. When Bronson is double-crossed by one of the men in his gang, he teams up with the samurai to chase down the villain and get his revenge. If you think this sounds like a Jackie Chan/Owen Wilson movie, you're right on. Shanghai Noon was definitely a parody of this film. This is a very enjoyable, action-packed, unique western, but it definitely has some R-rated content. At the end of the day, it's hard to find a better Charles Bronson western. 4 out of 5 action rating

East meets West in this rather ingratiating period Western. Set in 1860 America, it has a Japanese ambassador (Tetsu Nakamura) traveling by train to meet the President. There, the ambassador will give the President the gift of a special sword. But then bandits including Link (Charles Bronson) and Gauche (Alain Delon) seize control of the train, intending to make off with the loot on board. But the back-stabbing Gauche betrays Link, steals the sword, and rides off into the sunset. Now, a samurai named Kuroda (Toshiro Mifune) must track down the bad man, kill him, and retrieve the sword within seven days, or else commit hara-kiri. Since he and Link both have an interest in Gauche, the two of them team up - albeit reluctantly on Links' part.

Overall, this is good fun, and is capably directed by Terence Young. It was more violent than this viewer expected; while some people will be put off, I didn't mind at all. It's got decent action throughout, with the finale taking place within tall grass as the main characters are attacked by aggressive Comanches. It's also got plenty of sex appeal, as some of the ladies, such as Ursula Andress as Gauches' girlfriend, show off some skin. But what really makes "Red Sun" work to the extent that it does is its humour. The culture clash leads to some real chemistry between Bronson and Mifune. Bronson is especially amusing. We didn't always get to see this kind of performances from him: jovial, smiling, cracking jokes. And he goes to work on manipulating Mifune with a vengeance. Link wants to keep Gauche alive as long as possible so he can find out where the loot is stored, and has to convince Kuroda not to kill him immediately.

Other familiar faces turn up: Anthony Dawson, Luc Merenda, Monica Randall, etc. But if you're a fan of the stars, you'll find that this is primarily a solid vehicle for their abilities. Delon makes for a great villain, looking right at home in Western duds. Putting in a special appearance is another lovely lady, Capucine, who plays Pepita.

While somewhat overlong, "Red Sun" does show the audience a pretty good time.

Seven out of 10.

People are simply suckers for crossovers: be it Superman and Spiderman slugging it out in the comic books, Hercules fighting Aztecs in the Italian muscle n' sandal flicks or Dracula dueling Jessie James. In "Red Sun" the dream for many a kid came true: samurais going head to head with cowboys and Indians.

The concept of mixing Eastern culture and (especially) martial arts with the archaic Wild West has been often tried, sometimes with success but more often with complete failure (Jackie Chan escapades, numerous Spaghetti-Western-Kung-Fu-crossovers and the "Kung Fu" TV-series, which was a technical and aesthetic failure, even though the audience loved it). This had little to do with the incompatibility between east and west but rather lacking directors who could handle both genres with equal dignity.

The story is rather plain and simple: Bronson and Delon plan to rob a train that happens to carry the imperial Japanese ambassador. The heist goes fine but fiery-eyed Delon (remember, he is French and left-handed) betrays his partner, leaving him at the mercy of the Japanese entourage – but not before stealing a Samurai sword that was meant as a present for the US-president. The ambassador makes Bronson a deal he cannot refuse: bring back the sword within a week or loose your head. To insure that Bronson is doing his job, the disgraced sword-keeper (Mifume) is sent along, likewise obliged to commit 'hara-kiri' when the seven day span is over. Both men form an uneasy camaraderie, one driven by obligation, the other from thirst for revenge and each perceiving the others culture as plain alien.

It would be very hard to duplicate this 'innocent' clash of the cultures-scenario today: too many similarities, too many cross-cultural interchanges have occurred. Today a kid from Japan would be no more alien to the image of an American cowboy than your average businessman would be to the concept of eating raw fish with rice, namely sushi, which they eat anyway during lunch-break. Back in the early 70's, those images tended to be way more exotic to the average-Joe. Back then we could believe Mifumes wide-eyed look of disbelieve at 'culture' of the Wild West as well as Bronsons inability to comprehend his 'partners' culture. Needless to say, this leads to many-a comic relief and, once the colts and katanas are pulled, plenty of action.

Mifune and Bronson are simply veterans at what they do (so is Ursulla Andress, by the way, namely dressing, undressing and throwing tantrums). They really don't need much dialogue to bring their sentiments and thoughts across – each confused and by degree disgusted by the others culture and behaviour. No matter how you look at it, the chemistry works and is believable. Throw in Alain Delon doing what Delon can do best – namely look chiseled like a roman statue and throw glares that could cut through ice – you've got the perfect cocktail of experienced acting and charisma.

Terence Young made this happen by applying the same he did to the first two James Bond films: make a serious movie but don't take the movie too serious. The result was a comic-book Western that owed more to the Euro-Western of the 60's (perhaps even a bit more to the German Schnitzel-, rather than the Italo-Spaghetti Westerns) than it did to John Wayne or "Bonanza".

Granted, this is not a cinematographic masterpiece, this isn't Sergio Leone nor is it Eastwoods "The Unforgiven". This would be comparing "Dr. No" to the ultra-realistic violence of "Casino Royal". Neither films need to be taken serious but should rather be enjoyed. This isn't "Dance with the Wolves"; this is about a bandit and a samurai on a mission to retrieve the emperors sword, on the way slugging it out with bandits and Indians. Throw in the (as usually) excellent soundtrack by Maurice Jarre and what you get is the perfect blend between Euro-Western and Samurai Adventure. 8/10

Almost 30 years preceding the very popular Shanghai Noon's release came its direct ancestor, Terence Young's Red Sun, an only slightly, more serious in tone relation and for me, a more entertaining watch. Featuring an international talent-laden cast with a British director helming a spaghetti western in Spain, it's a heady mixture and by no means a great film (though John Huston apparently thought so), but in my opinion, a memorable one.

In a narrative very similar to the above-mentioned later Jackie Chan vehicle, Japanese Ambassador bodyguard Toshiro Mifune, enlists double-crossed desperado Charles Bronson's assistance, in retrieving an intended ambassadorial gift sword to the American President, that was stolen by Bronson's duplicitous partner (Alain Delon) during a train robbery.

There is no doubting the plot is rather elongated and somewhat contrived, but it allows plenty of opportunity for the Bronson and Mifune characters to amusingly interact with a surprising amount of comic side-play. It's really their movie and they both make the most of it, bonding of course in a diverting east meets west fashion. Delon has his moments too as an enjoyable bad guy and Ursula Andress who only makes her appearance when the movie is well into its second half, is only there for eye candy. (I'm trying to think, but hard - pressed to come up with one of her movies where she is not dubbed). Let it be said though, she always makes captivating eye candy.

There's laughs, action (both sword and gun play), a good set-piece climax at an abandoned mission and in its nearby corn-field, with a surprisingly touching and effective final couple of scenes. Really is there anyone who isn't really interested in seeing a Charles Bronson / Toshiro Mifune western/road movie? I'm sure Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson gave it plenty of attention.

On the surface Red Sun appears to be a fairly standard shoot-em-up with the attendant 'who's the real nasty?' sub-plot thrown in for a bit of mystery. But the careful observer will discover many more layers of this particular onion pitting cultures (and genders) against each other with a few surprising results and plenty of thought-provoking situations designed to keep this one on the shelf as a 'keeper'.

Bronson fans (like me) will note this is the second of his 'samurai connection'westerns...Magnificent Seven being the first...though the debate will probably never be resolved as to which was the better performance. True, some of the dialogue in this movie borders on juvenile, but overall I rate the movie very high.