Du sang dans la poussière

The Spikes Gang is a very good western that shows what probably happened to a good many youngsters who struck out on their own in the expanding west. It is one of three westerns that Gary Grimes starred in that gave a darker and truer view of life in the old west for teenager. The others are The Culpepper Cattle Co., 1972 and Cahill, U.S. Marshall, 1973.

Lee Marvin plays a wounded bank robber, (Spikes) on the run from a posse, whom three teens find (Grimes, Ron Howard and Charles Martin Smith) and nurse back to health. The three youths, small community and under the heavy hand of discipline, become enthralled with Spikes and soon strike out on their own soon after he departs.

After a series of misadventures, the youngsters meet up with Spikes again, who, against his better judgment, takes them under his wing.

The Spikes Gang is a fast paced movie and seems to play upon the anonymity of three teenagers, ill-prepared for a brutal and unforgiving way of life. The one drawback to the pace is that it does not give a good sense for the passage of time, but is effective in emphasizing the few sparks in mundane lives.

As part of the Grimes Western trilogy, one can get a good look at an overly romanticized part of history.

After escape home , three young man friends (Gary Grimes , Charles Martin Smith , Ron Howard) form a strong alliance , a dynamic trio combining raw untamed youth . Later on , they meet an old man named Spikes (Lee Marvin) with the experience only a master gunfighter can offer . As three boys wanted to be like their hero and they got their wish . They create his own band and carry out a great number of bank robberies and murders and soon they were worth a fortune . They are become as outlaws with a price on their heads . But they are trapped in Mexico , and while awaiting a trial they are released on bail by the bandit Spikes . The three young men accompanied by the veteran crook on the raid bank again , in which two of them are severely wounded . Then , the lawmen form a posse and engage to hunt down the gang.

This exciting film packs Western action , rider-pursuits , thrills, emotion , shootouts and results to be quite entertaining . Besides , it contains good feeling , such as friendship , faithfulness and companionship although it was betrayed by one of them at the end . The young players who wear extremely low holsters are phenomenal , they will have too much successes in their future , especially Ron Howard (American Graffiti) with a successful career as a nice director (Beautiful mind , Cinderella man , Da Vinci Code) , Charles Martin Smith as a prestigious secondary (Starman, Untouchables) , and Gary Grimes (Summer of 42, Class of 44) as a Western starring in similar role as a naive cowboy (Cahill US Marshal , CulpepperCattle) , though he is nowadays retreated . And , of course , the great Lee Marvin , he gives a terrific acting as a tough gunslinger . Furthermore , there also appears two notorious secondary actors from numerous Westerns : Noah Beery Jr and Arthur Hunnicut . Robert Beatty , despite being credited as The Sheriff , is nowhere to be seen . And some Spanish secondary actors , usual in Pasta/Chorizo Western , such as : Ricardo Palacios , Adolfo Thous and Rafael Albaicín . The film was shot in Tabernas , Almeria (Spain) , a location where was filmed hundreds of Spaghetti/Paella Westerns during the 60s and 70s . The motion picture was well directed by Richard Fleischer . The movie will appeal to Lee Marvin fans and twilight Western enthusiasts.

I happened to catch this film on a late night showing on a classic movie channel. I was REALLY surprised by this film!! I have seen other comments on it that refer to the movie as "under-rated", and I couldn't agree more!

Lee Marvin does a fantastic job portraying bank robber Harry Spikes who meets and befriends three teen aged boys who gradually come to admire Spikes and his lifestyle. After Spikes leaves the boys, circumstances lead them to run away together and begin what they thought would be the adventure of thier lives. They soon find that adventure, life, and Harry Spikes are not all they seemed to be! Ron Howard, Gary Grimes and Charlie Martin Smith play thier parts perfectly. The film also benefits from the reality lent by the dilapidated and run down buildings in the various towns shown in the movie, rather than the cheesy 'gunsmoke" type sets that are normally seen in films of this genre and time.

I can't recommend this movie highly enough!! 8/10

Lee Marvin has played the role of crusty gunslinger many times, and he does not disappoint here. The story of three farm boys throwing in with the wily bank robber is both believable and different. The film is never dull, with Marvin spewing forth quotable lines throughout. This is not some sugar coated view of their desperate situation as hunted men, but rather a realistic look at the downside of breaking the law. Of course the boys elicit sympathy, even though they are killers, no different than their mentor. "The Spikes Gang" is one of those movies that far exceeds expectations, is worth seeking out, and not easily forgotten. - MERK

This is probably Richard Fleischer's last good movie;it's considered polite to say that all he did after "solyent green" is worthless.Richard Fleischer made lots and lots of great movies from " follow me quietly" to " the narrow margin" ,from "20,0000 leagues under the sea" to "The Vikings "and from "Barabbas" to "the Boston strangler" to the stunning (and perhaps his masterpiece) "10 Rillington Place" After "Solyent green" which featured the extremely moving scene of the death of Edward G.Robinson (who eventually died some months after),only "Spikes gang" shows something of the unqualified brilliance that accompanies Fleischer in his career through "Solyent green" .It is a western which has nothing to do with the epics of Ford,Daves or Walsh or Mann.It has also (fortunately) nothing to do with Peckinpah.

Filmed in Spain,its spirit is actually close to that of Arthur Penn,particularly "Bonnie and Clyde".When Grimes is daydreaming and sees his father tell him :"you're no longer my son;you're dead" ,it recalls that scene when Bonnie meets her mom for a picnic and the old lady says "you're already dead ,Bonnie Parker" .

The three lads are in search of a father ,which is very Pennesque ,notably in "the left handed gun" .even in a non-western film such as "the miracle worker" Ann Sullivan was Helen Keller's second mom. Grimes' father was a religious man ,perhaps not far from being a fanatic (his part is too underwritten).Remember that scene in the bank where the ticking of the clock merges into the memories of the whip coming down .Lee Marvin is their new father and I go as far as to write that Grimes is some kind of father to his two mates too when he is absent.

The three lads are amateurs and cannot free them of the concept of right and wrong ,coming from a religion which does not give any answer;when they're eating hosts and drinking sacred wine,one of the youngest speaks of blasphemy but their leader tells them so "Christ would give them to us if He were here" .

Lee Marvin's character is extremely interesting.Lee Marvin never overplays and the discovery that he was once married to an educated wife ,a teacher who spoke several languages and played the piano comes aside as a shock.This memory is necessary ;without it,the ending would not make any sense.

An inferior director would have made "men" of the three teenagers ;but they can't :their dreams ,their remorse,the letter one of them sends to his mom,the trust they put in Marvin,all indicates that when they die they will still be big children.

Like this?try this.....

"Run for cover" Nicholas Ray 1955