Les cavaliers de l'ombre

The cast of Ben Johnson, Sam Elliot, and Tom Selleck in a western is unbeatable.

Some have compared this movie to The Sacketts (same writer, same cast), and gave is something of a pan.

I found the story line in general, and a couple of the sub-plots, very very entertaining. I think you have to recognize that adultery has been around since the beginning of time. The treatment of of Uncle Jack (Ben Johnson) reminded me a lot of one of my uncles, and the dialog just sounded right.

While the scenery may have looked a little California, the place settings in Texas were genuine - Big Springs and Baffin Bay are real places. Baffin Bay is at the south end of Padre Island off Laguna Madre - home of the best bay fishing in Texas.

Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott play Mac and Dal Traven, two amiable brothers who fought on opposing sides during the Civil War. Now, the war is over, but one revenge-crazed associate of Dals', Major Ashbury (Geoffrey Lewis), is intent on keeping the war going. To that end, he's made an alliance with a rascally gun runner, Holiday Hammond (Gene Evans). Meanwhile, Ashbury and his men have gone on a spree of crimes including the kidnapping of members of the Traven family.

This Louis L'Amour adaptation (by executive producer Jim Byrnes) amounts to agreeable entertainment, with the expected stunts, action scenes, and lovely scenery. The story is nothing special, but it's not hard to follow, and it DOES kill time amiably. What really makes it work as well as it does is the able cast, including such Western veterans as Ben Johnson (as Mac and Dals' scoundrel of an uncle, Black Jack Traven), R.G. Armstrong, and Harry Carey, Jr. Elliotts' real-life longtime companion, Katharine Ross, is vibrant as Kate, and it's no surprise that the two of them share a natural chemistry. Jeff Osterhage co-stars as a scrappy Traven sibling. Other familiar faces include Dominique Dunne (in what was sadly her last role), Marshall R. Teague, and Jane Greer as Carey's wife. Selleck and Elliott look right at home in this genre, just as they always do, and show off plenty of charisma. Johnson clearly has fun getting to play a colourful role.

The writing might not be particularly sharp or witty, but these filmmakers, led by director Andrew V. McLaglen, *still* manage to show their audience a pretty good time. Nobody ever appears to take any of this very seriously, anyway. It's just "good", lighthearted, amiable, predictable TV-level Western storytelling.

Seven out of 10.

This should've been a better movie. Good actors, good production, but the music and overall tone are so whimsical and undercuts the drama. Ex: the music is 100% wrong for this. There are numerous fights and dramatic scenes in the whimsical fun music comes up and completely destroys the trauma of the scene. This would be a great candidate to be remade in the same seriousness of the book. Also, the camera work is so tight obviously a TV movie. They should've at least show the landscapes, and the grandeur of the west. That in itself is an important part of any great western, showing how small the combatants are against the landscape. Overall it's just an average TV movie.

The "bad guys" were presumably hired because of their ability to shoot straight and protect their nasty leader. But when it comes to a gun fight, these guys can't hit anything. It's pathetic. And of course the "good guys" can't miss. Still targets, moving targets, riders on speedy running horses at a great distance. Doesn't matter. They hit them all. And do it with old black power pistols at that. And I know the big name movie stars can't take risks on the set, but sometimes the doubles just don't look much like the heroes. And wearing the same clothes doesn't really help. This is an entertaining movie and that's what its all about. I just wish Hollywood would try a little harder to add some realism.

The Shadow Riders is directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and adapted to screenplay by Jim Byrnes from the novel written by Louis L'Amour. It stars Tom Selleck, Sam Elliott, Katharine Ross, Dominique Dunne, Ben Johnson and Geoffrey Lewis. Music is by Jerrold Immel and cinematography by Jack Whitman.

A CBS TV production, The Shadow Riders has Selleck (Mac Traven) and Elliott (Dal Traven) as brothers, who even though they fought on different sides in the Civil War, there fondness for each other still exists. With the war now officially ended, the brothers meet up and head for the family home, here they find their parents telling of how their sisters and Dal's girlfriend Kate (Ross) have been abducted by Renegade Rebels. The men promptly set off in search of their loved ones...

It's all very much standard stuff, both in plot telling and production values. Exuding very much a family feel, it's a disappointingly bloodless and sexless picture, with some cliché'd dialogue, poor musical accompaniments to certain scenes (tonally way off) and filler sequences thrown in for good measure. That said, it's very much a harmless piece, with the two male leads good company to share some time with, while Johnson and Harry Carey Jr. offer up a welcoming presence. Location scenery is also well photographed, keeping things airy, and ultimately it's a decent enough time waster for Western fans not expecting an under seen gem. 6/10