Why so much hype?

i must have seen a different film!!

hyped garbage

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

After serving 18 years in an Arizona prison, "Cain" (Clint Walker) is finally released and wants to start a brand new life. Prior to his imprisonment he was a gunfighter named "Killer Cain" who had gunned down 12 men in his younger days. Unfortunately, things aren't easy for an ex-convict and he has great difficulty finding employment. However, one day he comes across a traveling show headed by a man named "Dan Ruffalo" (Vincent Price) and reluctantly agrees to hire on as a marksmen. This draws the attention of quite a few people, some of whom are not happy that he's making a living off of his former fame. Anyway, Clint Walker puts on his usual solid performance as the strong and silent type who never complains regardless of how unfairly he is treated. The rest of the cast--to include Anne Francis (as "Monica Alton") and Paul Hampton (as "Billy Valance")--play their parts in a satisfactory manner, but it is Clint Walker who carries this film. Even so, this film should have been written to allow both Vincent Price and Anne Francis to display their talents a bit more. Along with that a better ending would have helped as well. As it is this is basically an average western movie. Nothing more and nothing less.

Although I am a big fan of Westerns, the totally unfamiliar crew behind this production had me worried that it was going to be a listless affair and the routinely-staged prison riot at the beginning did not help matters any! While the end result is nothing to write home about, it is a sufficiently interesting and satisfactory mix of age-old and newly-emerging traits in the genre to keep one watching.What we have here is a typical story of a convict released after a long term in jail and being met by hostility and challenge once his true notorious identity is discovered; having said that, since he had spent 18 years in jail, I wonder how some of the characters he came across once outside managed to recognize him! The central role is played by Clint Walker who, after a beating inside a mine, gets looked after by painter Anne Francis(!) and hired as a performing gunfighter by traveling showman Vincent Price; this was his second Western outing after the inferior THE JACKALS (1967; which had been a plodding remake of William A. Wellman's 1948 classic YELLOW SKY).So far so old-fashioned: however, things get less predictable upon the introduction of the youthful characters of Walker's hot-headed, trigger-happy predecessor in Price's tent (who eventually guns down his employer in an unheralded bloodbath) and a mysterious stranger who keeps following Walker around and, shockingly enough, executes him right in front of Francis' eyes for the murder of his father (one of Walker's much-touted 12 victims). Even if the film is (surprisingly) available on DVD, I got to see it via a pan-and-scan transmission on the MGM Cable TV channel.

More Dead Than Alive might not do much for a lot of western fans, and the reason for that is that it's so different from the rest of the genre. The western hero is meant to be big, strong, uncaring and a real sharp shooter; and in this film, that is everything that our central character used to be, and now he's going straight. For that reason, it might be more advisable to go into this film expecting more of a drama than a western as that's essentially what it is; a drama set in the once-wild west. Our central character is a man named Cain, who earned the nickname 'Killer Cain' thanks to the twelve notches on his revolver. After eighteen years behind bars, the killer is released but while he's no longer on the run from the law; he faces a different challenge as the West that put him behind bars is not the West that he's being released back into, and he quickly discovers that getting a job with his reputation is not the easiest thing to do. The only man who wants to employ him is circus ringmaster Ruffalo; but Cain lacks practise and the young assistant Billy is a better shot.Aside from provide a different sort of western, the film also tries to do a few other things and unfortunately there just isn't time for it all. There's a romance angle which stems off the main plot and that doesn't get nearly enough time spent on it, while the action sequences we do get feel more like an afterthought. My main reason for seeing this film is undoubtedly the presence of the great Vincent Price, who gives a memorable performance in a supporting role. Clint Walker takes the lead role and while it's not a standout performance and he looks a little young and clean to have been behind bars for eighteen years; he does make for a likable lead. Paul Hampton is a real standout, however, as the cocky young villain of the piece. The film provides good entertainment for the duration and it's not exactly taxing stuff, which ensures that the film is always enjoyable enough. The ending was a bit of a disappointment to me as certain characters were killed by the wrong people; but all in all, this is a memorable film and is recommended if you want a decent hour and a half of entertainment.

The title is misleading (as though it's some kind of zombie horror film), but this is definitely my kind of western. It's dark, sadistic, and action-filled. Clint Walker fans won't be disappointed, and I love the ending. Vincent Price seems to be having a great time in his role, and although Mike Henry is underused, he does a great job with his small, but important role, playing one of the villains. Hampton looks the part, but tends to overact a little (though not to the extent some have said) and ultimately he does well. I would rather have seen a tougher-looking guy in his role, such as Dean Smith, but it's not that big an issue.In short, this is a dark, action-packed unique western, and I'm delighted that it's now on DVD in widescreen.