Disapointment

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Blistering performances.

THE WAR WAGON is a 1967 western directed by Burt Kennedy and starring no less than two of the all-time Hollywood greats, John Wayne and Kirk Douglas. They make a great pairing as famous rivals who decide to team up in order to rob the titular vehicle of its precious cargo, namely sacks of gold dust belonging to corrupt businessman Bruce Cabot, once the star of KING KONG.Wayne and Douglas share nearly all of their scenes together and have plenty of dry wit and one liners. Their charisma is genuine here and Douglas in particular shines, particularly when he does pretty much all of his own stunts too (that jump on to the horse is particularly fine). Wayne is his usual solid self, noticeably ageing at this point - little surprise given his near-death real-life experiences - but still full of presence.The story is quite typical and reminiscent of the men-on-a-mission WW2 movies that were being made during the era like THE DIRTY DOZEN. Howard Keel is an unusual choice to play a Native American character but Wayne film regular Robert Walker has fun as the youthful drunk character. The most engaging thing about this film is that it keeps you interested in the story throughout, even if it does take a long time for the plan to pay off at the end; thankfully the climax is suitably chaotic and unpredictable.

Released in 1967 and directed by Burt Kennedy, "The War Wagon" is a Western starring John Wayne and Kirk Douglas as Taw and Lomax. Taw is a recently-released prisoner who wants to get his ranch and gold back from the rich business man who framed him and now lives on his ranch, Pierce (Bruce Cabot). While Taw enlists Lomax to heist half a million in gold from Pierce's "War Wagon," an armored stage coach with a Gatling gun on top, Pierce also hires Lomax to assassinate Taw. The other members of the heist team are Howard Keel as a Native who has learned the white man's ways, Robert Walker Jr. as a young drunkard who's skilled in explosives, and Keenan Wynn as a curmudgeon who plays on both teams. Valora Noland has a small role as the babe while Joanna Barnes and Bruce Dern have glorified cameos. People say this is a Western Comedy, but that's just not the case. It has the same general tone as Wayne Westerns like 1967's "El Dorado," 1971's "Big Jake" and 1973's "The Train Robbers." Sure there are a couple amusing moments, like those other Wayne flicks, but it's generally a serious Western. Anyway, if you liked those movies you'll like this one too; it's about on par, although everyone has their favorites ("El Dorado" is the best, IMHO, followed by "The Train Robbers," although "The War Wagon" is marginally better than "Big Jake"). Wayne was 59 while filming in 1966 and still looked good, all things considered; he fits the role of a likable, but intimidating, take-no-sheet Westerner. Douglas was 50 during filming and was in tip-top shape, even performing many of his own nigh-acrobatic stunts. His smiling charisma is palpable. Highlights include the breathtaking Mexican Southwest vistas, the camaraderie of the two stars, several quality action sequences, Keel's interesting take on a Native American who's assimilated into civilized culture and the suspense build-up to the heist of the so-called War Wagon. The film runs 96 minutes and shot in Durango & Zacatecas, Mexico, and Universal City, California.GRADE: B

'The War Wagon' will never be considered one of John Wayne's great Westerns like 'Rio Bravo', 'The Searchers', or 'Red River', but it is a an enjoyable Western with fine performances and great rapport between Kirk Douglas and John Wayne. The action sequences are well done, the humor dry as the desert it takes place in, and the caper story line rather refreshing for a John Wayne film.The problem? When the picture ends it leaves you feeling empty. The characters are not particularly interesting (save for Douglas) and the villain is your standard cattle baron murderous jerk. The war wagon itself is an interesting prop and well used, but never really becomes the menacing character it should've been. I enjoyed the movie as a fan of John Wayne and Westerns in general, yet I doubt most of his fans will find this film particularly impressive when compared to many of his other Westerns directed by Hawks and Ford. That isn't to say you should avoid seeing 'The War Wagon', but you should temper your expectations for what is really just an empty Saturday-afternoon adventure. You'll like it while you're watching it and then forget it as soon as the credits roll.

To many westerns fans, John Wayne is the ultimate symbol of the silver screen cowboy, and in his long career he clocked up many classic westerns and some not so. He was also capable of shifting from serious westerns to much more humorous ones with ease. This is one that falls into the latter category. It's a fun film with a simple but engaging plot.The movie begins with Wayne been released from prison after been framed by a ruthless miner played by Bruce Cabot, who has taken his land away and Wayne wants revenge by robbing him of his gold which is been transported in an armour plated horse carriage. He forms a mismatched group of desperadoes - Kirk Douglas (a gunslinging safe cracker), Howard Keel (a conniving Indian), an alcoholic explosives expert and a greedy "inside" man.It's amusing to see Wayne on the wrong side of the law for a change and that's just one of the surprising aspects of the film. Another is the unexpected situations that occur now and again throughout the plot, most of which involves the wary relationship between Wayne and Douglas, which is ambiguous to say the least. You're never sure if they're going to stand by each other, con each other or shoot each other. The star chemistry, amusing character interactions, wisecracking banter, and fun action (a bar room brawl been a particular hilarious highlight, which has everything but the kitchen sink thrown in) all combine nicely to make it an entertaining, tongue in cheek comedy caper and one of The Duke's overlooked westerns from the latter part of his career.