Highly Overrated But Still Good

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

This western keeps you tense from beginning to end. reminding one of "High Noon". James Coburn is Zach Provo, the cold blooded killer set upon getting his revenge on lawman Sam Burgade (Charlton Heston). Barbara Hershey is Susan, Burgade's daughter and she will be what Provo will use as a prey to get to Burgade. Provo would be a better villain if he did not talk so much at the final scenes, I missed the laconic Britt from "The Magnificent Seven". The rape scene is shocking and adds emotion to the final showdown, which is not deceiving, but also not up to the expectations. Still, this is one of the best directed by Andrew McLaglen. Christopher Mitchum is Hal Brickman, Susan's boyfriend and he brings to mind Jeffrey Hunter in "The Searchers".

In the early 20th century, a bandit named Zach Provo, a half Indian, (Provo well played by James Coburn , who was sent to prison during the latter part of the 19th century) leads a band of outlaw convicts on a jailbreak . Provo (Sean Connery and Robert Shaw were considered for the role) along with with 6 others to exact vengeance on Sam Burgade (a tough-guy splendidly performed by Charlton Heston) , an upright lawman , whose daughter (a very young Barbara Hershey) is abducted and threatening to gang-rape her . Provo seeks vendetta on Burgade because he not only captured him but was also responsible for the death of Provo's wife, at least in Provo's mind . At the beginning , the wild bunch holds up a train and attempt a bank until a bloody vengeance . The misfit group is formed by cutthroat guys (Jorge Rivero , Larry Wilcox , Thalmus Rasulala , Morgan Paull , John Quade ,Robert Donner) who kidnap the daughter and threat to rape but it goes wrong . This is the story about some men making their last stand and carrying out a merciless revenge . This decent Western packs lots of action , shootouts, and explosive violence , including some tasteless images . Go riding , crossfire and fights provide some welcome distraction . Taut excitement throughout , beautifully photographed and spectacular bloodletting filmed in slow moving ; it was shot "in the style of Sam Peckinpah" . Rich in texture and including intelligent screenplay full of incredibly violent scenes . However , it has some appalling and disgusting rape frames entirely out of place . This motion picture is set in 1909 Arizona which is arguably right at the end of the old wild American western frontier era period if not it already having ended by the 1890s , as there is an occasional elegiac tone lamenting the passing of the West . This Western picture was based on the novel "Gun Down" by Brian Garfield ; and it was made and released about five years after its source book that had been first published in 1971 . Vibrant as well as brilliant all-star-cast displays exceptional performances . Charlton Heston is perfect as a veteran ex-sheriff with his own ethic codes . This is Charlton Heston's last name rhymes with Western , four years after this 1976 film, Heston would co-star in 1980's Mountain Men , another good western . James Coburn is terrific as a convict sets into motion plan of revenge on old Marshall . Furthermore , good secondaries such as and Jorge Rivero , Larry Wilcox , Thalmus Rasulala , Morgan Paull , John Quade , Robert Donner and Michael Parks as reform-minded Marshal. Enjoyable musical score , Jerry Goldsmith is credited with "Music" on the film's credits, the credit is misleading as he composed no original score for the film, instead it was tracked with cues from four other westerns he scored: 100 rifles (1969) ; Río Conchos (1964); Morituri (1965) and Stagecoach (1966) , which is why he did not receive a credit like "Original Music composed & Conducted by". Colorful and evocative cinematography in Panavisión by Duke Callaghan , Peckinpah's usual , and portions of this film were photographed at Old Tucson Studios, Tucson, Arizona . This actioner motion picture was professionally directed by the veteran director of Westerns Andrew V. McLaglen , though Jack Smight and possibly Stuart Rosenberg were considered for the director . This was final cinema movie western directed by Andrew V. McLaglen who was a veteran of the genre . McLaglen though continued to direct a few more westerns for television. Andrew V. McLaglen, the veteran director of Westerns, is son of great actor Victor McLagen and known John Ford's disciple . Andrew holds the distinction of directing the most episodes of "Gunsmoke" . Furthermore , he holds the honor of filmmaking the most episodes of ¨Have gun , Will travel" (1957). And is one of the few directors to have directed both Clint Eastwood and John Wayne . He's a Western expert (McLintock, Shenandoah, Bandolero, Chisum, Cahill, Way west) and warlike specialist , such as proved in several films ( Return to Kwai, Wild Geese , Dirtdozen: the next mission, Sea wolves, Breakthrough ) . The Last Hard Men is a real must see for fans of the genre in Peckinpah style . Rating : Nice , acceptable and passable , 6 .

Commonplace Western has James Coburn as a half-breed outlaw escaping from a chain gang and setting out for torturous revenge on retired sheriff Charlton Heston, who also was responsible for the death of Coburn's wife. Heston is ready to confront him, so the criminal kidnaps Chuck's daughter (Barbara Hershey) to outsmart him. The two tough guy actors are pretty good, and there is an attempt to make the action live up to its "R" rating with some bloody shots and a rape sequence, but what used to be violent in 1976 is not as strong today and the overall results are pretty standard. Jerry Goldsmith's score is spirited. Also features young Michael Parks as the current new sheriff. **1/2 out of ****

I don't know why I'm taking the time to review this waste-of-time movie. If you stick with it long enough in hopes of a satisfying conclusion – good, bad, or surprising – don't. It finally fizzles out after stiff, formulaic, predictable dialogue and acting. Indoor scenes are so harshly lit you think if the camera were zoomed out one millimeter further you'd see the klieg lights. Costumes, hair-do's, and sets are starched, pressed, and immaculate. Are we supposed to imagine common people really lived like that in early 20th-century Arizona? Other reviews' comparisons to Sam Peckinpah are an insult to Peckinpah: at least that director wove his violence into the context of chaos and mayhem. HARD MEN's gore is gratuitous exploding squibs from wooden impersonations of bad guys with manicured fingernails. Huh?!? I can believe Heston thought he might have been making something of worth with this film. (He does get to clutch his gun in his cold fingers.) But Coburn? I'll never guess why he signed up for this travesty. Want to see a movie about the end of the West as we knew it, the end of Westerns as we knew them? Watch THE SHOOTIST or UNFORGIVEN again. THE LAST HARD MEN is a mockery of an obituary to the Western.