NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Leofwine_draca THE SHOOTING is a very low budget American western directed by cult favourite Monte Hellman, a former Roger Corman man. This features Will Hutchins and Warren Oates in the lead roles, playing a couple of cowboys who are employed by the pretty Millie Perkins to guide her across an arid desert landscape in pursuit of a fugitive.This entire film consists of a handful of characters, their horses, and the harsh Utah landscapes. The desert setting is very well realised and Hellman shoots it in an active way. A pity, then, that the plotting is so slim and long-winded; very little happens en route aside from a lot of bickering, and the supposed twist ending is more head-scratching than anything else.This film is chiefly of interest for featuring Oates before he became a big film star in the 1970s in the likes of BADLANDS and BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA, and he still has that laidback charm. Also on hand is Jack Nicholson, here producing as well as taking the role of a slick gunslinger. Hutchins adds sympathy as the simpleton, but the real stand-out is Perkins whose driven character prefigures similar roles in the likes of HANNIE CAULDER and TRUE GRIT.

MartinHafer Willet (Warren Oates) returns to his claim only to find that his partner is dead, his brother gone and a simple-minded young man minding the place. Soon an odd woman (Millie Perkins) arrives and offers Willet a ton of money to guide her through the desert. He insists they bring along the simple guy and they get moving. However, it soon becomes apparent that she isn't being very honest with them. Why does she NEED to get there and why the big hurry? She claims the reason is unimportant but it soon seems as if she's tracking someone...and when a nutty gunman (Jack Nicholson) meets up with them, it's dead certain they're looking to do something to someone. The problem is that if they try to back down now, their new 'friend', the gunman, will blow their heads off! So what's next? See the film.The casting of Jack Nicholson might seem silly today, as his character was so unlike the typical Nicholson role. However, in 1966 there was no 'typical Nicholson role'...and back then, accepting him as a nasty gunman would have been easier to except back in the day.Overall, this is a very simple story but also well done. It makes the most of its budget, cast and story. Not a must-see western but clearly one worth your time.

Woodyanders Shrewd bounty hunter Willett Gashade (the incomparable Warren Oates, who's splendid in his first meaty lead role) and his dimwitted partner Coley (amiable Will Hutchins) are hired by an angry and mysterious woman (well played with fierce intensity by Millie Perkins) to track down a man who has run off into the desert. They are eventually joined on their search by lethal gunslinger Billy Spear (a nicely sinister portrayal by Jack Nicholson).Director Monte Hellman relates the absorbing story at a hypnotically gradual pace, makes inspired use of the barren and desolate countryside, and offers a laudably harsh and unsentimental evocation of the old west. Carole Eastman's compelling and philosophical script provides a fascinating and provocative meditation on the duality of the human condition -- Willett and his identical twin brother Coin, who's ultimately revealed as the man they are tracking who apparently killed the woman's child in some kind of tragic accident, represent the contrasting sides of the existential coin pertaining to both good and evil which converge at the climax with catastrophic results -- as well as the ugly and corrosive nature of revenge (the woman shoots a white horse early in the movie and rides a black horse while embarking on her dark journey into the desert, thus symbolizing the savage spiritual damage done to her soul in the name of vengeance). The starling ending packs a devastating punch. Further enhanced by Gregory Sandor's beautifully stark cinematography and Richard Markowitz's moody score, this film completely deserves its cult status.

Scott LeBrun Willett Gashade (the late, great Warren Oates) and Coley Boyard (Will Hutchins) are two cowboy associates, hired by a mysterious young woman (Millie Perkins) who refuses to give her name. The assignment, ostensibly, is to travel with her to a faraway town, but she's clearly got an agenda that bemuses them. The stakes get raised when a newcomer joins them on the journey: a hired gun named Billy Spear (Jack Nicholson), who similarly chooses to be rather cagey.Under appreciated filmmaker Monte Hellman is just one of many who began his career working for the legendary Roger Corman. With Corman as the (uncredited) executive producer, and Nicholson and Hellman as producers, this was filmed simultaneously with another indie Western, "Ride in the Whirlwind", but released separately. It's a very spare film, with a minimum of major roles, and it's one that takes full advantage of some strikingly desolate locations.Carole Eastmans' screenplay takes great care not to spell everything out for the viewer, although by the end it's not too hard to connect all the dots. The result is an intelligent, meticulously made film with a very enigmatic, and atmospheric, quality about it. Performances are superb from the star quartet. Oates has a quietly powerful presence. Hutchins is very animated and engaging. Some fans of the film don't care for Perkins, but this viewer feels that it's actually a testament to her ability since her character is clearly not trying to be likable; he can see that she's bearing some sort of grudge. And the young Nicholson, still a few years away from achieving genuine stardom, shows off that charisma that always served him so well. The ending, a slow motion shoot out among some rocks, is very stylishly done.This is very much essential viewing for fans of the cast and director.Eight out of 10.