Joe Kidd
Encyclopedia
Joe Kidd is a 1972 American western film
starring Clint Eastwood
and Robert Duvall
, written by Elmore Leonard
and directed by John Sturges
.
The film is about an ex-bounty hunter hired by a wealthy landowner named Frank Harlan to track down Mexican revolutionary leader Luis Chama, who is fighting for land reform
. It forms part of the Revisionist Western
genre.
stars as Joe Kidd, a former bounty hunter who is in jail for hunting on Indian land and disturbing the peace in the New Mexican town of Sinola. Mexican bandito/revolutionary Luis Chama (John Saxon
) has organized a peasant
revolt against the local landowners, who are throwing the poor off land that rightfully belongs to them.
When a posse — financed by wealthy landowner Frank Harlan (Robert Duvall
) — is formed to capture Chama, Kidd is invited to join but prefers to remain neutral. Harlan persists and Kidd finally relents when he learns that Chama's band has raided his own ranch and attacked one of the workers.
The posse rides into a village and forces the villagers into the church at gunpoint. They threaten to kill five Mexican hostages unless Chama surrenders. Harlan throws Kidd into the church to prevent him from helping Helen and the Mexicans.
Kidd manages a daring escape and saves the hostages, determined to find Chama himself and see that justice is done. But when he does capture Chama and delivers him to Sheriff Mitchell (Gregory Walcott
) Harlan is already waiting for them in town.
To get to the jailhouse, Kidd drives a steam engine through the town saloon. A gunfight then ensues between Kidd and Harlan's men. Eventually Kidd manages to kill Harlan in the court house. Chama then surrenders to Mitchell but not before Kidd knocks the sheriff down for not standing up to Harlan and his murderous plan. Kidd then collects his things and leaves town with Helen.
Eastwood was given the script by Jennings Lang, written by novelist Elmore Leonard
. Originally called The Sinola Courthouse Raid, it was about a character inspired by Reies Lopez Tijerina, an ardent supporter of Robert F. Kennedy
, known for storming a courthouse in Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico
in an incident in June 1967, taking hostages and demanding that the Hispanic people be granted their ancestral lands back to them. Leonard depicted Tijerina in his story, a man he named Luis Chama, as an egomaniac, a role which went to John Saxon
. Robert Duvall
was cast as Frank Harlan, a ruthless land owner who hires Eastwood's character, a former frontier guide named Joe Kidd, to track down the culprits and scare them away. Don Stroud, who Eastwood had starred alongside in Coogan's Bluff, was cast as another sour villain who encounters Joe Kidd.
Under the director's helm of John Sturges
, who had directed acclaimed westerns such as The Magnificent Seven
(1960), filming began in Old Tucson in November 1971, overlapping with another film production, John Huston
's The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
, which was just wrapping up shooting. Outdoor sequences to the film were shot near June Lake
, east of the Yosemite National Park
. The actors were initially uncertain with the strength of the three main characters in the film and how the hero Joe Kidd would come across. According to writer Leonard, the initial slow development between the three was probably because the cast were so initially awestruck by having Sturges direct that they surrendered authority to him.
Eastwood was far from in perfect health during the film and suffered symptoms that relayed the possibility of a bronchial infection and suffered several panic attacks, falsely reported in the media as him having an allergy to horses. During production, the script for the finale was altered when producer Bob Daley jokingly said that a train should crash through the barroom in the climax and he was taken seriously by cast and crew and they thought it was a great idea.
of The New York Times
, in his review of the film wrote, "I think it is a very good performance in context. Like so many Western heroes, Joe Kidd figures even in his own time as an anachronism — powerful through his instincts mainly, and through the ability of everybody else, whether in rage or gratitude, to recognize in him a quality that must be called virtue. The great value of Clint Eastwood in such a position is that he guards his virtue very cannily, and in the society of "Joe Kidd," where the men still manage to tip their hats to the ladies, but just barely, all the Eastwood effects and mannerisms suggest a carefully preserved authenticity." The New York Post praised the actors' performances while criticizing the film, calling the actors "diamonds set in dung".
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
starring Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
and Robert Duvall
Robert Duvall
Robert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
, written by Elmore Leonard
Elmore Leonard
Elmore John Leonard Jr. , better known as Elmore Leonard, is an American novelist and screenwriter. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.Among his...
and directed by John Sturges
John Sturges
John Eliot Sturges was an American film director. His movies include Bad Day at Black Rock , Gunfight at the O.K. Corral , The Magnificent Seven , The Great Escape and Ice Station Zebra .-Career:He started his career in Hollywood as an editor in 1932...
.
The film is about an ex-bounty hunter hired by a wealthy landowner named Frank Harlan to track down Mexican revolutionary leader Luis Chama, who is fighting for land reform
Land reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
. It forms part of the Revisionist Western
Revisionist Western
The Revisionist Western, Modern Western or Anti-Western traces to the mid 1960s and early 1970s as a sub-genre of the Western movie....
genre.
Plot
Clint EastwoodClint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
stars as Joe Kidd, a former bounty hunter who is in jail for hunting on Indian land and disturbing the peace in the New Mexican town of Sinola. Mexican bandito/revolutionary Luis Chama (John Saxon
John Saxon (actor)
John Saxon is an American actor who has worked on over 200 projects during the span of sixty years. Saxon is most known for his work in horror films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Black Christmas, both of which feature Saxon as a policeman in search of the killer...
) has organized a peasant
Peasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
revolt against the local landowners, who are throwing the poor off land that rightfully belongs to them.
When a posse — financed by wealthy landowner Frank Harlan (Robert Duvall
Robert Duvall
Robert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
) — is formed to capture Chama, Kidd is invited to join but prefers to remain neutral. Harlan persists and Kidd finally relents when he learns that Chama's band has raided his own ranch and attacked one of the workers.
The posse rides into a village and forces the villagers into the church at gunpoint. They threaten to kill five Mexican hostages unless Chama surrenders. Harlan throws Kidd into the church to prevent him from helping Helen and the Mexicans.
Kidd manages a daring escape and saves the hostages, determined to find Chama himself and see that justice is done. But when he does capture Chama and delivers him to Sheriff Mitchell (Gregory Walcott
Gregory Walcott
Gregory Walcott is an American television and film actor. He is perhaps best known for having appeared in the 1959 Ed Wood film, the cult classic Plan 9 from Outer Space.-Early life and career:...
) Harlan is already waiting for them in town.
To get to the jailhouse, Kidd drives a steam engine through the town saloon. A gunfight then ensues between Kidd and Harlan's men. Eventually Kidd manages to kill Harlan in the court house. Chama then surrenders to Mitchell but not before Kidd knocks the sheriff down for not standing up to Harlan and his murderous plan. Kidd then collects his things and leaves town with Helen.
Cast
- Clint EastwoodClint EastwoodClinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
as Joe Kidd - Robert DuvallRobert DuvallRobert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
as Frank Harlan - John SaxonJohn Saxon (actor)John Saxon is an American actor who has worked on over 200 projects during the span of sixty years. Saxon is most known for his work in horror films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Black Christmas, both of which feature Saxon as a policeman in search of the killer...
as Luis Chama - Don StroudDon StroudDonald Lee Stroud is an American actor and surfer who appeared in many films in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and has starred in over 100 films and 175 television shows to date.-Early life:...
as Lamarr Simms - Stella Garcia as Helen Sanchez
- James Wainwright as Olin Mingo
- Paul KosloPaul KosloPaul Koslo is a German-Canadian actor.-Career:Koslo started his career in such 1970's cult films as Nam's Angels a.k.a. The Losers, , Mr. Majestyk, Vanishing Point, Joe Kidd and The Stone Killer...
as Roy Gannon - Gregory WalcottGregory WalcottGregory Walcott is an American television and film actor. He is perhaps best known for having appeared in the 1959 Ed Wood film, the cult classic Plan 9 from Outer Space.-Early life and career:...
as Sinola County Sheriff Bob Mitchell - Dick Van PattenDick Van PattenRichard Vincent "Dick" Van Patten is an American actor, best known for his role as patriarch Tom Bradford on the television sitcom Eight is Enough. He began work as a child actor and was successful on the [New York] stage, appearing in more than a dozen plays as a teenager...
as Hotel manager - Lynne MartaLynne MartaLynne Marta is an American actress.Marta was born in Somerville, New Jersey. Her first screen credit was in 1966 in an episode of the comedy series Gidget....
as Elma - John Carter as Judge
- Pepe HernPepe HernPepe Hern was an American actor whose characters, usually Spanish and Latin , were always secondary.His real name was José Hernández Bethencourt and he was born June 6, 1927 in New Jersey. His parents were Spanish immigrants from Puerto de la Cruz on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands...
as Priest - Joaquín Martínez as Manolo
- Ron Soble as Ramon
- Pepe Callahan as Naco
- Clint RitchieClint RitchieClinton Charles Augustus Ritchie was an American actor.-Early life:Ritchie was born on a farm in Grafton, North Dakota to J. C. and Charlotte Ritchie, and his family moved to Washington state when he was seven...
as Deputy Calvin
Production
Elmore Leonard
Elmore John Leonard Jr. , better known as Elmore Leonard, is an American novelist and screenwriter. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.Among his...
. Originally called The Sinola Courthouse Raid, it was about a character inspired by Reies Lopez Tijerina, an ardent supporter of Robert F. Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
, known for storming a courthouse in Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
in an incident in June 1967, taking hostages and demanding that the Hispanic people be granted their ancestral lands back to them. Leonard depicted Tijerina in his story, a man he named Luis Chama, as an egomaniac, a role which went to John Saxon
John Saxon (actor)
John Saxon is an American actor who has worked on over 200 projects during the span of sixty years. Saxon is most known for his work in horror films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Black Christmas, both of which feature Saxon as a policeman in search of the killer...
. Robert Duvall
Robert Duvall
Robert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
was cast as Frank Harlan, a ruthless land owner who hires Eastwood's character, a former frontier guide named Joe Kidd, to track down the culprits and scare them away. Don Stroud, who Eastwood had starred alongside in Coogan's Bluff, was cast as another sour villain who encounters Joe Kidd.
Under the director's helm of John Sturges
John Sturges
John Eliot Sturges was an American film director. His movies include Bad Day at Black Rock , Gunfight at the O.K. Corral , The Magnificent Seven , The Great Escape and Ice Station Zebra .-Career:He started his career in Hollywood as an editor in 1932...
, who had directed acclaimed westerns such as The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven is an American Western film directed by John Sturges, and released in 1960. It is a fictional tale of a group of seven American gunmen who are hired to protect a small agricultural village in Mexico from a group of marauding Mexican bandits...
(1960), filming began in Old Tucson in November 1971, overlapping with another film production, John Huston
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics: The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge...
's The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean is a 1972 western film written by John Milius, directed by John Huston, and starring Paul Newman...
, which was just wrapping up shooting. Outdoor sequences to the film were shot near June Lake
June Lake, California
June Lake is a census-designated place in Mono County, California. It is located against the southern rim of the Mono Basin, south of Lee Vining, at an elevation of 7654 feet ....
, east of the Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
. The actors were initially uncertain with the strength of the three main characters in the film and how the hero Joe Kidd would come across. According to writer Leonard, the initial slow development between the three was probably because the cast were so initially awestruck by having Sturges direct that they surrendered authority to him.
Eastwood was far from in perfect health during the film and suffered symptoms that relayed the possibility of a bronchial infection and suffered several panic attacks, falsely reported in the media as him having an allergy to horses. During production, the script for the finale was altered when producer Bob Daley jokingly said that a train should crash through the barroom in the climax and he was taken seriously by cast and crew and they thought it was a great idea.
Reception
Joe Kidd was released in the United States in July 1972, and it eventually grossed $5.8 million. The film received a mixed reception from critics. Roger GreenspunRoger Greenspun
Roger Greenspun was an American journalist and noted film critic. He is best known for his work with The New York Times in which he reviewed near 400 films, particularly in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and for Penthouse in which he was a columnist throughout much of the late 1970s and 1980s...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, in his review of the film wrote, "I think it is a very good performance in context. Like so many Western heroes, Joe Kidd figures even in his own time as an anachronism — powerful through his instincts mainly, and through the ability of everybody else, whether in rage or gratitude, to recognize in him a quality that must be called virtue. The great value of Clint Eastwood in such a position is that he guards his virtue very cannily, and in the society of "Joe Kidd," where the men still manage to tip their hats to the ladies, but just barely, all the Eastwood effects and mannerisms suggest a carefully preserved authenticity." The New York Post praised the actors' performances while criticizing the film, calling the actors "diamonds set in dung".