Howdy! It is time to wrap up Western Week, to say adios to our favourite westerns, mount on our horses and ride into sunset – for the time being. Oh ok, until tomorrow.
We hope you had a great time this week – we sure did preparing it. So much so, we have decided to have other Appreciation Weeks from time to time.

Meanwhile, we leave you with the best songs from the Westerns we love – we are pretty sure you will know at least 90% of these songs!

We will start with the one and only Ennio Morricone, Italian composer, responsible for some of the best known film scores out there from Cinema Paradiso, The Mission and The Untouchables to the Westerns directed by Sergio Leone most notably The Good, the Bad and The Ugly:

And Once Upon a Time in the West (Ana’s personal favourite Western movie and Western Soundtrack – this song is AMAZING)

Another one that we love is the score from The Magnificent Seven by Elmer Bernstein, if you haven’t watched the movie , you will remember this one from the Marlboro commercials!

From the movie Johnny Guitar, featuring Joan Crawford as a tough Saloon owner who is helped by the hero Johnny Guitar to clear her name when she is accused of murder. The title song is by Peggy Lee:

Time for some good old time fun with Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – a Musical Western, amazingly choreographed by Michael Kidd and with great songs by Saul Chaplin and Gene de Paul

And who does not know Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on my Head, by Burt Bacharach from the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The song won the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1969.

More recently, in Kill Bill a modern day Western by Quentin Tarantino, we had the Song Bang Bang (my baby shot me down) in the version with Nancy Sinatra . A bit of trivia : this song was written by Sony Bono and it was Cher’s greatest hit of the 1960s!

That’s all folks!!!

P.S. Maybe not all. Since we are talking great Western soundtracks, I have to post this one too. OK, technically it is not a Western per se, but it is a Country song from a great Country movie, Tender Mercies. A movie from 1983 with Robert Duvall playing a recovering alcoholic country singer/writer who is trying to get back on track. In the movie he goes to a club to see his ex-wife and ex-songwriting partner and she is singing this song – Over You. The song was nominated to an Oscar that year and both in the movie and in this clip it is performed by Betty Buckley:

Hasta la vista babies!

In honor of Western Week, this week’s ponderings:

What is your favorite Western movie?

For A Few Dollars More - Second of Leone’s Dollars trilogy.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly - The third of Leone’s Dollars Trilogy, but actually a prequel to the other two. The most iconic and memorable of the trilogy, and commonly hailed as the greatest Western–and one of the best films of any genre–ever made.

Shane - The classic starring Alan Ladd as the drifting gunslinger Shane

Tombstone – Wyatt Earp and his boys bring justice to town. Features one of my favorite movie lines ever: “I’m your huckleberry.”

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – Starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford as the titled gang leader bank robbers.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre — Another of my dad’s favorites. Starring Hunphrey Bogart and Tim Holt, who go out to Mexico in the 1920s to prospect for gold.

High Noon – Gary Cooper stars as the lone, principled Marshall Kane, who takes on a whole bunch of baddies singlehanded. And gets to ride off into the sunset with Grace Kelley. Inspiration for Die Hard–you remember that first conversation between John McClaine and Hans Gruber, right?

3:10 to Yuma (2007) – Remake starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale is anything but a mere rehash. Stellar performances by all those involved.

No Country for Old Men - The contemporary western, film adaptation of the novel by Cormac McCarthy. You’ll never see Javier Bardem the same way again.

Once Upon a Time in the West – Sergio Leone masterpiece, starring Charles Bronson and Henry Fonda. Epic, with a capital E.

Unforgiven – Clint Eastwood’s tribute to Don Siegel and Sergio Leone, Eastwood takes every convention of the old western and turns them all topsy-turvy. Best Picture winner for 1992.

Three Amigos – Hilarious classic romp, poking fun at The Magnificent Seven. El Guapo! “Would you say I have a PLETHORA of pinatas?”

The Magnificent Seven - Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen make the ultimate, ensemble cowboy movie. *Hums theme music*

Maverick – To steal a line from Kristie, “before Mel was Mad!” he was a very entertaining actor. Very funny, witty film, with old Bret Maverick actor James Garner playing a major role.

The Missing – Anything Cate Blanchett acts in is an automatic winner for me. Tommy Lee Jones plays her estranged father in this touching, well executed (yet highly underrated) western.

Brokeback Mountain – Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal deliver brave, moving performances in this bittersweet love story.

The Quick and the Dead - What? I really like this movie. What’s not to like? Look at that cast!

The Western, on film, has dwindled in prevalence and fashionability since its mid 20th century heyday. Has the cowboy rode off into the sunset, never to be seen again?

Nah.

Like any other genre and art form, the Western has expanded, grown, and metamorphosed. Instead of just the classic shoot ‘em up westerns, or simple tales of morality and justice, westerns throughout the 20th century and into the 21st have become more fluid and flexible, as seen in the more revisionist, Spaghetti Westerns of the 1960s and ’70s, and the challenging of the noble hero, and daring to impart ambiguous endings.

Since we have covered some of the classics in the genre, we now explore the new frontier for the Western, and a few of the directions these films have taken since the 1970s.

The Throwbacks and Remakes:

These films pay homage to the old school Western–they are set in the wild west, and they employ themes prevalent in the genre (the hero or anti-hero tale, interactions with native americans, etc), but not necessarily with the same outcomes. In Dances With Wolves, the rules and conventions are played to the letter–noble, solitary hero goes out west and discovers the new frontier, both external and internal, as he fights to protect the innocent. Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven, on the exact opposite end, turns convention on its head by creating a tale without morality, and a solid anti-hero in old gunslinger Munny. An extremely risky move, but ultimately with positive results.

The 1993 movie Tombstone is another throwback Western, based on (and largely fictionalizing) Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday’s legendary gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona–a subject of many a Western. The film focuses on the lawlessness of the west, the free reigning banditry, and a heroic stand to serve justice. ***Note: Kevin Costner’s movie Wyatt Earp came out a few months after Tombstone, after he had read the script and disagreed with the general focus of the movie. Kurt Russell is a way cooler Wyatt Earp than Kevin Costner. And Val Kilmer’s Doc Holliday owns. If you can only watch one, watch Tombstone.***

Another more recent throwback remake, is the 1998 film The Mask of Zorro. Zorro initially was a character in books by Johnston McCulley in the 1920s, but his popularity has spanned across decades and in different media–from books, to television to movies. While Zorro is no gunslinger, he does capture the heart of old western tales–standing for innocent people in the face of injustices and lawless exploitation.

The most recent remake, and a damn good movie, is last year’s release of 3:10 to Yuma starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. Based on the short story by by Elmore Leonard and the 1957 film, James Mangold’s remake manages to maintain the intensity and integrity of the old Western, but still update the movie to a more jaded, tough 21st century audience. Although the story doesn’t quite make sense, the performances alone are enough to make this film great.

The Western Comedies:

The Western hasn’t always just been about weighty issues and themes–and the 1980’s and ’90s saw a rejuvenation of the genre…in comedy form!

The 1994 comedy Maverick, a film remake of the 1950s series, starring Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster, and James Garner is a wonderful take on the Western. With a less-than-upfront hero in Bret Maverick, a beautiful wily Annabelle Bransford, and a law Marshall that isn’t exactly a forthcoming straight shooter either, Maverick entertains and pokes fun at older Western conventions, while still playing by the rules.

The ’80s classic comedy Three Amigos also plays on Western conventions in a comedic remake of The Magnificent Seven.

The Science Fiction/Space Opera Western:

Why not? Just as the American West and it’s unexplored nature as a new frontier was used as the perfect backdrop for these films, so too is outer space.

Space Operas like George Lucas’ Star Wars series pay homage to the western–with bounty hunters like Boba Fett, gangsters like Jabba the Hut, and rogue pilots like Han Solo.

Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek series (and subsequent movies in the ’80s) were also inspired by the Western–the opening sequence says it all:

Space… the Final Frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before…

Television show Firefly and subsequent movie Serenity, created by Joss Whedon, also follow the Space Western motif–not just figuratively with the renegade crew and rogue captain Mal, but in terms of costuming, weaponry, and actual planet settings. Robert Zemeckis‘ Back to the Future III takes Marty McFly back to the Old West in search of Doc Brown–and manages to poke some fun at Western elements…as Marty assumes the name Eastwood, dons the traditional serape, and partakes in a shootout a la Leone.

Another branch of the science fiction Western is with post-apocalyptic films, such as the Mad Max movies, or Kevin Costner’s adaptation of The Postman. ***Note: Costner misses again with The Postman. Please, for the love of all that is good READ THE BOOK and forget about the lamentable, deathly bore that is the movie.***

The Female Cowboy:

While the traditional Western focused on male gunslingers and characters, newer ventures have embraced the idea of the female cowboy. These attempts range from lamentable–with the laughable films Bad Girls and Bandidas–to superb.

Leo, Gene, Sharon and Russell in The Quick and the Dead

Sam Raimi–yes, the same Raimi of Evil Dead and Spiderman fame (conversely of The Grudge 2 and Boogeyman infamy–what has happened to him!?)–directed a western in 1995, called The Quick and the Dead, starring Sharon Stone, Russell Crowe, Gene Hackman, and Leonardo DiCaprio. Sharon Stone plays Ellen “The Lady” (aka The Woman With No Name) in this film, hell bent on killing John Herod (played by Gene Hackman)–the twisted, sadistic man who rules the small western town.

Ron Howard’s 2003 movie The Missing stars the brilliant Cate Blanchett as a mother who will stop at nothing to get her abducted daughter back from renegade Apache bandits who plan on selling her (along with other abducted females) across the Mexican border for money. In a bit of a twist on the traditional Western tale, this is a story where a mother goes after her children instead of the father figure (played by Aaron Eckhart), and features a rekindling between her and her estranged father (Tommy Lee Jones).

In a departure from the formal Western, Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill, with main character “The Bride” (an unnamed mercenary until Volume 2), also pays homage to the Western genre–in terms of music, scenery, and a new spin on The Man With No Name. Who is totally, unabashedly KICK ASS.

The New Westerns:

Finally, we come to the Contemporary Western. These new films, set in present day and time, are revisionist and throw old conventions straight out the window, or do not even take place in the “west” at all.

Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis, is my personal favorite film of all time. And it is a “western”. A lone gunman from the East travels to the west coast, and finds himself in a strange land, and thrown into danger. Enlisting (incompetent) outside aid, the lone marshal of justice, Mr. John McClaine takes down the entire bandit posse. Sure, the movie is set in 1988 Los Angeles in a hi-tech Nakatomi Plaza, but the Western rulebook is firmly in place.

On a more serious note, the newer western Brokeback Mountain takes the traditional stereotyped image of the cowboy, and does away with any of the old rules and mores with the incredibly brave tale of romance between Ennis and Jack.

Last year’s Coen brothers adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s No Country for Old Men is the most recent movement of the contemporary Western, and probably the most bleak. The “good guys” or heroes truly are no more in this movement, and unjust, senseless death prevails.

So the Western, like any other genre has changed over time. While I don’t like ending this on the bleak, bitterness of No Country, I’ll leave you with a more lighthearted clip. My favorite scene from Three Amigos…starring the one and only El Guapo.

“We are not gonna die. You know why? Because we are so…very…pretty. We are just too pretty for God to let us die.”

Firefly was a (very) short- lived TV show created by Joss Whedon, the same creator of Buffy and Angel. Only 14 episodes were ever produced and out of those, only 11 were actually aired in 2002. With a quick-ass male protagonist, strong female characters, witty, funny dialogue and plenty of adventurous plotlines, it was basic Joss Whedon goodness.

Plus, it had one of the coolest premises ever: a Western set in Space. But unlike other sci-fi shows set in Space there are no aliens in this universe, only humans who in the year 2517 are colonizing a new star system. There are a whole bunch of colonies out there, full of people starting a new life , Pioneers and bandits: hence the Western feel of it and even though the show is set many centuries in the future, the human race is still basically the same.

It follows a group of 9 misfits on board of spaceship Serenity who live in the outskirts of civilization , smuggling goods to the planets in the fringes of the known universe. Fighting the bad guys, the criminals that try to explore the poorest colonies while at the same time, trying to avoid the Reavers, a group of humans that have turned to cannibalistic ways. And at every turn doing their best to outsmart and thwart The Alliance , the forceful central government that controls all colonies after winning the Civil War. ( It is hinted that the Alliance is probably the union of the two last superpowers : USA and China. )

The show is named after the spaceship, Serenity, which is a Firefly -class transport ship. Serenity is integral part of the show and I would actually go as far to consider it a character in itself – beautiful and sturdy. Almost like the USS Enterprise. They actually built the spaceship as a complete set and it was one of the most used elements of the show – it was their mean of survival but most of all, it was home.

The Ship

“You buy this ship, treat her proper, she’ll be with ya for the rest of your life.”

But what really makes this a fantastic show are the characters and how they shine on screen. There is a level of chemistry between the actors that leap from the screen and makes you want to be a part of that (dysfunctional) family.

So without further ado, a brief introduction to the crew of Serenity:

The Captain

Malcolm Reynolds, or simply Mal , fought and lost with the Independents in the Civil War against The Alliance. He has seen many of his friends die in battle and is a bitter man for that. He is an outlaw who has built himself a new life on board of the ship. His crew is his family, Serenity is his home. He is no wishy-washy hero – he is a smart-ass, sometimes ruthless, a lot of times rude, with a dry , sarcastic sense of humor who has his own code of honour and who will protect his ship and his crew at all costs. Think Han Solo when you think of Mal Reynolds and you wouldn’t be far from the mark.
Right in the first episode when one of the new crew members ask if Mal would kill him while he sleeps, he says:

“You don’t know me very well, son, so let me put this to you plainly: If I ever kill you, you’ll be awake. You’ll be facing me. And you’ll be armed.”

And that about sums it up. It also helps that Mal is played by Nathan Fillion who is said to make anything, movie or show he is on, 27% better by just showing up. I agree. The man is Teh cool.

Zoe is the second in command – we don’t know much about her except that her story with Mal goes back a long way – they fought and lost together in the Unification War. She is a feirce, cold warrior, extremely loyal to Mal. She is married to the Pilot, Wash and in a loving and hot relationship.

“Zoë: You sanguine about the kind of reception we’re apt to receive on an Alliance ship, Cap’n?

Mal: Absolutely. [pauses] What’s “sanguine” mean?
Zoë: “Sanguine”. Hopeful. Plus, point of interest: it also means “bloody”.
Mal: Well, that pretty much covers all the options, don’t it? “

Wash is the pilot of the ship. He is proud of his flying abilities but has no military background unlike Mal and Zoe which brings some tension in his relationship with his wife. His laid back atittude and sense of humour are responsible for some of the funniest moments in the show.

“Zoe: I know something ain’t right.
Wash: Sweetie, we’re crooks. If everything were right, we’d be in jail. “

The Ambassador

Inara Serra is a registered Companion – or in other words, a high-class prostitute who rents off one of the ship’s shuttles. To have a resgistered companion onboard brings respectability to the ship, hence her title as Ambassador. She doesn’t sleep with any of the crew members but there is a high amount of sexual tension and unresolved feelings between her and Malcolm – for any shippers out there – this is shipping heaven. Trust me.

“Inara: You don’t need strength as much as speed. We’re fragile creatures. It takes less than a pound of pressure to cut skin.
Mal: You know that? They teach you that in whore academy?
Inara: You have a strange sense of nobility, Captain. You’ll lay a man out for implying I’m a whore, but you keep calling me one to my face.
Mal: I might not show respect to your job, but he didn’t respect you. That’s the difference. Inara, he doesn’t even see you.
Inara: Well, I guess death will solve the issue to everyone’s satisfaction. “

The Engineer

Kaylee is the chief engineer of Senerity. She loves machines and has a deep connection with the ship and after Mal is probably the one that loves it the most. She is a cutie-pie: adorable, quirky , always the optimistic. And she has the hots for the doctor who does not notice her. At first.

“Jayne: Captain, can you stop her from bein’ cheerful, please?
Mal: I don’t believe there’s a power in the ‘verse can stop Kaylee from being cheerful. Sometimes you just wanna duct-tape her mouth, and… dump ‘er in the hold for a month.
[A grinning Kaylee gives Mal a peck on the cheek.]
Kaylee: I love my captain. “

The Thug

Jayne is the muscle of the crew. Loyal to nothing but his own interestes, we never know what he will do in any given situation. He is funny and a bit brainless but a true asset to the crew. In “Jaynestown” , one of the best episodes, we learn he has also a softer side.

“Mal: Girl knows things. Things she shouldn’t. Things she couldn’t.
Jayne: What, are you— are you sayin’ she’s a witch?
Wash: [sardonically] Yes, Jayne. She’s a witch. She has had congress with the beast.
Jayne: She’s in Congress?
Wash: How did your brain even learn human speech? I’m just so curious. “

Simon Tam is River’s Brother, a brilliant young man who has left everything behind so that he could save his beloved sister. He is tight-arsed, proper, methodic, almost prim who seems to fight his feelings for Kaylee.

“Kaylee has expressed her belief that Simon doesn’t swear]
Simon: I swear… when it’s appropriate.
Kaylee: Simon, the whole point of swearing is that it ain’t appropriate. “

The Pastor

Shepherd Book is a man of God who has a mysterious past. We don’t really know where he has come from but we know that he can shoot, he can fight and he has connections in high places: not really indicative of a man of God now, is it? And yet, he is deeply devouted to his faith.

“Book: I’ve been out of the abbey two days, I’ve beaten a lawman senseless, I’ve fallen in with criminals. I watched the captain shoot the man I swore to protect. And I’m not even sure if I think he was wrong. I believe I just… I think I’m on the wrong ship.
Inara: Maybe. Or maybe you’re exactly where you ought to be. “

And these are the magnificent nine!

Firefly was extremely well produced, with mighty fine special effects, fantastic actors and imaginative plotlines that were SO MUCH FUN that even though it was cancelled only after a short-run, it gathered a very large, outspoken and faithful online fandom, that spread the word about the show. With that and the successful sales of the DVD the TPTB decided to bring the cast together once more for a follow-up Movie in 2005.

It is a couple of months after the final episode and the Alliance is after River. Mal and the others finally get to the bottom of the “River mysteries” – how she has been conditioned to be an Alliance assassin and in their path to learn the truth they find out that the Alliance has done worse things that they ever thought possible. They face old and new threats and they are almost destroyed by them but in the end they succeed but not without some very sad losses.
The film is a as fun as the series was, with some MAJOR quick-ass by River in one of those fantastic woohoo movie moments when she totally saves everyone’s lives (well, mostly):

and with the anwers to some of the mysteries that had been left open with the abrupt cancellation of the show and the somewhat resolution to the Mal-Inara and Kaylee-Simon relationships, we fans were able to get some closure. Some. Cause I am greedy and still want more.

The Magnificent Seven is one of my very favorite movies–of all genres, not just westerns. It’s wild success when it was released in 1960 was pretty much a sure thing, considering the all star cast, director, and musical score.

The Story:

The movie opens on a small, dusty Mexican border town. A large gang of bandits, on horses and armed with guns rides into the town, led by their dastardly jefe Calvera. They pilage the town regularly; Calvera, played by Eli Wallach, and his gang steal all the food and goods the village farms and makes, and as they ride away, Calvera promises that he and his banditos will be back for more.

Some of the villagers, downtrodden, starved, and frustrated, have had enough. While many of the townspeople are still afraid to stand up to Calvera, the word of the village wise man (played by a convincing Vladimir Sokoloff) to fight sends a small group on their way to cross the border, and purchase guns with the meager valuables they still have. It is in this border town that the desperate villagers cross paths with the gunslinger who will change everything.

The villagers enter a town in a tussle–a man has dropped dead in the middle of the street, and even though a generous soul had decided to do the ‘decent thing’ and pay for his burial, the townies won’t allow it (because their burial ground is for whites only, and ain’t no Indians can be buried up in Boot Hill–even though the burial ground consists mainly of murderers, thieves, and louts). Seems everything is ready to go, the body in the hearse, horses drawn, plot prepared…but the good town folk will shoot any man that tries to get ol‘ Indian Sam a burial.

Steve McQueen as Vin and Yul Brynner as Chris

Enter the older gunslinger Chris, played by Yul Brenner. After hearing the story, he saunters through the men, and with his laconic drawl says “Oh, hell. lf that’s all that’s holding things up, l’ll drive the rig.” Another gunslinger named Vin, played by the one and only Steve McQueen, sidles up to Chris and joins him for the ride, joking “Never rode shotgun on a hearse before.” The two of them manage to thwart the antagonism and bullets shot from the townspeople, and get Sam up onto Boot Hill.

Meanwhile, the tired, hopeful villagers have witnessed everything–and decide that Chris is the man they need to speak with. They approach Chris and ask him where they can buy guns to defend themselves against Calvera and his group of bandits, but Chris tells them that having guns and not knowing how to use them is worthless. The villagers try a different angle, imploring the gunslinger to teach them, show them, help defend them. Chris refuses initially, but after seeing their dogged persistence, he accepts. When he learns that Calvera has a rather large gang, he remarks that he needs 6 other men for the job, and begins recruiting–with only the promise of good action, and a paltry $20 as payment for the job.

One by one, Chris finds men to fill the job (in one of the coolest montages ever). My favorite recruits are Vin (who we met earlier, and accompanies Chris on his ventures), O’Reilly (played by Charles Bronson), and poor Chico (played by a young Horst Buchholz). My favorite sequence is the recruiting of Britt (played by the stoic James Coburn), who shows just how fast he can be throwing a knife. With six gunslingers total, Chris and his recruits make off with the villagers to their town (the spurned Chico follows them, until finally Chris lets him join them as the seventh member).

Initially, Chris’ plan is to teach the villagers how to defend themselves. The seven figure that once Calvera sees that the villagers show their tenacity and willingness to fight for themselves, the bandits will leave to pick on easier, more willing prey. Unfortunately, it turns out that Calvera and his men are starving and desperate themselves–and willing to launch a full scale war on the town to get what they need. The gunslingers are given a choice now–to stand and fight with the grossly outnumbered villagers (who have betrayed the seven to Calvera resulting in their capture), or to turn their backs on the village and leave.

All seven stay, and the resulting battle is the stuff of Hollywood Legends.

The final choice of each man, their sacrifice and choice to fight–even if they are just hired guns, and have been betrayed by the villagers–is what gets me, every time. The last line spoken by Chris captures the essence of the film, in its tarnished hopes and of the lone gunslingers of the west: “Only the farmers won. We lost. We always lose.”

Origins:

Just as discussed in the Man With No Name post earlier this week, like Sergio Leone’s A Fistful of Dollars, The Magnificent Seven is another remake of an Akira Kurosawa classic–Seven Samurai.

Kurosawa’s film came out in 1954–just six years before the American adaptation. Commonly hailed as one of the best films ever made, Seven Samurai uses feudal Japan as its setting–an era not too different from the American Wild West. Instead of gunslingers, the seven protectors are ronin, or masterless samurai. The characters for the samurai are slightly different than those used in The Magnificent Seven, but the story and even some of the dialogue is mimicked very closely.

Shichinin no Samurai, led by Shimada Kambei

Even down to the very last line of the movie, Kambei (the ronin leader) says that the victory belongs to the peasants, and not to the samurai. The division between warrior and farming class is amplified here–as the farmers turn their backs on those that war, and focus instead on their new, life-bringing crops.

And so the gunslingers and the samurai ride off into the sunset, forlorn and alone…and fade away.

Other Representations:

Almost everyone has heard some variation of the Seven Samurai or Magnificent Seven tale. Even if you haven’t watched the actual films, or can’t quite place the familiar theme music (later exploited by Marlboro), the influence of these movies is felt in almost every facet of entertainment culture.

The Three Amigos, The Warrior Bugs from A Bug’s Life, and the Crew of Galaxy Quest

My personal favorite non-film adaptation of the story, again, has to be in Stephen King’s Dark Tower Series. Book 5, titled Wolves of the Calla is a retelling in a different universe, and with much higher stakes. Set in a town called Calla Bryn Sturges…well, you get the picture.

Rating: As if you couldn’t guess? Nothing short of a perfect 10! Now go out and rent all the movies. Immediately. And, just because, here’s a little parting gift.

Magnificent Seven Tribute

Title: The Gunslinger Born (The Dark Tower Graphic Novel)

Author: Stephen King, Peter David, Robin Furth, and Jae Lee

Tolkien’s Dark Tower and Mount Doom

The artwork by Jae Lee is stunning. As the original editions of the Dark Tower books were all illustrated, I already had some artistic visualization of Roland on his quest—but the art in The Gunslinger Born is truly wonderful. The new representations of settings, and of characters from Marten/Flagg, Rhea of the Coos, or the Crimson King himself, are breathtaking. Similarly, the adapted text and the selections made by the Marvel crew is wonderful and captures the spirit of Stephen King’s novels without feeling abbreviated or lacking—a very impressive feat!

However, the TRUE draw of the comic books is not just the marvelous story and artwork in the main body, but the inserts (including Q&A with King himself) and stories written by Robin Furth in addition to the main storyline. In each individual comic, there is a back story, previously neither released nor discussed in the original Dark Tower books. These stories include Vannay’s teachings of the importance of the Beams, creation of Maerlyn’s rainbow and the Crimson King, the creation of Roland’s guns, Maerlyn’s Laughing Mirror, Rhea of the Coos’ childhood, Big Coffin Hunter Jonas’ origins, and the dreaded Charyou Tree.

BE WARNED! The graphic novel collection of The Gunslinger Born does NOT contain the wonderful back stories by Robin Furth—which pisses me off to no end. The graphic novel by itself is great, and features the entire collection of the seven issues of this story arc, along with some concept art and cover collections, but why oh why Marvel would you not include one of the biggest draws to the series! I would highly recommend that anyone interested track down and purchase the individual comic issues of the series instead of (or in addition to) purchasing the sadly incomplete graphic novel.

Notable Quotes/Parts: My favorite depiction is the sweet lover’s tryst between Roland and Susan. The art captures the both of them at the right age, and the beautiful innocence of their young love. Also, the hope and sweetness of the scene balances the darkness and hardship that Roland and his tet must face. The back stories by Robin Furth are also brilliant in their entirety—although if I had to pick a favorite, reading more about Maerlyn’s Rainbow and Rhea of the Coos was deliciously scary.

Additional Thoughts: Usually I am a sucker for Omnibus formats. Collections are easier on the wallet, not to mention less of a strain on the bookshelf, and generally are easier to track down than individual issues. However, I really do encourage everyone to look for the original issues of these comics, as almost half of the story (not to mention letters, interviews, Comic Con specials, etc) are completely eliminated from the graphic novel.

Also, in March 2008 the second arc of the Gunslinger comics began with the release of The Long Road Home Vol. 1. The new arc is completely new with regard to the Dark Tower universe, as it details Roland, Cuthburt and Alain’s adventures post-Hambry after the conclusion of Wizard and Glass. I am certainly collecting these as well!

On a further note—if anyone is wondering where to purchase the comics (I didn’t know where to go either), you can either look up specialty comic book stores in your area (you can try this via sites like The Master List) OR if you are lucky like me, your local Borders bookstore will usually carry them!

Verdict: Absolutely brilliant art, and brilliant text, adapted from brilliant source material. But BOO! on the graphic novel for not including all of the goodies from the individual comic book issues. Highly recommend tracking down the originals over the graphic novel purchase.

Rating: 9 Damn Near Perfection (for the original issues)

Title: The Gunslinger

Author: Stephen King

Review Number : 31

Genre: fantasy/Horror

Stand alone/ series: book 1 of Dark Tower series

Summary: In the Gunslinger, Stephen King introduces readers to one of his most enigmatic heroes, Roland of Gilead, the last Gunslinger. He is a haunting figure, a loner, on a spellbinding journey into good and evil, in a desolate world which frighteningly echoes our own. In his first step towards the powerful and mysterious Dark Tower, Roland encounters an alluring woman named Alice, begins a friendship with Jake, a kid from New York, and faces an agonising choice between damnation and salvation as he pursues the Man in Black. Both grippingly realistic and eerily dreamlike, the Gunslinger leaves readers eagerly awaiting the next chapter. And the tower is closer!

Why did I read the book: Thea has threatened by with bodily harm if I didn’t. She can be quite scary, so I caved.

Review:

“The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.” : with this phrase we have both an opening sentence and a summary of The Gunslinger.

The search for the Man in Black, by Roland, our hero, has been going on for years and now he is closer than never. We go along as his search takes him through a town, the desert, the mountains; we meet some people (and some monsters) along the way, some stick around for a very short amount of time, some for even less. Some things are learnt – by us and by Roland – but the narrative is mysterious, as mysterious as the reasons behind his search . All we know is that the Man in Black is his connection to a larger quest – that of the Dark Tower. Throughout the 200 pages of the book we have glimpses of Roland’s past and his training as a gunslinger, we learn that he is the last of them and that he has no family or friends left in the world. He has nothing but memories to get by, but memories that he tries to leave behind along with his emotions as he can not afford either in his relentless pursuit.

The gunslinger, reminded me quite a lot of Strider or Aragorn of Lord of The Rings fame, in his physical description and some of his actions but not all of them. Whereas Aragorn was a highly honourable man, we have the feeling that in his quest, Roland can not afford to be moral. In fact in one of his flashbacks to his childhood his father tells him: (…) it is not your place to be moral, (…), Morals may be beyond you. I realise then that the gunslinger, is the epitome of the Man with no Name, as best explained by Thea is her recent opening post for the Western week ,- He is an outsider, shrouded in mystery. He plays by his own rules, and makes decisions that will benefit himself, according to his own views of justice or questionable morals. Although the line between right and wrong is blurred for this man, he will surprise occasionally by showing his soft spot for the helpless and downtrod…but at the same time is a bounty hunter that partakes in less than lawful activities.

And we do have the feeling that Roland is all of the above and will stop at nothing. In fact, some of his actions irked me to no end and at some points I hated him. But as with all good anti-heroes there is enough in him that attracts us as much as it repulses – and I could not help but to want to know more about him, about his past and what the future will bring.

Ultimately, I could not put the book down. Probably because of Mr King’s fantastic portrait of a weird world and its characters which completely sucked me in. The book has a feel of old Western – with the desert, a saloon, the guns, the fact that there seems to be no advanced technology around and yet we know that this can not , possibly, be the past – it can only be the future – people sing Hey Jude and there are mentions of large buildings, a subway that no longer works, a trip to the moon (which the gunslinger doubts ever happened) and yet we never know for certain what happened , only that something went very wrong at some point.

But that is not what matters to the gunslinger – what matters to him, for reasons yet unknown but which concerns a vow he was sworn, is indeed the Dark Tower; and when he finally catches up with the Man in Black a conversation goes on that enlighten what the Tower is: a nexus of all worlds, of all universes, of time. And he gives counsel on the steps Roland must take in order to reach the Tower: the first one being the obscure Drawing of the Three – which is where his journey will truly begin.

The Gunslinger is the opening of a series of 7 books, The Dark Tower series, which is considered to be Stephen King’s Magnum Opus. Even though this short book is fabulously weird and gripping it seems to be nothing but a tiny appetiser of wonders to come. Wonders that I intend to devour as soon as possible. Bring it on.

Notable quotes/parts: I love his interactions with Jake, a lost boy he found in The Station, part 2 of the book. They connect and theirs is a bond of love undoubtedly. But the gunslinger mind is a mind set in one thing and one thing alone and since he was a teenager he has known that some things, some friends, need to be sacrified in his way – *SPOILERS* it has happened with David, his hawk friend who died for him and it happens with Jake who he lets die when it comes to the point of choosing to save him or to carry on after the Man in Black. A very sad turn of events.

Additional Thoughts: It took Stephen King over 12 years to write this book. And it was inpired by the poem Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came by Robert Browning which also inpired this fabulous painting by Thomas Moran:

You can find the poem here: Childe Roland

Verdict: Weird, scary, poignant. A fantastic opening to what seems to be a marvelous series.

Rating: 8. Excellent.

What I am reading next: The Lion’s Lady by Loretta Chase

In which we celebrate the archetypal character: The Man With No Name

Gunslinger. Outlaw. Bounty Hunter. Anti-hero. These are just a few of the adjectives used to describe the Man With No Name. Best personified in Sergio Leone’s classic Dollars Trilogy, Clint Eastwood is the most recognized and emulated figure as the character.

Clint Eastwood in A Fistfull of Dollars

Unlike traditional, good guy cowboys (the John Wayne types), the Man With No Name is an outsider, shrouded in mystery. He plays by his own rules, and makes decisions that will benefit himself, according to his own views of justice or questionable morals. Although the line between right and wrong is blurred for this man, he will surprise occasionally by showing his soft spot for the helpless and downtrod…but at the same time is a bounty hunter that partakes in less than lawful activities.

Clint Eastwood’s role as the nameless gunslinger in Sergio Leone’s Dollars trilogy–A Fistfull of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly–is probably the most easily recognized character of the Spaghetti (read: Italian made) Western *cue Ennio Morricone music*. Although it is debateable as to whether or not Eastwood’s character was the same man in all three movies, he is the central figure of the trilogy, wearing the same clothes, and going about his business.

Although Sergio Leone’s version of the Man With No Name is the most iconic, the original inspiration for Eastwood’s character is rooted in Japanese cinema (just as other classic westerns, such as the to be reviewed The Magnificent Seven, pay homage to Japanese cinema and vice versa–as kind of an organic, dynamic relationship). Akira Kurosawa, Japanese director extraordinaire, made a movie in 1961 called Yojimbo, which in turn was inspired by American westerns. However, instead of the usual moral hero tale, Kurosawa’s hero remains nameless, and refers to himself as Kuwabatake Sanjuro, or Mulberry Field 30 Year old, who is a lone samurai (a ronin). Sergio Leone’s A Fistfull of Dollars (the first of the Dollars Trilogy) is actually a remake of Yojimbo.

In the Japanese movie, Sanjuro is a wandering samurai that chances upon a dry, small town. He is startled by the bad condition of the town (chancing upon a dog with a human hand in its mouth), and seeks out more information, only to discover hooligans who don’t like outsiders. Sanjuro finds that two rival ganglords have control of the town, and hires his services as a bodyguard out to one of the gangs (after dispatching of a few men), and manages to slowly outwit both gangs through subtle tactics, leading to the eventual annihilation and spilling of blood for both sides. In A Fistfull of Dollars, the plot is mirrored to the letter, substituting the southwest for Feudal Japan, and pistols for samurai katanas. (It is in this Leone film that the infamous boiler plate under the serape as body armor is used to beat Ramon Rojo in a pistol-rifle fight).

Antonio Banderas as El Mariachi in Desperado

Since Clint Eastwood, the archetype has grown. In other westerns, the Man with No Name is further explored in later Clint Eastwood films as “The Stranger” in High Plains Drifter, or in the later Sergio Leone film Once Upon A Time in the West with Charles Bronson as “Harmonica”. In the most recent remake of A Fistfull of Dollars and Yojimbo, Bruce Willis starred as “John Smith” in Last Man Standing. In modern, popular western movies, the archetype is revisited in Robert Rodriguez’s Mexico trilogy (El Mariachi, Desperado, and Once Upon a Time in Mexico) as the nameless man is “the Mariachi”.

Mel Gibson as the titled Mad Max; Jeremy Bulloch as Boba Fett

The Man With No Name, however, is not merely confined to Westerns–the archetype has also spread across genres and media. In the science fiction arena, the Mad Max movies, starring Mel Gibson, showcase the Road Warrior travelling across a post-apocalypse Earth. In Star Wars, Boba Fett is introduced as the bounty hunter sent after Han Solo in Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back–and remains nameless until Return of the Jedi.

In literature, Stephen King’s Dark Tower series main character and anti-hero Roland Deschain is modeled after Clint Eastwood’s role. In comic book format, there is an upcoming release of the continuation of the Man With No Name (as portrayed by Clint Eastwood) early this year.

As classic heroes as pilars of virtue, honesty, friendship, truth, etc get extremely tiresome and make me want to gag, the anti-hero, as an inherently ‘bad’ character is much more my style. Clint Eastwood will always be cooler to me than John Wayne. Batman has always been my go-to guy over do-gooder suckup Superman. Sawyer totally rules; and Jack sucks.

Where do you fall on the spectrum?