The "Horror" or gothic western

[Nolando Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Nolando]

No joke. And it seems to be the one that many Eastwood fans overlook/forget (the other being perhaps White Hunter, Black Heart, which I also enjoyed).

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

My apologies in advance, but ... THE BEGUILED takes place during the Civil War (1862) in the deep south (Georgia), not in the west. Therefor it is not a western. It is a period film related to the Civil War, the same way Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a period film related to the pre-Civil War. That having been said, it's my favorite of Don Siegel's and Clint Eastwood's collaborations. A southern Gothic melodrama like no other. I'll add my voice to the chorus -- where's the blu-ray?

[Horace Cordier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Horace Cordier]

The "Horror" or gothic western

PURGATORY was fun. Drags a bit in the middle and it has the whiff of a cheaper TV movie but it has a neat premise, solid acting and two great action sequences book ending the film. And Sam Shepard was born for this genre.

My AND GOD SAID TO CAIN arrived today - that's up next in this group.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

Let us know what you think of the Kinski film and transfer in the Spaghetti westerns folder, Horace. I plan to pick it up in October. Then I can throw out my nice boot.

PURGATORY was the only Gothic western produced by Ted Turner's TNT network. They made dozen other westerns including a batch with Sam Elliot and a batch with Tom Selleck. Although not Gothics, they were good quality westerns. I particularly liked Riders of the Purple Sage (1996) with Ed Harris, The Virginian (1999) with Diane Lane, and Selleck's remake of Monte Walsh (2003). By far the best was Reynaldo Villalobos's Conagher (1992) with Elliot and Katherine Ross which the Western Writers of America voted one of the best westerns ever made. I might review some of these in the TV Westerns thread in Television folder.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

Did somebody mention SUNDOWN: THE VAMPIRE IN RETREAT (1990) ? If you haven't seen this, Horace, you're really missing something. It isn't kitsch or a pastiche like Bubba HoTep. The soundtrack is a piece of work. Imagine a horror score composed for a John Wayne western. I recommend it.

[Scott Intellectual Carrot Find all posts View Profile Close Scott]

Alright so I watched CURSE OF THE UNDEAD (1959). There's a torrent out there of a VHS rip, very very, ... very washed out. But watchable. It's just too bad there isn't a nice clear release as I'm sure it would come off better.

As it stands I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was more horror than I thought, and did have a great gothic atmosphere. Not quite on par with the Mexican release put out by CasaNega but cut from similar cloth, just nowhere near as intense or surreal. Maybe it was the crummy print but it seems older than 1959. Too bad it wasn't released in one of the Univeral Horror dvd sets, it's more gothic horror, IMO, than something like CAPTIVE WILD WOMAN. And doesn't have any of the silliness found in stuff like THE BLACK CAT (1941), although I do like both of those movies for what they are. But with a cleaned up print I fell I'd like this better.

In almost complete contrast I also watched HAUNTED GOLD (1932) which felt more like a Three Stooges two-reeler, minus the inspiration. It's a fun enough time killer, very light on the gothic trappings and more of a western than a horror movie set int the west like CURSE OF THE UNDEAD, but man the racist imagery of the black character really cheapens it. Poor Blue Washington had to spend the whole movie bugging out his eyes and falling over shit. It's embarrassing. Even taking in the context of the time or even the times it's set in it's embarrassing.

[Paul L Scholar of Sleaze Find all posts View Profile Close Paul L]

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Did somebody mention SUNDOWN: THE VAMPIRE IN RETREAT (1990) ? If you haven't seen this, Horace, you're really missing something. It isn't kitsch or a pastiche like Bubba HoTep. The soundtrack is a piece of work. Imagine a horror score composed for a John Wayne western. I recommend it.

I haven't seen this in twenty years, but I remember enjoying it greatly. I'd love to see it again.