Lawman (1971)

Note Générale:

6,8/10   

Réalisateur:

Michael Winner

Scénariste:

Gerald Wilson (written by)

Date de sortie:

4 août 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Intrigue:

A lawman from Bannock arrives in Sabbath to arrest all the cattlemen whose wild celebration the year before resulted in the accidental death of an old man.

Plot Keywords:

Land Baron | Rancher | Marshal | Reputation | Duty

Avis des utilisateurs:

When You Uphold the Law

Ensemble

Burt Lancaster	...	Bannock Marshal Jared Maddox
Robert Ryan	...	Sabbath Marshal Cotton Ryan
Lee J. Cobb	...	Vincent Bronson
Robert Duvall	...	Vernon Adams
Sheree North	...	Laura Shelby
Albert Salmi	...	Harvey Stenbaugh
Richard Jordan	...	Crowe Wheelwright
John McGiver	...	Sabbath Mayor Sam Bolden
Ralph Waite	...	Jack Dekker
John Beck	...	Jason Bronson
William Watson	...	Choctaw Lee (as William C. Watson)
Walter Brooke	...	Luther Harris
Robert Emhardt	...	Hersham
Charles Tyner	...	Minister
J.D. Cannon	...	Hurd Price

MPAA:

Rated R for violent content.

Durée:

99 min

Pays:

USA

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur (Technicolor)

Rapport de forme:

1,85 : 1

Son:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Classification:

Australia:PG | USA:R (2007 re-rating) | West Germany:16 (f) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG | UK:15 (cut)

Lieux de tournage:

Mexico

Société:

Scimitar Films

Anecdotes:

Debut of Richard Jordan.

Goofs:

Continuité: During the opening scene when Bronson's rowdies tear up the town of Bannock, in two views of the local hotel, the town's name is spelled Bannock. Later, when Sheriff Maddox checks into the hotel in Sabbath, he signs in as a resident of Bannach.

Guillemet:

Crowe Wheelwright: He didn't have a chance! You don't even care, do you Maddox?
Bannock Marshal Jared Maddox: No... No, I don't care. You say he didn't have a chance. He went for his gun first. When he does that, he uses up all his chances.

When You Uphold the Law

Towards the end of Lawman, Burt Lancaster says that the towns are getting fewer and fewer who need his kind of services. I guess that's a comment on civilization's leavening influence.

You're a town marshal in the old west. You're doing the job alone, maybe you have a deputy or two. Burt says you got to stick to the rules, but as we see in Lawman he wings it quite a bit.

Lee J. Cobb and some of his employees and retainers from his town of Sabbath shoot up Burt Lancaster's town of Bannock and one of Bannock's citizens is killed. Lancaster trails them to Sabbath and arrives with one of them slung over a pack horse. He gives the names to Sabbath's Sheriff Robert Ryan and the story begins.

Lancaster finds that the men he's trailing are all kinds, some professional gunmen, some family men caught up in the moment. Makes no matter to him, he's bringing them in. One of them is the common law husband of a former girl friend, Sheree North, who's settled in Sabbath.

Lawman is a pretty grim western tale. It's kind of a cross between Edward Dmytryk's Warlock and Clint Eastwood's The Unforgiven. Themes from both of those films can be found here.

Lancaster gets good support from the cast. I particularly liked J.D. Cannon as Sheree North's husband and Richard Jordan as the young cowhand from Lee J. Cobb's spread.

I think more than western fans will appreciate this film.