041 - Hombre

Synopsis: White man raised as an Apache is first despised and then relied on by fellow stagecoach travellers held up by outlaws.

Director: Martin Ritt

Actors: Paul Newman, Martin Balsam, Richard Boone, Frederic March, Diane Cilento

Date: 1966

How viewed: Bought (region 1 DVD) via Amazon

Rating: 4/5

David Meyer says:

The tension in Newman's portrayal matches the building tensions of the script, and delivers strong, old-fashioned western satisfaction.

I say:

Excellent stuff. Newman exhibits an almost zen like quality (he sits, he waits, he watches, he says little) as the unemotional white man raised by Apaches, with his disdain for the white's caring attitudes. He finds himself taking a one-off stagecoach to the next town with a motley crew of travellers (surely he would have just taken a horse and ridden there!), and I'm sure the reason given that the regular stagecoach route had been closed down was that the railroad had arrived - why didn't they all take the train? Oh well, never mind the plot. Anyway the travellers take against Newman's pro-Indian stance and insist he travel outside alongside the driver instead of inside with them, but then when they are held up (one of the passengers turns out to be the leader of the band of outlaws), it's Newman who first shoots 2 of the gang, and then (somewhat against his will) guides them to relative safety (across the scorching hot desert, etc). There's the inevitable standoff with the remaining members of the gang, and under pressure, Newman's character softens and he puts himself on the line for the group. I really liked the slow pace of the film, the opening sequence with Newman and his Indian pals trapping wild horses, and Newman's stillness alone makes the film worth watching.