The wonderful thing about the DVD explosion is that eventually every movie we missed when we were growing up, we will be able to own or rent. In 1968, when Sean Connery was at the height of his James Bond fame, he took time off from the series to make this Western adaptation of a Louis L'Amour novel - "Shalako."

It is a strange amalgamation of international actors and technicians. The location shots were filmed in Spain, primarily in Almeria, giving it that spaghetti western look that we are familiar with from the Leone/Eastwood films. It's supposed to be the wild west, but it's just not quite right.

The story seems simple enough. A group of Europeans is on a hunting expedition. They are accompanied by an former U.S. Senator and don't seem to mind that they are hunting on a Indian reservation in violation of a treaty. Class and race offer the major conflicts in the group and personal stories.

We soon discover, though, that tensions run high among them.
Sir Chales and Lady Daggett (Jack Hawkins and Honor Blackman) have come along as chaperones to Countess Irina Lazaar (Brigitte Bardot!). They are broke and heavily in debt. They are actually marriage brokers who hope that Irina will marry the wealthy German Baron von Halstecht (Peter Van Eyck) so that they can collect a hefty fee. Ex-Senator Henry Clarke and his wife Elena (Alexander Knox and Valerie French) are also along.

The group is being led by American Bosky Fuller (Stephen Boyd).

Irina, who is a crack shot, rides off with one man to shoot coyotes. Shalako discovers her shortly after she has been attacked by a small band of Indians. He rescues her, and then promises the chief that the hunting party will be gone by dawn, a promise that Irina agrees with.

It's not so easy, though. When he brings Irina back to the group, he finds that they have set up camp in an abandoned fort. They have no intention of leaving. Being served champagne and fancy dinners by uniformed servants, they are certain they are invincible.

Shalako leaves them to their fate. Lady Daggett - who covets Irina's diamonds - quickly switches her allegiance from her husband to the rough and tumble Bosky. After the initial attack, they flee the fort with the diamonds.

The Indian attacks are brutal. The first nearly silent attack is especially well done. Even though Shalako with the help of young Rojas (Julian Mateo) has fortified the fort, the group is helpless.

Shalako eventually returns, and as the poster said, this means action!

The music score Robert Farnon is great. His way of building tension during the attacks helps to put you on the edge of your seat.

As a western, "Shalako" is a great story. What makes it most interesting and enjoyable is seeing this cast in roles that they played rarely if ever again on the screen. The costumes for the hunting party are authentic European, the costumes for the Indians are less Native American than Western European.

American Boyd comes off the worst here. His brand of macho bravado always seemed a bit forced. In his most famous role he was in "Ben-Hur" opposite Charlton Heston. Here playing against Connery's easy and self-assured masculinity, Boyd again seems to try too hard.

The moment that I remember most from this film is the fate of Lady Daggett. It involves the Indians and her diamonds. Brutal and ironic, you won't forget what happens to her. Her grisly end will haunt you.

Some of the other names in the cast you may recognize include Don "Red" Barry, Woody Strode, and Rodd Redwing. It was directed by American Edward Dymytryk.

"Shalako" is one of the Western Legends DVD collection. It is presented in widescreen and mono. There are English, French, and Spanish subtitles available.

Connery had just had a bad time filming "You Only Live Twice" and so was absent from the next Bond film "On Her Majesty's Secret Service". He was replaced for that film by one-time-only Bond, George Lazenby. The producers had wanted Brigitte Bardot to play opposite him, but Bardot had just signed to be in "Shalako", replaced Senta Berger who had dropped out. Diana Rigg took the role opposite Lazenby.

Certainly Connery and Bardot in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" would have been a better movie than Connery and Bardot in "Shalako", but we can imagine.

If you like any of the stars, you will enjoy "Shalako." Turn on the subtitles for Bardot and French, otherwise you might miss a lot of dialog. Hawkins was ill during filming, and his entire role was dubbed by Charles Gray - the narrator from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."







Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD