Hearts of the West **** (1975, Jeff Bridges, Andy Griffith, Donald Pleasence, Blythe Danner, Alan Arkin) – Classic Movie Review 5393

Director Howard Zieff’s amusing, delightful and intelligent 1975 comedy explores the vanished world of cheap B-movie Hollywood Westerns with great with sympathy and charm, and a lovely warm-hearted sense of humour.

The young Jeff Bridges is stupendous as Iowa farm boy Lewis Tater, the budding writer of pulp cowboy yarns who tumbles into films as an actor when he stumbles onto the set of a Wild West movie and becomes a star of Hollywood Westerns.

It co-stars Andy Griffith, Donald Pleasence, Blythe Danner, Alan Arkin, Richard B Shull, Alex Rocco, Herb Edelman, Marie Windsor and Dub Taylor.

Though we have seen the story both before and since, Zieff directs it quite magically, with just the right heartfelt touch to make it come up fresh and fragrant.

It is beautifully crafted in all the technical credits, especially distinguished with a fine, well-used roster of supporting character actors, including some very welcome Hollywood veteran faces. It is a very special movie, but now, surprisingly and unjustly virtually forgotten.

Also in the cast are William Christopher, Frank Cady, Anthony James, Burton Gilliam, Matt Clark, Cansy Azzara, Thayer David, Wayne Storm, Anthony Holland, Raymond Guth, Herman Poppe, Dave Morick, Stuart Nisbet, Jacques Foti, Tucker Smith, Richard Stahl, Linda A Borgeson, Titus Napoleon, Barbara Brownell, Granville Van Dusen, Woodrow Parfrey, Fred Ward and Bill Quinn.

It runs 102 minutes, was released by MGM, is written by Rob Thompson, is shot by Mario Tosi, is produced by Tony Bill, is scored by Ken Lauber and is set designed by Robert Luthardt.

It was released in the UK as Hollywood Cowboy.

Pleasence’s character is named after prolific B-movie Westerns director Alvin J Neitz (aka Alan James).

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 5393

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