The War Wagon *** (1967, John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Howard Keel, Robert Walker Jr, Keenan Wynn, Bruce Cabot, Gene Evans, Bruce Dern) – Classic Movie Review 6481

Played for laughs, director Burt Kennedy’s 1967 movie cracks along at a fine gallop thanks to the sharp screenplay from Clair Huffaker (who adapts his novel The Badman) and the snappy direction.

John Wayne (as Taw Jackson), Kirk Douglas, Howard Keel, Robert Walker Jr and Keenan Wynn star as the misfit gang determined to rob bad guy Frank Pierce (Bruce Cabot) of his ill-gotten large shipment of gold, which he protects while being transported in the armoured stagecoach of the title. Pierce is the man who got Taw Jackson shot, robbed and imprisoned five years earlier.

Also in the cast are Gene Evans, Bruce Dern, Joanna Barnes, Valora Noland, Terry Wilson, Don Collier, Sheb Wooley, Ann McCrea, Emilio Fernandez, Frank McGrath, Chuck Roberson, Boyd Red Morgan, Hal Needham, Marco Lopez and Perla Walters.

Alas, there are few surprises in Huffaker’s plot and the jokes often fail to hit the target. But the cast and action keep this sturdy if uninspired caper Western highly watchable, and its tone is friendly and fun.

It is shot in Technicolor by William H Clothier, produced by Marvin Schwartz, scored by Dimitri Tiomkin and designed by Alfred Sweeney.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 6481

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