Review of Bandolero! (1968) by Marita L — 01 Apr 2010

This is a 60`s western with quite a cast, most notably James Stewart, Dean Martin, George Kennedy and Raquel Welch. And the movies starts off real well; Martin plays outlaw Dee Bishop, who gets caught with his gang trying to rob a bank. They are about to be hanged, but along comes Stewart, who plays Mace Bishop, Dee Bishops older brother. The gang leaves town in a hurry, kidnapping Mrs Stoner on their way out. George Kennedy plays the lawman; putting together a posse and following the gang.

And well, I found this movie to be somewhat disappointing. It starts off well, but gets a bit boring after a while. Stewart has done several better parts than this, and Martin seems to lack some of his natural charisma in this one. The story also seems to lose focus, and everything gets a bit repetive as time goes by. Raquel Welch is pretty, and looks like she just got out of the beauty parlour though she has been on the run in desert country for weeks. So, to sum it up: It is a rather mediocre western, with lovely photography, a star-filled casting and a rather disengaging story. No classic, in my opinion, but watchable on a rainy day, if you have nothing better to do.