Joe Kidd (1972)

“Do you know it’s against the law to hunt on Reservation land?” – Judge

“Well the deer didn’t know where he was, and I wasn’t sure either.” – Joe Kidd

Number of Times Seen – 1 (28 Mar 2019)

Brief Synopsis – A bounty hunter is hired by a wealthy landowner to capture a Mexican revolutionary.

My Take on it – As I see more and more of Clint Eastwood’s westerns, I am constantly reminded that he generally was able to play one particular kind of role in all of those kind of films.

This makes it more difficult to differentiate between his various characters since they almost all seem like a similar kind of archetype character who acts very similarly throughout.

The premise presented here is a mediocre one but due to Eastwood’s screen presence, it helps make things more enjoyable to watch despite the fact that they don’t manage to do anything unique or innovative with the characters or storyline even if there are a few moments here and there that work quite well.

It was nice to see Robert Duvall here in a role like this one since it allows us to see how great and diverse an actor he can be since he doesn’t fit into a stereotype.

I had expected more from this film which is a bit disappointing because it seems much to similar to so many other films of this kind of genre.

Bottom Line – Interesting premise that works largely due to the screen presence that Eastwood is able to present here. The story itself isn’t that innovative or original yet has its moments along the way. Nice to see Duvall play a role like this because he shows how great and diverse an actor he can be with his performance. Like many other Eastwood films, the persona of his character is similar to his archetype and that helps keep things working within the realm of his kind of roles. The story itself is ok, but unfortunately fails to bring anything unique to the genre.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – In an interview given to French student Emmanuel Laborit in 1990, John Sturges said he had a lot of problems directing Clint Eastwood, and regretted that he did not resign during filming. (From IMDB)

Rating – BAFTA Worthy (6/10)