I Watch Films: The Comancheros

 

The Comancheros

In New Orleans gambler Paul Regret (Stuart Whitman) fights a duel, killing his opponent when he sidesteps into his bullet. The man being the son of a judge, the laws against duels are enforced for once and Regret goes on the run, fleeing to the Republic of Texas. On board a paddle steamer he encounters a mysterious and beautiful woman Pilar (Ina Balin) and has an affair with her. On arrival in port he’s arrested by Texas Ranger Captain Jake Cutter (John Wayne) to be extradited.

Cutter refuses a bribe, but when they encounter Cutter’s former ranch, destroyed by raiding Comanches, he’s distracted and Regret escapes. Embarrassed, Cutter turns to another task – finding who is arming the Comanches. These “Comancheros” sell them guns and whiskey in return for the plunder, which keeps the frontier unstable and violent. Cutter poses as Mcbain, a gun runner who the Rangers have arrested, and goes to meet smuggler Tully Crow (Lee Marvin), suspected of being involved.

Crow is suspicious of everyone, takes to Cutter okay, and leads him out on a drunken night of revelry. Coming across a card game Cutter recognises Regret at the table, and Regret keeps quiet about his identity. However Crow spots the interaction, accuses the pair of cheating him, and is killed in the ensuing gunfight.

Cutter regretfully takes Regret in. stopping along the way at a ranch of a friend of his. When Comanches attack Cutter releases Regret who rides away; he brings back a company of Rangers who save them. The Rangers and a friendly judge perjure themselves to let Regret off; he’s then sworn in as a Ranger.

Cutter and Regret* get to work on the Comanchero gun running. With Crow’s wagon and some guns they head into Comanche territory, with Rangers following them, and are allowed through. In the middle of the desert they find the Conmanchero base, run by Graile, now paraplegic yet still in control, who has them locked up. It turns out that Pilar from the ship is his daughter so she lets them out. Things get complicated; the Rangers are somewhere out there, Cutter and Regret have to maintain their cover. Yet we know this is a Western, it’s going to end in a shoot out.

And this is perhaps what we might expect from a 1961 Western with John Wayne. This has more interesting ideas than many, but it’s in no way revisionary. The setting – independent Texas – is touched on but not explored. The conflict with the Comanches is framed as being about a Mexican guy basically using them as puppets for his own enrichment. Regret is a criminal AND a man of honour, who saves Cutter which is then reversed so that the Rangers – men of honour – become criminals to save him. Which is then forgotten entirely for the last act, it having served it’s purpose in getting the buddies together to fight the bad guys. Frustrating if you want more than a simple Western adventure, and unnecessarily complicated if that IS what you want.

Watch This: Exciting Western using some interesting settings characters and ideas
Don’t Watch This: Settings, characters and ideas are wasted in favour of cliches and horse stunts

* A fantastic name for the pairing, one of the better parts of the film.