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Chato's Land, 1972
While minding his own business in a small Western town bar, Chato (Charles Bronson) is attacked verbally and then drawn on by the local sheriff, whom he kills in self defense. Chato, who is half-white and half-indigenous, immediately goes on the run. Close behind, though, is a large posse led by former Confederate military leader Captain Whitmore (Jack Palance) and egged on by the ruthless and racist Jubal Hooker (Simon Oakland) and his vicious sons, Elias (Ralph Waite) and Earl (Richard Jordan). But the further the posse pursue Chato into the unsettled (by white people) land, the clearer it becomes that even outnumbered, Chato may have the advantage.
This is a film that in certain parts is absolutely amazing, but has several elements that I didn't care for and one element that will probably keep me from watching it again.
Despite the title of the film and Bronson's strong presence in the title role, the film isn't really about Chato at all. Instead it is about the men pursuing him and their often-contradictory notions of what makes justice. The film makes some well-observed points about how evil is allowed to flourish even among "civilized people". While Chato does stalk and attack the men at times, they do almost as much damage to each other.
The most symbolic sequence of the film comes when the men track down Chato's home in the hills, where they find his wife alone. Four of the men, eagerly led by Earl, immediately begin a vicious sexual assault on her. While this is not unexpected or shocking---we first meet Earl assaulting a woman who he's trapped in a barn---the key is what happens during the assault. "Are you going to stop this, or am I?" Malechie (Roddy McMillan), a religious man, asks Whitmore. But Whitmore refuses to help top the rape, and when Malechie and his son go to stop it, another posse member pulls a gun on him. A fourth man, who also is not actively participating in the rape, notes that she's "just a squaw," and remarks that white women are also raped by their Indian attackers.
And that, for me, is one of the film's main messages in a nutshell. Despite their disgust or disapproval, nothing is done to stop what is a clear and cruel injustice. Men like Jubal have a "with me or against me" mentality, and this tension in the group will only become more deadly and dangerous as they venture deeper and deeper into Indian territory.
Another powerful theme in the film is the price that is paid for assuming domination over nature. The surroundings only get more hostile, the water only more scarce as the men follow Chato further and further. Chato himself almost becomes an extension of the dangerous environment. Yes, he is a powerful enemy, but so too is thirst and heat exhaustion.
This last aspect is something that I had mixed feelings about. I think that the point is well made that these men have such a sense of self-righteousness that they persist even when they are clearly outmatched by their surroundings. But in terms of the actual character of Chato, it kind of abstracts him. He becomes less a thinking, feeling person and turns into something more like a force of nature. This is neat thematically, but it does edge close to some of the tropes and biases about the relationship between indigenous people and nature. The character is cool, but also in some ways pretty superficial.
Another issue I had with the film, and something that's always a dealbreaker for me, was the animal stuff. There are numerous stunts done with horses that are cruel and unnecessarily dangerous. A horse is tripped so that it falls down a rocky hillside. Other horses are yanked down by the head/neck to simulate falls. And they are pulled HARD. I cringed at so many of these "stunts", as you can see that some of the animals are clearly injured in them.
The overt criticism of racist hypocrisy and the focus on the dynamics of the posse were both interesting surprises here. I wish that Chato himself was better fleshed out and I really wish that there wasn't so much animal cruelty on display.
Chato's Land, 1972
While minding his own business in a small Western town bar, Chato (Charles Bronson) is attacked verbally and then drawn on by the local sheriff, whom he kills in self defense. Chato, who is half-white and half-indigenous, immediately goes on the run. Close behind, though, is a large posse led by former Confederate military leader Captain Whitmore (Jack Palance) and egged on by the ruthless and racist Jubal Hooker (Simon Oakland) and his vicious sons, Elias (Ralph Waite) and Earl (Richard Jordan). But the further the posse pursue Chato into the unsettled (by white people) land, the clearer it becomes that even outnumbered, Chato may have the advantage.
This is a film that in certain parts is absolutely amazing, but has several elements that I didn't care for and one element that will probably keep me from watching it again.
Despite the title of the film and Bronson's strong presence in the title role, the film isn't really about Chato at all. Instead it is about the men pursuing him and their often-contradictory notions of what makes justice. The film makes some well-observed points about how evil is allowed to flourish even among "civilized people". While Chato does stalk and attack the men at times, they do almost as much damage to each other.
The most symbolic sequence of the film comes when the men track down Chato's home in the hills, where they find his wife alone. Four of the men, eagerly led by Earl, immediately begin a vicious sexual assault on her. While this is not unexpected or shocking---we first meet Earl assaulting a woman who he's trapped in a barn---the key is what happens during the assault. "Are you going to stop this, or am I?" Malechie (Roddy McMillan), a religious man, asks Whitmore. But Whitmore refuses to help top the rape, and when Malechie and his son go to stop it, another posse member pulls a gun on him. A fourth man, who also is not actively participating in the rape, notes that she's "just a squaw," and remarks that white women are also raped by their Indian attackers.
And that, for me, is one of the film's main messages in a nutshell. Despite their disgust or disapproval, nothing is done to stop what is a clear and cruel injustice. Men like Jubal have a "with me or against me" mentality, and this tension in the group will only become more deadly and dangerous as they venture deeper and deeper into Indian territory.
Another powerful theme in the film is the price that is paid for assuming domination over nature. The surroundings only get more hostile, the water only more scarce as the men follow Chato further and further. Chato himself almost becomes an extension of the dangerous environment. Yes, he is a powerful enemy, but so too is thirst and heat exhaustion.
This last aspect is something that I had mixed feelings about. I think that the point is well made that these men have such a sense of self-righteousness that they persist even when they are clearly outmatched by their surroundings. But in terms of the actual character of Chato, it kind of abstracts him. He becomes less a thinking, feeling person and turns into something more like a force of nature. This is neat thematically, but it does edge close to some of the tropes and biases about the relationship between indigenous people and nature. The character is cool, but also in some ways pretty superficial.
Another issue I had with the film, and something that's always a dealbreaker for me, was the animal stuff. There are numerous stunts done with horses that are cruel and unnecessarily dangerous. A horse is tripped so that it falls down a rocky hillside. Other horses are yanked down by the head/neck to simulate falls. And they are pulled HARD. I cringed at so many of these "stunts", as you can see that some of the animals are clearly injured in them.
The overt criticism of racist hypocrisy and the focus on the dynamics of the posse were both interesting surprises here. I wish that Chato himself was better fleshed out and I really wish that there wasn't so much animal cruelty on display.