A Gunfight
1971 film by Lamont Johnson
- August 25, 1971 (1971-08-25)
Running time
A Gunfight is a 1971 American Western film directed by Lamont Johnson, starring Kirk Douglas and Johnny Cash.
The film was financed by the Jicarilla Apache Nation, although there are no leading Native American characters in the story.
Douglas' fee was $150,000 plus a percentage of the profits.[1]
Plot
Will Tenneray and Abe Cross are two aging, famous gunfighters, both in need of money. Cross rides into town, having failed as a gold prospector. His reputation is such that everyone expects him to shoot it out with Tenneray, who capitalizes on his legend by working at the saloon to "sucker fools into buying drinks." To the town's surprise, Tenneray and Cross take a liking to one another. There is no hostility between them whatsoever.
Tenneray is desperate for money, however. He comes up with the idea to stage a duel to the death in a bullfight arena, with the ticket proceeds going to the winner. Unfortunately, by killing Cross, he reasons to Nora, his wife, "I could lose my best friend." The actual gunfight is shot in a low-key and unromanticised fashion, and is over in a couple of seconds, Cross killing Tenneray with the first bullet. (This defies conventions with the "man in black" winning.)
There is an extended fantasy sequence near the end, where we see what might have happened if Tenneray had won, which may have confused some viewers. It may be open to interpretation if this is Cross's fantasy or Tenneray's widow's fantasy.
Cast
- Kirk Douglas as Will Tenneray
- Johnny Cash as Abe Cross
- Jane Alexander as Nora Tenneray
- Karen Black as Jenny Sims
- Keith Carradine as Young Gunfighter
- Dana Elcar as Marv
- Raf Vallone as Francisco Alvarez
- Eric Douglas as Bud Tenneray
- Robert J. Wilke as Marshal Tom Cater
- Paul Lambert as Ed Fleury
Production
The film was based on an original script by Harold Bloom who sent it to Kirk Douglas who loved it and decided to star and co-produce. Douglas persuaded Johnny Cash to co star. Finance came in part from the oil-rich Jicarilla tribe, whose head, Chief Charlie, was an admirer of Johnny Cash. Filming took place in New Mexico.[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b Kirk Douglas: Hollywood's Moverick-Agent-Star Haber, Joyce. Los Angeles Times 14 Feb 1971: r11.
- ^ a b Gottschalk Jr, Earl C. (June 18, 1971). "Gambling Bucks: As Big Studios Fade, Chief Charlie, Apache, Bankrolls a Western The Making of 'A Gunfight' Shows How New Practices Undermine Old Hollywood Johnny Cash & a Naked Lady Gambling Bucks: As Studios Fade, Chief Charlie Bankrolls a Western". The Wall Street Journal. p. 1.
External links
- A Gunfight at IMDb
- "Gunfight (1971): For Whom Bell Rings?". November 19, 2020.
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Films directed by Lamont Johnson
- A Covenant with Death (1967)
- Kona Coast (1968)
- Call to Danger (1968)
- European Eye (1968)
- My Sweet Charlie (1970)
- The McKenzie Break (1970)
- A Gunfight (1971)
- The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972)
- You'll Like My Mother (1972)
- That Certain Summer (1972)
- The Last American Hero (1973)
- Visit to a Chief's Son (1974)
- The Execution of Private Slovik (1974)
- Fear on Trial (1975)
- Lipstick (1976)
- One on One (1977)
- Somebody Killed Her Husband (1978)
- Paul's Case (1980)
- Off the Minnesota Strip (1980)
- Crisis at Central High (1981)
- Cattle Annie and Little Britches (1981)
- Escape from Iran: The Canadian Caper (1981)
- Dangerous Company (1982)
- Life of the Party: The Story of Beatrice (1982)
- Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone (1983)
- Ernie Kovacs: Between the Laughter (1984)
- Wallenberg: A Hero's Story (1985)
- Unnatural Causes (1986)
- Lincoln (1988)
- The Kennedys of Massachusetts (1990)
- Voices Within: The Lives of Truddi Chase (1990)
- Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (1992)
- The Broken Chain (1993)
- The Man Next Door (1996)
- All the Winters That Have Been (1997)
