I'm more of a Mystery than a Western fan myself; "Five Card Stud" is a rather unique genre crossover - a bit like "Ten Little Indians" with gunfights thrown in. Leisurely paced but never boring, occasionally humorous without losing its seriousness, it is particularly recommended to those looking for the offbeat. It may be a little disappointing that the most obvious suspect turns out to be the person responsible for the killings, but the ironies and the morally grey areas of the story remain strong. The film also benefits from a great cast: Robert Mitchum is both amusing and larger-than-life as a preacher who's also an ace shooter ("By day he sweats for a pinch of yellow dust, and at night he squanders it on LUST!"), but extra-sweet Katherine Justice and extra-slimy Roddy McDowall stand out as well; and in 1968 it was still fairly uncommon even for an excellent black actor like Yaphet Kotto to be allowed, like he is in "Five Card Stud", to hold his own against an otherwise entirely white cast. Score and photography are top-notch. *** out of 4.
Review of 5 Card Stud
