those_who_dig Review of Cahill U.S. Marshal

Cahill U.S. Marshal (1973)

Not an iconic Western, but still a very strong John Wayne title.

[8/10 · 8 June 2015]

'Cahill' is a film which follows US Marshal J.D. Cahill, played by John Wayne, on the trail of a group of bank robbers. To Cahill's surprise, he finds out that his two sons were implicit in the robbery, and he feels compelled to adapt his usual no-nonsense form of law enforcement. The film doesn't have one of the strongest Western plots, and it doesn't contribute anything substantial to the wider genre (especially for a 1973 film), but a number of qualities in 'Cahill' greatly benefit this title. McLaglen's film contains some of the most enjoyable cinematography I've ever seen in a Western, and I'd say that it almost compares to some of Sergio Leone's material in this regard. Moreover, the supporting cast is pretty great: George Kennedy portrays the menacing antagonist, and delivers a performance comparable to Lee Van Cleef's Angel-Eyes ('The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'); Neville Brand also shines as Cahill's war-chief accomplice, Lightfoot; and lastly, Clay O'Brien, around the age of 12 in 'Cahill', delivers an admirable performance. The film, for the reasons given, shouldn't be considered alongside the likes of 'Once Upon a Time in the West' or 'High Noon', but in its own right can be very enjoyable, and I was profoundly surprised when I saw that it only had a 6.5 IMDb rating. I consider it one of Wayne's stronger films, and I think it does a substantially better job than some of the other films from Wayne's later years, such as 'Big Jake' and 'Rooster Cogburn'.