Customer Reviews

Joe Kidd

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Scenes are missing on this DVD by Universal. Besides Kidd's and Helen's personal scene that's not apparent, what about the missing dinner scene at Helen's cabin? Duvall and Stroud reveal their characters even more at the dinner table but it is not shown on this version. Duvall invites a reluctant Helen to the table and takes command for himself. This film gets no respect by not being complete.

Since I never expected a whole lot out of JOE KIDD, I wasn't really disappointed. I was expecting a standard, light western, nothing more . . . . . and that's exactly what I got. JOE KIDD is about a guy named Joe Kidd (gasp!), who gets involved with a posse led by a rich land baron named Harlan (Robert Duvall). He's after the Hispanic revolutionary wannabe Luis Chama, who's causing a lot of trouble and stirring up the Spanish populace. And that's about it. Like I said, nothin' at all to get excited about, but Clint's mere presence can make a movie worth while. Unfortunately (and obviously), he's the highlight of the film, as the rest of the cast is just passing. Not even the great Robert Duvall seems to be interested in the picture, but who can blame him? Actually, the story has (or had) potential; it covers (or tries to) a lot of ground about loyalty, right vs. wrong, and it even raises the question of "What IS right?". But none of this is ever brought up to its full potential, and if it had, this may have been a truly great western. But alas, it is not so. All this is even more disappointing from the fact that this is a John Sturges film. This is the same man who helmed such masterpieces as THE GREAT ESCAPE and THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN!?! Surprising, and utterly devastating. Not to say that JOE KIDD is a necessarily BAD film, far from it! It just isn't GREAT. And I shouldn't complain much, I guess; what the hell could you expect from a running time of 1 Hr. 28 Mins.? This is about thirty minutes short of what all westerns should be. But I must admit, the main theme present during the opening and closing credits is pretty cool!

Along with the HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER re-release, all that has changed in this DVD is the cover and disc art. All there is for special features are production notes, cast and filmmakers' bios, and a theatrical trailer. Heck, even the production notes make the film sound tired! And the transfer ain't all that great, but it gets better as the film goes along. But the whole reason I lowered my rating down to two stars instead of three, is the fact that a certain scene (one of the best in the entire film) has been completely eliminated from the film! In it, more of the morality touches are discussed and brought into light. As well, it is this scene where Joe Kidd admits his love for Helen, a crucial element to the movie's impact! It's a short scene, but it remains one of the most impactful in the entire movie. I just watched it on AMC, and that scene was right there, playing out in front of me! This really ticks me off, the fact that along with miniscule extras and an average transfer, I can't even watch the complete film!!!

Only worth buying if you're a big Eastwood fan/collector. For [$$$]... , I guess it ain't a big loss.

I don't understand why this got mediocre to bad reviews,I've seen this movie many times & think it's as good or better than any of his early work.As a bonus you get Robert Duval & Don Stroud(who you know is going to get killed before the end of the movie).
Highly recommended to any Clint fan !

The movie starts a little slow, Clint's character seems tame at first (by his standards), but he picks it up quickly as he throws one of Robert Duvall's "hired hands" down a flight of stairs. After that, it's Clint all the way as you know him! He has some classic one-liners, which is entertainment in itself if you like the Eastwood style of westerns. Robert Duvall played a great "bad" guy role in this film, too.

I really wanted to like this film a lot: what with Clint and Robert Duvall starring together.

But it's just not a very good film. It has the flavor of classic Clint and the western drama but lacks the substance. The story line is too improbable for even the most ardent fan. The dialogue and action are slow and drawn out. Like molasses.
And the climax is just plain limp.

Fortunately, there are so many great Clint westerns to choose from - Hang'em High, Good, Bad, and the Ugly trio, The Outlaw Josey Wales (one of Clint's favorites) that the viewer can still enjoy wonderful westerns of the highest quality - but this isn't one of them.

Three stars.

The film is neither great nor forgettable. The presence of Clint makes it worthwhile seeing. However, Sturges direction leaves much to be desired. Joe Kidd has the feel of a made for TV movie converted to the big screen because of the popularity of the star. The pacing is slow and dragging. Eastwood appearing in derby hat as a dandy dude doesn't quite make it. It is a finesse type of a slapstick western without being funny. Even Lalo Schiffrin's jazzy type of scoring is totally out of whack. But hey, Eastwood's in it and its a western, so lap it up. I Kidd you not.

"Joe Kidd" is not your standard Clint Eastwood western. The follow up to the very successful "Dirty Harry", is listless and disappointing. Slowly paced, the muddled plot takes a while to finally get going, then turns around to crash land where it began. The film has a familiar cast, which includes Robert Duvall, John Saxon, James Wainwright, Don Stroud, Paul Koslo and Gregory Walcott.

Joe Kidd is a farmer, drawn into a land squabble involving wealthy businessman Frank Harlan (Duvall) and Louis Chama (Saxon), the leader of a disgruntled group of settlers. Chama's efforts at land reform could upset Harlan's plans, and so he wants him dead. Harlan's hired guns include Simms (Stroud), Mingo (Wainwright), and Gannon (Koslo). Kidd is hired as a guide, to help track down Chama, but the job doesn't last long, and he finds himself imprisoned in a church in Chama's home village. Escaping into the hills, with Chama's woman (Stella Garcia), he meets up with the outlaw, and convinces him to return to face justice in the same court system he detests.

Elmore Leonard's story is just weak, and neither Eastwood nor Oscar winner Duvall can save it. Eastwood seems to be uninspired, and Duvall really isn't given much to work with. Saxon is an odd choice, as a Latino who abandons his principles without much of a fight. Only Don Stroud puts some punch into the movie, playing an antagonistic killer, provoking Kidd to fight. His attitude and language do not match the time period, but who cares since not much else is happening? His untimely end is so quick that we feel denied of satisfaction, which could be said for the whole movie.

Lalo Schifrin's score featuring modern electronic instruments, while cool, seems inappropriate in a western. John Sturges, who has directed some fine action films in the past, like "The Great Escape" and "The Magnificent Seven", has material of much different quality to work with here. Overall, not one of Clint's better efforts.

Standard Clint. what else do i need to say. If you dont know classic clint ...please watch "The Good The Bad and the Ugly" first. Then worry about this one.

That being said this is a pretty good one...with a decent job done by Robert Duval the bad guy.
6/10 Clint scale
8/10 regular western scale.

This is one of Eastwood's best movies, and one of the best westerns I've ever seen. It's a straight adventure piece, and a great one. It's one that, when it comes on TV, I sit down to watch five minutes of it, and end up watching the whole thing.

Several important scenes are missing from
the DVD print! Eastwood, even drunken in
here, is fine and Duvall and Stella Garcia
are scene stealers, as well! Hawai'i Five-0
vet, Don Stroud, who has a fine website, is
solid too. Could have been 20 minutes longer
with proper character development! Train be-
ing run through Courthouse at end is classic.
John Saxon is not 100% satisfying as Mexicali
bandito, though...Three stars on either 4 or 5
star scale.