valdez is coming ending explained

1971 Elmore Leonard's crackerjack western novel "Valdez Is Coming" served as the inspiration for this lively western lensed on location in scenic Spain with Lancaster in top agile form for a 58-year old guy. Tanner is livid at the old man's suggestion. Some movies should only be seen once, some such as this one, many times. Lancaster is interesting to watch as he plays the idealistic outsider up against the bigoted majority. 1971 #jolly exciting sequence# - YouTube 0:00 / 4:24 Valdez is coming! The resulting confrontation was instigated by thoroughly nasty land baron Frank Tanner (Jon Cypher), who turns out to be a very bad guy indeed. Bob Valdez (Burt Lancaster) is the principled Mexican-American constable, who despite being discriminated against and referred to as a greaser works for the local sheriff. That can be rectified with research, though, and for better and for worse it does seem more pulpy thanTrue Grit. When Valdez persists, in kindness and gentle-care, Frank to pay $100, he is is attacked and roped to a wooden cross..they send him into the desert this way to perish. On top of this, the story is its own thing as it defies expectations left and right. Life may be cheap in this world, death may be fast and sure, but the existential pathos here counteracts the indifference, courage, or grim determinationwith whichthe characters otherwise seem to confront their harsh circumstances. And then they began to die . You wanna go check it out? Valdez is Coming is a strange Western with a simple enough premise taken to the extreme. Valdez is freed by one of Tanner's henchmen (Richard Jordan) and, after convalescing, begins waging a one-man war against Tanner, picking off his men with his trusty Sharps rifle. I dont know if the three short novels that make up Paul Austers New York Trilogy are considered anti-detective novels. Although many might not like the ending, I actually liked when the movie faded to black. Valdez wounds one of the henchmen and sends him back to Tanner with the message, "Valdez is coming." Robbie Burns <burnodo@usit.net> is not allowed, Heathcliff wont work. Finally, it might be (mildly) interesting to compare this novel to its original genesis, the short story Only Good Ones (found in the terrific Complete Western Stories of Elmore Leonard, available at a Books-a-Million near you). Valdez Is Coming executive producer (uncredited) 1971 The Scalphunters producer (uncredited) 1968 The Unforgiven co-producer (uncredited) 1960 Take a Giant Step executive producer (uncredited) 1959 The Devil's Disciple co-executive producer (uncredited) 1959 Sweet Smell of Success executive producer (uncredited) 1957 The Bachelor Party High Noon, Part II: The Return of Will Kane, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Valdez_Is_Coming&oldid=1135047210, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 22 January 2023, at 08:31. Gay makes it clear she will not return to Tanner. Valdez (/ v l d i z, v l d z /; Alutiiq: Suacit) is a city in the Chugach Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska.According to the 2010 US Census, the population of the city is 3,976, down from 4,036 in 2000. Book Binder's Daughter, The (Melissa Beck), That Shakespearean Rag (Steven W. Beattie). Not very artful and undermined by some flat characterizations and run-of-the-mill elements; but Lancaster is very good and there are some inspired moments. When Sergio Leone's Fistful of Dollars was released, with its uncompromisingly vivid characterizations, sparse, almost symbolic backdrops, and evocative, minimalist scores, the Western was changed forever. Towards the end Valdez and the lady ride at each other, the horses clashing and falling. 25 Jun 2021. Davis, and Hector Elizondo pops up in a small part as a treacherous Mexican gunman. Moby-Dick. I like this idea about the similarity between detective fiction and western fiction. I am not 100% sure revenge accurately sums up what he wants, though: that sounds petty, but what he wants seems almost grand. Ahabs quest for revenge in Moby Dick is quixotic because it is conducted against a force of nature that is beyond human conceptions of guilt. Its a central paradox of the hard-boiled private eye that his violence elevates rather than condemns him: for us to accept that, we have to be convinced of his private moral code, to believe that he kills for the right reasons. Whatever else I take off depends on how lucky I get.". The band of thugs, unlike the group chasing Chato, were up to the job of killing Valdez, but found their quarry to be more elusive than they had bargained for. He calmly replies, "Or paid the $100. I used to think Kennedy came up with that line, and several other gems from the same film, but it turns out they were all from an Elmore Leonard short story called "The Captives," which Leonard sold to Argosy magazine for a hundred bucks in 1955, and which was eventually turned into this 1957 film. What exactly is that code? But when he comes back a second time with the same request, Tanners men beat him, tie him to a cross, and send him crawling home or, more likely, to die in the dust and the sun. Though I dont remember Wuthering Heights in enough detail to comment on the revenge aspects, what I do recollect of its atmosphere makes me think Emily Bronte was one Victorian who could relish the savage attractions of the revenge plot. I guess it was customary for the era, and for the most part the actors made it work, but the idea always jolts me just a little bit. More at All entries copyright Rohan Maitzen. Townsmen and friends alike, know little of him or his background, until an uneventful day when a rich and powerful land Baron, incites all to chase and corner an ex-army soldier because he "looks familiar." I suppose you could argue that it leaves a dangling ending - what happens to Tanner, etc - but the main conflict is over. Its most certainly at the center of nearly everything in the genre whether characters are willingly giving themselves over to the gory release of it (e.g. ", Another Memorable Elmore Leonard Western Adaptation, Often Overlooked Modern Western and Burt Lancaster Film. This film reminded me somewhat of Charles Bronson's first big box office hit, "Chato's Land". If Frankensteins monster (with whom I strongly sympathize and identify like me, he loves Goethe!) Although I already feel as if these two might beenough Westerns for me, I thoroughly enjoyedValdez Is Coming, partly because it is so sincere, not to mention suspenseful. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. When Tanner provokes a shooting that causes the death of an innocent man and Valdez asks him to financially compensate the widow, Tanner refuses to do so and severely humiliates Valdez, who will do justice and avenge his honor, no matter what it takes. "How old are you?" Valdez Is Coming 1h 30m 1971 Overview Synopsis Credits Film Details Articles & Reviews Notes Brief Synopsis An honest marshal is the only man willing to stand against a powerful but ruthless rancher. Just leave us a message here and we will work on getting you verified. But it is also a great credit to Leonard's own clarity of intent as a writer. and reveals that the cut on the left wrist of Valdez concealed under his glove came when his knife slipped as he cut the ropes off. That leaves Tanner to do his own dirty workif he can. Valdez tried to smooth things over by consulting with the black man, but hothead RL Davis(Richard Jordan..a bucketful of energy and spunk)open fires before the constable to get the honest proof of the victim's innocence. Valdez recovers and summons up his days in the U.S. Cavalry in order to fight them. Jakob . Valdez Is Coming is a 1971 American Western film directed by Edwin Sherin and starring Burt Lancaster, Susan Clark, Richard Jordan and Jon Cypher. By what name was Valdez Is Coming (1971) officially released in India in English? He dons his old cavalry uniform and sends Tanner a message via one of the rancher's wounded men (Hctor Elizondo): "Valdez is coming.". Valdez sneaks into the compound and, during the ensuing gun battle and his escape, kidnaps Tanner's woman, Gay Erin (Susan Clark), for whose favors it is rumored that Tanner had her husband killed. Davis finds him and cuts the ropes, freeing the unconscious man. Valdez tries to negotiate a peaceful settlement, as the hunted man says hes innocent. Director: Edwin Sherin Writers: Roland Kibbee (screenplay), David Rayfiel (screenplay) Ive never been able to read Leonards crime fiction, but Ive not tried his westerns. The moments of brutal violence pack a pretty harsh punch and the ending is pleasingly ambiguous. Adapted from an Elmore Leonard novel (as was Martin Ritt's Hombre - a superior western with some similar themes). It begins with an instinct for justice: Valdez kills a man for the wrong reasons, not without meaning to but certainly without wanting to, and figures that he and the others responsible owe the mans pregnant widow reparations. He is a minor part-time constable, a man of honor, and this is where the romanticism lies. He orders ranch hand El Segundo (Barton Heyman) and his men to tie Valdez to a heavy wooden cross and drive him into the desert. Davis (Richard Jordan) shot up the hovel where the wrongly accused man and his Indian wife were trapped. The play's ending reveals that Sancho himself, rather than the Mexican stereotypes, is the true robot -- a comment on the soulless nature of his enterprise. Elmore LeonardsValdez Is Coming is the second Western Ive read and the firstreal Western, since I gatherTrue Gritis properly considered more of an anti-Western, a self-conscious (if appreciative) tongue-in-cheek revision of Western tropes rather than a sincere instance of them. Valdez asks . With all the computer generated garbage being put in theaters today, it's good to be able to turn on the western channel and see some real acting again. "They tore his body.They buried his pride.Find Tanner,El Segundo and 16 others.And tell them,VALDEZ IS COMING!. The film goes over-the-top showing how bigoted the men are, how they go to great lengths to humiliate Valdez, and that the men are so ruthless that they seem more like animals than human beings. When Valdez confrontsTanner,whose wrong identification led to the shooting, with his proposals, Tanners men test his nerve by using the wall around him for target practice: Valdez felt his hat move and felt powder dust from the adobe brick in his eyes and in his nose and felt chips of adobe sting his face and hands and felt a bullet plow into the wall between his knees and a voice say, A little higher you get him good., He keeps his cool, staring them down and eventually, when Tanners segundo calls enough, riding away. Coming Soon, Regal Screen legend Burt Lancaster plays Bob Valdez, an ageing Mexican-American lawman who is called upon to assist in the apprehension of a supposed murderer. The big difference is that he abducts Tanner's trophy woman (Susan Clark of "Porky's") as a bargaining chip, and Tanner sends his best gunmen against him to no avail. But R.L. He sets her free, but by now Tanner's woman is sympathetic to his cause, feeling guilty because she was the cause of all the deaths so far. Attempting to collect a hundred dollars compensation for the man's pregnant Apache wife, he's beaten and nearly killed, before suiting up to take the money from the bigwig responsible, one way or another. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Young, mostly.". To ensure that Tanner will pay he takes as hostage his trophy girlfriend, the beautiful Gay Erin (Susan Clark), the widow of the aforementioned dead man that sparked the ongoing tragedy. While hiding from Tanner's posse, Valdez realizes that Gay Erin knows who killed her husband. Listen, Touch of Evil Valdez Is Coming's playing near my hotel. To ease that sorrow, I'm going to read and re-read some of his books and stories. Frank Tanner is the perfect villain, and Jon Cypher resembles those old villain with his turfy eyebrows and mustache. Since I am a western fan, I should give his westerns a try. Cast & Crew Read More Edwin Sherin Director Burt Lancaster [Bob] Valdez Susan Clark Gay Erin Frank Silvera Diego [Luz] Jon Cypher Frank Tanner Valdez is freed by one of Tanner's henchmen (Richard Jordan) and, after convalescing, begins waging a one-man war against Tanner, picking off his men with his trusty Sharps rifle. Coming Soon. Ive suppressed the plot of Wuthering Heights and havent yet read Collins, but I did consider and reject the other two. Comments that contribute civilly and constructively to discussion of the topics raised on this blog, from any point of view, are welcome. The revenge plot as I conceive it from many Westerns and the examples I mentioned, require that the revenge be taken on the guilty and that the guilty ones recognize that their fate is the result of an act of vengeance. <p>(It may be a personal prejudice, but I always found the old circus artiste more convincing in roles like this one than in those in Visconti's frescoes.) Indeed, the African-American had been trapped in a small cabin at the foot of a rise, and several rifleman had kept him pinned down in the structure. Wuthering Heights does not fit your definition. Im surprised, really, how much fun I found Valdez Is Coming. The Secretary The Secretary, who calls. Valdez himself is an interesting character: though he feels no ambivalence about his specific conflict with Tanner, he is less certain about his own role in life more generally, and the relationship he develops with Tanner's fiance Gay (whom he kidnaps as leverage) adds more nuances. Appalling! Copyright Fandango. Most actors have to rely on dialog that only reveals plot or consciously explained back-story. I strongly sympathize and identify like me, he loves Goethe! I dont know if three... Adapted from an Elmore Leonard Western Adaptation, Often Overlooked Modern Western and Burt Lancaster.! Themes ) surprised, really, how much fun I found Valdez is Coming ( 1971 ) officially in! Finds him and cuts the ropes, freeing the unconscious man Binder 's Daughter, the story is its thing. Is its own thing as it defies expectations left and right and there are some inspired moments Rag! Be seen once, some such as this one, many times top of this, the story its! 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Charles Bronson 's first big box office hit, `` Chato 's Land '' Mexican gunman and mustache and is.

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