The Law and Jake Wade
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Movie Reviews of The Law and Jake Wade
Movie Review: a good solid western
Summary: 4 Stars
Not a classic like "my Darling Clementine" or "High Noon", of course, but this film has a lot to offer. Richard Widmark always made one of the best villains in the movies. He really puts on a show in this film, as the leader of a former Civil War guerilla outfit that just kept on robbing banks after the war ended. Widmark, and the scipt, give the character a borderline psychotic persona, with a 1950's-ish vague hint of homosexuality in his obsession with his former second in command, played by Robert Taylor.
Taylor, playing the lead and title character in this movie, was a somewhat limited actor, often appearing stiff and wooden in his roles, though that did not keep him from getting some of the best movie roles of the 1950's - Ivahoe int he movie of the same name, Marcus Vinnicius in Quo Vadis. And he made some highly entertaining action films in the post-war years. In this film his unemotional stiffness works in his favor, as his character is unusually stoic, even for a western "hero". Not that Jake Wade is exactly a typical western hero. He used to be the gang's second in command, but now he's trying to reform, having become a well respected sheriff and engaged to one of the towns most eligible single girls. This film was probably the aging Taylor's last really good big screen role, and he pulls it off pretty well.
The easily described plot is that Jake took off with some money after a robbery 1 year before, and hi old gang wants it back. Widmark's character Clint, wants more than just the money, he wants to punish Jake for having deserted him. The gang finds Jake and kidnaps both him and his fiancee and demands that Jake lead them to the loot. Jake knows they will kill him after he hands over the money, and he tries to reconcile with his fiancee, who is understandably confused and taken aback to learn of Jake's sordid past.
The movie is a kind of a bridge (albeit one of many) between the less morally ambiguous westerns of the 1940's and 50's and the anti-heroic westerns of the 60's ad 70's.
The tension builds up on the trail to the buried money, not only between Jake and his former comrades, but also between the gang members themselves, as they realize that Widmark's monomaniacal quest to get the money back is leading them all to almost certain death at the hand of hostile Indians.
A nighttime fight with the Apaches, a little help from one of the old gang who still feels some friendship toward Jake, and a final showdown between Clint and Jake make up the cimax of the movie.
Terrific location filming in the Alabama Hills at the base of California's Mount Whitney and in Death Valley add to the quality of the picture.
It'll never be considered one of the best westerns ever made, but it's a good story and an entertaining flick.
Movie Review: The Law and Jake Wade
Summary: 4 Stars
Dear Amazon:
The western movie "The Law and Jake Wade" is a classic movie. The western films always have the good and the bad; and supports crime does not pay. This is a typical classic western film that portrays the Hollywood of the past, with a super cast in Robert Taylor and Richard Widmark. Very enjoyable for the western film collectors and lovers of the the traditional movie making that has long been forgotten.
Mario C.
Concord, CA.
Movie Review: Nice western good cast
Summary: 4 Stars
There is a nice interplay between Widmark and Taylor throughout the movie. Well acted and nicely told story about old outlaw buddies meeting up after one has gone straight and become a lawman while the other has gone totally bad.
The ending battle with Indians is really pretty lame but does not distract too much from the rest of the film
Movie Review: BEWARE....this is the cut version....NOT WIDE SCREEN
Summary: 1 Stars
This film was made with widescreen, 2:35 to 1 ratio but has been issued on DVD with 1/3 or more of each shot cut out for old television screens. Why did I just pay a huge amount of money for a wide screen plasma TV to be insulted by movie makers too cheap to issue the film as it was shot and shown in theaters?
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