Just so...so bad

Dreadfully Boring

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

John Sturges who created so many classic westerns like Gunfight at the OK Corral, Hour Of The Gun, The Last Train From Gun Hill, The Law And Jake Wade, The Magnificent Seven, so many good ones really gave us a let down with his final trip west in Chino. This was also the only western he did in Europe, in Spain to be precise.Charles Bronson is in the title role as a mixed race horse rancher who dares to aspire to Jill Ireland as a wife. That's not something her family wants to see happen. Bronson's only real friend is young Vincent Van Patten, an orphan kid roaming the west looking for work and to grow up. He does both.Bronson, his wife Ireland, and Van Patten are the only Americans in this cast populated by continental names. The action moves at a snail's pace, deadly for a western and the climax is quite unsatisfactory, especially those looking for some Bronson like heroics.Sturges had only three more films to make in his career, all of them away from the western genre. Too bad he couldn't have finished his career in the west on a higher note.

After directing Clint Eastwood in the western caper "Joe Kidd (1972)" (which I really like), the following year director John Sturges' helm the European western "Chino (1973)" that starred Charles Bronson. However these two films share very little in common. Sturges ably directs, but this one relies heavily on Bronson's presence and the unusual way things go on to play out in this very fragmented story. Nonetheless I didn't find it to be like your standard western / spaghetti item. It was broodingly slow, and the action saw very little to no daylight. It had a strange emotional and at times spiritual pull (like a stirring dream sequence) between the characters, that kind of made it unpredictable and primarily dreary. The material never sticks to one story, but moves about quite a bit in a typically mellow and subdued fashion. More often it focused on the convincingly growing relationship between Bronson and Van Patten, and their laboured effort on the ranch. Some of these plots don't add anything to the central idea, but still manages to compel (while not be completely satisfying) by giving the main characters some personality and weight. Bronson's performance bares someone who's genuine, and with a manner that still intimidates, but can show that warm side with not a care in the world to get into any sort of conflict. The unhinged ending beautifully paints that angle. Quite a curious turn on his part. Working alongside him was an exceptional show-in by Vincent Van Patten and his fellow squeeze at the time Jill Ireland provided some fire to the chemistry. Sturges simply knows how get striking location choices in the framing, and cinematographer Armando Nanuzzi formulates it accordingly with the on-screen action. Although the thing that hit me was Guido and Maurizio De Angelis' folksy casual music score of soothing attraction and swing. Creaky, but oddly intriguing little-known western.

I agree that the change of directors caused a change in quality of the film, but all in all this is one of my favorite westerns. It is thought provoking and realistic. Bronson's acting comes off as natural and he understood who Chino was. His relationship with the young boy seems odd, but not forced. The scenes with Jill Ireland are amusing and show the difference in culture between Europe and the old west. Filmed in Europe, there are a few quirks that sort of make you laugh, the Native Americans and the town seem a little hokey, but the film remains enjoyable. The ending bothered me, but thats what made this a good film. I reccommend this to anyone who wants to sit and relax to a good western.

Spoilers. The beginning was good. An orphan comes to a ranch for food and shelter. The rancher happens to be Chino Valdez, a rancher who trains mustangs and lives alone. Chino eventually hires the kid, Jamie, and falls in love with his rich, nasty neighbor's half sister. From there the movie falls apart. People cause trouble, and all of a sudden Chino wants to give up. The movie would've been better had the last half been rewritten. The end dissapoints me greatly.