Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

I could not believe all the big name stars, and stars that were not necessarily really big but are very recognizable, that were in this movie. It is incredible. Steve McQueen, Karl Malden, Brian Keith (one of my all time favorite actors), Arthur Kennedy, Suzanne Pleshette, Pat Hingle, Martin Landau, John Doucette, Gene Evans, Paul Fix, and a number of uncredited stars that I recognized as well. Just the fact that there are so many stars makes it worth watching.I really like the older movies. Those from the beginning of film through the 60s. They used to make movies that had good story lines and had actors that really knew how to act. I was very blessed to have a mom that exposed me to music and movies from every era and most every genre.The one thing about the story that had me a bit confused was everyone calling Steve McQueen a kid. It isn't that he is old, but he certainly isn't a kid and not all that young. He was 36 at the time of this movie and, frankly, I didn't think he really looked much like a kid. To me, he looked like he was in his 30s (which he was). And a bit later in the movie he runs into the wife of one of the men he is pursuing and she makes a comment about how young he looks and yet she is actually 4 years younger than Steve McQueen. The second thing that had me a bit puzzled was when he ran into 3 guys and the one said, "He is a half breed. He is part Indian." (Not necessarily the exact words, but that was basically what was said.) This was confusing since Steve McQueen does not look like anything other than very white.The story isn't a unique one. However, it was well written and all of the actors played their parts very well. The movie was able to keep my interest throughout. I never felt that it lagged. The story progression was good. Steve McQueen's parents (father white, mother American Indian) were killed by 3 vicious men and he sets out to find these men and get revenge for his parents. On his journey to find these people, he runs into a great number of others that help teach him various life lessons. He learns to read and write, how to shoot and other various lessons that will aid him in locating and killing the 3 men. It also explores how events in your life can change the path you were on making you and changing you into a different person. In this case, it is examining how revenge can take over your life and twist you into someone you never meant to be. He meets a priest who tries to convince him that there is another way to live.I will let you see the film for yourself to see if he ends up killing the men who killed his parents or if he finds a different way to live. I recommend this movie, both for the good story line, the great acting and just to be able to see all of the stars.

By 1966,the American western had become the relic of the post world war two era and was being replaced and outdone by the Spaghetti western, with Sergio Leone releasing the third instalment of his famous "dollar's trilogy", THE GOOD,THE BAD AND THE UGLY, in this same year. This meant that the American western had to be reinvented, it had to change, it had to become more violent, more adult and deliver to audiences of the day what they really wanted to see. NEVADA SMITH succeeds completely in achieving each of the aforementioned factors, after 3 sadistic outlaws, Jessie Coe(MARTIN LANDAU),Bill Bowdre(ARTHUR KENNEDY)and Tom Fitch(KARL MALDEN)casually mutilate and murder his parents in brutal, gut wrenching fashion,Max Sand(STEVE MCQUEEN)swears violent revenge. He begins wandering the west looking for the killers and meets a gunsmith named Jonas Cord(BRIAN KEITH)who teaches him how to shoot,Max then dedicates the next few years of his life to hunting down and killing the 3 criminals...NEVADA SMITH is an amazing western, despite being a revenge western, it's a little different to the others as it has a twist, with the final scene being a major factor and setting it apart from the other films. The film is superbly directed by Henry Hathaway, who gave us gems like THE SONS OF KATIE ELDER(1965),TRUE GRIT(1969) and HOW THE WEST WAS WON(1962),Hathaway was an expert in terms of the western and NEVADA SMITH reflects this marvellously, he builds up tension terrifically and the film is paced fantastically.There never really is a dull moment and I was gripped in electrifying suspense for the entire duration of the film,especially leading up to the climax. He also did extremely well in putting across Max relentlessness in hunting the killers, showing the extreme lengths he is willing to go to achieve his goal. I was particular impressed with the prison camp sequence and also the scene in which Max escapes through the swamps with Bill Bowdre just so he can kill him and causes the death of an innocent young woman in the process, it gave the storyline a greater emotional depth and a raw, chilling edge. The scenes with Max executing the outlaws were incredibly shot but the thrilling climax was the best part of the movie, the exciting heist scene is followed by an absolutely spectacular all guns blazing shootout with great stunts, a fantastic horse chase and a taut, mind blowing showdown between Max and Tom Fetch. The final scene is what makes the film and is brilliantly scripted and acted and shot with stinging intensity, it also gave a violent revenge film a rather nice moral and an interesting end compared to other revenge movies which end on a bitter and dark note. This final sequence took me completely by surprise and really blew me away, I also believed it was a very satisfying ending, but it's far too great to spoil.I really liked the character of Max and was really interested by how the character changes as the film goes on, with his causing the death of an innocent woman and a chance meeting with a monk causing him to change his view on revenge and ultimately impacts the outcome of his bloodthirsty quest. Legendary Steve McQueen is awesome and cool in the role, Karl Malden is on magnificent, bloodcurdling form as the evil Tom Fetch and plays the role with roaring,energetic flamboyancy. He is outstanding,especially in the final scene, his final lines will echo in your head once the film is over and they're so excellently delivered that you can feel his raw desperation and despair. I felt Malden's performance overshadowed McQueen's but Steve definitely owned the film, Brian Keith, Arthur Kennedy and Martin Landau also gave stunning performances.The cinematography was a massive compliment to the film with breath-taking panoramic vistas of the beautiful mountains and deserts and gorgeous shots of the lush, green swamps. The lovely scenery gave a colourful look to an otherwise dark and violent film, Alfred Newnan's score was another highlight, it sounded epic in the opening credits but the music played during the heist scene was taut, exciting and simply fantastic.NEVADA SMITH is a magnificent and awesome western, up there among the very best of the genre. It definitely brought something fresh to the western table,it has everything,an interesting and gripping story with an intriguing and unique twist, taut and suspenseful script, brilliant pacing, exceptional camera-work and a chilling, explosive climax that will blow your mind and leave a lasting impression. A must see for any red blooded western fan.10/10.

A naive teenager becomes a killer as he tracks down the men who murdered his Indian mother and Anglo father. Nevada Smith is a movie with a journey at its center that is geographic and spiritual. Steve McQueen plays the part well as the character evolves. Karl Malden is the last of killer standing, getting it as the film's climactic episode. Martin Landau is the first killer McQueen tracks down and kills in a great scene in a corral crowded with anxious cattle. The film is too disjointed to be considered a classic western, but it's a harbinger of the kind of violent and sullen films western turned into as the 1960s progressed.

"The kid's creepy. He ain't human! He doesn't kill people; he executes them!" – Tom Fitch ("Nevada Smith") "Nevada Smith", directed by Henry Hathaway ("True Grit"), is an above average western which stars Steve McQueen as a half-Caucasian/half-native American teenager (McQueen was 36 years old at the time) who vows to hunt and kill the men responsible for murdering his parents.The movie takes the structure of both a revenge tale and a prison break movie, McQueen breaking into and out of a prison and then systematically killing henchmen until he gets to the crime lord who gave the order to kill his family.Along the way McQueen befriends a gun salesman, a priest and a peasant woman, all of whom he coldly turns his back upon once they've outlived their usefulness. All McQueen cares about is revenge, and no one will stand in his way.Unsurprisingly, once McQueen comes face to face with the film's chief villain, he refuses to take the man's life. The words of a priest, who preached the evils of revenge, come back to haunt McQueen, and so he spares the life of the very man he swore to kill.And that's the paradox of most of these "morality films" which deal with revenge. The audience is entertained by the hunting and killing of henchmen, is invited to partake in a little vengeance, and then self righteously "forgives itself" by forgiving the boss responsible for setting this violent chain of events into motion. 7.9/10 – The film is overlong and doesn't believe in its message, but the prison break sequences are good, and McQueen is always watchable. At its best, the film shows how persecution fuels barbarism and blow-back. Worth one viewing.