Crappy film

A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The Duke and Kirk Douglas are paired in this enjoyable Western / action film generally laced with knowing humor. The Duke plays Taw Jackson, former rancher who's released from prison after being wronged by a nefarious character named Pierce (Bruce Cabot). Taws' idea of revenge will be to plan a daring heist of the gold being transported in Pierces' "war wagon" of the title, an iron plated, gun equipped stagecoach that resembles a tank. Taw rounds up a few associates to participate in the heist: wise guy Indian Levi Walking Bear (Howard Keel), alcoholic young explosives expert Billy Hyatt (Robert Walker Jr.), transporter Wes Fletcher (Keenan Wynn), and a man named Lomax (Douglas), a gunslinger who Pierce wants to hire to kill Taw.Clair Huffaker wrote the screenplay, based on his own novel, and director Burt Kennedy, a man who often specialized in Westerns with strong comedy content, does a fine job of bringing it to life. The action is first rate, with an impressive explosion, a chase sequence, and a riotous barroom brawl adding to the fun. The War Wagon itself is pretty amusing to behold.Kirk and The Duke make a good team, generating a proper amount of chemistry. The supporting cast is solid and full of familiar faces. Cabot is great as the unrepentant villain, Wynn is at his loudest and funniest, and Keel regularly steals his scenes. Bruce Dern, Gene Evans, Terry Wilson, and Sheb Wooley all make the most of their screen time.Given a rousing score by Dimitri Tiomkin, this may not be among The Dukes' all time best, but it's an engaging diversion for an hour and 41 minutes.Seven out of 10.

'The War Wagon' will never be considered one of John Wayne's great Westerns like 'Rio Bravo', 'The Searchers', or 'Red River', but it is a an enjoyable Western with fine performances and great rapport between Kirk Douglas and John Wayne. The action sequences are well done, the humor dry as the desert it takes place in, and the caper story line rather refreshing for a John Wayne film.The problem? When the picture ends it leaves you feeling empty. The characters are not particularly interesting (save for Douglas) and the villain is your standard cattle baron murderous jerk. The war wagon itself is an interesting prop and well used, but never really becomes the menacing character it should've been. I enjoyed the movie as a fan of John Wayne and Westerns in general, yet I doubt most of his fans will find this film particularly impressive when compared to many of his other Westerns directed by Hawks and Ford. That isn't to say you should avoid seeing 'The War Wagon', but you should temper your expectations for what is really just an empty Saturday-afternoon adventure. You'll like it while you're watching it and then forget it as soon as the credits roll.

To many westerns fans, John Wayne is the ultimate symbol of the silver screen cowboy, and in his long career he clocked up many classic westerns and some not so. He was also capable of shifting from serious westerns to much more humorous ones with ease. This is one that falls into the latter category. It's a fun film with a simple but engaging plot.The movie begins with Wayne been released from prison after been framed by a ruthless miner played by Bruce Cabot, who has taken his land away and Wayne wants revenge by robbing him of his gold which is been transported in an armour plated horse carriage. He forms a mismatched group of desperadoes - Kirk Douglas (a gunslinging safe cracker), Howard Keel (a conniving Indian), an alcoholic explosives expert and a greedy "inside" man.It's amusing to see Wayne on the wrong side of the law for a change and that's just one of the surprising aspects of the film. Another is the unexpected situations that occur now and again throughout the plot, most of which involves the wary relationship between Wayne and Douglas, which is ambiguous to say the least. You're never sure if they're going to stand by each other, con each other or shoot each other. The star chemistry, amusing character interactions, wisecracking banter, and fun action (a bar room brawl been a particular hilarious highlight, which has everything but the kitchen sink thrown in) all combine nicely to make it an entertaining, tongue in cheek comedy caper and one of The Duke's overlooked westerns from the latter part of his career.

John Wayne and Kirk Douglas, both big stars of the period, team up in THE WAR WAGON to steal $500,000 in gold and wreak revenge on a nasty land baron (Bruce Cabot) who has stolen Wayne's ranch while Wayne was in prison. Douglas' gunslinger character initially is hired by Cabot to eliminate Wayne, but ends up falling in with Wayne when promised a much bigger payoff. Along the way, they gather together a motley group (including Howard Keel as a feisty Indian and Robert Walker Jr. as an explosive expert) to grab Cabot's gold. A grizzled Keenan Wynn also is along for the ride. The title refers to a steel-plated wagon, an early version of an armored car, that Cabot uses to transport his gold. Douglas, who appears to have done all his own stunts, steals virtually every scene he is in, but he and Wayne manage to play very well together. An unusual role for the Duke, playing an ex-con with robbery and murder on his mind. Watch for a very young Bruce Dern as a hired thug.