Such a frustrating disappointment

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

In 1916, the American Army is hunting Pancho Villa down in Mexico. The awards officer Major Thomas Thorn (Gary Cooper) is assigned as observer in the battlefield to seek out heroes in the regiment of veteran Colonel Rogers (Robert Keith) during the attack to Ojos Azules villa to be nominated to the Medal of Honor with Pvt. Andrew Hetherington (Michael Callan) that is riding with him. The villa is owned by the American Adelaide Geary (Rita Hayworth), who welcomes Pancho Villa´s men after their raids. However, Colonel Rogers commands the attack and defeats them in Ojos Azules. Thorn identifies acts of heroism by Lt. Fowler (Tab Hunter), Sgt. Chawk (Van Heflin), Cpl. Trubee (Richard Conte) and Pvt. Renziehausen (Dick York) during the charge. When Colonel Rogers learns that was not nominated by Thorn for the Medal of Honor, he is furious with Thorn. Rogers unsuccessfully tries to change his position reminding Thorn that he was protected by him from an investigation of cowardice in respect to his father. Thorn rides with the five soldiers and Geary, who is accused of giving hospitality to Pancho Villa´s men to Candura. Along the difficulties of their journey, Thorn researches the feelings of the men during their heroic acts and learns that one heroic act does not turn men into heroes. "They Came to Cordura" is a different Western, with a complex and confused lead character. Major Thomas Thron is a man haunted by a guilty complex since he was a coward in his first battle when he was a rookie soldier. He spends most of the story trying to understand heroism with a group of scums. It is not clear in the conclusion whether he learnt about human nature. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Heróis de Barro" ("Clay Heroes")

I do not write many reviews and will only comment when something is worthy of high praise or to warn against."They Came to Cordura" is a definite "warn against" as it is a fine mess of a movie. Rita Hayworth is 15 years past her "Love Goddess" sell by date and is absolutely wasted here (and probably wishes she were.) Gary Cooper should check for termites with every line reading and is simply too old for this. The acting highlight of this movie was Sam Buffington (a favorite of mine) as a jaded war correspondent who is never seen again after about minute 5 of the film.If only I had been so lucky! There is a pretty interesting cavalry charge against a fixed position held by the banditos in the first 20 or so minutes of the film. Interesting but totally implausible as any officer who had ordered such a charge would have been sacked immediately. Still it provided the only memorable action in a movie which has little.The premise of the movie is absurd. The naivete of Gary Cooper's central character is simply unbelievable in a man of his age with 30 or so years in service. The other characters are stock types and memorable only for who they became in later TV roles (Darren Stephens of "Bewitched", the Chief in "Get Smart" to name two). The wandering in the desert to find the way to Cordura is mind numbingly boring interspersed as it is with set pieces of every man in the group turning against the Major for one reason or another.And the ending is absolutely ridiculous -- one of the worst, least plausible means to The End that has ever been "submitted for your approval" as the characters who so despised the Major enter some sort of Twilight Zone where the men they have been for 2 hours of the movie are completely transformed (by the scribblings in the Major's notebook!) so that they can drag the Major across the finish line that is Cordura.Don't let the fine cast lure you in lest you lose two hours of your life and a lot of your respect for Coop and Ms. Hayworth.

One of the more interesting Westerns of the 1950s, Robert Rossen's "They Came to Cordura" stars Gary Cooper as a US Army officer tasked with leading a small group of men to the frontier town of Cordura. The group is attacked, lose their horses, and begin to turn on one another as they slowly roast in the desert heat."Cordura" is slow and uninvolving for most of its running time, but was directed by Robert Rossen, whose films nevertheless often have an interesting, intellectual bent. Here we're given a lesson in the contradictions of "honor", "morality", "courage" and "cowardice". Acts of virtue, we then learn, are often intertwined with xenophobia, selfishness and personal ambition, a lesson which the film's introductory title card tastelessly informs us to expect. Rossen, unsurprisingly, was hounded by the House Un-American Activities Committee.Whatever its flaws, "Cordura's" final act is powerful. Here Cooper nobly and singlehandedly pulls a rail-cart across Mexican deserts. A character, played by Rita Hayworth, similarly sullies her body in a gesture of altruism. In a film plagued by stiff, poor acting, Hayworth shines.6.9/10 – See Martin Ritt's "Hombre" for a superior take on similar material. See too Dmytryk's "Broken Lance".

The setting for this ambitious 1959 film is the 1916 U.S./Mexican border conflict. Entrance into WWI is imminent and Gary Cooper plays a major who escorts five men to the the New Mexican base town of Cordura (which means "courage"). The five men are candidates for the Medal of Honor; they've proved themselves courageous in battle and the government wants heroes to promote military recruitment. Cooper is chosen for the job to shame him since he acted cowardly in his last (only) battle. Along for the ride is Rita Hayworth, an alcoholic American expatriate charged with aiding the Mexicans.Cooper's character is in incredible agony throughout the picture. Courage is the one thing he believes he lacks and so he marvels at the trait, even if the person possessing it is a scumbag in every other way. He perceives courage as the noblest human quality, redeeming a person from all other flaws, no matter how bad. His past cowardice naturally compels him to over-compensate as the leader of the group, which doesn't win him any friends, if you know what I mean."They Came to Cordura" is a Western, I suppose, but it's more accurately a lost-in-the-desert/survival story (e.g. "The Flight of the Phoenix," "Sands of the Kalahari"). The entire film takes place in the desert wilderness. The group experiences hardships and set-backs on the journey. Four of the men become increasingly hostile toward the major, propelled by the authority-hating, rivalrous sergeant (Van Heflin).The film will appeal to anyone who, like me, is into lost-in-the-wilderness type stories. Unfortunately, although the screenplay and subject matter (What is courage?) are ambitious and highly thought-provoking, the execution is less than satisfactory. The dialogue/delivery is dated and the acting, at times, less than authentic. Still, the material is taken seriously by all involved.One highlight of the film is redhead Rita Hayworth. This is the first and only film I've ever seen her in. My only previous exposure to her was that famous WWII era photo of her in a nightgown with her hand in her hair. As far as I'm concerned that picture doesn't do her justice. She looks and is completely different than the image that picture conveys. At the time of filming she was almost 41 years old. Her character in the film compassionately relates to Cooper's character for reasons revealed in the story.I've heard that the film was originally a 2.5 hour piece; unfortunately it was taken out of the director's hands and about 30 or so minutes were cut. Director Robert Rossen was in the process of putting together a director's cut when he unexpectedly died in 1966.BOTTOM LINE: Yes, the film's reach exceeds its grasp and, yes, it is dated, but I really appreciate this film. I can see why some would give it a low rating while others consider a near-masterpiece. Cooper's torturous performance is potent and Rita Hayworth is splendid. The ending wherein Cooper endeavors to move a train cart or die trying is a moving image. The film does succeed in provoking the viewer to consider the nature of courage, despite its flaws.GRADE: C+