Keoma/Texas Adios (DVD)

I saw this film advertised on one of the many film channels that come free with the standard Sky package: you know, movies4men or truemovies, or something like that. There was a time I wouldn't have watched it, as the older Westerns have never really had a great appeal to me as such. However, I watched Once Upon A Time in the West a few weeks ago and, having read Berlioz II's review on this Keoma over on dooyoo.co.uk, I decided to sit through it ...
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I'm glad I did. The one thing I can say for sure is that the theme of the drifter returning after the Civil War to find his home town run to the ground by a greedy businessman is dealt with very well. Released in 1976, you have to look beyond the poor and grainy film quality and rather rushed camera work (at times) and enjoy this classic Western for what it is: a well directed and acted (for the most part) tale of gunslinging and pride.
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I saw this film advertised on one of the many film channels that come free with the standard Sky package: you know, movies4men or truemovies, or something like that. There was a time I wouldn't have watched it, as the older Westerns have never really had a great appeal to me as such. However, I watched Once Upon A Time in the West a few weeks ago and, having read Berlioz II's review on this Keoma over on dooyoo.co.uk, I decided to sit through it regardless of my initial thoughts and watch the whole thing.

I'm glad I did. The one thing I can say for sure is that the theme of the drifter returning after the Civil War to find his home town run to the ground by a greedy businessman is dealt with very well. Released in 1976, you have to look beyond the poor and grainy film quality and rather rushed camera work (at times) and enjoy this classic Western for what it is: a well directed and acted (for the most part) tale of gunslinging and pride.

Franco Nero plays Keoma, a half-breed Indian whose name means 'Over there' in American Indian. The film very much follows the plot of Django, which also starred Nero, the actor's dazzling and piercing blue eyes fitting a haunted and determined anti-hero as he returns home to find that his brothers have sided with a greedy businessman by the name of Caldwell (Donald O'Brien), who has run the town into the ground, controlling everything and sending fear into everyone when they know he's coming.

Keoma teams up with his father and old family friend George, a black drunkard who used to be Keoma's mentor when he was a child. There are many flashbacks that help us have an insight as to who the brothers and Caldwell are without any unnecessary dialogue spoiling the incredibly tense atmosphere throughout the film. Indeed, director Enzo Castellari lets the action and the soundtrack do most of the talking in this film, the mood definitely set by the visuals and music as opposed to dialogue, which is necessary only for a few scenes.

As with many classic Westerns, masculinity is measured by heart and the quick of the draw. Keoma exerts his Alpha male status in our minds by first of all taking it upon himself to become protector of a pregnant woman, before Castellari introduces slow motion gunfights to show just how quick Keoma really is. He even gives us some fist fights to drive home this fact. However, in doing this, he also reveals that being outnumbered is a factor, hence the need for the father and the mentor to join his ranks for a final flurry to decide who gains control of the town: the tyrant or the anti-hero.

However, be under no disillusions: there are no fist pumping feel good moments as such. The film is very dark in mood, with Nero's eyes portraying someone who is constantly wrestling with himself as well as his immediate enemies, and as the lead character, his eternal sadness reflects very much the sadness and doom the film exudes throughout. A little lightness is provided by George, the mentor, played by Woody Strode, who goes about very humbly with his guitar playing. The actor has appeared in a number of John Ford Westerns as well as Spartacus, and is recognisable and a welcome addition.

The remainder of the acting is quite good, although all characters other than these main two I found instantly forgettable. Indeed, more emphasis is put on George as a mentor than on Keoma's father William Shannon (William Berger), and it is this relationship and the fact that his mentor has become a drunk and very much under the thumb of Caldwell that spurs Keoma on to defend the town against this outlaw tyrant. Castellari's visuals and flashbacks are certainly very clear in this respect.

In showing Keoma to be half-Indian, Castellari manages to justify the menace between the hero and his three half brothers, played by Orsa Mario Guerrini, Antonio Marsina and Joshua Sinclair, by the different mothers, and this serves to help Keoma distance his emotions from them as much as it serves to help the trio detest their brother. Flashbacks show that the three of them picked on him as children anyway, so this is well covered and easy to believe, and indeed side with Keoma.

Watching this film, you can easily see many influences in it, as well as many elements that have been used since. The piercing blue eyes of the gunslinging Keoma are a common feature in many Westerns, whether it be Clint Eastwood's Man With No Name, or Stephen King's literary anti-Hero Roland of Gilead in his The Dark Tower saga, the eyes say it all, with the deep and percing blue holding a lifetime of experience. They ooze determination and cause fear in their coldness, and coupled with Castellari's closeups, the effect is doubled. The closeups are used effectively throughout the film, to indicate a sort of tunnel vision when two characters are squaring off, or even when Keoma is faced with multiple opponents at a time. The closeups really focus on the hardened features and the bouts of male dominance that they represent, and it is a very clever element of the filming.

So, do I recommend watching this film? Well, I'll be honest with you. I have learnt to appreciate films more than just enjoy them, and the intrigue and skill shown here is unquestionable. However, it's not the most enjoyable film, and I have no doubt that many people would find it a load of egotistical nonsense. This seems to be a recurring thought process for many Westerns, up to to the end of the 1970s, when the classics seemed to die off before an attempted resurgence with films such as Unforgiven and Open Range, which have attempted to bring back the brutal and anti- nature of the heroes, as opposed to glossy Westerns where the hero is a good guy through and through: when it comes to gunslinging, there are no real heroes, not when violence and death are concerned.

Keoma is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most poignant Westerns. Popularity is split between common conceptions of ego on one hand, and intensity and enjoyment on the other. I sway towards the latter, having managed to enjoy the film as much as recognise the Alpha male battle that it is all about. Definitely one more for the hardened Western watchers, and those more interested in the modern blockbuster may not enjoy this. Similarly, if you're looking for something to have on while you get on with something else, this probably won't work for you. It's a very visual film, with the messages sent through the clever camera work and haunting and provoking musical score. You do need to keep watching and concentrating.

Keoma is available on DVD from amazon.co.uk for £5.49. Sadly, I haven't had the benefit of any extras, as I watched this on TV, but if I get the chance, I will snap up any extras that I can get my hands on. I am likely to buy the DVD at some point. I thoroughly recommend the film, and believe it is one worth watching more than once to appreciate the cinematic abilities on show, rather than for the wow factor. 

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