A girl kneels over the grave of her murdered dog, praying for a miracle, while off in the distance, a man rides toward town on a pale horse. Clint Eastwood's PALE RIDER was the... more
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Pale Rider [1985]
After a nine-year break from the genre that made him an international star (the Western
... more
just before this one was The Outlaw Josey Wales, from 1976), Clint Eastwood returned in this gritty Western, crafted in the tradition of Shane and High Noon. Eastwo...
Pale Rider [1985]
After a nine-year break from the genre that made him an international star (the Western
... more
just before this one was The Outlaw Josey Wales, from 1976), Clint Eastwood returned in this gritty Western, crafted in the tradition of Shane and High Noon. Eastwo...
...you have your own discussion: Pale Rider, Unforgiven, western, Eastwood, great. There you are...now onto the next film. What? You're still here? You want more? MORE?!?!?! (You're not a small street urchin called Oliver are you?)
A small settlement of gold miners are being driven from their land by local land magnate Coy LaHood. With his water blasting mining LaHood intends to ravage the land in the hunt for the most precious of metals and isn't ... ...that means Clint Eastwood.
Pale Rider was released at a time when the western was at it's lowest ebb. Unforgiven was still years away and it had been nigh on 15 years since the last echoes of the spaghetti westerns that had re-invented the genre. Blips on the chart such as The Outlaw Jose Wales had been simply that, blips, and it would be safe to say that westerns as a whole were lying face down on the ground waiting for the undertaker to come along ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Clint Eastwood fitting his character wonderfully. Disadvantages: Not much in the way of surprises in the plot.
...slow and consequently boring.
Pale Rider is rather a western that should still appeal to lovers of the aforementioned films, but also those who prefer a more obvious plot and their idea of action and drama aren't tense stand-offs before a gunfight. The film begins with a small community of gold-prospectors who are being terrorised by a more wealthy and industrial group of prospectors (which, if there is one particular message from the film, probably ... ...when it's coming generally).
Pale Rider lacks some of the mystery and intrigue of For a Fistful of Dollars (etc), but packs in a decent amount of plot which is entertaining the whole way through. The other characters are all likeable too (except the ones you're not supposed to like, of course). Being well cast, you remember the lesser characters almost as much as Eastwood and each one has an important role to play in the story.
One other thing ...
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Advantages: Good performance all round, and Michael Moriarty. Disadvantages: A familiar plot in the Western genre.
...but back in 1985, when Pale Rider was released, his biggest movie had been Q-The Winged Serpent. In Pale Rider he plays Hull Barret, a quiet man who resists violence until he is pushed beyond his limits. Then in one incredible scene he walks into the heart of the fray and dispatches the problem.
The story is set in a small mining town in California. As director, Eastwood beautifully recreates the sparse, hungry conditions. A small group of struggling ... ...Into this rides the mysterious Pale Rider, a preacher on a grey horse. He becomes the centre of attraction for a miner's widow, played by Carrie Snodgress, and her young daughter, played by Sydney Penny.
In spite of being in love with the woman himself, Hull Barrett makes the stranger welcome, and in the final shootout, he is the one who goes to the stranger's aid.
Moriarty's quiet, strong performance almost steals the movie. I say almost, because ...
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Actor(s): Clint Eastwood, Michael Moriarty, Carrie Snodgress, Sydney Penny, Christopher Penn, Richard Kiel, Richard Dysart, Richard Dysart
Director(s): Clint Eastwood
Genre: Westerns
Classification: 15 years and over
Production Year: 1985
Running Time: 1 hour 51 minutes
Video Category: Feature Film
Plot: A classic story of confrontation which relates the struggle between a large mining corporation and independent miners befriended by a nameless stranger.
Dubbing Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 English Mono French Italian
DVD Description
A girl kneels over the grave of her murdered dog, praying for a miracle, while off in the distance, a man rides toward town on a pale horse. Clint Eastwood's PALE RIDER was the filmmaker's first Western in nearly a decade. It finds a pleasant balance between the mystical revisionism of films such as HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER and the traditional Western. Eastwood stars as the Preacher, who wanders into a dusty California town and tries to rescue a community of gold prospectors that is being terrorized by the local corporate mining operation, which is strip-mining the land. He's taken in by Hull Barrett (Michael Moriarty), who lives with Sarah Wheeler (Carrie Snodgrass) and her 14-year-old daughter, she of the murdered pooch, Megan (Sydney Penny). The Preacher is something of a blend of Eastwood's Man with No Name and the title character of George Stevens's SHANE. The story and treatment are straightforward and entertaining, and the strong performances draw the audience in. The Preacher remains a mysterious character, but in the end, as he takes on the evil mining corporation's hired guns, it's impossible not to root for him.
Professional reviews
Review: "...Entertaining, mystical....Extremely well cast, beginning with the star..." (New York Times, p.C8, 28/06/1985)
"...The Western has returned in fine shape under the strong, knowing guidance of Clint Eastwood in PALE RIDER..." (Variety, 08/05/1985)
