The Kentuckian (1955)

You won't be disappointed!

Good movie but grossly overrated

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Burt Lancaster, as Kentucky frontiersman Elias Wakefield, has at least 3 particularly heart-pounding encounters in his quest to escape the traditional feuds between the Wakefields and Fromes by migrating to the Spanish-Mexican territory of Texas. In the first of these encounters, Burt has to fight off half a dozen towns people, who eventually subdue him and lock him in a makeshift jail until deciding what to do with him....In the second, Burt has to fight, without any weapons or protection , the bull-whip-wielding town tavern keeper and bully Stan Bodine, played by Walter Matthau, in his initial Hollywood role: quite a scene!....In the third encounter, Burt again finds himself defenseless on one side of a river against 2 rifle-toting Fromes on the opposite bank. He gets some essential help from bondswoman Hannah, in back of the Fromes, who takes aim with the rifle of her freshly-killed master: Bodine. With only one Frome to deal with now, he takes his chance, dashing across the very shallow river before his nemesis can reload.Lancaster has dealings with 2 women in particular. Hannah, who begins her association with Burt and his half-grown son as a bondswoman, who takes pity on them when the towns people turn hostile toward them. In return, Burt uses his money for steamboat passage to Texas to buy out her bondswoman contract. Hannah decides to leave this town with the Wakefields when they break out of jail. They head for another village where lives brother Zack, who's making a living as a tobacco grower and trader. Zack welcomes the 3, giving Burt odd jobs toward regaining his funds for the Texas trip. Early on, Burt thinks he may have found his fortune in a sizable pearl found in a mussel. The locals encourage him to inquire whether President Monroe might be interested in such, knowing it's worthless commercially. Eventually, Hannah sells herself as a bondswoman to tavern-keeper Bodine, to provide money for the Wakefield's journey onward. Meanwhile, Burt has taken a fancy to the village schoolteacher, Susie, and she to him. Brother Zack encourages him to forget his Texas dream and settle down in that village with Susie, who has no desire to go to Texas. Burt swallows this bait for a while, but the captain of the Texas steamer tries to convince him that he's a natural frontiersman, not psychologically suited to planting his feet in a settled village. Besides, he's not yet out of the range of the two murderous Fromes, who eventually show up, as I previously detailed. This, coupled with Hannah's heroics against the Fromes, and the death of her master, causes Burt to rethink his life plans.This little-known "western" certainly rates a look, with many details I didn't mention. It's currently available at YouTube.

It was not Matthau's line, but Glen Strange's: "Who dast?" That's all I have to say and am only writing on because I have to have a minimum of ten lines. Well, then, I'll say I enjoyed the film, found the choice of Matthau odd until I found that some of his earlier roles were in Westerns(is this a Western, really?), thought the young boy as Little Eli was very good and always enjoy John Carradine. Once I realized that Lancaster directed this film, I started watching it differently, looking for evidence of a novice. Actually, as I watched, I didn't care; I just enjoyed it. If anyone is interested, I would recommend reading some of the Old Southwest humorists like George Washington Harris and Augustus Baldwin Longstreet for insight into the period and types. Enjoy.

I had to see this movie which I thoroughly enjoyed but more so for the scene that would be in there. A very brief scene of what is known locally as sky bridge. It is a natural rock formation of short span (a bridge) not too far from Natural Bridge State Park. At this site you walk beyond the bridge to a trail, take a right to trail two; another right and twenty five yards or so you are under sky bridge. From the first short trail to the second there is a drop of about 4-5 feet. At that point the second trail isn't all that wide and you have to be somewhat careful. Beyond the edge of the trail you see tops of trees. Tall trees. While helping my girlfriend down, I saw this guy approaching wearing sweat pants and sweater, dark sunglasses, and a smile. He had a mop of unruly hair. We continued on toward the bridge and I looked back. He didn't pause at the trail junction, he just jumped. Like a cat. As he approached after that athletic move and with a big grin and square jaw I knew; I just knew. I told my girlfriend who that was following us and as he passed she asked him..."are you Burt Lancaster?" He said "yes I am", and ambled on by. She swooned. He and two other Hollywood types did some thumbs together, form a square, "panning", looking at the sky at times. An interesting day out.

This was a decently put together film. Not too heavy but not too lightweight either, (the bullwhip fight with Matthau is almost worth the price of admission). It is a basic decent family film that doesn't get saccharine or soggy. The white indentured servant angle is one that I haven't seen a lot of and it plays well here. Burt is robust as usual and kickin' a lot of frontier butt. Its kinda unusual(for me) to see him play a rube.