Flesh and the Spur (1956)

Sadly Over-hyped

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

"Four Skulls of Jonathan Drake" director Edward L. Cahn helmed a variety of films during his prolific 31 year career, ranging from westerns, to war pictures, to horror chillers, to juvenile delinquent epics, and science fiction sagas. Unfortunately, too much of Cahn's work is not available to enjoy. He made about five or six oater during his career. The low budget "Flesh and the Spur" qualifies as an above-average western. Western veteran John Agar, who cut his teeth on two famous John Ford sagebrushers, co-stars with future "Mannix" lead Mike 'Touch' Connors in this absorbing little trail western about a search for a killer. Although Cahn's is nowhere near as memorable as anything John Ford called the shots on, this concisely made but cheap shoot'em up is just quirky enough to pass muster. Basically, "Flesh and the Spur" concerns the efforts of a rancher to find the dastard who murdered his brother. As it turns out, the killer not only stole a horse but he also stole an unusual revolver. Our hero sets out to find the killer and crosses trails with another man who is looking for an outlaw gang that the killer has ridden with. The two men strike up an uneasy friendship and ride the revenge trail. Along the way, they encounter some interesting characters who participate in this adventure. The title alone makes this 78 minute oater interesting. Indeed, it sounded to me like a sadomasochistic porno western, but it isn't. Cahn's western is reminiscent of the trail westerns that Randolph Scott made with director Budd Boetticher during the 1950s. Two men ride the same trail but there is something between them that remains unresolved until the final quarter hour. Several things about "Flesh and the Spur" set it apart from the usual sagebrusher. First, there is an interesting saloon fracas where the combatants wield spurs as their weapons of choice since they are not allowed to tote guns on the premises. There is a sharpshooter whose aim improves with every shot of liquor that he swallows. There is an offbeat duel at the fade-out where the combatants hold their six-guns in an awkward grip—called 'the border roll'—that makes it difference. Altogether, "Flesh and the Spur" amounts to a sturdy, solid, formula western that departs from the norm just enough to distinguish it. Watching Mike Connors as the extrovert gunslinger is fun, too. The expertise with which Cahn and his director of photography lens the opening scene--a convict escaping from prison--is first-rate stuff, particularly because they endeavor to conceal the identity of the escapee.

This is a basic good Western film. It doesn't pretend to be anything classic, so it just delivers the basic action, scenery, and gorgeous damsels in distress that make for great male movie watching.It begins with a man, whose face is never shown, breaking out of prison and possibly killing a guard, then definitely killing a farmer and stealing his revolver. The farmer's brother seeks revenge, and the only clue he has is the revolver, part of a matched pair.He meets up with a Native American damsel in distress, whom he saves, and an ex member of a notorious gang, and then an old Wild West Show marksman, and together they whittle down the notorious gang which is led by the man with the stolen revolver.There isn't a lot of mystery, as it is pretty clear who everyone is from the start, but the action and scenery is good, and the characters are worth following.

John Agar searches for the man who gunned down his brother, with a discarded gun his only clue. Along the way he hooks up with macho Mike Conners, an exiled Indian woman, and a snake oil salesman.The characters spend way too much time talking and not enough time doing the things that make a western good! It picks up near the end but it's too late by then to salvage the picture.The best thing about Flesh And The Spur, besides the title, is the saloon brawl between a cowpoke and Conners, in which they use spurs as weapons.John Agar was a talented actor. This just comes to show how far his career had descended since being declared persona non-grata by Hollywood for his drinking and hell-raising.Co-writer Charles B. Griffith was responsible for some of the best of Roger Corman's micro-budget films (The Little Shop Of Horrors, A Bucket Of Blood, Attack Of The Crab Monsters) and one of his most successful, Deathrace 2000. It's too bad he couldn't breath much life in this script.The featured song, "My Brother And I" is by Ross Bagdasarian, who a year or so later bought a multiple speed recording device, adopted the stage name David Seville, and invented The Chipmunks!

If I would have seen `The Flesh and the Spur' when it was originally released I would dismiss it as a weak western. Seeing it nowadays when westerns are so scarce I cannot help enjoying it. Probably because it has that flavor of the fifties. Mara English is a strong presence, she is sensual and interesting. Also Mike Connors is very good as Stacy Tanner.The film starts when a man runs away from prison and ends up killing John Agar´s brother.As he takes his gun, the rest of the film is about the search of Agar for the gun and the killer. During his search he becomes friendly with Connors and also rescues Mara English who eventually falls in love with him.