It is hard to believe that Clint Eastwood has been directing movies for over four decades.
His second directorial effort, the 1973 western High Plains Drifter, is now celebrating its 40th year.
Eastwood also stars in the movie, playing the mysterious character only known as The Stranger, who rides out of the blistering haze of a desert and enters the small western mining settlement of Lago.
We do not know what this unknown man is up to, but it does not take long for three gunmen in the town to take notice. As The Stranger gets a shave and bath at the local barbershop, the stalkers enter, confronting and threatening the drifter — as you can probably guess, it does not end well for the three individuals.
The man’s actions draw the admiration of a dwarf named Mordecai (Billy Curtis), an employee of the barbershop, who aids the new visitor and quickly becomes his sidekick.
There are several other occurrences that awaken the fact that this new man has entered the small town. Everyone in the settlement seems nervous and it does not take long for us to find out that there is a dark secret in the townspeople’s past — a murder being covered up by the community at large. The people of Lago double-crossed the killers (who are soon to be released from prison) and unfortunately for them, The Stranger has killed the three newly hired protectorates of the village.
The Sheriff (Walter Barnes) asks The Stranger for his help in protecting the settlement, yet he declines until they offer him the power to do anything he wants. He quickly transforms the place: making Mordecai sheriff and mayor, painting the buildings red, kicking the residents out of the hotel (moving in and claiming it as his own), borrowing wood (using it to build picnic tables and benches) and re-labelling the sign on the outskirts of town as Hell.
The climax is topnotch, leaving nothing to the imagination.
Eastwood does an excellent job bringing the script, written by Ernest Tidyman (The French Connection), to life. The dry and moody atmosphere which ignites at the end of the story is especially impressive for this second time director.
It is clear that the star’s directorial efforts were influenced by his earlier work with Sergio Leone (The Good, The Bad and The Ugly) and Don Siegel (Dirty Harry). The graveyard in the film features a pair of tombstones that hold both director’s names as a tribute by Eastwood.
The script mixes humour together with the very dark and intense history of the town to add some levity to the story. Curtis especially adds a light touch to the movie through his excellent portrayal of Mordecai.
On the other hand, Eastwood is superb as the darkly mysterious and muted drifter who seems to embody both good and evil — saviour and villain.
Other cast members, including Verna Bloom (Animal House) and Stefan Gierasch (The Hustler), do exceptional jobs bringing the scared, secretive and suspicious townspeople to life.
High Plains Drifter is an amazing 1970’s western movie that captures the intensely cloistered village setting of the old west, mixed with vigilante justice, outlaws, murder and dark secrets.
Eastwood is able to execute double duty beautifully, creating a visually striking film while bringing forth one of his best performances of the 1970’s.
The final moments of the motion picture throw us for a loop, not only creating an opposing bookend (a device used in some movies in which the opening shot mirrors the final image) to wrap up the movie much like the classic John Wayne epic The Searchers, but also adding an eerie twist that was not seen coming.
So, do not drift away from this classic western; it is no mirage.