Visitors Review

(2012-05-26 16:10)

Fantastic western in the spirit of Clint Eastwood's

This has got to be one of the best things Robert Culp ever did along with Welch although I have not seen much else of what she has done. This movie is a really great vengeance type western and just really clicks. Recommended!!

(2012-05-25 20:34)

Another One Of Raquel Welch Great Films

I when I saw this movie I was hesitant about buying because I could picture Raquel Welch being in a western. Boy was I wrong! Raquel Welch played the role of Hannie Caulder living in a small house with here husband. Ernest Borginine, Jack Elam and Rufus Clemens play the role of three ruthless cowboys. When the 3 brothers pay Hannie Caulder visit things turn ugly and Hannie sets out for revenge. Enter Robert Culp who plays the role Thomas Luther Price a bounty hunter who takes Hannie under his wing. Price teaches Hannie how to shoot a gun and that's when things start to get interesting. If you're a Raquel fan you'll enjoy this different but none the less great movie. The movie starts out slow but shifts into hide gear not long after it starts.

(2012-05-25 11:53)

Caulder offers nothing new and a lot old

To put it nicely, Hannie Caulder is an homage masquerading as a western. It offers nothing new and a lot old. Below its thin veneer of a plot(Raquel Welch's quest for revenge against the men who brutally raped her)you'll easily see several rip-offs of prior westerns. The Mexican soliders chasing the outlaws is obviously from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and the three-against-twenty gunfight with Hannie, Thomas, and Bailey is reminicent of that in Magnificent Seven. Throw in the mysterious, man-in-black (a.k.a., The Man With No Name from the Sergio Leone spaghetti westerns)and you have a hollow story that relies on the usual shoot'em-up plot devices. The only difference--and it's a noticable one in Raquel Welch--is that a woman wears the ten-gallon hat and six-shooter. Too bad she couldn't inject a fresh, feminine perspective on violence instead of offering the same old macho mimicry.

susan7 (2012-05-25 01:20)

They Made Her Mad

A nice musical score, with a good solo guitar sequence in the middlethat recurs from time to time. The relationship between Hannie Caulder(Raquel Welch) and Thomas Luther Price (Robert Culp) matures over timeand is the really interesting part of this film. Steven Boyd's bit partcould have been left out altogether with no loss to the story. Thethree "village idiots" as I call them, provide some comic relief.The editing on the film was pretty bad. In one or two places, I thinkthe negative was reversed, and in at least one place it seemed to methat a scene was inserted out of place, making the film somewhatchoppy. Still, I have enjoyed the VHS edition and would very much liketo replace it with a North American (Region 1) DVD version. When is itgoing to be available?

pljewkes (2012-05-22 11:58)

A real find...

HANNIE CAULDER is a real find. That it's well-made is not reallysurprising considering it's directed by the very efficient BurtKennedy. What is surprising is that it's cast would lead you to believethere's a camp classic awaiting.Raquel Welch is Hannie, seeking revenge on the three creepy hooliganswho've beaten her, raped her and left her for dead. Welch gives aterrific and spirited performance and she's helped out a lot by afirst-rate supporting cast. Ernest Borgnine, Jack Elam, and StrotherMartin are the villains and Robert Culp is Hannie's reluctantsavior/mentor. The film is full of odd touches and some of the killingsare quite cleverly executed. The bizarre cast also includes cultChristopher Lee and Diana Dors, who plays a sympathetic madam.

(2012-05-22 02:00)

Lukewarm Welch Western Wastes Potential

This review is from: Hannie Caulder [VHS] (VHS Tape) Hannie Caulder is a Western that isn't horrible, but could have been much more than what it is. Raquel Welch plays a woman whose husband is killed, and the killer rape her and burn down her house. The killers are played by veteran character actors (and perennial Western movie actors)Ernest Borgnine, Strother Martin, and Jack Elam. Tracking the three men, she crosses paths with a sage bounty hunter, played by Robert Culp, who teaches her how to shoot and the ins and outs of gunfighting. Together, they take off in pursuit of the three men.This movie had a lot of potential, but wastes it in several ways. The script can't find a balance between her being too hard or two soft, so she seems both, negating the believability of the premise. The three men, as directed by veteran Western director Burt Kennedy, also tries to have it both ways with them being savage and cartoonishly humorous. Culp is fine in his role, but can only do so much when the focus is supposed to be on Welch's character.This is a film that could be remade and redone better.

mingo-2 (2012-05-20 11:19)

Firearms self defence training

Fairly standard rape revenge plot. Interesting in the training sessionsbetween Culp and Welch. One of the few western where a woman is effectivewith a gun.

(2012-05-19 20:26)

Meat and potatoes revenge western

Revenge western starring Raquel Welch as the title character, victim of a vicious assault by outlaws led by Ernest Borgnine. All credibilty goes out the window five minutes into the movie when it becomes clear the bad guys are comic relief villains. The "rape" sequence, meant to set up the story plays like a rejected scene from an old sitcom, thus the viewer is not given the opportunity to have any emotional involement with Hannie. For those of you who are still interested, Robert Culp mentors Welch so she can get revenge; and Christopher Lee shows up in yet another movie which wastes his talents. Pretty routine stuff, but at least its better than Welch's MYRA BRECKINRIDGE. (Is it possible for movies to get any WORSE than that?) Welch should have just shot the varmits at the start and mosied off into the sunset. Doesn't evoke fond memories of THE WILD BUNCH or Leone's DOLLARS trilogy.

helpless_dancer (2012-05-19 02:37)

Fun western

One of the better shoot-em-ups I've seen. Welch turned in her usuallackluster performance as the female version of Josey Wales, but Culp andthe Clemens boys kept things moving right along. Borgnine, Elam, & Martinwere superb as the hilarious, yet dangerous "3 Stooges" villains. Theirslapstick antics had me rolling in the floor more than once. Why did thesilent gunfighter hang around the old prison all the time? Where did hesleep, what did he do all day? Who kept his clothes so nicely pressed? Lotsof holes in this one, but a thoroughly enjoyable western.

Jakemcclake (2012-05-18 09:15)

Raquel At Her Hottest

Spoilers Raquel Welsh stars as Hannie Caulder the woman who watches aband of outlaws (the Clemens family, led by Emmett - Ernest Borgnine)kill her husband, rape her and leave her for dead. Hannie recovers andis befriended by a gunslinger Thomas Luther Price, played by RobertCulp. He gets her a good gun, and trains her to win at gun fighting.Hannie wants revenge and seeks the three who destroyed her life. Sheand Mr. Price set out to find the Clemens gang. Along the way, Mr Pricegets killed by Emmett Clemens. In the first gunfight Hannie is in andfor the first time ever, a woman who was going to kill a man actuallyhad me distracted. This distraction was supposed to take place in amillion movies, but, I always was able to focus my attention on thefact that if I were that guy, I would kill that woman, because shewants to kill me.NOT THIS TIME AND NOT THIS WOMAN! As Hannie Caulder, Raquel was too hot! It is the only time a woman'slooks truly were a distraction. If all of those fights were my fightsand were real, I would finally have been killed against this woman!Raquel brought a gentleness and a likableness to a violent nasty role.You watch her at the end and you hope she can return to her life andlive with the killings. However, you know she will never be the same asshe was.

Clayton Cramer (2012-05-17 21:56)

thoughtful and entertaining

I won't spoil the plot--but I will tell you that it surprised me in at least one place--a bit of realism taking away a Hollywood happy ending. It is never hard to look at Raquel Welch, but she did a fine job of portraying a woman struggling with the desire for vengeance. Robert Culp has been one of my favorite actors since I Spy, and he does a spectacular job of portraying a man haunted by guilt, but trapped in a job that adds to it. Ernest Borgnine plays the leader of a small band of outlaws who are funny in their incompetence--but truly evil, and who deserve much worse than death. If ten years ago you had asked me the probability of an 1870s gunsmith working in the middle of nowhere, making guns from scratch, I would have laughed at the possibility. My research on the Bellesiles scandal now leads me to believe that the gunsmith portrayed in the movie would be unlikely, but not impossible. I'm impressed how many gunsmith were still making a living producing percussion firearms in the 1880s, well after metallic cartridge guns should have made percussion firearms unsellable. One nice touch to the film is the training sequences, and the moral issues that vengeance raises. The hero is trying his best to talk the heroine out of vengeance, yet the film does not engage in silly pacifism. It clearly distinguishes self-defense from vengeance.

(2012-05-17 11:56)

Well-Done Parts make up a Disjointed Whole

I first saw this film on TV in early August,1977,and laughed all the waythrough it.This trio of pathologically stupid villains is first rate,andthey obviously had a lot of fun doing their parts.If you can imagine theThree Stooges as homicidal maniacs,you've got a good idea of what toexpect.Perhaps it was best to play them that way.If you recall times whenthese three guys played villains in a realistic fashion,to do otherwisethanthey did in "Hannie Caulder"would have been much too gross andbrutal.Yet,with increasing time and sensitivity,my outlook has changed.Rapeand murder are NOT funny.Ask anyone who has been sexually or physicallyabused,and you'll get the answer.Welch looks good(when has she not?),and asusual does the minimal amount of acting.Culp's portrayal isinteresting,being more world-weary,and cynically good-natured than thebloodthirsty,or quietly vindicative characters we've seen in otherfilms(i.e.Nevada Smith).Lee is quite amiable and enjoyable,but I didn'tthink that he was quite realistic,given the physical location.(He wouldhavebeen more believable in a British colony or Europe.)So,watch thisfilm,enjoythe antics of the Clemmons Brothers,but remember that rape is an act ofpower over another human being.

Scott LeBrun (2012-05-16 19:32)

"Win or lose, you lose, Hannie Caulder".

Raquel Welch stars as the title character in this lively, oddballWestern that alternates between a serious tone and a comedic one. Ms.Welch, who looks MIGHTY fine throughout, has her life forever alteredby the villainous Clemens brothers. They kill her husband, take turnsraping her, then burn down her house! Hannie becomes coldly determinedto exact vengeance upon them, and keeps pestering bounty hunter ThomasLuther Price (Robert Culp) to teach her the fine art of shootin'.Eventually, he agrees. The movie has an extremely intriguing pedigree:it's produced by the British company Tigon, was shot in Spain, and wasdirected by American Western specialist Burt Kennedy ("The War Wagon","Support Your Local Sheriff!"). Not only that, but it actually playsits nasty bad guys for laughs much of the time, and Ernest Borgnine (asEmmett), Jack Elam (as Frank), and Strother Martin (as Rufus) arepriceless as they spend much of their time bickering with each other;Martin is particularly funny. This thing gets off to one Hell of agreat start by coming up with a unique way to view a bank robbery:through the barrels of a shotgun! Superb widescreen photography(cinematography by Edward Scaife, camera-work by John Harris),beautiful scenery, and soaring music by Ken Thorne only add to the funfactor. Welch is quite easy to watch, and Culp, in one of his best everroles, is excellent as the reluctant teacher. Diana Dors is wasted in anothing role as a madame, but there's still great curiosity value inseeing Sir Christopher Lee here, as he plays Bailey, the kindlygunsmith who lives out in the middle of nowhere; his performance iswonderful. Look also for Aldo Sambrell, uncredited as a Mexicansoldier, and Stephen Boyd, who has perhaps the most interesting role inthe entire movie, as the mysterious and ultimately helpful "preacher".He utters not a word, yet has an undeniable presence. A jaunty pace andgenerous doses of the red stuff help to make this a solid visceralentertainment. Quotable dialogue includes the gem "There are no hardwomen, only soft men." Clocking in at a trim 86 minutes, "HannieCaulder" doesn't overstay its welcome, or ever get too draggy. It'ssexy, violent, and a real hoot, and one of the influences on QuentinTarantino's pair of "Kill Bill" films. Eight out of 10.

Cristi_Ciopron (2012-05-16 10:04)

First—class comic strips western

I've met the western, when I was a kid, in the pages of the comicstrips magazines, this was my first contact with the westerns—so, forme, western and comic books are correlated . Here my pleasure wasdoubled—being simultaneously a Welch fan, and a western fan ….As Hannie, Raquel looks scandalously sexy. The movie is pure suspense,a very straightforward fun that doesn't disappoint but offers exactlywhat it promises. This is my idea, my notion of western flicks culture. Unfortunately,today even the idea of such an independent and fun movie being madeseems completely surreal. For me, these cheap unpretentious B action/suspense westerns are one of the glories of the European cinema. Howstrange that nowadays even their memory is mocked, as if they werethings of shame.I liked "Hannie" because it gives a woman the leading role. This aspectis very enjoyable. As a matter of fact, it was noticed as one of thefew non—misogynistic European westerns. The able recycling of non—European (generally, American) western actorsin non—American westerns is a fascinating thing for me. In thisdirection, "Hannie" is a feast, a regal. "Hannie" achieves exactly what it sets itself up to.So for me the westerns meant primarily comic—strips and novels (from"The Jackal's Fangs" to "Captain Apache" and "WW West"—the comicstrips;and from Frânculescu and Reid to May and Cooper ).I enjoyintensely the comic—strips quality of movies like this "Hannie", withthe action, the fun ,the suspense and the no—nonsense approach. Theseare good things in a movie. Above all, "Caulder" looks so deprived ofthe traditional sentimental crap! For me the western is the peak of thecool, of the fun and of the violence; this is especially true about thegreat European westerns. In a few words, Welch is cool, the action issuspenseful and the film is violent.

(2012-05-15 02:06)

Hannie Caulder

This review is from: Hannie Caulder [VHS] (VHS Tape) A classic western from the 70's with two unusual actors or actresses, Rachquel Welch & Robert Culp.Mission and plot of the movie is simple. The acting between the par is very good. Why and when to seek vengance is a good story line. I like it in westerns but not in the current action movies as much.It seems to be over used in Hollywood now. The movie doesn't disappoint. I'd rate it 4 out of 5 starsfor the above comments. I especially like finding actors or actresses that did one or two westerns andlook for their product on film. I say own this one.

Juha Hämäläinen (2012-05-14 18:56)

She's just killing me too

A good solid 70's western of the revenge formula with one vitalrefreshing story point, a woman pursuing those who did her wrong. Andshe's not just any old cowgirl, as you may have noticed from the castlist. If the plot as a whole is not one of the most original, the greatcast does give a good reason to see this movie. Raquel Welch does whatshe can in the bit limited role and she does it fine. Three westernicons of Elam, Borgnine and Martin make a bunch of villains that is atthe same time one of the most revolting and tracelessly funny. If youhave liked them in earlier westerns of Peckinpah and Kennedy you getmostly the same great treatment here. Martin especially always ends upstealing the show as the most dangerous idiot in the west ever. RobertCulp gives a good performance as a bounty hunter and killer with apiece of heart still left and a sensible head. And for Christopher Leefans like me, here he is noteworthy as always and apparently in hisonly western role of all the countless movie roles he has made. Apretty small role actually but it can't keep a great actor down.The strong influences of Peckinpah and spaghetti westerns are prettyobvious and mix together surprisingly well. The plot could havedeserved a bit more development but it gives fairly good enjoyment asit is, if you enjoy westerns in general. I consider this one of thebetter films from director Kennedy.

(2012-05-10 07:17)

Vengeance is a strong incentive

This western is centered on three outlaws, three brothers who skim the frontier, as much as they can, and they can very little. They kill for pleasure and also to compensate their inability at robbing a bank properly or attacking a stage coach successfully. They are flunkies in the field. They run into a stagecoach station and they kill the station master, rape his wife and burn the station to the earth. Then the wife who wants vengeance runs into a bounty hunter. She will learn the trade and go through with her vengeance. The details create the suspense of the film and give it a real deep emotional value. The film also reveals how these outlaws could survive easily in some western cities because the local sheriff had an agreement with them : no trouble and he would disregard the WANTED notices, till something happens. Raquel Welch embodies her part with conviction.Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

(2012-05-09 21:47)

western

This review is from: Hannie Caulder [VHS] (VHS Tape) I saw this classic many years ago. but after seen it again. I was not too impressed. I give it an o.k.

cableaddict (2012-05-06 14:26)

A quirky gem.

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. There isn't a lot ofaction, or flash, though there is certainly some. It's just a masterful look at a smalllittle piece of the old west.Others have mentioned how "funny" the bad guys are in this flick. Well,Strother Martin certainly does his usual comic turns, but the three villains are FARfrom humorous. They are rapists, after all. Martin's foolishness is used onlyto make us further dislike the three desperados. This is not a comedy at all, it'sa serious story along the lines of "Once Upon A Time In the West."The real key to this movie is Culp, and the character he was lucky enough toplay. His reserved, spectacled bounty hunter is magnetic and quite unique. You can't take your eyes off of him, even when Raquel is in the samescene.-And Welch is also amazing in this. I wouldn't be surprised if this is herpersonal favorite role of all time. If you get a chance to see this, don't miss it. You'll either hate it orlove it. I doubt there's much room in-between on this one.

(2012-05-06 03:37)

Saddle up!

Fast moving western, entertainingly played by Welch and Culp. The villains here are alternately cruel and stupid, so the film teeters uncomfortably between aspirations of a serious western and a spoof. This is one of those pictures where the music has been mixed for maximum volume, rendering much of the dialogue incomprehensible.