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Clint Eastwood's second film as a director (and his first Western) is a variation on the "man with no name" theme, starring Eastwood as the drifter known only as "the Stranger." He rides into the desert town of Lagos and is quickly attacked by three gunmen. Recovering with the aid of a local dwarf (a memorable role for Billy Curtis), the Stranger is hired by the intimidated townsfolk to fend off a band of violent ex-convicts. After teaching the citizens self-defense and instructing them to paint the entire town red and rename it "Hell," the Stranger vanishes. He reappears when the marauding criminals arrive, and delivers justice and teaches the townsfolk a harsh lesson about moral obligation. Is he a figure from their past or a kind of supernatural avenger? Combining humor with action,High Plains Drifteris both a serious and tongue-in-cheek tribute to the Westerns that made Eastwood a household name.--Jeff Shannon
High Plains Driffter One of Clint's best westerns. This ranks right up there with Jose Wales and Unforgiven.
Psycho-western Disquieting and unique, High Plains Drifter is not your grandfather's western. Eastwood's sophomore directorial effort borrows from many sources and Clint pays his respects to the styles of both Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone for this offbeat western. Part western, part psychological treatise, and all Clint, this is a unique vision of the western that delivers a sharp commentary on fear, guilt, revenge, and greed. The acting is very good with highlights including Geoffrey Lewis as head bad guy Stacey Bridges and Verna Bloom as the lone conscience of the town. Eastwood's Stranger character is a mixed bag of misogyny and righteousness delivered in his trademark laconic style. This movie forces us to confront our own moral ambiguity and is a highlight of the revisionist westerns of the time. The dvd offers little in the way of special features save a trailer, some filmographies, and a brief write-up about the making of the feature.High Plains Drifter Eastwood's eerie, magnificent "Drifter," his second effort in the director's chair, turns the final showdown cliché of the Hollywood Western on its head: Instead of confronting the killer posse alone, for money or out of brute contempt, The Stranger teaches the cowardly townsfolk how to defend themselves--then promptly disappears. And where else but in an Eastwood flick would the protagonist, for the purposesof intimidation, have a town literally painted red and renamed Hell? Such flashes of dark humor animate the story, as do The Stranger's haunting flashbacks, the austere sets, and the cast of irregulars. Enigmatic and violent, "Drifter" reworks the Man With No Name persona into a mystical folk hero,and the effect is riveting.
