Main Cast: Clint Eastwood, Robert Duvall, John Saxon, Don Stroud, Stella Garcia
Release Year: 1972
Country: US
Run Time: 87 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
In John Sturges' Americanized version of Sergio Leone's Man-With-No-Name films, Clint Eastwood is Joe Kidd, a cryptic stranger who arrives in the New Mexican town of Sinola, where Mexican bandito/revolutionary Luis Chama (John Saxon) has organized a peasant revolt against the local landowners, who are throwing the poor off land that rightfully belongs to them. When a posse -- financed by wealthy landowner Frank Harlan (Robert Duvall) -- is formed to capture Luis, Kidd is invited to join but prefers to remain neutral. Harlan keeps badgering Kidd to join up, and Kidd finally relents when he finds that Luis's band has raided his own ranch and one of his ranch hands has been injured. The bloodthirsty posse rounds up five Mexicans hostages and threaten to kill them unless Luis surrenders to them. One of the hostages is the attractive Stella Garcia (Helen Sanchez), and Kidd falls in love with her. Harlan notices this and throws Kidd in jail to prevent him from helping Stella and the Mexicans. Kidd decides the position himself as the voice of reason in this nest of disorder. He escapes and saves the Mexican hostages, determined to capture Luis himself and see that he gets a fair trial. But when Kidd captures Luis and delivers him to Sheriff Mitchell (Gregory Walcott), Harlan is in town waiting for him. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
Henry Bumstead - Art Director, Alexander Golitzen - Art Director, Charles Thompson - Art Director, Jim Fargo - First Assistant Director, John Sturges - Director, Ferris Webster - Editor, Robert Daley - Executive Producer, Lalo Schifrin - Composer (Music Score), Bruce Surtees - Cinematographer, Sidney Beckerman - Producer, Charles Thompson - Set Designer, James R. Alexander - Sound/Sound Designer, Waldon O. Watson - Sound/Sound Designer, Buddy Van Horn - Stunts, Elmore Leonard - Screenwriter, Louis L'Amour - Book Author
The film is about an ex-bounty hunter hired by a wealthy landowner named Frank Harlan to track down Mexican revolutionary leader Luis Chama, who is fighting for land reform. It forms part of the Revisionist Western genre.
Plot
Clint Eastwood stars as Joe Kidd, a former bounty hunter who is in jail for hunting on Indian land and disturbing the peace in the New Mexican town of Sinola. Mexican bandito/revolutionary Luis Chama (John Saxon) has organized a peasantrevolt against the local landowners, who are throwing the poor off land that rightfully belongs to them.
When a posse — financed by wealthy landowner Frank Harlan (Robert Duvall) — is formed to capture Chama, Kidd is invited to join but prefers to remain neutral. Harlan persists and Kidd finally relents when he realizes that Chama's band has raided his own ranch and attacked one of the workers.
The posse captures five Mexicans hostages and threatens to kill them unless Chama surrenders. One of the hostages is the attractive Helen Sanchez (played by Stella Garcia) and Kidd falls in love with her. Harlan throws Kidd in jail to prevent him from helping Helen and the Mexicans.
Kidd manages a daring escape and saves the hostages, determined to find Chama himself and see that justice is done. But when he does capture Chama and delivers him to Sheriff Mitchell (Gregory Walcott), Harlan is in town waiting for them.
