Mountain of Apache Gold !! (Mackenna's Gold (DVD))

Member Name: smisbahuddin

Product:	Mackenna's Gold (DVD)
Date:	28/06/06 (478 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Settling of the West America, Legend of Gold, Cowboy,

Disadvantages: Old movie

Mountain of Apache Gold !!

This movie is a classic not because it is a western (Cowboy) movie but it was a path breaker in its special effects when released in 1969.

We humans have a longing to create beautiful things out of our imaginations, we strive always to beautify our surroundings, some people say what our father Adam saw in heavens our senses still retain it and long to recreate it.

We have created magic on canvas, we created magic in our buildings (Taj Mahal) We created magic in our gardens, we have created magic on our computer screens, once upon a time Hollywood think tank wanted to pay tribute to the settlers of Western America.

As we all know Eastern America was settled earlier by newspaper advertisements inserted by Commercial companies and lords and ladies (Pennsylvania) (Pittsburg) York people named their new city New York, Maryland was named New England. Western America being wild everyone was reluctant
to leave the comforts of their homes. Then there evolved a legend there are mountains of Gold in Western America. This lie survived even today it is quoted as the catalyst in history books for colonization of the west.

Now this legend must have a tribute to its name Director J.Lee Thompson made a movie MacKenna’s Gold he put his best efforts to make it a chronicle to the bravery of western settlers, he took care to present all sections of settlers (Mexican, Dutch, American, British, French, Indian
etc.)The legendary perils in the travels to the west.

The movie starts with the narration of Burgess Meredith I cannot forget his voice and the narration, everything was done in good taste in this movie, now imagine the paucity of resources and the backwardness of technology in 1969 and still this movie is a bumper hit in the minds of all its viewers, even today it looks a document of history.

A Red Indian Chief (Prairie Dog) is in search of a man with good heart to pass the map before he departs from the world, he tests MacKenna and finds him a fit person and gives him the map and dies, Colorado is fresh out of prison and knows MacKenna from old days when MacKenna was a gambler and prospector for gold. MacKenna burns the map as he does not believe the story and Colorado who is tracking the Red Indian Chief finds McKenna and captures him and makes him agree to show him the land marks of the map he saw. Colorado believes MacKenna has good memory.For the records Mackenna is Gregory Peck and Colorado is Omer Sherif.

The base of the story is laid out, we have some superb presentation of Omar Sharif by the director, this imported Egyptian actor to Hollywood needed to be established in main stream American Industry, so they cast him in a Western and from there onwards, Omer Sherif was the hero of many American films for a quarter century he lived there.

Gregory Peck the ever kind man portrayal did well, in history U.S.Marshalls were elected by town council, town council made sure these people were upright and held the rule of law boldly, Marshall McKenna did well. The other prominent feature of this film is the good manners displayed by
Omar Sherif towards ladies and the kindness shown by Gregory peck to others. He keeps calling the heroine
Miss Bergman.

I remember the scene, where Omar Sharif says to Peck if you say you will not laugh, I will show you a newspaper where I will go after taking my share of gold. Apache was the term used for Red Indian by French people and Red Indian was the term used by British. Omar Sherif looked like a well dressed
Egyptian ready to migrate to America in the flash scene imagined by Mackenna.

Overall this movie accomplished what it was ment to do in the minds of the masses, it established Omar Sherif as a main stream American Actor and it authenticated the legend of Gold, some big actors of those times all played short roles in this movie. Camilla Sparv looked like a Judges daughter and incidentally it is the same judge who sent Colorado to prison unjustly.

Telly Savalas who was to become a legend called "KOJAK"owe his roots to this movie, Eli Wallach is the face of dacoit in this movie. Keenan Wynn the Mexican (Amigo) Julie Newmar the Red Indian Girl with a crush on McKenna looked outstanding, no one will forget her, see she looked brown like my country men (India). A little bit of brown sand in her makeup made her look the most beautiful women in Hollywood in those days. BROWN IS BEAUTIFUL.

The high, majestic cliffs, gloomy, forbidding canyons of Utah and Arizona are well pictured in this movie, over all this movie is a novel, a documentary to be preserved for the history of Hollywood, Omar Sherif, Gregory Peck, Telly Savalas, the Earth Quake, the horse riders jumping over the chasm, the falling boulders were a better pleasure to watch than the regular movies being made like the mission impossibles.

Yo country music has it own regular charm "ole turkey buzzard".

Summary: Settling of the West America, Legend of Gold, Cowboy, Country Music