[Inspector Abberline]

Lawman (1971)

Lawman (1971)

It seems a shame that Michael Winners career for what ever reason as a director (old age,ill heath) seem to fizzle out,he made some of the best action movies of the early to mid 1970's,and ironically he made two of the best westerns of the 70's considering he was from Hampstead.Not surprisingly he seem to be able to turn his hand to any genre and make a decent film,he seemed to have many detractors but genuinely made films for the audience as opposed to pleasing the critics.The Lawman in question is Burt Lancaster as Jared Maddox,a single minded lawman who is determined to bring to justice Lee J. Cobb as Vincent Bronson,and his cow hands who had previously shot up a town after a night of drinking and debauchery and in the mayhem an old man is gunned down. Lancaster's Maddox shares a similarity with Eastwoods William Munny from The Unforgiven,Maddox like Munny is totally unyielding in his purpose,and in his mission to bring justice and whatever cost to himself or the people around him. In fact Maddox who is the law,does not seem at all worried about gunning down anybody who tries to get in his way. With a top notch cast including Robert Ryan ,Lee J. Cobb and Robert Duvall, Winner's wild west is a violent doomed ridden place,where even the lawman are despised.Burt Lancaster gives a stoic portrayal and manages to stop gunning down people for a few minutes while he shares a bed with Sheree North.It would not be a Winner film without it's fair share of bloodshed and it does not disappoint,I suppose what tends to rile the critics is Winners politics,in Death Wish it taps into the right wing vigilante,Maddox is incorruptible ,but never try to shoot him in the back.It also has one of the bleakest endings that took me by surprise.