[Inspector Abberline]

Bandolero! (1968)

After a botched bank robbery by Dean Martin as Dee Bishop and his gang goes all Pete Tong,and new sheriff George Kennedy as Sheriff July Johnson puts Martin and his gang behind bars. Mace Bishop (James Stewart) over hears that his brother and his gang are about to hang in Texas town of Val Verde,Mace Bishop decides to impersonate a travelling hangman ( wait a minute,that sounds awfully familiar) ,and rides into Val Verde to rescue his brother and the gang,Bandolero! boasts a pretty impressive cast list,with Dean Martin playing that shifty character he always seems to play in westerns,Im always wondering whether how much his drinking effected his acting or not. James Stewart although starting to look his age at this point in his career, was still at the top of his game acting wise ( he does look a bit doddery on horseback but then again he is very tall so he does look a bit odd on a horse). George Kennedy as Sheriff July Johnson looks remarkably fresh faced and young looking and dare I say even svelte looking. Let's not forget Raquel Welch as Maria Stoner,not a furry bikini in sight as the love interest to Dean Martin's Dee Bishop. There's even a young looking Andrew Prine as Deputy Sheriff Roscoe Bookbinder. Martin and Stewart at first seem a slightly odd pairing as brothers,but there is a good chemistry between pair of them,and both actors are no strangers to the western genre. Overall Bandolero! is a fairly traditional western that was being made at the time, especially when you consider that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Wild Bunch would come out a year later.Saying that the Bandolero's of the title are a bunch of fairly ugly machete wielding Mexicans,who are out to kill all gringos. Bandolero! is no classic but it is a most entertaining and enjoyable romp.I know Raquel Welch was no stranger to the odd western movie,but how the hell did she keep her hair so big in the desert?