Imagine yourself an NFL first string quarterback. It's the fourth quarter at the two minute warning. You and your team have played flawlessly, and you're up by 13. It's the fourth down with a foot to go for a first down. Rather than risking a pass, you rush for that precious foot. You're hit hard! You fumble the ball, and a defensive player recovers it before it touches the turf. Your opponents go on to score two touchdown and two extra points and win by 1.
That was the way I felt at the end of "Valdez is Coming". Burt Lancaster, in one of his most brilliant performances, leads a mostly talented cast in an frequently exciting and touching, sometimes profound "quest" movie. Thankfully, the violence is restrained and sadism kept to a minimum. However, the last 15 minutes are presented in such a perfunctory, contrived manner, the ending becomes unnecessarily unsatisfying.
Part of the problem involves two key supporting roles. Susan Clark lacks the necessary vulnerability and natural allure to provide much interest to her "window dressing" role. Compare her to Marianne Koch ("Marisol" in "A Fistfull of Dollars") or Marianna Hill in "El Condor," women in a similar situation, and you'll see what I mean. Similarly, Jon Cypher lacks is too bland a villain. Had he and Richard Jordan exchanged roles, "Valdez is Coming" would be a far better movie. Instead a movie that was at least a "9" for three quarters of its running time ends up a "6".
That was the way I felt at the end of "Valdez is Coming". Burt Lancaster, in one of his most brilliant performances, leads a mostly talented cast in an frequently exciting and touching, sometimes profound "quest" movie. Thankfully, the violence is restrained and sadism kept to a minimum. However, the last 15 minutes are presented in such a perfunctory, contrived manner, the ending becomes unnecessarily unsatisfying.
Part of the problem involves two key supporting roles. Susan Clark lacks the necessary vulnerability and natural allure to provide much interest to her "window dressing" role. Compare her to Marianne Koch ("Marisol" in "A Fistfull of Dollars") or Marianna Hill in "El Condor," women in a similar situation, and you'll see what I mean. Similarly, Jon Cypher lacks is too bland a villain. Had he and Richard Jordan exchanged roles, "Valdez is Coming" would be a far better movie. Instead a movie that was at least a "9" for three quarters of its running time ends up a "6".