I thought Stephen Boyd and Honor Blackman were great in this movie. They are the only ones I really enjoyed watching here. Like someone else commented, Stephen Boyd is back in his element. He made a great villain. What a shame he died so young!
Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot on the other hand are awful to watch. He is very badly miscast.The script did not give a lot of depth to the character he portrayed,and they might as well have put a TV actor in (such as James Drury, Richard Chamberlain, or Chad Everett) that was trying to make their transition from television to films. Connery's tremendous talent was wasted here. Most of the time (except for the part where he sees Bardot giving herself a sponge bath) he looks like he can't wait for the scenes to be over. I found myself fast forwarding through his scenes as well. Perhaps he did try to give something to the character, but the script didn't give him much to work with.
Bardot is interesting in the beginning, (and of course, interest piques a little during the sponge bath scene with Connery towards the end of the film) but in between she seems bored and just shrugs a lot, or pouts. At any rate, she too is badly miscast. Her hair and makeup are pure 1968, she doesn't look like she's in the 19th century at all, and her English is barely recognizable. They should have put someone like Liv Ullman or Catherine Deneuve in the part instead.
Another flaw in the film is that the two major love scenes are badly timed. Stephen Boyd and Honor Blackman romp in the hay as the Indians are shooting, and one of the cowboys has to yell "Hey, Bosky! The Indians are coming over the wall!" He gently breaks away of course and begins shooting again. When Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot are high in the mountains with the other Europeans, and the Indians could attack any moment, Brigitte is sponge bathing so Connery will notice her. Seems very out of place for people that are on the verge of being killed.
If they would have changed the script to give Connery a more interesting character, and had him actually doing something, perhaps the film would have been better. Otherwise, Stephen Boyd and Honor Blackman are the only enjoyable characters in this film.
Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot on the other hand are awful to watch. He is very badly miscast.The script did not give a lot of depth to the character he portrayed,and they might as well have put a TV actor in (such as James Drury, Richard Chamberlain, or Chad Everett) that was trying to make their transition from television to films. Connery's tremendous talent was wasted here. Most of the time (except for the part where he sees Bardot giving herself a sponge bath) he looks like he can't wait for the scenes to be over. I found myself fast forwarding through his scenes as well. Perhaps he did try to give something to the character, but the script didn't give him much to work with.
Bardot is interesting in the beginning, (and of course, interest piques a little during the sponge bath scene with Connery towards the end of the film) but in between she seems bored and just shrugs a lot, or pouts. At any rate, she too is badly miscast. Her hair and makeup are pure 1968, she doesn't look like she's in the 19th century at all, and her English is barely recognizable. They should have put someone like Liv Ullman or Catherine Deneuve in the part instead.
Another flaw in the film is that the two major love scenes are badly timed. Stephen Boyd and Honor Blackman romp in the hay as the Indians are shooting, and one of the cowboys has to yell "Hey, Bosky! The Indians are coming over the wall!" He gently breaks away of course and begins shooting again. When Sean Connery and Brigitte Bardot are high in the mountains with the other Europeans, and the Indians could attack any moment, Brigitte is sponge bathing so Connery will notice her. Seems very out of place for people that are on the verge of being killed.
If they would have changed the script to give Connery a more interesting character, and had him actually doing something, perhaps the film would have been better. Otherwise, Stephen Boyd and Honor Blackman are the only enjoyable characters in this film.