Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966)

Gripping story with well-crafted characters

Excellent but underrated film

How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

A surprisingly good western in the 60s A nice way to present the Old West where the bartender played by Arthur O'Connell tells the story to the young man played by James MacArthur. And this is a powerful story. Jonas Trapp (Chuck Connors), buffalo hunter, returns home 11 years later and found his wife taking another wedding. But the story becomes even more complicated when it is robbed on the way and marked with hot iron by three men (Michael Rennie, Bill Bixby and Claude Akins) one being the pretender (Rennie) to the wedding with his wife. Jonas Trapp brings hell to the small town. It becomes a powerful avenger nickname in the city of "The Tiger" becoming a legend. It is a great western, maybe a western B but high level, with a well-written script and great performances of the cast. Chuck Connors is perfect in his role transmitted all the bitterness and disappointment of a man who returned home with plans for the future. The fight between Connors and Claude Akins is pure adrenaline, only seen in "Shane" and "North to Alaska". A western that will always be in our memory, still one of the great westerns of the 60s Very good, very good.

Chuck Connors plays Jonas Trapp, a cowboy that falls in love with a beautiful, but high tone, woman Jessie Larkin(Kathryn Hays). Jessie's snobbish aunt warns her of stepping down to marry. She fakes a pregnancy to seal the deal. Jonas finally gets tired of living off of his wife's family money and decides to leave her. Trapp becomes a successful buffalo hunter and after having some wealth he wants to reunite with his wife. Its been over ten years, would she feel the same about him? Before he can find out, Jonas is warned by three men to not try and see her; he is beaten, robbed and branded before being left for dead. The buffalo hunter wants revenge and things get ugly.This movie was not well received. And it is a good chance that Connors' fans wanted more out of this western. Even a well rounded cast of named stars couldn't make the film more than a mediocre dust buster. Also featured: Michael Rennie, Claude Akins, Joan Blondell, Gary Merrill and Gloria Grahame. You will also recognize Bill Bixby, Paul Fix and even Jamie Farr as the blacksmith.

"Ride Beyond Vengeance" is more than a typical western. Although produced on a low budget by television producers Mark Goodson And Bill Toddman ("The Price is Right") and featuring several names mostly familiar to TV audiences, it has a dynamic, if pessimistic script more concerned with character development than standard action--not that the film lacks action or violence. Cowboy Jonas Trapp (Chuck Connors of "Rifleman" fame) falls in love with the beautiful Jessie (Kathryn Hays), very appealing in her first film, a wealthy girl out of his humble class. Against the wishes of her snobbish aunt (Ruth Warrick), she marries him, later faking a pregnancy to win her aunt's consent. But Jonas tires of living off of his wife's family, and eventually deserts her to become a buffalo hunter. 11 years later, with his self-made fortune, he sets out to return home, only to be set upon by three sadistic marauders, Michael Rennie, Bill Bixby and Claude Akins, who steal his money and leave him for dead. Rescued by a farmer (Paul Fix, Connors' "Rifleman" co-star) who nurses him back to health, Jonas becomes consumed by the desire for revenge. As fate would have it, all three men live close to Jonas' former home. Matters quickly get worse when Jonas reunites with his wife, only to discover that she is now engaged to Rennie. Made on a three week schedule on an obvious sound-stage, "Ride Beyond Vengeance" succeeds in transcending it's shortcomings by the powerful acting of a first-rate cast. Connors gives his best performance, and he is well (if briefly) supported by Joan Blondell (as a gossipy townswoman), Gloria Grahame (a cheating wife having an affair with Bixby), Gary Merrill as Jonas' foster father, Frank Gorshin as an arrogant ranch hand, and Buddy Baer as a Bouncer. Buried way down the cast list is young starlet Marrisa Mathes, who is sympathetic and real as the grieving girlfriend of Bixby who reaches out to Jonas. But, next to Connors, the film belongs to Bixby, as a sadomasochistic dandy. James MaCarthur and Arthur O'Connell appear in a present day prologue to set the scene and narrate the story. The screenplay is based on Al Dewlen's novel, "The Night of the Tiger" and spends considerable time fleshing out the characters. Of course, violence rears it's ugly head here and there, but not so much as to put off the viewer. (It did, however, put off critics when it was released back in 1966) but it went on to garner a massive audience when it had its television premiere. Today, it seems better than it was initially given credit for, and remains well worth seeing. A widescreen DVD release is due out in December. It's about time!

I grew up in Bay Saint Louis Mississippi.My Mother was makeup artist for the Little Theatre there(mid fifties).Under her influence I did my first role there(in my mid teens).The best character actor with the group was a man by the name of Mark Solomen.He helped coach me in my first role.At the time, he had just read what he said was the best western novel he had ever read.He ended up giving me the book. It was an original hard bound version called "Night Of The Tiger". I agreed it was a great novel even though it was the author's first attempt. At the time, I had no way of knowing that through a most unique set of circumstances I would end up launching a career in films myself(on Yancy Derringer, in 1958).Because I am a good horseman as well as a western type(6'4"anglo),by the mid sixties I was a seasoned veteran of the westerns of the era in both TV and feature films. In the early sixties I became friends with Chuck connors,and ended up working for him as standin and horseback double on some of his western projects including Rifleman, Cowboy in africa,and Branded. It was when we were doing the Branded series,and the time came for us to shut down for hiaetus.I was told we would be doing a movie with a thirty day shooting schedule in the meantime, and that I would shortly be called in to do make up and costume tests for Chuck,on lot three at MGM,with a skeleton crew. When that day came,I reported to the Paramount Sunset lot where I got into a stretch limo with all the key personnel including director, producer(Andrew Fenady),makeup artist, costumer etc. On the way to MGM the producer and director were discussing how meaty some of the main character's dialogue was. As they quoted him it began to sound familiar to me so I turned to andy(the producer)and asked what's the name of this film. I could'nt believe it when he said "Night Of The Tiger". Needless to say I related the above story to him. It turns out he had found the paperback version in a west hollywood supermarket while his wife was buying groceries. And of course he responded to the book the same as Mark Solomen had all those years earlier back home,and he went right out and bought the movie rights. On the first day of production I brought the book with me and gifted Andy with it. Andrew Fenady was one of the youngest and most brilliant producers I have ever known. In fact he and Nick adams created Johnny Yuma "the rebel". Who else could have pulled together such a cast for a "quickie" western. There can be no question but that this cast was drawn to the project by the power of the story. Imagine,Bill Bixby,Jim Mc Arthur,Claude Akins,Paul fix,Michael Renny,etc. The only thing I disagreed with Andy on was the change of title. He felt that Night Of The Tiger sounded like a jungle movie. This film remains in my top ten favorite westerns (with some of clint eastwood's spagetti westerns). It is also one of the most unique coincidences of my life.