by Bill Wu
synopsis
The presence of Paul Lynde, in a small role, reveals more about the quality and tone of this film than the three top names. A farce with plenty of slapstick, it offers Kirk Douglas as a road agent dealing with a naive hero (a young Arnold Schwarzenegger) who is seemingly out of western serials in the '40s and a beautiful, sexy saloon girl (Ann-Margret). The silly jokes are the point, not the plot, though Needham includes some impressive stunts. Some of the most notable draw blatantly on Warner Brothers roadrunner and Daffy Duck cartoons; notably, the film came from Columbia, not Warner. The film's attempt at satire is too heavy-handed to have bite.
characteristics
moods
themes
keywords
outlaw [Western]
rescue
saloon
villain
kidnapping
cowboy
hero
Indian (Native-American)-chief

