MACKENNA'S GOLD is a typical American western made with Leone's epic of THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY in mind; this influence is clear both in the film's epic length and in some of the staging which is very Leone-esque at times. The story is quite simple, involving Gregory Peck's lawman being taken captive by Omar Sharif's bandit and forced to lead him to a legendary desert location said to hide a fortune in gold. A huge amount of famous faces pop up in support, including the likes of Eli Wallach, Anthony Quayle and Edward G. Robinson, but they're oddly underutilised. Apparently there were some problems during the film's production which resulted in an hour of the running time being chopped out, which leaves some problems in the plot and the like. Still, it's a well-shot yarn and there are some good scenes here, so it's not all bad.
Review of Mackenna's Gold
