100 Rifles (1969)

★ 5.9 1h 50m IMDb

Adventure War Western

When half-breed Indian Yaqui Joe robs an Arizona bank, he is pursued by dogged lawman Lyedecker. Fleeing to Mexico, Joe is imprisoned by General Verdugo, who is waging a war against the Yaqui Indians. When Lyedecker attempts to intervene, he is thrown into prison as well. Working together, the two escape and take refuge in the hills, where Lyedecker meets beautiful Yaqui freedom fighter Sarita and begins to question his allegiances.

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Cast

Jim Brown as Lydecker Died 2023 · St. Simons Island, Georgia, USA Jim Brown (February 17, 1936 – May 18, 2023) was an American professional football player and actor. He is best known for his exceptional and record-setting nine-year career as a running back in the N...

Raquel Welch as Sarita Died 2023 · Chicago, Illinois, USA Jo Raquel Welch (née Tejada; September 5, 1940 – February 15, 2023) was an American actress. Welch first garnered attention for her role in Fantastic Voyage (1966), after which she signed a long-term...

Burt Reynolds as Yaqui Joe Herrera Died 2018 · Lansing, Michigan, USA Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor, director, and producer, considered a sex symbol and icon of American popular culture. Reynolds first rose to pr...

Fernando Lamas as General Verdugo Died 1982 · Buenos Aires, Argentina From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Fernando Álvaro Lamas (January 9, 1915 – October 8, 1982) was an Argentine-born actor and director, and the father of actor Lorenzo Lamas. Description above fr...

Dan O'Herlihy as Steven Grimes Died 2005 · Wexford, Ireland Daniel Peter O'Herlihy (May 1, 1919 – February 17, 2005) was an Irish film actor, known for such roles as Brigadier General Warren A. "Blackie" Black in Fail Safe, Marshal Ney in Waterloo, Conal Cochr...

Director Tom Gries

Cast Jim Brown, Raquel Welch, Burt Reynolds, Fernando Lamas, Dan O'Herlihy, Eric Braeden, Aldo Sambrell, Soledad Miranda, Alberto Dalbés, Charly Bravo

John Chard 7/10 Mar 17, 2017

Rifles or Trifles?

100 Rifles is directed by Tom Gries and Gries adapts to screenplay with Clair Huffaker from Robert MacLeod's novel The Californio. It stars Burt Reynolds, Jim Brown, Raquel Welch, Fernando Lamas and Dan O'Herlihy. Music is by Jerry Goldsmith and cinematography by Cecilio Paniagua.

Arizona lawman Lydecker (Brown) travels into Mexico to arrest bank robber Yaqui Joe Herrera (Reynolds), and lands in the middle of a war between the Yaquis and the Mexican army.

A good blood pumping Oater feasting on Spaghetti leanings, 100 Rifles boasts star appeal coupled with exciting genre staples. Filmed in Almeria in Spain, pic doesn't lack for smooth on the eyes locations either. The dialogue is a mixture of cheese and the philosophical, but it sits well in the production. It's strong on violence, with a number of action sequences very well constructed, while it has a cheeky glint in its eye and for sure is sexy into the bargain. OK, so the cast aren't exactly pulling up any trees, but they are fun to watch as we take in weasel villains and lovable rogues.

Good time to be had here. 7/10

Wuchak 7/10 May 23, 2021

_**Burt Reynolds, Raquel Welch and Jim Brown in an American Western shot in Spain**_

An Arizona sheriff (Jim Brown) travels to Sonora in 1912 to apprehend a half-breed bank robber (Burt Reynolds) who used the money to purchase 100 rifles for his tribe in their fight against a despotic Mexican general (Fernando Lamas). The lawman isn’t interested in his noble intentions and just wants to take him back to Phoenix, but he gets caught up in the political fracas. Raquel Welch plays one of the Yaquis while Dan O'Herlihy is a representative of the Pacific Union and Eric Braeden (aka Hans Gudegast) a German advisor to the ruthless general.

"100 Rifles" (1969) is an American Western curiously shot in Spain, no doubt due to Sergio Leone’s highly successful mid-60’s Western trilogy with Clint Eastwood. I personally prefer this one even though it’s hard to beat the iconic stature of “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” (1966). “100 Rifles” has a more compelling story and is naturally more streamlined. While it would be impossible to top Ennio Morricone’s mind-blowing score, Jerry Goldsmith’s multifaceted piece in this movie ain’t no slouch and was so notable it was reprised in “The Last Hard Men” (1976).

Welch was in her physical prime here and the producers didn’t fail to respectfully highlight her stunning beauty in various apparel. Yet Soledad Miranda deserves a mention in the same department for her small, yet jaw-dropping role in the opening. Soledad was a Spanish actress who was known for working with quickie Euro-filmmaker Jesús Franco, e.g. “Count Dracula” (1970). Unfortunately she died at the premature age of 27 due to a vehicle accident outside Lisbon in August, 1970.

The events take place during William Howard Taft’s presidency 50 years after slavery was abolished in America so there’s no historical problem with Brown playing a lawman taking a job that obviously no one else wanted to further his career.

Whilst “100 Rifles” doesn’t rank with my all-time favorite Westerns, it’s solid enough and is arguably Reynolds’ best Western. There’s a lot of Southwest action and ex-NFL star Brown is a surprisingly good actor. And how can you go wrong with Raquel Welch and Soledad Miranda in their prime?

The film runs 1 hour, 49 minutes and was shot in Andalucía, Spain (Almería and Granada), and Madrid. The magnificent monastery ruins and thrilling train wreck at the close were shot in Madrid.

GRADE: B/B-