mpzrd Most enjoyable for me due to the scenery and the rolling stock and the horsemanship is also worth noticing. Competent acting without unnecessary drama. Blissfully short fight scenes by modern standards.

RoboRabbit89 Let me start by saying that this movie is pretty damn good, and original, westerns are usually your typical tired old formula that you've seen done a billion times.The thing I like about this film is that it was a mystery story, that involves your intellect and it was smart and treats it's audience as smart and not like idiots, also give us something new.Charles Bronson is great in this film as Deacon, also the rest of the cast was very good in this I don't want to say anymore with out ruining it for you but this film was awesome.Overall, a great mystery-western that was original and made completely fresh, which I think was a nice change of pace, hopefully we'll get more original westerns like this.I give it a 7/10. It was nice seeing an original western that wasn't dumb or indifferent. I highly recommend it.

Woodyanders Shrewd federal undercover agent John Deakin (an excellent and convincing performance by Charles Bronson) infiltrates a train that's headed for an Army outpost in Utah. However, someone on said train starts bumping of various passengers left and right. Can Deakin figure out what's going before it's too late? Director Tom Gries, working from a smart, taut, and gripping script by Alistair MacLean, relates the complex and compelling story at a steady pace, makes the most out of both the wintry landscape and the cramped confines of the train, and delivers several well-staged action set pieces (a fierce fight on top of a moving train car rates as a definite exciting highlight). Moreover, the stellar cast keeps things buzzing: Bronson does credible work in a juicy lead role, Jill Ireland looks positively ravishing and exudes considerable charm as the gutsy and outspoken Marica, Ed Lauter has a welcome and refreshing change-of-pace good guy part as the no-nonsense Major Claremont, and Richard Crenna pours on the slippery smarm as the crooked Gov. Richard Fairchild, plus there are sound contributions from Ben Johnson as the rugged Marshal Pearce, Charles Durning as the huffy O'Brien, David Huddleston as the ill-fated Dr. Molyneux, Bill McKinney as the hard-nosed Reverend Peabody, Roy Jenson as gruff engineer Chris Banion, and Robert Tessier as vicious outlaw Levi Calhoun. Better still, the whole thing plays like an Agatha Christie-type murder mystery set in the Old West: Almost no one on board the train is who or what they appear to be; this adds greatly to the overall drama, tension, and intrigue while the flavorsome 1800's setting gives it a certain novel appeal. Jerry Goldsmith's robust score does the rousing trick. Lucien Ballard's crisp cinematography provides a handsome look. An immensely fun and worthwhile picture.

sol ***SPOILERS*** Action adventure super star Charles Bronson doesn't disappoint his fans in the movie "Breakheart Pass" as the wanted for arson murder cheating in poker and not paying his dues desperado Deakin. On the lamb from the law Deakin who after purposely getting himself arrested reveals the true reason for his very uncivil behavior. Deakin is actually a top US Government Secret Agent, with a medical degree to boot, working undercover. It's Deakins job to uncover a plot to arm a band of rebellious Indians, who are off the reservation, with 400 the latest Winchesters 73's rifles to do in the local white settlers and the US Calvary!After winning the confidence of his captor, with his keen and incisive knowledge of infectious diseases, Marshal Pearce played by Ben Johnson Deakin is allowed to roam freely on the train that's on a mission of mercy to get desperately needed medical supply to Fort Humboltd that's in the mist of suffering from an out of control diphtheria epidemic! With all the so-called accidents that Engine #9 suffers on its trip to Fort Hhmboldt with it losing more then half of its crew and passengers, that included a full company of US troops, the very observant Deakin smells that something isn't exactly kosher on the train! And it isn't the pork chops that the cook Carlos played by former Light heavyweight Champion of the world Archie Moore is grilling! In fact it's later in the movie both Deakin & Carlos, or their stunt doubles, are involved in one of the most unbelievable life and death slug-fest ever filmed on top of the train going 50 miles an hours in the middle of a snowstorm!We and Deakin soon find out that it's the crooked and corrupt Governor of the Nevada Territory Richard Fairchild,Richard Cranne,and his band of motley underlings that includes the vicious murderous and mentally unstable hillbilly Levi Calhoun, Robert Tessier, who sold out their country to the Indians lead by Chief White Hand, Eddie Little Sky, for 30 or 300 or even 3,000, go pick a number, pieces of silver and gold that White Hand offered them for the guns camouflaged as medical supplies that the train is carrying!Of course it wouldn't be a Charles Bronson movie without his pretty English wife actress Jill Ireland, who unfortunately steals ever scenes that she's in with her husband, in it who plays Fraichild's lover Monica. It's Monica's father who's the commander of Fort Humboltd and, she's made to believe, is together with his men on the brink of death if the medical supplies doesn't get their in time!****SPOILERS**** You've just got to love this movie despite its skimpy and filled with plot holes storyline in it with a hard as a rock Charles Bronson playing a James Bond type character some 80 years before Bond ever came on the scene or in books and in the movies and amazingly be able to pull it off! As well as save the day with the help of about 200 members of the US Army Calvery who were supposed to be dead or dying from diphtheria coming to both his and Monica's as well as about the only good guy, besides Deakin & Monica, still alive on the train Maj. Claramont, Ed Leuter, rescue. It was Maj. Claramont who went out on his own, before the Indians attacked, to far off Fort Humboldt in order for him to fetch them.