zardoz-13 In his well-researched landmark biography of John Sturges, film critic Glenn Lovall points out that the failure of "The Hallelujah Trail" at the box office forced John Sturges back into being a contract director. Unfortunately, this ambitious, $ 7 million dollar, two-hour and forty-five minute western did prove to be Sturges' undoing. Sadly, according to Wikipedia, the film grossed only $4 million during its release. Nevertheless, I've always thought it was an incredibly hilarious and splendidly staged western comedy. The closest that Sturges had come to making a comedy was the Frank Sinatra & Dean Martin western "Sergeants Three," but "The Hallelujah Trail" was far from anything that "The Magnificent Seven" helmer had ever undertaken. Sturges assembled a first-rate cast. Burt Lancaster, who starred in Sturges' first big western "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral," took top billing as Colonel Thaddeus Gearhart. Gearhart was a traditional, straight-laced U.S. Calvary commander who is in charge of a frontier fort who has a beautiful daughter, Louise Gearhart (Pamela Tiffin), who is hopelessly in love with an officer, Captain Paul Slater (Jim Hutton of "Major Dundee"), who serves under Gearhart at the fort. At one point, Gearhart finds Slater and his daughter rolling around on his bear skin rug. The hugely funny western takes advantage of the usual elements of most standard-issue oaters. There is the inevitable clash between the U.S. Calvary and the Native Americans. Similarly, the alcoholic frontiersmen clash with the Ladies of the Temperance Movement. This sprawling western brings together all these parties for an incredible finale in a swamp.John Gay's complicated screenplay based on William Gulick's entertaining western novel concerns the efforts of desperate Denver merchants inspired by 'Oracle' Jones (Donald Pleasance of "The Great Escape") to get a wagon train of liquor to them before they exhaust their supplies for the winter. Signs indicate that the winter will be the worst in years and the merchants don't want to run out of suds. Moreover, a citizens' committee shares the merchant's anxiety. Meantime, beer merchant Frank Wallingham (Brian Keith of "The Wind and the Lion") organizes an emergency shipment of booze to Denver, but he must contend with obnoxious Irish teamsters, led by Kevin O'Flaherty (Tom Stern) who feel that he is taking advantage of them. O'Flaherty constantly addresses Wallingham as "your lordship," and Wallingham grumbles about it the entire time. Of course, when the Indians learn about this huge shipment of liquor, they decide to help themselves to it. Walllingham demands that Gearhart provide an escort to safeguard his booze from Chief Walks-Stooped-Over (Martin Landau of "Impossible Impossible") as well as Chief Five Barrels (Robert J. Wilke of "The Magnificent Seven") and they bring along their respective tribes. If contending with Indians armed with Winchester repeating rifles weren't challenging enough, Wallingham faces opposition for a well-known Temperance champion, Cora Templeton Massingale (Lee Remick of "The Omen"), who just happens to be holding meetings at Gearhart's fort. Massingale decides to intercept the shipment of suds and destroy the beer, and Gearhart's daughter joins her. Naturally, an upset Colonel Gearhart decides that he must provide an escort for these dames and Sergeant Buell (John Anderson of "The Satan Bug") to keep them out of harm's way.Lancaster is absolutely brilliant as the Calvary colonel who must supervise everything in this massive sagebrusher. His comic timing is impeccable. Sturges doesn't slight anybody and he gives some rather unusual parts to actors who had never done anything like these roles. Martin Landau is terrifically amusing as Chief Who Walks Stooped Over and British actor Donald Pleasance, who eventually played villain in "Will Penny," is cast as a barfly. Crowning all these wonderful performances are Elmer Bernstein's impressive orchestral score and Robert Surtee's radiant widescreen photography. If you enjoy comedies where the performers behave as if they were is a serious dramatic saga, "The Hallelujah Trail" is ideal entertainment.

Trooper509 10 / 10 easy . Not realistic but which one of us actually lived then ? It is what it is - a western comedy classic . With some of Hollywoods best people from that era . Not a waste of time to watch it . I go out of my way to watch it . Yes it's not " correct " in hardly any of it's presentation ( horses & wagons were actually used in the west is about it ) but well written and well acted . And the narration always had made me laugh . Worth the time spent watching it .The cinematography is actually incredible . The scenery is incredible . The acting top flight . And the dialog well written & very humorous . " give a woman an acorn & the next thing your up to your rump oak trees " . A quote from the movie .

Walling_M_I I don't know why this movie isn't funnier. Jim Hutton, Donald Pleasance, Brian Keith, Dub Taylor, and Martin Landau all have great comic credentials, and Burt Lancaster, Lee Remick, and John Anderson have also done serviceable comic bits in their long, illustrious careers. I paid money to see this flick in the theaters forty years ago, and have watched it several times on TV, most recently on TCM this week, which was my first viewing in many years. My final conclusion is that the writing and the direction underestimated the viewing audience's collective sense of humor by an order of several magnitudes. The narration is too pointed, the jokes are all telegraphed, and some of them are not as funny as they should be. The potential for the early scenes where Lancaster and Anderson think that the fort is being besieged based on the bugle calls and cannon fire just doesn't have the impact it should have at the denouement, when the troopers come charging into the fort, and the climactic scene with the popping champagne bottles was foreshadowed, also. Finally, the escape of the whiskey bottles from the quicksand bog should've occurred without any hints. The movie is watchable, and even fun to watch, but not as good as it should have been. Sort of like watching Jim Thome hit a mile high fly ball which is pulled in by an outfielder who reaches over the fence.

silverscreen888 I have always opined that "The Hallelujah Trail was well-directed and also one of the most hilarious situations ever set onto film. Bill Gulick's novel "The Hallelujah Train" was adapted to the screen by John Gay, and the film produced and directed by John Sturges. What emerges is perhaps the 'biggest-feeling' western comedy ever made, one that is even better seen in a large theater, where the pace allows time for the viewers' laughs that, by my personal experience, were sure to come. Apart from this small curiosity of telegraphing its best punch lines, the film is consistent, a triumph of logic and intelligent film-making from beginning to end for two reasons, I claim: namely that everything in it works as intended; and that its logic is all aimed at a single plot-theme--the corrupting or dislocating of the life of everyone within reach of its influence by the introduction of a large wagon-load of whiskey into the lives primitive U.S. Westerners. It is this spectre on the horizon which embroils many of Denver's miners, the region's Amerinds, a large ladies' temperance group, the Irish teamsters, and a number of citizens in the backwash of its passage. The storyline, narrated memorably by John Dehner, follows the effect of Frank Wallingham's decision to dispatch the train west on speculation in the hopes of realizing a large profit.. The story of the train is carried in newspapers; and one Cora Templeton Massengale decides to enlist wild-eyed pseudo-religious females in her crusade against its coming. A Denver miners' group, facing what looks to be an unprecedentedly-long, cold winter and having run out of alcohol, consult one Oracle Jones who advises them with manic and visionary force to "Go save that previous booze!". The Irish teamsters, denied a whiskey ration on a cargo full of whiskey, disrupt the train; and cavalry Colonel Gearhart and his men are then compelled to carry out their assignment to protect the train for Wallingham, who annoyingly keeps insisting he's "a taxpayer and a good Republican", whatever their feelings in the matter. The Indians settle the question of which tribe will make reconnaissance in comedic fashion--when one chief bonks the other over the head with a tomahawk during discussions; then they too join the hunt for "firewater". Obviously, a large collision was imminent by this point; and when Mrs. Massengale's protest to famous editor Horace Greeley about the possible harmful effect of the cargo falls on deaf ears, some collision becomes inevitable. The progress of the train, into a sandstorm on Whiskey Flats, causes all forces to meet and fire at one another and become hopelessly confused during a tremendous battle--within which not one person is hit by any bullets nor suffers permanent damage... As a result of this battle, the Colonel sends a patrol to try to reason with the Indians, who feign friendship, capture the patrol, and announce as the Colonel's interpreter notes, "Chief he say--"no more peace"".. The ladies who have been sent to take over the whiskey wagons by Mrs. Massengale also are captured, of course. So Colonel Gearhart has no choice but to bargain for the release of the women in return for a number of wagon-loads of whiskey, and champagne.. The exchange, one wagon at a time being driven off in trade for released hostages, becomes a disaster as the champagne corks begin to pop, the horse-teams driven by inexperienced Indians bolt and run at breakneck speed into Quicksand Bottoms, and finally--again with no loss of life-- the entire train stampedes and is engulfed in the vast zone of ooze, sinking slowly and irretrievably out of sight. By this time, the Colonel has fallen in love with Cora, his Lieutenant has won his daughter, who had joined the marchers, the Denver miners have turned to go home, the Irish teamsters are out of a job, the badly-shaken Indians trudge home sadder but wiser, and only Oracle Jones and Wallingham are left to regain such wagons as from time to time rise from the Bottoms' muck, to stirring musical accompaniment, providing enough for personal consumption but not much more. And despite all predictions, the winter turns out to be one of the warmest and driest on record. The film's music provided by Elmer Bernstein is positive and memorable, as always; cinematography by Robert Surtees, art direction by Cary Odell and costumes by Edith Head are outstanding and Award-level in quality.. The acting by Burt Lancaster as the Colonel, Lee Remick as Cora, Jim Hutton and Pamela Tiffin as the young lovers and Martin Landau as Walks Stoops Over is very good indeed. Others in the cast who shone included Brian Keith as Frank Wallingham, Donald Pleasence who is Award caliber as Oracle Jones, Whit Bissell as Editor Hobbs , Helen Kleeb as a temperance group officer, John Anderson as the Colonel's second, Robert J. Wilkie as Chief Five Barrels and Noam Pitlik as Gearhart's interpreter. Major Western comedies have always been few and far between, especially so satirically intelligent a script as this one; The dialogue here is among the funniest of which I have knowledge, the photograph is lucid and consistent; and the large budget also allows the skilled director to drain every drop of humor from the situation that can be gained. This is a comedy I suggest may be worth watching far more than once, a classic of its sort.