MartinHafer
"Santee" is a decent enough film, but it's "Jody" song that comes and goes throughout the movie is reason enough to deduct a point!The film begins with a really BAD family reunion. Jody, a 19 year- old guy, comes upon his father and three of his 'friends'. It seems that Jody barely knows his dad and was raised by his divorced mother. Well, wouldn't you know that the father and his men are on the run from the law! Soon, a bounty hunter, Santee (Glenn Ford), shows and quickly dispatches the guilty four men--leaving Jody a bit shocked to say the least! Jody is angry enough at Santee to kill...but inexplicably, Santee is nice to him and realizes he was not involved with his father's gang and their crimes. What follows is a bonding between Jody and Santee, as Santee takes him home with him and treats him decently. All this bromance, however, is short- lived, as the men who wronged Santee so long ago and set him on a life as a bounty hunter arrive in town--and they are really bad dudes!The film has a rather original plot and I enjoyed it. But 1970s god-awful music took away, somewhat, from my enjoyment. Still, despite this, it's worth your time. Plus, you get to see Jay Silverheels in a role much more interesting than playing Tonto to the Lone Ranger.
bkoganbing
Glenn Ford who was associated with some of the best westerns ever made has his last starring role in the genre in Santee. Although he would do more westerns up to almost the end of his career, he would no longer be the leading man/action hero in any of them.Ford was 57 when he made Santee and even in this one he's transitioning to be a father figure, much the same way John Wayne was in films like Big Jake, Rio Lobo, and The Cowboys. Unfortunately Santee takes it's plot from a combination of Henry Fonda's The Tin Star and Robert Mitchum's Young Billy Young. Ford is a former lawman, turned bounty hunter who decides that marshaling doesn't give him quite the latitude he needs to deal with bad guys. It also doesn't pay as well. But having his son shot down by John Larch and his gang was enough to turn him bitter.He's also forced to kill Robert J. Wilkie another outlaw who has a son in Michael Burns. But he takes Burns into his home. Truth be told there wasn't much attachment there anyway, Burns hardly knew him.Jay Silverheels has the best part in the film as Ford's loquacious ranch foreman. I do believe he had more dialog here than in over 200 episodes of The Lone Ranger. Dana Wynter has a few scenes as Ford's wife and makes them count.But Santee is just a tired rehash of a pair of better films. Glenn Ford fans will like it though.
vladimir jaksic
Yesterday in local DVD-store I saw let's say an attractive poster with Glenn Ford. Now when I saw the film I am totally disappointed. There are many weak parts of the script and casting was bad to say the least. For example-first: the part of the tough bounty hunter definitely doesn't fit to old Glenn Ford. Second: he lets the son of the guy he just killed follow him around, then eventually gives him a job and home.Finally Jody accepts Santee as his own father(OMG!). And one of the most "tragic" and funniest things is that Jody was practicing to become bounty hunter and he couldn't hit target from couple of meters , but in the one of the final scenes he kills three members of the Banner's gang. Now you probably think there is no need to see this film. But actually there is a few bright things: Jody's father (Robert J. Wilke) and John Crow (Jay Silverheels). And that's all I'm afraid. If you are not western fan there is no reason to watch this film.4\10 totally deserved
ironjade
I'm currently watching this on my DVD HD and the pitch black night scenes made me wonder if this had been shot on tape. Now I know.The aspect ratio also looks a bit odd even though the TV is set correctly at widescreen. It seems to have been enlarged and slightly horizontally squashed just enough to be annoying.Something similar seems to have been done to the episodes of Bonanza (along with a change of theme music) which has its own UK satellite channel.I can see why electronic cinema never really caught on : even modern digital video efforts usually look like crap unless they're HD and lit by a genius.
AD
