bghilliotti I couldn't get into this one. A cavalry patrol recaptures a stolen Gatling Gun, and must escort it (and the gun thieves) back to a safe location through hostile Apache territory. I noted the anti nuclear weapons subliminal message discussed early on in the movie's dialog. One scene I found baffling involved a pacifist preacher, who knew the hostile Apache chief, Two Knifes, coming out of a homestead while being restrained by the homestead family and the Cavalry patrol commander, yelling for Two Knives that his friend the preacher was in the homestead. Out of nowhere arrows hit the pacifist preacher, yet for some reason do not hit the cavalry commander and the other combatants....lack of realism. There are corny old school cinematic (what you see in black and white films) romantic subplots...I do not understand how one of the females who was part of this cavalry / civilian group, and involved in the corny romance sub plots, was able to untie one of the gun thieves being escorted in order to have their corny face touching moments...no one was watching the prisoner? Why didn't these people steal one of the horses and run, especially if the gun thief knew he was probably going to be executed anyway? I could not watch this film any longer, I had to end it there. It took a lot for me to give it a 3. Brian Ghilliotti

Wuchak "The Gatling Gun" was originally titled "King Gun" and shot in 1969, but not released till 1971. It's a cavalry vs. Indians Western focusing on the eponymous weapon with a great cast of familiars -- Guy Stockwell, Robert Fuller, Phil Harris, Woody Strode, Patrick Wayne, John Carradine, Pat Buttram and BarBara Luna (from Star Trek's "Mirror, Mirror") -- highlighted by curvy redhead Judy Jordan, to say the least.Critics write it off as "routine" and akin to a TV Western. True, it is Grade 'B' and comic-booky, so proceed with caution. BUT the notable cast clicks and the story delivers the goods, as far as Western (melo)drama & action goes. It's essentially a survival tale of a small group of soldiers and civilians who team-up to survive a desert trek threatened by Two-Knife (Carlos Rivas) and his rogue tribe. If you're a sucker for desert-survival tales (like me), such as "Sands of the Kalahari" (1965), "Flight of the Phoenix" (1965), "Escape from Zahrain" (1962) and "They Came to Cordura" (1959), you'll probably appreciate "The Gatling Gun," as long as you can forgive the TV budget (although it's not technically a TV movie and was dubiously released to theaters). It's not as good as the first three, but it's more entertaining than the last one. While "Cordura" is a more serious production with overall superior production values, it's also more hokey in a lame 50's Western sense.The trek through the desert features a lot of drama but the movie ends with a bang as the group squares-off against Two-Knife and his braves. Stockwell stands out as the alpha male Army Lieutenant who naturally attracts the babe (Jordan), whereas Fuller is effective as Private Sneed, done-in by his own lust for filthy lucre.The film runs 87 minutes and was shot at Eaves Movie Ranch and Ghost Ranch near Sante Fe, New Mexico. DIRECTOR: Robert Gordon. WRITERS: Mark Hanna & Joseph Van Winkle.GRADE: B-

ma-cortes The more desperate his fight on the desert's scorching lands , the more adored he was in her arms ¡ Tough men, during hard times, battle for the ultimate weapon , as Indians , cavalry and renegade troops fight over Gatlin gun . Doctor Gatling invented a war machine to beat all arrows, and guns . While pursuing a traitor Pvt Sneed (Robert Fuller , one of the members in ¨The return of Magnificent Seven¨) the Lt. Malcolm (Guy Stockwell , Dean Stockwell's brother and starring in ¨It's alive¨ and ¨Tobruk¨) helped by Runner the Scout (Woody Strode starring in Black Sergeant and other John Ford films , furthermore in various S.W as ¨Keoma¨) along with his patrol find some people , as Luke Boland (Phil Harris) and his family, including his son Jim (Patrick Wayne , John Wayne son) and his gorgeous daughter Martha Boland (Judy Jordan ), who are holed up in a house. The Bolands join up with Malcolm's team . Rifle-toting Malcolm eventually puts the bridle on tight and struggles to win his soldiers respect while warding off violent Indians who besiege the group . One of Luke's friends, Tin Pot (Pat Buttram ) fiddles with the machine gun and after that , he devises a replacement for the firing pin . Malcolm along with a group of soldiers have to defend themselves surrounded by Indians until arrival reinforcements while using the Gatling machine gun . The angry Apaches led by Two-knife (Carlos Rivas usual in Indian roles as Chingachgook in ¨Deerslayer¨) are out on a rampage of killing , seeking vengeance against the white intruders, and with the aim for eliminate them and take the Gatlin machine gun This is an average , conventional tale with action galore about a hard-bitten officer who goes to hell and back while assembling a detail of misfit cavalrymen to hold-off rampaging Indians and later on regaining the respect of his soldiers . Guy Stockwell and a top-notch secondary-star-cast as Robert Fuller , Barbara Luna , Patrick Wayne and John Carradine ; all of them shine lightly in this oater about a surrounded garrison . Director takes a regularly penned screenplay creating a cavalry-Indians tale that results to be ordinary , exploring the anguish of soldiers and including jarring burst of violence on its final when happens a massacre . It's the habitual theme about an unit stranded by enemies and their grueling efforts to break the siege, issue imitated many other times . This standard Western contains some nice moments though partially unsatisfying and disappointing for the reason of the low-budget and situations with no sense . Lousy cinematography in Techniscope by Jacques Marquette , Roger Corman's usual , it's urgent a fine remastering because the film copy is washed-out . Functional and atmospheric musical score by Paul Sawtell. The motion picture is middling directed by Robert Gordon . He's an expert on Western as Television series : ¨Bonanza¨, ¨Maverick¨, ¨Law of the Plainsmen¨, ¨The Texan¨, ¨Zane Grey¨ as cinema : ¨The rawhide trail¨, ¨Thunder and the pines¨, ¨Black eagle¨ and of course ¨The Gatlin Gun¨ or ¨King Gun¨, his last picture . Rating : 4,5 . Mediocre and forgettable movie .

jost-1 In many ways, this movie looks and feels much older than 1973, and I'm still not quite convinced that this is accurate. Yet, the social conscience of the 70's is there, if only in throw away lines and occasional, unexpected preachiness. The struggle for the WMD of the era, i.e. the Gatling Gun of the movie's title, involves a small band of US Cavalry, one "bad apple" (Robert Fuller playing effectively against type), and the Apaches, headed by the Spanish speaking chief "Two Knives." Thrown in the mix are the vixenish step-daughter of a self-righteous preacher (must have been a handful for that man of the cloth) and an All-American, sharp-shootin'"Annie Oakley Type" who in one brief scene appears in a dress and is described as "All Girl" (which she is!). Plus John Wayne's son, I think, and a couple of old codgers. Any and all of the characters vacillate here and there in their views on the treatment of the American Indian and their role in history but the Gatling Gun has the final word.