Evengyny Thanks for the memories!

Sexyloutak Absolutely the worst movie.

Matrixiole Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Aiden Melton The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

blrnani The film has the engaging leads from "The Parent Trap" and Chill Wills playing a typically extravagant figure, but the performance that rescued this film from run-of-the-mill boredom was Steve Cochran, playing a volatile gunslinger with an interesting sense of humour and a yearning for the ladies (much as the actor was reputed to have). The plot involves revenge, tragedy, double-cross and redemption, but it played out at a slow pace that was exacerbated by the lack of illumination in many of the shots. Worth seeing but not a 'keeper' for my collection.

Wuchak This 1961 Western has a lot going for it: It stars Brian Keith and the beautiful Maureen O'Hara, who had such great chemistry in "The Parent Trap," released the very same year. It's Sam Peckinpah's directorial debut in motion pictures; most people reading this know that Peckinpah went on to become a highly acclaimed director with such notable efforts as 1969's "The Wild Bunch." In addition, "The Deadly Companions" was filmed on location in Arizona (including Old Tucson); you can't beat Arizona for fine, authentic Western locations. Lastly, the picture only runs 90 minutes, so it won't likely wear out its welcome.THE STORY: Keith's character vengefully searches for a scumbag who tried to scalp him alive 5 years earlier and accidentally kills a beautiful saloon girl's son. Feeling guilty, he offers to escort her to the ghost town where the boy's father was buried so she can bury the son as well. There are a couple problems: They have to go through injun territory and two lowlifes accompany them most of the way.BOTTOM LINE: On paper this sounds like it would be a worthwhile Western, unfortunately it never rises above mediocre, and dangerously verges on being deadly dull. Plus the viewer can hardly see what's going on during the numerous (brief) night sequences. Moreover, two of the main characters are incredibly unlikable (which can be defended on the grounds that they're the real villains of the story). Hence, I can only recommend "The Deadly Companions" to uber-fans of Keith and O'Hara or Peckinpah completists.With all that said, there are some worthwhile aspects, like the church service in the saloon and the depiction of O'Hara as a social outcast amongst the church folk (for legitimate reasons).NOTE: There are numerous editions of this film by different DVD companies; my DVD is from PDC Home Entertainment and the picture quality is great for such an old film; the main menu is kind of cheap, but who cares about that? A 5/10 rating is generous. GRADE: C

Spikeopath The Deadly Companions is directed by Sam Peckinpah and written by Albert Sidney Fleischman. It stars Brian Keith, Maureen O'Hara, Chill Wills and Steve Cochran. Music is by Marlin Skiles and cinematography by William H. Clothier. Plot finds Keith as an ex-army officer who accidentally kills the son of Kit Tildon (O'Hara) and tries to make amends by escorting the funeral procession through dangerous Indian territory.Historic in the context that it was Peckinpah's first feature film, The Deadly Companions has interesting themes of revenge, redemption and grief, all played out in a road movie formula. It's often pretty as well, as ace cinematographer Clothier photographs out of Old Tuscon, Arizona. Yet the trouble behind the scenes does show.Peckinpah, starting where he meant to go on, argued with producer Charles FitzSimons about Fleischman's script, the director constantly offering up rewritten passages to put zest and energy into a screenplay he felt was plodding. Keith was in agreement with his director, Clothier, too, was firmly on Peckinpah's side, even branding FitzSimons an idiot, while O'Hara naturally stayed loyal to her brother, one Charles FitzSimons! The film is often lifeless and silly, even reliant on too many convenient set-ups, dialogue is hackneyed and the musical score is infuriatingly intrusive. While the performances are in keeping with the sub-standard material they worked from. The director's cut turned in was tampered with by FitzSimons, leaving the film with an ending that quite frankly is bizarre. It has the odd fleeting moment of worth, mostly when Keith is reacting to Wills and Cochran, or with the small screen time afforded Strother Martin, but ultimately it's a damp squib, very much only half a Peckinpah movie and far removed from the original vision he had for the project. 4/10

Petri Pelkonen Yellowleg is a veteran Civil War Yankee officer.He saves the cheater Turk in a card game.Together with a gunslinger Billy Keplinger they ride to Gila City with a bank robbery in mind.There some bandits rob a store and Yellowleg accidentally kills the son of the cabaret dancer Kit Tilden.She has determined to bury her son in the Apache country Siringo, where her husband is buried.Yellowleg has determined to take her and her son there, even though she doesn't want his help.The Deadly Companions (1961) marks the directorial debut of Sam Peckinpah.This is also the least known of his movies.But it is a good movie nevertheless.I enjoyed watching the work of Maureen O'Hara, who turned 90 last month.Her role as Kit Tilden, the mother who has lost her child, is memorable.There's a lot of depth in Brian Keith's acting and his character Yellowleg.Steve Cochran is terrific as Billy.And so is Chill Wills as Turk.Strother Martin does great job as Parson.James O'Hara (Maureen's brother) plays Cal, General Store.Billy Vaughan is Mead Tilden Jr.One of the finest moments in this movie is when Yellowleg shows his scar under his hat, the scar he got when a man tried to scalp him during the war.Also a great moment is when the Apache soldier is causing some trouble.A good start for Sam Peckinpah.