MovieChat Forums > The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970) Discussion > Totally Stupid Film

Totally Stupid Film

posted 14 years ago by marlowslog
18 replies | jump to latest

This film is horrible, straight up. The characters are non-believable and two-dimensional. The film has absolutely no resounding qualities at all, none of it makes any sense other than the entry level theme of finding water in a desert.

It is replete with characters making wholly unrealistic decisions and chooses to reduce a very harsh time period to fun and jokes. It's innate silliness washes over the viewer to a point of numbness, parred down to bunch of overly sentimental thoughts and views intended to arouse some sympathy for it's ultimately moronic ensemble of characters.

Really, are we supposed to actually believe that Cable would trust a *beep* douche-rag like Bowen on his property, his fate should have been the same as Taggart's, nothing less than death. And what's with the buffoonish dialogue of the closing scene, saturated with lines that are supposed to be what, funny? charming? endearing? More like insulting, naive, novice, and just plain laughable (in the worst possible way).

This is not only Sam Peckinpah's absolute worst movie, it's quite possible a monument of some of the most embarrassing character development in movie history.

Unbelievable!

[–] Jetfire59 14 years ago

Yes, but did you like it?

I think Rasputin put it best when he said, "Mmm, those pastries gave me indigestion".

[–] bagtown2002 14 years ago

Wow thats quite an indictment. I didn't rate it very high but I didn't think it was that bad.

[–] doug-balch 14 years ago

Totally agree. You might find my review amusing. I just posted it to the same message board.

"All I can see is the flags"

[–] JimB-4 13 years ago

One of my favorite films of all time, and my second favorite Peckinpah, which is saying something. I've seen it probably 20 times. Different strokes, I guess.

[–] Unfrzncavmnlwyr9 13 years ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hfYJsQAhl0

[–] gingercata 13 years ago

You'd probably best stick to gaming if you didn't like this little gem.

[–] timmytoo2001-2 12 years ago

Little gem just about sums it up.
Hooo Rahhh!.

[–] osopestoso 12 years ago

Take a nap.

"They sucked his brains out!"

[–] maxman-5 12 years ago

A lot of what marlowslog says rang true with me too, and quite typical of a lot of 70's films. Hollywood didn't seem to know where it was going at the time.

[–] uvl 11 years ago

Well, this script certainly didn't know where it was going, that's for sure. What an aimless amble through celluloid.

[–] Edward_de_Vere 11 years ago

It is replete with characters making wholly unrealistic decisions and chooses to reduce a very harsh time period to fun and jokes.

I guess the concept of satire is completely lost on some people.

[–] balthazar_bee 11 years ago

You'd think that Cable's lack of fancy book learnin might've endeared him to such folk.

[–] grumpyoldguy1 11 years ago

Over twenty years of IMDb and some folks are still feeding the trolls.

[–] KobiyashiMauru 11 years ago

It just seemed like the director was shooting for Woodstock of the desert. Just didn't make any sense and the characters were just plain weird for my tastes.

[–] franzkabuki 11 years ago

Besides trusting someone as untrustworthy as Bowen with his property - not because he would have killed Hogue, mind you, but because he was stupid - I didn`t see any "wholly unrealistic" decisions by any of the characters (none of whom was terribly "two-dimensional"). And, as already pointed out, what we have here, is a satire to begin with.

"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan

[–] Rex9 8 years ago

Yes, character development was lacking and I didn't much care for any of them, tho' I like Jason as an actor. One particular scene was galling, involving the sexist minister (Joshua) "feeling up" on the grieving woman in her home and her not realizing what he was doing. That scene was excruciatingly bad and in poor taste, insulting to women and just plain dumb. I couldn't wait for it to end.

Further, towards the end of the movie Cable handing over his station to Bowen who initially robbed him, then tried to kill him on the 2nd meeting, subsequently gets run over by a car in apparently a changing West, then dies after he re-ups with Hildy is plain ridiculous.... I thought this movie was a poor use of the talents of Jason and Stella.