moonspinner55
Liberated from an Apache tribe 10 years after being abducted, raped and bearing a half-breed son, a white woman (Eva Marie Saint) neglects to mention to her Army rescuers that the boy's father is a fierce, bloodthirsty warrior who will stop at nothing until he gets his son back. Director Robert Mulligan was never a filmmaker of compact means--neither he nor his editors over the years ever shaped any of their projects with energy or excitement--and so, to put a western in Mulligan's hands was suicidal. He dawdles over everything, in much the same way that Saint has been made to dawdle over her dialogue. As the retiring scout who takes on the savage beast, Gregory Peck is amusingly shifty-eyed and granite-jawed, but laughs are not what Mulligan is after (humor is wasted on him). The film has the pomp and circumstance (but not the sweep) of a location-rich epic--one complete with a theme, the eternal struggle between races, guaranteed to be taken as metaphor for the racial divide of the times--but it's a dramatic suspense story that falls flat without interesting characters or tension. *1/2 from ****
weezeralfalfa
This may sound strange, but, in some ways , this reminds me of Gregory Peck's much earlier and better remembered role in "The Yearling". Again, Peck is living in a primitive region, with a largely silent wife or woman companion and her half grown son. Of course, there are major differences. Here, the son is not his, and they don't understand each other's language., and the boy has divided loyalties toward his runaway mother and his brutal Apache father. The challenges are also quite different. Here, it's primarily a sandstorm, then several encounters with the woman's murderous husband, come to reclaim his son and perhaps wife. But, in the end, the family emerges stronger in their commitments to each other, having survived these challenges together....To some extent, this screenplay also reminds me of "Will Penny", as some others have mentioned.Eva Marie Saint, as Sarah, plays a very atypical European captive of the AZ Apache. She was captured as a married woman, traveling with her husband and several small boys, apparently as a single wagon. The husband and boys were killed, while she was spared, perhaps because of her blond hair and fair complexion. However, evidently she has been treated harshly during the intervening 10 years, causing her to shrink into the background and be minimally conversant when offered a chance at repatriation by a cavalry group, who discover her situation. Historically, she is very unusual, in that usually mature captured European women, especially with children, were raped and killed or occasionally kept for barter, by Native Americans of the Great Plains and Southwest. In contrast, captured children were often treated well, in hopes they would become loyal adult members of the tribe. Sarah is also unusual in that, when presented with the possibility of repatriation into European society after such a long absence, she is hesitantly enthusiastic, rather than fearful, and wants to bring her son with her. Apparently, this is because of the abusive treatment she has received from her husband and perhaps others. Sarah is also unusual in that captives who had spent some years living without contact with Europeans usually had forgotten nearly all their native language. Also, repatriated captives, especially women who had born children, were typically shunned as 'damaged goods'. Her Apache husband, by word of mouth, is portrayed as an unlikely superhuman: killing everyone by himself, at the isolated stage and train stations through which, Peck, Sarah and the boy passed, before trailing them to Peck's cabin in NW New Mexico.(How did he know where they were going or how to get there, especially since they traveled by train part way??.)Clearly, Sarah knew she was taking a big risk in bringing her son with her. Clearly, her son has divided loyalties toward her and his father, attempting to run away twice, once toward his father when he shows up outside Peck's cabin. She hoped she would obtain sufficient protective transport to some unknown destination beyond the practical reach of her husband. Like Peck's character, I don't understand why she didn't wait a few days to accompany the cavalry, rather than pressuring Peck alone to accompany her on an immediate flight toward public transport. Then, at the stage station, why did she accept Peck's suggestion that she change her destination from Topeka, KS: presumably beyond the range for her husband to find her, to Peck's isolated cabin in nearby NM, which might be within the practical range for her husband to find her? Yes, I understand that she had no idea how she might survive in Topeka or anywhere else, and that Peck seemed a kindly man, who offered an immediate home for her, but at the risk of endangering all their lives.In contrast to some of the other reviewers here, this film does not generally receive enthusiastic reviews from the professional reviewers, who complain it's too slow paced and lacking in action, except in the last part. Certainly , those who like fast action westerns , with bits of comedy and social gatherings thrown in, are advised to skip this one. On the other hand, Eva does as excellent job portraying a woman in a bad situation, who is confused what to do for her future and that of her son. The relationship between her, her son and Peck is realistically portrayed as initially rocky, but promising. In the parting scene, Peck is suffering from 2 serious gunshot wounds, as well as the loss of his 2 farm hands. In addition, Sarah presumably is still recovering from the severe beating by her husband. Thus, in the short run, they are in bad shape for running the farm/ranch, and Peck may well die soon of his wounds. But the mood implication is that he will recover.The rugged desert canyon scenery of southern Nevada, and Sonora, Mexico, enhances the feeling of isolation and danger from an unseen lurking enemy, as well as being interesting to the viewer.
greenleafie
Prior to the vastly overblown and disappointing Greg Peck western, McKenna's Gold, was this quiet gem of humanity, romance, redemption, and terror. Its two stars, Peck and Eva Marie Saint, carry the film beautifully. There is little dialog, but such fine actors don't really require it to make their parts human and believable. The story is original and timely. There are stunning locations, lushly photographed by the great Charles Lang, and the sure directorial hand of Robert Mulligan (To Kill A Mockingbird.) Fred Karlin's music, like the rest of the movie, is understated and effective. Underscoring it all, is the invisible predator, Salvaje, who carries them all- and us- inexorably, to a hold-your-breath conclusion. Like a good Hitchcock film, The Stalking Moon is rooted in the familiar, juxtaposed with the extraordinary.Very highly recommended.
Spikeopath
The Stalking Moon is directed by Robert Mulligan and adapted by Wendell Mayes & Alvin Sargent from the Theodore V. Olsen novel. It stars Gregory Peck, Eva Marie Saint and Robert Forster. Fred Karlin scores the music and cinematography comes from Charles Lang. It's a Technicolor and Panavision production. Plot sees Peck as veteran army scout Sam Varner, who agrees to escort former Apache captive Sarah Carver (Saint) and her half-Indian son to safety. Easier said than done, for as they make their way across the sprawling terrain of the Southwest, they are being tracked by a savage renegade Indian who is intent on getting the boy back.Along with producer Alan J. Pakula, the Mulligan and Peck teaming sees the three principals involved in To kill a Mockingbird reconvene for this late 60s Oater. Coming out at a time when the Western was fast becoming a fading genre, it's a film that has largely been forgotten about. Garnering mixed reviews from those that have seen it, it's a film that frustrates and enthrals in equal measure. From the outset it's probably best to put out there that it's very much a slow build piece, one that is more about dealing in suggestion and anticipation than it is in actual events.There's a strong lead performance from Peck, a performance he was privately said to have been fond of, and the photography from Lang, as he sumptuously brings to life Red Rock Canyon & Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, gives a nice contrast to the grim mood generated by the protagonists' journey. There's also an interesting score from Karlin, not very traditional, but it does work and leaves a favourable impression. While there's enough tension throughout, born out of Mulligan smartly keeping the villain off screen for the majority of the picture; letting it play out as if there's some sort of supernatural foe in the midst.However, if the ending, though, pays you off after your patience? And after having got you to buy into the slow build? Well that's the deal breaker as to if you can give this film two thumbs up or not. Personally it held no surprise for me, and that was a bit of a let down. You sense the makers wanted to make something a bit different as the genre was beginning to wane, instead they revert to type and it hurts the film considerably. A shame is that. 6.5/10
