Search

Mackenna's Gold

1969, Movie, M, 128 mins

starstarstarstar
Overlong, overblown, and badly scripted western starring Peck as a sheriff who finds himself entrusted with a map (a dying Indian gave it to him) detailing the location of a mythical valley of gold. After memorizing and burning the map, Peck finds himself the target of every fortune seeker in the territory. (They pop up in a seemingly endless parade of pointless guest shots that include Massey, Meredith, Cobb, Robinson, Wallach, Wynn, and more.) Peck's main rival, Sharif (a man who does not belong in westerns), eventually confronts him at the mouth of the canyon that leads to the cache of gold, but a convenient avalanche closes off the entrance, leaving the two treasure hunters with a bag of gold between them. Beautiful scenery and a surprisingly good score from Quincy Jones (composer Tiomkin was a coproducer) don't help sort out this mess. leave a comment
Advertisement

Advertisement