Sidney Poitier directs himself, Harry Belafonte and Ruby Dee in this buddy western where a righteous wagon trail master and a sleazy preacher navigate their party around a posse of white hired guns in Reconstruction America.

An absolute pleasure on the big screen. Feels like a big entertainment, hitting laughs, adventure and drama. Yet it also tackles historical racism, in a way that must have spoken loudly to African American audiences in the Seventies and still has relevance today. I’ve never really noticed Belafonte in a movie before but he’s on fire here. Benny Carter’s bluesy jazzy score is an earworm and invigorates every time it comes on. Bank robberies, horse theft, horse chases, desert battles, shoot outs and stand-offs – I can think of no better way to spend an evening.

8

Perfect Double Bill: Uptown Saturday Night (1974)

My wife and I do a podcast together called The Worst Movies We Own. It is available on Spotify or here https://letterboxd.com/bobbycarroll/list/the-worst-movies-we-own-podcast-ranking-and/