Vera Cruz

I suppose when one deals with men of action, one just expect action.

"As the American Civil War ended, another war was just beginning. The Mexican people were struggling to rid themselves of their foreign Emperor--Maximilian. Into this fight rode a handful of Americans--ex soldiers, adventurers, criminals--all bent on gain. They drifted South in small groups-- AND SOME CAME ALONE"

Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster head the cast as two polar opposite American adventurers who get involved with Maximilian's royal house and Juarez's revolutionaries in 1860s Mexico. Cooper plays Benjamin Trane, basically a good man, tho one tainted by much cynicism, and Lancaster plays Joe Erin, gunman and an untrustworthy crook. Vera Cruz was the first rel...

Dynamic Mexico-oriented Western with Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster

After the Civil War, two soldiers-of-fortune (Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster) meet in the heart of Mexico and end up taking a job for Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico, to escort a lady aristocrat (Denise Darcel) from Mexico City to Vera Cruz on the coast. Although they have help from imperial troops, they are assaulted by Juarezs rebels because theres gold to be had.

Vera Cruz (1954) is an overlooked powerhouse Western that was made back-to-back by Cooper with Garden of Evil. I think theyre both really good Westerns, but give the edge to this one. It has comic book qualities that I dont like (e.g. the trivial conflicts and superhuman marksmanship), but is otherw...