Movie Review: Hannie Caulder (1971)

Pitting Raquel Welch — arguably the most beautiful woman who’s ever lived — against some ugly motherfuckers is a stroke of genius, in a way. This is a rape revenge western that succeeds largely due to the strength of its characters.

Of course it’s got the classic western cinematography and score (by Ken Thorne). That seems almost a given in a classic western.

I really like the relationship between Caulder (Welch) and Price (the great Robert Culp). These two characters really pop together, and Culp’s performance more than makes up for a pretty pedestrian one by Welch.

I’d have liked to have a more exciting climax than what we got, but this is still a solid western. And it has one hell of a cast — not just Welch and Culp, but Ernest Borgnine, Christopher Lee (it is a British film after all), Diana Dors, Strother Martin, and Jack Elam. This is one of the best casts I’ve seen in a western.

Is it one of the best westerns I’ve seen? No, not really close. But it is good.

Rating: 6/10