There are many great westerns that I have had the pleasure to see over the past several years that are in the elite pantheon of true western classics and this one makes that list with ease though it doesn't really have the story-line of the traditional western movie. The movie is set in 1906 in the southwestern part of the United States where people are competing in a 700 mile horse race and whoever wins gets $ 2,500 and survives. Gene Hackman stars as Sam Clayton a man who served in President Theodore Roosevelt's select regiment known as the "Rough Riders" during the Spanish-American War, and charged up San Juan Hill alongside him, his competitors include a woman named Miss Jones (Candice Bergen), a fellow rough rider turned gambler named Luke Matthews (James Coburn), a young kid (Jan-Michael Vincent), and an old man nicknamed "Mister" (Ben Johnson) who doesn't survive the whole ride. It is worth noting that until I watched this movie I hadn't seen a horse racing movie in the form of a western, and not only does the excellent performances from Hackman, Bergen, and Coburn, as well as the excellent script and direction from Richard Brooks qualify it to be one of the best westerns that I have ever seen it is also the best movie about horse racing that I have seen since "Seabiscuit" (2003). The cinematography by Harry Stradling Jr. is beautiful to see with all of the excellent desert shots which were so good that it made me think of many of the old westerns that were directed by the great John Ford. Also with this movie Brooks does an excellent job of letting us get to know each of the characters with really good dialogue for each respective character so that we can share sympathy and empathy for the conditions that they have to deal with while racing every single day, and the set design along with the costumes being expertly designed. This is a movie that is entirely memorable because of the entertainment and everything else that I previously mentioned, but one thing that I didn't mention was the score by the great Alex North which heightens the suspense during the racing scenes in the movie. It is a truly great movie that should be appreciated more than it currently is right now.

Sensational Western excellently acted , marvelously photographed and well screen-written with fine eye by Richard Brooks . It deals with some aging riders as Hackman , Coburn and Ben Johnson who get chance redeem themselves along with a young gunslinger , a Brit lord , a Mexican and an ex-whore . The film was based on a real , endurance race at the turn of the century ; it was inspired by the 1908 , 700-mile cross-country horse race from Evanston , Wyoming to Denver , Colorado. It was sponsored by the Denver Post , which offered $2,500 prize money to the winner . At the beginning of the 20th century, a newspaper organizes a grueling horse race : 700 miles to run in a few days . A bunch of ex-rough riders and a gunfighter enter a horse race in the desert . The motley group of disparate adventurers are competing , among them a woman , ex-prostitute (Candice Bergen) , Miss Jones, a Mexican , an Englishman (Ian Bannen) , a young gunslinger (Jan-Michael Vincent) , an old one (Ben Johnson) and two friends , Sam Clayton (Gene Hackman , though Charles Bronson turned down the leading role) and Luke Matthews (James Coburn) . All those individualists learn to respect for each other and develop a grudging and growing friendship . An overlong and dangerous horse race is the subject of this stunning and grand adventure , an epic in every sense of word . Impressive and breathtaking ending with the finalists terminating the grueling race . Exciting , funny and well acted , especially by Gene Hackman and James Coburn as two tough , two-fisted riders . Special mention to Ben Johnson as a veteran rider in his last feat . Colorfully photographed in Technicolor and Panavison by Harry Stradling Jr in Valley of Fire State Park and its Coyote Pass and Deah Valley (Nevada), Chama, New Mexico , Lake Mead, Taos , Nevada, White Sands National Monument, Alamogordo, New Mexico . Exceptional and thrilling soundtrack by Alex North (Cleopatra, Spartacus) , now a classic score .Directed and screen-played with magnificent style by Richard Brooks . He was a fine writer/director so consistently mixed the good and average which it became impossible to know that to expect from him next . Firstly he worked regularly as a Hollywood screenwriter . After that , his initial experience of directing was one of his own screenplays called ¨Crisis¨. The Richard Brooks films that have the greatest impact are realized during the 50s and 60s as ¨Cat on a hot tin roof¨, ¨Something of value¨ , ¨Elmer Gantry¨, ¨Sweet bird of youth¨, ¨In cold blood¨ , ¨Lord Jim¨. Brooks was a writer and director of Chekhovian depth , who mastered the use of understatement, anticlimax and implied emotion . His films enjoyed lasting appeal and tended to be more serious than the usual mainstream productions . Richards formerly directed another good Western titled ¨The professionals ¨ also with various tough stars as Burt Lancaster , Lee Marvin , Jack Palance and Robert Ryan , including the same musician , Alex North , and similar outdoors . The ¨Bite the bullet¨ is an authentic must see , not to be missed for buffs of the genre . A magnificent movie , hardly noticed for its theatrical release ; however , being nowadays very well considered . Rating : Above average because of its awesome acting , dialog , score are world class.

Much to admire in Bite the Bullet, but the plot, setting, and editing are so ungainly as to undermine the overall cinematic experience.What's right about the film shouldn't be underestimated. Like a lot of 70s films, Bite the Bullet has a conscience. The representations of that conscience may make you wince, but the story treats its characters justly and insightfully. The Hackman character's recurrent decency to animals and humans creates a counter-narrative to all their suffering that bears good fruit as the story develops. The actors are all-star and well-cast--Hackman is in his prime, Coburn is best as a supporting actor, Ian Bannen was among 20c England's most likable talents, Candice Bergen looks like she looks, J-M Vincent shows good movement and range, and Ben Johnson gracefully reprises the old-timer from The Last Picture Show. The dialog and cinematography are often fine enough that individual scenes feel ravishing.Despite all these good vibes, the scenario's too big even for cinema. So many characters, stunt doubles, changes of landscape, and minutes strain attention. In the final plot-turn the soundtrack painfully echoes comedies like The Great Race while the actors go hammy. Suddenly one sees the undisciplined, indulgent, undiscriminating side of the decade. The finish-line scene appropriately comments on the race's inevitable exhaustion, but I had to fight to keep my finger off the fast-forward. Anyone not so devoted might wonder why they spent quite so much time watching or how a director might expect anyone to care about so many many people for so long.

I saw this when it first came out and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Viewed again recently on disc, I can now see the flaws that kept this film off lists of "classic Westerns." The most obvious moment of misjudgment comes in the big chase scene at the end. It's totally misplaced, and probably was intended for the middle of the picture, then delayed to provide more screen time for the female lead. It does not lead well into the finale, and now stands as one of the worst continuity lapses of all time. Worse, there seems to be some sequence that got lost in order for this scene to be placed where it is. At any rate, the ending is mystifying in small details, but enough to leave one feeling oddly unsatisfied.Others have noted the second-rate editing throughout the film; but continuity errors of this sort are the director's responsibility. One feels that the director realized that he had bit off more than he could chew, and rather than put it back on the plate to chop it up into smaller, more manageable pieces, let it sort of drool out between his lips hoping no one would notice.And this story would have worked on a lower budget, with a shorter run time, made in the late 1950s. Admittedly the photography is grand, and there are marvelous set-pieces throughout - but they don't add up to the great Western this story could have been.