Bite the Bullet (1975)

In 1908, newspaperman J. B. Parker is hosting an endurance race through the Southwest United States.  Of course, he expects his horse to win the race.  There are fewer than 10 competitors.  There is the mostly anonymous rider of Parker's thoroughbred, a Civil War veteran (Ben Johnson), Miss Jones (Candace Bergen), an Englishmen (Ian Bannen), a young firebrand (Jan-Michael Vincent), a Mexican (Mario Arteaga), and a pair of Rough Riders: Luke Matthews (James Coburn) and Sam Clayton (Gene Hackman).  The race will take place over a week and see the riders cross 700 miles of grueling territory.  Along the way, the riders must face a variety of hazards, both minor (toothache) and major (bandits).  Speaking of the toothache, in order to treat it, an old remedy was to take a bullet casing and use it as a makeshift crown, thus biting the bullet.  Interesting, but did that event deserve to be titular?

Despite being the central theme of the movie, the workings of the race were inexplicable.  Since they stop each day, one expects that each is trying to get the best time for the day.  Nope.  Whenever two riders are close to each other, both kick to a gallop so as to get into the lead.  Huh?  They don't leave all at the same time and rarely arrive at the same time.  By the end, it looks like it was just a matter of surviving.  The only leg that really mattered was the last one, and the first one through the gate won.  Really?

These people don't know horses.  Horses do not gallop or even trot for extended periods.  Horses mostly walk.  Thanks to their size, a horse at a walk is a lot faster than a human at a walk.  Also, it is less tiring for the human.  This movie gave the impression these horses galloped 700 miles.  No.  Not how this works.  This misconception was so distracting as to ruin the film.

During the side quest to recapture their horses from escaped prisoners, the prisoners actions made no sense.  You are all armed and you outnumber your pursuers.  Why are you riding away.  Stop and shoot them.  Heck, the very people pursuing you could have just killed when you stole their horses.  It was just ludicrous.  Though this entire disaster was engineered by Miss Jones to rescue her imprisoned husband, she had a sudden change of heart and let the Rough Riders shoot him.  Of course, she just rides away without consequences.  Sigh.

For a movie that is jampacked with great actors, the results are subpar.  Why did Sam rant about how wrong it was to push a horse near to death in an endurance race only to then join the race and push his horse near to death?  Really?

Skip.

The Wind and the Lion (1975)

It is 1904 when a band of Berbers ride into Tangier, Morocco, and kidnap Eden Pedicaris (Candice Bergen) and her two children.  The leader of the kidnappers is Raisuli (Sean Connery), the brother of the Bashaw and the uncle of the Sultan.  News of the kidnapping reaches President Roosevelt (Brian Keith) and he demands "Pedicaris alive or Raisuli dead!"  While Eden and her children are 'guests' of Raisuli, the American ambassador attempts diplomacy with the Bashaw, who claims powerlessness.  Next, he bribes the Sultan with a pair of lions.  The Sultan likewise claims powerlessness.  It is clear that the European powers are courting the Sultan, making American efforts to recover Pedicaris difficult.  Roosevelt calls for gunboat diplomacy and soon several American warships and two companies of Marines arrive in Tangier.

The portrayal of Theodore Roosevelt is outstanding.  Though each scene advances the story, it also details the character of Roosevelt.  The change in setting is glorious: archery range, campaign whistle stop, Yellowstone hunting camp, boxing, shooting range, and the White House.  Keith is outstanding in the role and I have always wished he had another opportunity to play TR.  Of course, Milius must have felt the same as he cast Keith in his next TR movie, Rough Riders, but as President William McKinley.

Sean Connery is an unusual choice for a Berber.  According to IMDb, efforts to teach him an Arab accent were abandoned after 3 days.  Oddly enough, he was cast as an Arab in The Next Man the following year.  Nonetheless, he is quite entertaining in the role and has good chemistry with Candice Bergen.

As for historical accuracy, it drifts further and further from the truth as the movie progresses.  Pedicaris - which should be Perdicaris - was an American expat in his mid-60s.  His stepson, who was in his 40s, was kidnapped with him.  Kidnapped in mid-May, they were released by the end of June.  By contrast, the movie takes place in October 1904 to allow the kidnapping to be a campaign issue for Teddy's re-election campaign.  Though American warships arrived at Tangier, the Marines did not capture the Bashaw's palace.  This was a case of speaking softly and carrying a big stick.  Likewise, the Marines did not have a battle with Germans outside Rabat.  However, it does an excellent job in depicting Roosevelt.  As for Raisuli, the movie implies that he lost everything from the incident, but in fact he won many concessions, including a governorship and the release of many of his imprisoned followers.

Very entertaining and recommended.