Rating: 
Summary: We make a good team
Review: In an inspired bit of casting, sexy and effervescent Shirley MacLaine is cast against tough and laconic Clint Eastwood. The result is a frothy little frontier romance that is two-thirds wonderful. The last third, when TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARA returns to its action roots and involves us in a long rebels versus the establishment battle scene, is more an intrusion than a culmination. I would have liked twenty more minutes of Eastwood-MacLaine and hang the rotten French colonial garrison.
This is a funny and straight-forward love story that bears comparison to the best teamings in action history; TWO MULES doesn't embarrass itself when set against any of the John Wayne-Maureen O'Hara films, which is about as high praise as I'm capable of.
My favorite element - throughout the movie MacLaine rides the smallest mount I've ever seen. The burro she's saddled to is shorter than many domestic dogs, although both rider and mount maintain as much dignity as the circumstance allows.
Rating: 
Summary: A mixture
Review: 'Days of Heaven' has one of Morricones most haunting soundtracks which complements the movie's vast visual presence and doom ridden narrative. Its combination with a lightweight western comedy sountrack on this CD soundtrack is incongruous - thank goodness for programmable CD players!
Rating: 
Summary: The overlooked 4th Spaghetti :Two Mules for Sister Sara !
Review: ** Make sure you don't miss this one! It's the 4th (and final) Man with no name movie* It's got a great feel, and I get the impression that a lot of people have overlooked it. The fact that it was made in 1969 makes it easy to miss. (It's too bad that new movies are shoved in the spotlight on the movie shelves when some great diamonds like this one are hiding on the back shelves.)
This was made shortly after his first three (now legendary) westerns as 'the man with no name'. In this one, his name is Hogan, and it's all shot on location in Mexico. There is a romantic element in this one, which is a great development in the series. You can buy the 'For a few Dollars More, Fistful.. and Good, Bad.. ' in a Three pack set or individually. They even took the care to restore old footage that was cut out of the Few dollars more movie, which is just fantastic, but I wish they would put this one on DVD also. This movie isn't even in the stores on VHS! it's strange. I read that this movie didn't make the same kind of money that the others did, so it could be that they don't think it will sell. I would buy it if they made it available. I read that because of the romantic element some people didn't see it when it was originally released, but I enjoyed seeing that. It's a great movie. It's got all the great elements that make this a unique movie and a good 4th movie in the Spaghetti tradition. It really surprises me that they have ignored this movie by now making it available at the stores. (You can order it). I have to correct one of the other reviewers because they said that Shirley was' determined to [get to where she was going] with or without Eastwood.' That's not true. She does everything possible to stay by his side for safety! Despite the fact that there is a romatic interest, Eastwood refuses to let her use his extra horse, tells her they are 'parting company' and she has to scramble to keep up with him! He even tells her 'you either keep up or you don't.'
Rating:
Summary: Music from Heaven...
Review: As one of the many people in the U.S. who engaged in a letter writing campaign to the film company, begging them to release a soundtrack recording for this movie, I can assure the previous reviewer that it wasn't available in the States when the movie was released. I can't speak for Canada, but as one of the people lucky enough to see the movie at it's New York Premier, and having seen it many times after that just to bask in the music and magnificent visuals again and again, I can tell you there was no soundtrack available when it first came out. The initial response we received to our letters was that a soundtrack wasn't planned at that time. It came out several months (nearly a year) after the initial release of the movie.That aside, it is a dreadful shame that the entire soundtrack to Days of Heaven is not available by itself, as this recording is missing several essential pieces in the original LP soundtrack recording. The fact that this CD version hasn't been available for awhile, and used copies are nearly eighty dollars as of March 2004, tells me this soundtrack desperately needs to be re-released! If you ever find this one at an affordable price, buy it immediately-this is gorgeous music...
Rating: 
Summary: Too much Sara, not enough Heaven.
Review: Being a fan of Ennio Morricone, I was surprised to hear how boring the music for "Two Mules for Sister Sara"was. Compared to his other soundtracks, it pales. "Days of Heaven" on the other hand is absolutely gorgeous, but be warned, "Days of Heaven" is not the same entire soundtrack that was released on LP in 1978. The beautiful opening song, (I'm not sure of its title) is not on the CD, nor is the slide guitar music on the disc either. I could have lived with the "Sara" music if "Days of Heaven" was complete, but it's not, and that's what makes the combination so disappointing.
Rating:
Summary: TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE
Review: DAYS OF HEAVEN was once a film without a released soundtrack though many fans had begged for one. Finally one was released and it was nominated for a Grammy Award to boot. This is a very different Morricone than most people will encouter if all they've heard is his music for the spaghetti westerns. It has a haunting, nostalgic feel to it, and goes for lighter orchestrations than the usual Morricone score. He doesn't always score the most obvious scenes and that makes for a different feel to the picture, but when he does score a scene, you do not forget the images it accompanies. A brief note, the CD contins a cue that is not in the film, and a couple pieces from the CD are shortened in the film, especially THRESHING, one of my favorite cues. As to TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARA. I did not think it was a lightweight incongruous western. It fit right in with Eastwood's DOLLAR films, though it's more American due to the director DON SIEGEL (INVASTION OF TH BODY SNATCHERS, DIRTY HARRY, etc.) Perhaps it's Morricone's sense of humor that doesn't allow his score to become too serious; his score seems to play off the fact that Shirley MacLaine's Sister Sara realy isn't a nun but someone of a less-than-sacred profession, and the music reflects her playfulness and ribaldness. One note: there is one cut on the CD that is not in the film. Instead of it, they could've put on the attack by the Indians, or Sara's climb to the top of the train bridge. These two scores show Morricone's range and are a welcome addition to any Morricone collection.
Rating:
Summary: Should have been better.
Review: For nearly 80 minutes, Two Mules for Sister Sara is an enjoyable and decent Comedy/Western that is ruined by a plot twist that pretty much negates the interesting development of all that came before it. It's almost as if though director Don Siegel and the screenwriter wanted to take the easy way out. Then, there's the climax, which features a violent and long battle sequence that is actually very impressively choreographed. So, why would I complain about it? Probably because it feels quite out of tone with the material before it. It's more like a sequence I would expect from one of Clint Eastwood's more bleak Westerns, like his Spaghetti trilogy. Still, this sequence isn't anywhere as much a betrayal to the film as the "twist." As for the performances, both Eastwood and Shirly MacLaine are good. Eastwood is as enjoyable to watch as ever and gets some good laughs.
Rating:
Summary: Must have for Eastwood fans.. and the women will like it too
Review: Glad everyone seems to get a kick out of the music here but no offence.... I bought the DVD to watch a movie. Been waiting for this one to come to DVD for years. Fantastic Movie! Is funny, has action, and an interesting sexual tension between Eastwood and his leading lady. A good story with a twist at the end to wrap it all up!
Rating:
Summary: Must have for Eastwood fans.. and the women will like it too
Review: Glad everyone seems to get a kick out of the music here but no offence.... I bought the DVD to watch a movie. Been waiting for this one to come to DVD for years. Fantastic Movie! Is funny, has action, and an interesting sexual tension between Eastwood and his leading lady. A good story with a twist at the end to wrap it all up!
Rating:
Summary: DVD contains 9 minutes more footage than the VHS version
Review: I compared both VHS and DVD and they trimmed out tons of scenes here and there for a total of 9 minutes cut on the VHS version. why did they trim those before? Some of the cut scenes include Sara and Hogan traveling, and some are scenes like in the saloon, and in the hideout with the rebels.
Also the DVD picture shows much more from side to side and a lot more on the top and bottom compared to the VHS version fans of the movie have had to live with for years. The quality of the picture is fantastic. This is probably the best improvement over VHS I have seen.
They also changed the cover from the old VHS version! It still looks great on the DVD, but the old VHS version showed the Mexicans and French fighting! why did they remove that? This is an action type western movie. If you see the cover it almost looks like it might be a romance movie. They should not have changed the cover.
There are a few times when Hogan shoves Sister Sara over a wall or into a tree by placing his hand on her rear, and she emits a female 'oooh!' They removed all those sounds and replaced them with grunting. I guess they thought that was objectionable, but it's amusing the way it was and they should have left it alone. The menu also has this annoying music playing also. Why did they pick that music? They should have used some of the music from the movie. However, a great film and an excellent transfer to DVD.
|
