Rampage at Apache Wells (1966)

WINNETOU & THE OIL PRINCE is one of the later German-made Winnetou westerns, lacking the presence of former Tarzan Lex Barker but featuring Stewart Granger who gives a fine, relaxed, and likable performance as Old Surehand. The plot concerns a ruthless oil baron busy going about oppressing the Indian tribes, at which point Surehand and Winnetou step in to sort him about. This is a colourful, fast-paced and exciting little film with lots of action and charisma to see it through.

This is my second Winnetou Western and unfortunately, it doesn't whet one's appetite for more in the series. Pierre Brice seemed more authentic as an Indian in this film compared to "Winnetou and Old Firehand", but then again, we're talking about a Frenchman portraying an Apache Chief. I saw this picture under the title "Rampage at Apache Wells" and that's a bit of a misnomer as well. There was one Indian attack that caused some damage but it was over pretty quickly. Try as they might, I didn't really get a sense of the blood brother connection between Winnetou and Old Surehand, Stewart Granger. In his early fifties, Granger didn't look like the rugged Western type to be pulling off a role like this. The plot of the story seemed reasonable enough, settlers heading to Shelly Lake are encouraged by a promise of free land from the Utahs in exchange for a share of the grain and meat they intend to produce. When a slick shyster going by the name of The Oil Prince (Harald Leipnitz) instigates the Indian tribe against the settlers, the opposing sides have a falling out until Surehand can expose the outlaw and his henchman Knife (Slobodan Dimitrijevic). It all plays out in expected fashion with little in the way of suspense, in a cautionary tale that warns me to stay away from Westerns in which the principal players go by the names of Pierre, Slobodan, Harald and Milan.

I must admit I am not really a fan of foreign westerns- and as an American- why should I be!? ..but this one really takes the cake- I could not even finish watching this rotten tomato...totally fake voices, poor audio dubbing, actors that are the fakest excuse for Indians I have ever seen..an almost blatant disregard for a coherent plot..constant injections of idiotic scenes which have little or nothing to do with the story...lousy script, terrible actors..just FAKE, FAKE , FAKE in every respect...how I made it through an entire hour I do not know..How in the world these other people can give this movie a good review is beyond me- but it just goes to show that the vast majority of these reviews are from people who would not know a good movie if it walked up behind them and bit them in the gluteus maximus

RAMPAGE AT APACHE WELLS played theatrically in the US and used to get a lot of TV play as late as 1991. Its popularity is not hard to understand. Like all of the German-made westerns from the "winnetou" cycle, based on the literary works of Karl May (this one from his novel The Oil Prince, which IS available in an in-print English translation for those so inclined), this is well-mounted, beautifully photographed, beautifully scored, and well-acted. As I remember, Lex Barker made SIX films in the role of Old Shatterhand, Stewart Granger made two in the role of Old Surehand, and Rod Cameron made one in the role of Old Firehand (and I have not seen the latter...). As rugged and manly as Barker was, Granger also does well with the role, bringing his own unique humor and elegance to the character. If only he had made more of these! One surprising appearance here is Terence Hill (under his real name, Mario Girotti) as a complex, not-really-admirable character who grows throughout the film and sees the error of his ways. Hill plays the snivelling role convincingly, and he will be a surprise to those who only know his later heroic and comedy roles. Another interesting aspect of this film (more evident in the novels than in most of the films) is the details about German immigrants in America. As I live in South Texas, I live near some of the German settlements of the 1800s and have learned about the history of Germans in Texas-- it's interesting to see particularly German qualities in some of the settlers instead of just making them generic Anglo settlers. Of course, I don't go to films like this (or any film) for detailed history, but the particularity has a interesting flavor to it. The late Stewart Granger was a man with real star quality, with a charm and wit and elegance that is seen in every frame. While he camps it up in some of his European work of the 1960s (although always in an entertaining manner!), he certainly took the role of Old Surehand seriously. He is a nice mesh with Pierre Brice's warm but stoic interpretation of the Winnetou character. The film also has a full array of colorful supporting characters. Overall, while this may not have the depth or philosophical profundity of the finest Italian Westerns, it is a satisfying, impressively mounted Western that fires on all cylinders and deserves wider fame.