The Last Rebel

The Last Rebel (1971)

Runtime: 90 minutes

Directed by: Denys McCoy

Starring: Joe Namath, Jack Elam, Woody Strode, Ty Hardin

From: Several different defunct companies

Sometimes I do enjoy watching rather obscure films, as sometimes they could actually be hidden gems. This was more like a lump of coal that no one should see, but it's not always that bad. The Letterboxd review is below.

This super obscure (at least here; I am only the second person to even give this a rating) American Western-but filmed in Italy-was a last minute watch. It was on cable and I was interested by its cast. It had familiar faces Jack Elam and Woody Strode but the lead was none other than Joe Namath. As people worldwide are part of this site, Namath was a famous American football quarterback of the 60's and early 70's who had (actually, still has) a loud showboat personality so it's no surprise he tried acting, even though he wasn't too spectacular at it.

I heard this was pretty bad and it was. It's just a not too interesting story poorly told; unfortunately it's too confused too often. I'll just say it's about a pair of Confederate soldiers right after the Civil War ends. While Namath's character isn't prejudiced, Elam's character is. You do hear the N word a number of times, which made me wish there was a Django Unchained-like movie back in the past and Strode would have been the lead. Maybe that would have been pretty awesome. Anyhow, a large sum of cash is involved and yeah... like I said it's just poorly told.

The only other thing I feel like saying about this deservedly forgotten motion picture is that on its own I suppose the oddball rockin' music that's the score is alright; in the movie it comes off as loud and obtrusive.