''Garden of Evil'' is a 1954 American CinemaScope

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film directed by

Henry Hathaway Henry Hathaway (March 13, 1898 – February 11, 1985) was an American film director and producer. He is best known as a director of Westerns, especially starring Randolph Scott and John Wayne. He directed Gary Cooper in seven films. Backgrou ...

, about three somewhat disreputable 19th-century soldiers of fortune, played by

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, ...

as an ex-lawman,

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, ''Kiss of Death'' (1947) ...

as a gambler, and Cameron Mitchell as a

bounty hunter A bounty hunter is a private agent working for bail bonds who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty. The occupation, officially known as bail enforcement agent, or fugitive recovery agent, has traditionally operated outsid ...

, who are randomly hired by a woman, portrayed by Susan Hayward, to rescue her husband (

Hugh Marlowe Hugh Marlowe (born Hugh Herbert Hipple; January 30, 1911May 2, 1982) was an American film, television, stage and radio actor. Early life Marlowe was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born Hugh Herbert Hipple. He was of primarily Engli ...

). Rita Moreno appears at the beginning of the film as a Mexican cantina singer/dancer.

Plot

When their steamship for California experiences engine trouble, three American adventurers find themselves stranded in a Mexican fishing village. While they discuss their options in a local saloon, enter Leah Fuller, whose husband John is trapped in a distant gold mine. She needs help to rescue him. Noticing the Americans, she offers them $2,000 each, tossing a bag of coins on their table. Her gesture attracts the attention of another saloon customer, Vicente, who accepts her deal. The Americans -- an ex-sheriff, a gambler, and an upstart-kid bounty hunter -- sign on as well. During the harrowing journey inland, Leah informs the ex-lawman, Hooker, that the site where her husband is trapped was once a boom town, but a volcanic eruption wiped it out, leaving only a church steeple and a gold mine uncovered by lava. The resident priest called it the "garden of evil". The Indians now consider the volcano sacred. When the group arrives at the mine, they discover John unconscious but alive. They work to free him before the ceiling collapses further, then transport him to a nearby cabin where Hooker sets his broken leg. With hostile Apaches nearby, the group quickly prepares to leave, but during the return journey, the bounty hunter is killed by an arrow in the back. At a burnt-out mission, Leah's husband is found dead, hung upside down on a cross. Vicente falls next, the victim of multiple arrows. Later, the three survivors reach a choke point in the cliff-hugging path, the only way out. Hooker and the gambler, Fiske, draw cards to see which of them will stay behind to hold off the Indians while the other rides with Leah to safety. Fiske "wins" and succeeds in killing or driving off most of their pursuers before he is mortally wounded. After seeing that Leah is safe, Hooker returns to aid a dying Fiske, who admits he cheated on the card draw to guarantee he would stay behind. Fiske urges Hooker to settle down with Leah. Hooker returns to Leah, and they ride off into the sunset.

Cast

as Hooker * Susan Hayward as Leah Fuller *

as Fiske *

as John Fuller * Cameron Mitchell as Luke Daly * Rita Moreno as Cantina singer * Víctor Manuel Mendoza as Vicente Madariaga

Production

The working title for the film was ''Volcano'', it was changed because "there is an Italian pic of same title now playing U.S. art houses", a 1950 film directed by

William Dieterle William Dieterle (July 15, 1893 – December 9, 1972) was a German-born actor and film director who emigrated to the United States in 1930 to leave a worsening political situation. He worked in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood primarily a ...

and starring

Rossano Brazzi Rossano Brazzi (18 September 1916 – 24 December 1994) was an Italian actor. Biography Brazzi was born in Bologna, Italy, the son of Maria Ghedini and Adelmo Brazzi, an employee of the Rizzoli shoe factory. He was named after Rossano Ve ...

and

Anna Magnani Anna Maria Magnani (; 7 March 1908 – 26 September 1973) was an Italian actress.Obituary ''Variety'', 3 October 1973, pg. 47 She was known for her explosive acting and earthy, realistic portrayals of characters. Born in Rome, she worked her ...

. Robert L. Jacks was originally set to produce, but he left 20th Century-Fox to join Panoramic Productions and was replaced by Charles Brackett. Outdoor sequences were shot on location in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, at "the colonial town" of

Tepotzotlán Tepotzotlán () is a city and a municipality in the Mexico, Mexican state of Mexico. It is located northeast of Mexico City about a 45-minute drive along the Mexico City-Querétaro at marker number 41. In Aztec times, the area was the center o ...

, in the jungle areas near Acapulco,

Parícutin Parícutin (or Volcán de Parícutin, also accented Paricutín) is a cinder cone volcano located in the Mexican state of Michoacán, near the city of Uruapan and about west of Mexico City. The volcano surged suddenly from the cornfield of loca ...

volcano with the church ruin of Nuevo San Juan Parangaricutiro, and the village of Guanajuato with the then-unrestored church ruins of Templo Santiago Apóstol, Marfil. Interior scenes were also shot at the Churubusco Studios in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

Reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' reviewer wrote, "Although the story and its fireworks are interesting, they are dwarfed by the rugged mountains and lush coconut and banana-tree jungles of the film's natural settings." In his 1988 book, ''The American West in Film: Critical Approaches to the Western'', author Jon Tuska observed the American characters in ''Garden of Evil'' are "stalked on the way to the mine by Apaches wearing Mohawk hairpieces." Tuska was referencing one of the filmmakers' gaffes—dressing Apache tribe members as Mohawks. According to author Josephine Paterek, Apaches generally "wore the hair long and flowing or in two braids." This was sometimes augmented with a war cap consisting of "fur and curved antelope horns." Mohawk and

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

tribes, those located in the northeastern U. S., almost exclusively, "shaved off all the hair except for the scalplock at the back", adorned with "a roach spreader of bone holding erect a feather that rotated freely..."Patarek, Josephine etc., p. 56. Mohawk hairstyles, however, were virtually nonexistent among Native-Americans in the Southwest.

References

External links