SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

Huievest Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

Aneesa Wardle The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Brooklynn There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

vorkapich Scanning the reviews on IMDB, I don't see that anyone has noted that this is an adaptation of the film version of King Solomon's Mines, which had been a big hit for MGM a few years prior. In tried and true Hollywood tradition, if something works once, then do it again, and Twentieth Century Fox did, turning some good coin.Also tried and (pretty) true is Coop, in his usual Western mode. He's not asked to do anything more. Widmark adds some vinegar to the proceedings in a variation on the cynical character he was often cast in at Fox. But he redeems himself in the end. Mitchell seems too mature to be the guy who gets carried away with a case of the hots for the Hayward character, but he turns in a strong performance. Hayward stays intense in the limited role of the determined woman/femme fatale, but she sometimes seems as if she wished she were on a sound stage, instead of in the rugged Mexican locale where most of the film was made. This is a strikingly scenic film, beautifully filmed - a top-flight production. There are also some striking examples of a Henry Hathaway trademark: rough action. The Mitchell character experiences this is in two instances: one where for some reason he can't keep out of a campfire, the other when he meets his end in a remarkable bit of stunt work. One distracting note, or rather many notes, is the churning, whooping, crashing score by Bernard Herrmann. All of Herrmann's tendencies to extravagant mood-setting are liberally employed. The central trope of the film being the Garden of Evil, the motifs tend to churning dissonance. At times, this viewer was prepared for some prehistoric monster to come around a rock, the score is so like the scores he did for Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Mysterious Island, et al. Whether the producer or Hathaway thought that a Cinemascope film needed a Big Touch, (probably the former), they should have toned it down.All in all, a professionally done bit of diversion from the last phase of the Hollywood studio system; a guilty pleasure if one doesn't overthink the premise and the clichés (Apaches - supposedly savvy fighters - ride headlong into rifle fire and keep getting shot down before they figure out a flanking move, etc.)

ArtChee I have LONG been a GARY COOPER fan. So, I was anxious to watch this film that doesn't show up often on TV. "Disappointment" is my best word to describe my viewing. Cooper is his usual "stand up" man, but minimally so. Richard Widmark is Richard Widmark. Cameron Mitchell is like an actor in a high school play. Hugh Marlow is not much better. The dialogue is a constant bickering about who is telling who what to do. The setting/scenery is exceptional. Especially the mountain cliff with the matt paintings, which are convincing.If you want a REALLY GOOD Gary Cooper western, look up "DALLAS" with Ruth Roman and Raymond Massey. "Garden of Evil" is simply a waste of 2 hours.

weezeralfalfa No wonder we never got more than a fleeting look at the supposed Apaches, lofting arrows into the of a rescue party. The director must have recognized that his movie would be laughed at by anyone with an elementary knowledge of Native Americans. While the fade out provides some hope that the characters played by Gary Cooper and Susan Hayward might find some happiness together, with or without any gold they managed to scavenge, this tale is basically a tragedy. The supposed main purpose of the expedition into hostile Apache territory: to save the life of Susan's husband((John Fuller), injured in a mine shaft cave in, is a failure, due primarily to interference by Apache, rather than to his death before they arrived. The additional goal of bringing out enough gold to, at least, pay the high wages of the rescuers, is left unanswered, as survival in the presence of the Apache became the overriding concern. It would have been nice to add a scene at the end, where Cooper and Susan discuss their future, and show some romantic feeling for each other. Left as was, he aren't even sure if the Apache have given up hope of killing them.....The expedition was also a tragedy for the Apache families of those slain by the expedition , although this is given no consideration.Susan reminisces that the Mexican who gave her a map of this region called it 'The garden of evil', partly because of the Apache, but also partly because a volcanic eruption had covered various previous gold mining operations, killing the miners. Furthermore, as dramatized in this film, the dangers inherent in mining are a significant risk. Fuller knew that he was much slowing down the attempt to leave Apache country alive. Thus, he rode off by himself to await his fate at the hands of the Apache. Interestingly, the Apache tied him upside down on a stone Christian cross, his body shot full of arrows. Perhaps this had a symbolic significance, assuming the Apache were familiar with the significance of the cross as a Christian symbol.Presumably, the ship that brought these 3 adventurers to this backwater village of Puerto Miguel, was primarily a freighter, as we see no hint of other engers being deposited on shore while the engine is repaired. As they were on route to try their luck at finding gold in CA, probably , this was 1849 or 50, very early in the age of steam travel across oceans. Although they claimed they were strangers to each other, it's difficult to imagine that they had not struck up some familiarity on such a long voyage, as the presumed only engers. Once ashore, they were drawn to the cantina where the beautiful Rita Moreno was singing a romantic song. But, they seemed more interested in the American played by Susan, who sauntered in later, looking for a few brave souls to help her get her husband out of harm's way. Only one Mexican signed up: the one who claimed Rita as his girlfriend. Presumably, he wanted to bring back a big paycheck and perhaps some gold with which to impress Rita. As things turned out, the other Mexicans were smart to up the opportunity for riches.There are a number of dialogues of interest, most taking place at the mine. Susan's husband(John) goes on a tirade about how all women are only interested in how much gold(in the broad sense) their husband can bring home to satisfy their fancies. Susan claims she no longer loves John, but is willing to risk her life and that of others to extricate him from his otherwise fatal situation. Perhaps she does this largely out of guilt over bringing him to this evil place to try to strike it rich. This should bring up in our minds the question of how much risk to the lives and property of others is justified in attempting to rescue a person, with the consideration of what are the chances of a successful rescue. Some of us have to make such decisions rather frequently.Filming took place in several Mexican locations. See it in color at YouTube.

William Giesin The "Garden Of Evil" like so many westerns such as "Vera Cruz", "The Violent Men", "Broken Arrow", "Naked Spur","The Tall "T", and "Apache" all share a common bond. They opening credits are highlighted in large "red" letters, and are usually ed by some of the biggest names in Hollywood as well as veteran character actors. In other words, you know from the "get go", if you are a fan of Western films, that you are in for a treat... such is the case with "Garden Of Evil". Gary Cooper (Hooker), no stranger to "buddy films", this time finds a the "so called" buddy in Richard Widmark (Fiske). Similar to Vera Cruz where he teams up with questionable buddy, Burt Lancaster, the audience here is left to sort out the issue as to whether or not the friend is really a friend as they assist a beautiful Susan Hayward (Leah Fuller) in their trek for gold. In spite of it's often times trite dialog such as "If the world was made of gold, men would die for a handful of dirt!", this film succeeds on every level due to a wonderful soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann and the remarkable talent of it's stars to make sense out of gibberish. A stellar cast that includes; Gary Cooper, Susan Hayward, Richard Widmark, Cameron Mitchell and Hugh Marlowe traveling through Indian country leaves the audience pondering the usual, "Who will survive?"