Two Mules for Sister Sara (1970)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1970
	Director: Don Siegel (The Beguiled, Dirty Harry, Escape from Alcatraz)
	Actors: Clint Eastwood (Gran Torino, Dirth Harry), Shirley MacLaine (Bruno, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty), Manolo Fábregas
	Country: USA
	Genre: Western
	Conditions of visioning: 17.01.2016, Blu-ray, Home cinema
Synopsis: Only after Hogan (Eastwood) saved Sara (MacLaine) from rape does he find out that she is a nun. He is willing to let her on her way as soon as possible but their paths will not be so easily separated.
Review: I am almost done with watching all the movies from a nice Clint Eastwood Blu-ray box-set that I started with Play Misty for me, and only Breezy is now missing. I am pretty sure I has never seen Two Mules for Sister Sara, not one of the most famous Western with Clint. He plays like very often the lone mercenary with a big heart, and the encounter with the nun makes for some interesting reactions. In this movie I liked the historical background (the French invasion of Mexico which I didn't know of) and the discussions about faith between the mercenary and the nun. I liked the natural and energetic play by Shirley MacLaine, but I found her make-up ridiculous, totally unfitting to the period and to her supposed character, although after watching the end of the movie I had to re-think this remark. Mention has to be made of the quality of the images and of the camera motions, probably thanks to an experienced director Don Siegel. One shot in particular amazed me, when the couple dismount from their horses and they start to walk, the camera follows them by moving backwards, then under a bridge that we see the couple crossing, and finally the camera pans to the left to reveal a town market, the destination. There would have been many ways to shoot this scene much less interestingly. The battle scenes are rather crude (bloody) and realistic. The conclusion is a bit far-fetched. An interesting and slightly original Western.  On a side note, the title is not very clear to me as Sister Sara rides a mule and then a donkey during the movie, but I think the second mule refers to Hogan who is in at least two occurrences compared to the animal for his stubbornness.
Rating: 5 /10