I liked this movie so much after I saw it when it was first released, that I named the next dawg I got, a little caca-poo,
"ZACHARIAH!" 
I had never seen a surreal musical western before "ZACHARIAH," and not only did it have, as seen here, the James Gang in it, it also starred one of the best bands of all time, Country Joe and the Fish!
On the left is Don (Miami Vice) Johnson as Matthew, and on the right is John Rubenstein as Zachariah, best buddies about to go on the adventure of their life! Both Don and John are still actively working today and have works in production! No musical slouch, John Rubenstein is also a singer, and has composed the music for a quite a few movies himself, like "The Candidate" and "Kid Blue!"
Here's Country Joe McDonald as the leader of bad-guy gang, The Crackers. How can you not love a movie that just takes it for granted that there were rock bands and electricity in the 1800's? What a beautiful concept! Country Joe and the Fish released their first LP in 1967, and it was called "Electric Music For Mind And Body" and is arguably one of the most psychedelic albums ever! How is it even possible that they are not in The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame? But then of course, you could say the same thing about Link Wray or Steve Miller!! Abba is in the Hall of Fame, and Guns and Roses is in there, but not Country Joe and the Fish, what a travesty of justice!
This is Barry Melton, amazing guitarist and sometimes vocalist for The Fish!
Much to the chagrin of nice guys all over the world, even back in the olde west it was true that the chicks dug the bad boys!
Chicken Hirsch and David Cohen were the original drummer and keyboard player for The Fish, but by the time this movie was made, they had been replaced by Duke Dewey and Mark Kapner!
"ZACHARIAH" is a film about trials and tribulations and is based on the book "Siddhartha" by Herman Hesse! At the beginning of the movie Zachariah has just gotten himself a shiny new pistol, and he and Matthew set off to make something of themselves, and the first thing they do is join up with The Crackers!
The boys devise a plan where they go into a new town, and The Crackers set up and start playing on one end of town, and while all the town folk are distracted, Zachariah and Matthew rob the bank on the other side of town!
Joe Massot wrote the main script, but all the jokes and one liners were written by our favourite band of zanies, The Firesign Theatre. The four members of The Firesign Theatre were Phillip Austin, Phil Proctor, David Ossman, and seen here in a small role as the bank teller is Peter Bergman, who I'm saddened to say, just passed away a couple of months ago on February 9th. R.I.P. Peter, we're sure gonna miss you!!
"ZACHARIAH" is a cornucopia of musical talent that you'll never see in one place again. The Ragin' Cajun Doug Kershaw has the role of 'The Fiddler,' and performs a manic version of a song also written by him, the "Ballad Of Job Cain!"
Job Cain is the baddest gunfighter in the West, and Zachariah thinks he's the one who can take him down, even though 'The Fiddler' told him that "20 man tried, and 20 men died, and you've killed only one!" When Zach and Matthew arrive at the lair of Job Cain, the house band is ironically enough, the James Gang!
Joining Joe Walsh on guitar were drummer Jim Foxx, and bassist Tom Kriss! After Joe Walsh left the band in 1971, he was replaced for a while by the fantastic Domenic Troiano, who two years later was replaced by the brilliant but troubled Tommy Bolin! The two awesome songs the James Gang perform are "Country Fever," and "Laguna Salada!"
Here he is, the man himself, one of the most dynamic drummers in the world, Elvin Jones, as Job Cain!
Elvin Jones played the traps with John Coltrane for six years, and recorded with the quartet one of the most beautiful jazz records ever put to vinyl titled "A Love Supreme!" Elvin also performed with other legends Charles Mingus, and Miles Davis. He also played with his two talented brothers, Hank, and Thad Jones!
After polishing off some nitwit in a showdown, Job Cain takes over from Jim Foxx and plays a powerful drum solo that just accentuates how bad he really is!
Zachariah wasn't ready to take on Job Cain just yet, and Zach and Matthew have a parting of the ways, and Zachariah heads off to Belle Starr's to become a man!
Talk about your cult musicals, Patricia Quinn who has the role of Belle Starr, was also Alice, in Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant!" The music at Belle Starr's joint is a song called "Grave Digger" and is provided by yet another great but mostly unheralded band, The New York Rock & Roll Ensemble! Before he passed away in 2002, Ensemble keyboard player Mark Kamen founded the now legendary Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation!!
Two round pegs in square holes were the duo of Byard Ray and Obray Ramsey from North Carolina who performed as White Lightnin'. Their musical contributions to "ZACHARIAH" were two great tunes called "Shy Ann" and "Down In The Willow Garden." They recorded at least two LP's, "Fresh Air" which was fairly traditional material, and "File Under Rock!" that features an odd amalgam of musicians including bassist extraordinaire Chuck Rainey and jazz trumpeter Jimmy Owens among others!
I well imagine that you're familiar with the expression "to ride off into the sunset," well, what kind of ending were you really expecting? Do something nice for yourself, you can get the movie from Netflix, or buy the soundtrack from Amazon, either way you can't go wrong!
"Stolen Face" was produced by Hammer Studios the year before "Four Sided Triangle," a movie with a similar motive! In "Four Sided Triangle" a scientist duplicates his best friend's girl who he also loves, in "Stolen Face" a Doctor duplicates just the face of the woman he has been denied! Ironically, Sir Malcolm Arnold composed the music for both films!
Here's the Doctor driven mad with love, Paul Henreid as plastic surgeon Dr. Philip Ritter. Of course Paul will always be remembered for his role as Victor Laszlo in "Casablanca!" Paul also directed a lot of TV westerns in the 60's, and sometimes looks a lot like Richard Crenna!
This would be Mary Mackenzie as petty thief Lily Conover, a self-pitying convict in need of a boost of self-confidence only a plastic surgeon could bring her! Mary's career was cut short by a car accident at the age of 44!
Speakin' of freakin' car accidents, the Doc falls asleep at the wheel on the way back from the prison, and it's determined he needs a break!
So he heads off to the country for a few nights stay at the world famous "Dog And Duck!"
So's how's a Doctor supposed to relax in 1952? Well, with a cigarette and a bottle of Johnny Walker Red, what else? Smoking was so common back in the day, people would even be smoking at breakfast!
When the Doctor hears the person in the next room coughing, he decides he had better go check it out. Too bad, he doesn't have his stethoscope handy, he'll just have to listen to her chest the good olde-fashioned way!! Her name is Alice Brent, and she's played by Lizabeth Scott!
The British Doctor and the American concert pianist hit it off pretty good, both stay a couple of extra days, and since it's 1952, you can only assume they would, as T-Rex would sing years later, "go all the way!" They even go to a local pub, where she gets to show off her vast array of "musical skills", but then suddenly she leaves his life just as fast as she entered it, because it seems she's already engaged to be married! Okay, so it's not really that exciting yet, but...
Lost and alone again, the Doctor decides he can kill two birds with one stone, when he makes the decision to give Lily Conover the face of Alice Brent!
To make things right Dr. Ritter marries Lily after all the surgeries are completed, and he is one happy camper, except at this point, a minion of olde adages apply, like beauty is only skin deep, or you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink, or as Bo Diddley would so succinctly announce, you can't judge a book by lookin' at the cover!!!
Lizabeth Scott does a fantastic job in both roles, taking on two personalities with ease! There were no real monsters in Lizzie's career, but she was in "Scared Stiff" with Martin and Lewis, and co-starred with Elvis in the 1957 feature "Loving You!" Also before Hollywood she toured with the "Hellzapoppin'" road show! Born Emma Matso, Lizabeth will turn 90 this year!
Lily talks the Doc out of watching the boring opera, and they head on over to one of her old hangouts, and the joint is jumpin'! Two thirds of his time on screen, the Doctor is smoking!
The one downturn in the whole film is that this is the worst shot I've ever seen of any band ever, but the good thing is, Sir Malcolm's music is swinging! It's funny to me that when Hammer went from film noir to horror, the music went from swingin' to very serious and orchestrated. It's hard to imagine what the soundtrack from "Horror Of Dracula" or "Curse Of Frankenstein" would have sounded like if the music had been created by somebody like Peter Thomas!
Lily has no wants, but she has needs! The Doctor would buy her anything she wants, but just like any addict, she can't stop stealing! She didn't exactly buy that broach on her throat, and she's proud of it!
Alice, in the meantime, has been on the road, wowing the public, and coming to the conclusion that she doesn't love her devoted traveling partner, and fiancee any longer, and seeks out Dr. Ritter. When she sees the picture of who looks like her on his desk, he spills the beans on the whole lowdown of what he's done, and what a loser he is, and what a loser his wife is too!
Doing his best impersonation of Godzilla, the good Doctor takes crap from Lily one last time!
Let's just say the two women finally meet face to face on a train, there's a catfight, and in film noir terms, there is a happy ending for some of the characters, almost, kind of, depending on how you look at it!
