A Time for Killing

A Time for Killing
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Phil Karlson
Roger Corman (uncredited)
Produced by Harry Joe Brown
Screenplay by Halsted Welles
Based on The Southern Blade
1961 novel
by Nelson Wolford
Shirley Wolford
Starring Glenn Ford
George Hamilton
Inger Stevens
Music by Mundell Lowe
Cinematography Kenneth Peach
Edited by Roy V. Livingston
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • 1967 (1967)
Running time
 88 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $2 million[1]

A Time for Killing is a 1967 Western film directed originally by Roger Corman but finished by Phil Karlson. Filmed in Panavision and Pathécolor, it stars Glenn Ford, George Hamilton, Inger Stevens, and Harrison Ford (credited as Harrison J. Ford) in his first credited film role.[2]

Plot

During the Civil War, Confederate soldiers escape from a Union prison and head for the Mexican border. Along the way, they kill a Union courier bearing the news that the war is over. Keeping the message a secret, the captain has his men go on and they soon find themselves in a battle with the Union search party who also is unaware of the war's end.

Cast

Production

Development

The film originally began under the title The Long Ride Home and was to be directed by Roger Corman from a script by Robert Towne. However Corman was replaced by Karlson after several weeks shooting.[3] Once Corman left, his editor Monte Hellman also left the project.[4] Parts of the film were shot in Zion, Glen Canyon, Kanab movie fort, Paria, and the Coral Pink Sand Dunes in Utah. Filming also took place in Old Tucson, Arizona.[5]

Casting

The film was originally offered to Warren Beatty[6] and Cliff Robertson[7] who both turned it down. It was also Harrison Ford's first film with a credited role; despite not having a middle name, he was billed as "Harrison J. Ford" (where the "J" did not stand for anything) to avoid confusion with the silent film actor of the same name.[8]

Soundtrack

The original score of the film was composed by Van Alexander who was given seven weeks to compose 45 minutes of music for the film. He collaborated with Ned Washington for a title song by Eddy Arnold. Though producers Harry Joe Brown, Jonie Taps and Columbia's Mike Frankovich were enthusiastic about Alexander's score, once the film was met with a disastrous reception at a preview it was decided to restore the film with a guitar score by Mundell Lowe.[9] Alexander never composed another score for a feature film.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Beverly Gray, Roger Corman: Blood Sucking Vampires, Flesh Eating Cockroaches and Driller Killers, AZ Ferris 2014 p 65-66
  2. ↑ Duke, Brad. Harrison Ford: The Films. USA: McFarland & Company. ISBN 0-7864-4048-1.
  3. ↑ p. 23 Joyner, C. Courtney Glenn Ford Interview in The Westerners: Interviews with Actors, Directors, Writers and Producers McFarland, October 14, 2009
  4. ↑ p. 95 Albright, Brian Monte Hellman Interview in Wild Beyond Belief!: Interviews with Exploitation Filmmakers of the 1960s and 1970s McFarland, April 9, 2008
  5. ↑ D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874.
  6. ↑ Biskind, Peter Star: The Life and Wild Times of Warren Beatty Simon and Schuster, April 3, 2010
  7. ↑ Desert Sun, Number 254, May 28, 1966
  8. ↑ Arbuckle, Alex. "8 years before 'Star Wars', Harrison Ford struggled in tiny bit parts". Mashable. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
  9. ↑ Alexander, Van & Fratallone, Stephen From Harlem to Hollywood: My Life in Music BearManor Media, August 14, 2015


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