''3 Bad Men'' is a 1926 American silent

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

John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...

. Bob Mastrangelo has called it "One of John Ford's greatest silent epics." The film possibly inspired the title for

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

's 1958 film ''Three Bad Men in a Hidden Fortress'', simply known as ''

The Hidden Fortress is a 1958 Japanese '' jidaigeki'' adventure film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It tells the story of two peasants who agree to escort a man and a woman across enemy lines in return for gold without knowing that he is a general and the woman is a pr ...

'' in the rest of the world.

Plot

A discovery of gold in the Dakotas on Sioux lands in 1877 provokes a gold land rush. Numerous people come to

Custer George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...

for their chance to claim land and possibly gold when the proclamation to explore the lands goes into effect, such as singing cowboy Dan O'Malley, the Carltons, and a group of outlaws headed by "Bull" Stanley. On their way to steal a bunch of horses, the outlaws save Lee Carlton from a different sort of outlaws, who had killed her father. Instead of taking the horses for themselves, the three outlaws decide to head to Custer as her protectors. The town is plagued with corruption and injustice headed by the Sheriff Layne Hunter, who learns where gold is located and wants to find it before the others. Meanwhile, the three "bad men" decide to arrange a marriage for Lee, who soon meets up with Dan. The three outlaws must deal with that unexpected romantic attraction, along with the looming sheriff's gang and the race of wagons for gold. Dan and Lee find love with each other while the outlaws kill each other in a last stand.

Cast

Production

The film was shot over a fifteen-month period in 1925 and 1926. During the filming, three of the actresses involved,

Olive Borden Olive Mary Borden (July 14, 1906 – October 1, 1947) was an American film and stage actress who began her career during the silent film era. She was nicknamed "the Joy Girl", after playing the lead in the 1927 film of that same title. Borden ...

Priscilla Bonner Priscilla Bonner (February 17, 1899 – February 21, 1996) was an American silent film actress who specialized in portraying virginal, innocent heroines. Early years Priscilla Bonner was born in Washington, D.C. on February 17, 1899. Her ...

, and Grace Gordon, became ill with a form of

paratyphoid fever Paratyphoid fever, also known simply as paratyphoid, is a bacterial infection caused by one of the three types of '' Salmonella enterica''. Symptoms usually begin 6–30 days after exposure and are the same as those of typhoid fever. Often, a g ...

, and had to be taken to the hospital. The shooting locations for the film included: * Desert outside of

Victorville, California Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810. History In 1858, Aaron G. Lane came to what is now known as Victorville and founded a waystation called "Lane's Cr ...

* The vicinity of Jackson Hole, Wyoming

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:3 Bad Men 1926 films 1926 Western (genre) films American black-and-white films Films directed by John Ford Fox Film films Films shot in California Films shot in Wyoming Silent American Western (genre) films 1920s American films 1920s English-language films