Vergeltung ohne Gnade (1960)

Vergeltung ohne Gnade: Directed by James B. Clark. With Alan Ladd, Don Murray, Dan O’Herlihy, Dolores Michaels. In this Western, Alan Ladd exacts revenge on a small town the best way he knows how — by becoming sheriff.

“When on form, and even better at its best, u0026#39;Criminal Mindsu0026#39; is one of my most watched and most re-watched shows and is a personal favourite. It is nowhere near as good now, but there are still good to great episodes made every now and then when the show doesnu0026#39;t forget what itu0026#39;s about, but Seasons 1-5 was its prime period.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWith u0026#39;Criminal Mindsu0026#39;, some seasons are better than others and every season has a mixture of outstanding, great, very good, good, average, mediocre and bad episodes. This said, lesser episodes of Seasons 1-4 (with possible exception of u0026quot;Machismou0026quot;) are better than the lesser episodes of Season 6 onward. Season 9 generally is one of the weakest u0026#39;Criminal Mindsu0026#39; seasons, and due to a wider divide between the best and worst episodes one of the showu0026#39;s most inconsistent.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere are some good/great episodes like u0026quot;Gabbyu0026quot;, u0026quot;The Calleru0026quot;, u0026quot;Angelsu0026quot;/u0026quot;Demonsu0026quot;, and also underwhelming ones such as u0026quot;Mr and Mrs Andersonu0026quot;, u0026quot;The Inspirationu0026quot; (the showu0026#39;s worst season premiere)/u0026quot;The Inspiredu0026quot; and two of the showu0026#39;s low-points u0026quot;200u0026quot; and u0026quot;The Black Queenu0026quot;. u0026quot;The Road Homeu0026quot; is neither among the best or worst. It is a decent episode but also was left wanting, notable for being the u0026#39;Criminal Mindsu0026#39; directorial debut of Joe Mantegna. Generally he does a good job, though itu0026#39;s nowhere near the directorial debuts of Matthew Gray Gubler (u0026quot;Mosley Laneu0026quot;) and Thomas Gibson (u0026quot;All That Remainsu0026quot;), mostly exceptional episodes and among the best of their respective seasons where one canu0026#39;t believe that they had not directed a u0026#39;Criminal Mindsu0026#39; episode before.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eVisually, the production values in u0026quot;The Road Homeu0026quot; are without complaint. Itu0026#39;s very well shot and lit and is overall stylish, gritty, classy and atmospheric. The music is moody in the haunting and melancholic sense and fits well, without either enhancing or distracting from the atmosphere. The direction keeps the momentum going but lets the case breathe, Mantegna as said does fare well. The script has some very thought-provoking and often leaves one surprised and shocked.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTeam interaction is delightful, like the strong assertiveness of Reid at the end and Rossi and Hotchu0026#39;s bond, and the profiling is cohesive, doesnu0026#39;t feel underused and doesnu0026#39;t have as much baseless conclusion jumping as too many Season 6 onwards episodes. There are a few twists and turns, there are some moving moments in the Rossi subplot thanks to the heartfelt and beautifully played chemistry between Rossi and Harrison and there is some tension and suspense.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePerformances are very good from the regulars, particularly from Mantegna, while John Gries is genuinely frightening in a subtle way and Meshash Taylor plays Harrison beautifully.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHowever, the case does feel rather predictable with some derivative elements, and let down by the cheesy motivations of the unsub and the rather too melodramatic ending.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDespite some moving moments, there is too much of the Rossi subplot. It does verge on the heavy-handed and feels too much like filler. JJu0026#39;s subplot is not particularly interesting and somewhat soap-operatic.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOverall, decent but not great. 6/10 Bethany Cox”