Trigger Warning: The following article contains discussions of sexual assault.
The Big Picture
- Raquel Welch stars as a vengeful gunslinger in Hannie Caulder, a groundbreaking female action hero in the Wild West.
- Hannie Caulder and Kill Bill both feature empowered female leads taking revenge, breaking stereotypes.
- The film reflects the societal limitations of the '70s, highlighting gender roles & offers a female-dominant twist to the Western genre.
Revenge is a religion certain kinds of characters live by in the movies. Tales of angered, battered survivors hunting down their assailants with various methods of violence have long been a Western staple. It's a tricky balancing act, and when films succeed at telling a tale of ice-cold revenge, there's nothing quite like it. Many stories of vengeance from the hands of women have gone on to become feminist revenge masterpieces, like Kill Bill: Volume 1 and Kill Bill: Volume 2, directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Uma Thurman as the Bride/ Beatrix Kiddo, these action movies are packed with stunning fighting sequences led by a resilient fighter. The Bride hails from a long line of groundbreaking female action heroes, and has become a pop culture icon alongside the likes of Sarah Connor and Cat Ballou. But, Raquel Welch's groundbreaking action heroine from the '70s more than deserves her flowers.
Hannie Caulder
RWesternCrimeDramaAfter she is raped and her husband murdered, a woman hires a bounty hunter to instruct her in the use of a gun so she can get her revenge on the three outlaws responsible.
- Release Date
- May 24, 1972
- Director
- Burt Kennedy
- Cast
- Raquel Welch , robert culp , Ernest Borgnine , Christopher Lee
- Runtime
- 85 minutes
- Main Genre
- Western
- Writers
- Ian Quicke , Bob Richards , Peter Cooper , Burt Kennedy , David Haft
What Is 'Hannie Caulder' About?
Released in 1971, Hannie Caulder stars Raquel Welch as Hannie Caulder, a local woman who is attacked and sexually assaulted by three bandits, who then murder her husband and burn her house down. Left with no land and nothing to live off of, Hannie decides to feed her hunger with revenge instead. She then meets the prolific bounty hunter, Thomas Luther Price (Robert Culp), as he passes through town. Begrudgingly agreeing to train her as a gunslinger, Hannie plots to hunt down her three assailants and kill them. For those who love Kill Bill, Hannie Caulder is a fantastic film to go alongside, as it features a fellow woman kicking down doors and demanding names in search of vengeance.
Raquel Welch Is a Groundbreaking Female Gunslinger
Raquel Welchbecame an icon of the silver screen in the late '60s, and also one of the free-loving decade’s biggest sex symbols. During that time, she was mostly known and praised for her beauty in films such as One Million Years B.C., but she had so much more to offer. Welch finally got to dive deep into a strong role with major themes of empowerment in Burt Kennedy's Hannie Caulder. As mentioned, the film's beginning finds Hannie attacked and assaulted by three bandit brothers passing through the town: Emmett, Frank, and Rufus Clemens. Played by Ernest Borgnine, Jack Elam, and Strother Martin, the three are violent, bloodthirsty criminals who go on to murder her husband and burn down her house. They leave Hannie behind for dead and continue to plunder more towns. She, on the other hand, plans her revenge.
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James Caan, Dennis Quaid, and Gwenyth Paltrow round out the cast of the '90s Western.When Hannie runs into the talented gunslinger and bounty hunter, Thomas Luther Price, everything changes. Price is a reserved, practical man who kills bad men for a high cost, then pays for their funerals. Hannie hatches a plan, which involves Price teaching her how to become a gunslinger, so she can then hunt down the Clemens brothers. Though the film borders on parody at times, and places Welch in scantily dressed clothes, it is nonetheless an important movie. By featuring one of the biggest movie stars at that time, it was the perfect vehicle to shine a light on women's voices, and introduce more action-capable heroines.
Quentin Tarantino Is a 'Hannie Caulder' Fan
Hannie Caulder has all the great elements that Kill Bill has. It's a small kernel of an idea that wonders what would happen if Westerns rejected the damsel in distress, and instead embraced women as female action heroes. The film still has its pitfalls, and features some sexist language and jokes, but it also calls out the misogynistic treatment Hannie faces on her journey across towns as she tracks the brothers. The film is self-aware by acknowledging the toxicity of the male gaze, and how Hannie is objectified simply by men's glances. Quentin Tarantino has cited Hannie Caulder when discussing Kill Bill, and most importantly, the relationship Hannie shares with her mentor, Price.
When discussing the influences of Kill Bill in the published series of interviews in the book, Quentin Tarantino: Interviews, Revised and Updated by Gerald Peary, Tarantino says, “Why I love Hannie Caulder so much is Robert Culp. He is so magnificent in that movie. I actually think there's a bit of similarity between Pai Mei and the Bride (in Kill Bill: Volume 2).” Portrayed by Gordon Liu, Pai Mei is crucial to the Bride's path towards revenge, just as Price is to Hannie's. The training sequences between the Bride and Pai Mei have become fan-favorite scenes for Kill Bill fans, and he is praised for being the greatest supporter of the Bride on her quest.Both Hannie Caulder and Kill Bill feature strong men unafraid of supporting powerful women, and that is what sets both films apart from the crowd.
Welch is poised and powerful throughout the film, and it's an early, star-defining role within her prolific filmography. When Hannie finally transforms into the gunslinger she's always been meant to be, she declares, "There are no hard women, only soft men." As the second wave of feminism began in the late '60s, Hannie Caulder was just the start of featuring empowered, female action stars. It was refreshing to see a Western shift forms with its chosen hero while honoring what makes the genre so great, with its themes of good versus evil. Yes, Hannie happens to be a woman, but that does not detract from her being an excellent sharpshooter; it only increases her legend. Coming out alongside other classics like Coffy and Foxy Brown starring action star Pam Grier, these films foreshadowed the change that was coming in Hollywood.
Hannie and Robert's Relationship Is Important
Hannie Caulder was not only revolutionary because the woman becomes her own knight in shining armor, but also because she has a male ally who trains and respects her. As touched upon by Tarantino when discussing what makes the film so good, Culp's performance as the bounty hunter is a powerful testament to his skills as an actor, and his support of Hannie is what makes the film sing. Though most men laugh at Hannie because she sports jeans and a gun instead of a corset, Price sees a promising fighter that has the potential to be great. Hannie Caulder is a reflection of its time. It's a Western with something to say, but is still prisoner to society's limited acceptance of independent women in the '70s. Equipped with all the classic tropes of the genre, like dirty saloons, an unlikely outlaw waltzing into town to seek vengeance, and a band of truly despicable bad men who audiences love to hate, it's undeniably a classic. An essential watch for any Western lover, the fact that it also puts women's voices at the forefront just happens to be a bonus.
Christopher Lee also gives a memorable performance as Bailey, the man who gives Hannie her gun. He, too, believes in her cause for vengeance. Similar to when the Bride is given the Hattori Hanzo sword to take down her enemies in Kill Bill, Hannie receiving her gun is a grave moment, as she's now equipped with the weapon that will cause nothing but death. In a film that doesn't celebrate murder or treat it like just another circumstance of the genre, death is instead an ugly truth. The Clemens brothers have no remorse for the sins they have comitted, only that they have been caught. It's killed or be killed in the Wild West, and it's not necessarily a thing to be celebrated.
That is what sets Hannie Caulder apart from other Western classics from the '60s or '70s. It's got a conscience, and ponders the price of killing a man instead of glorifying it. Price has so many fantastic one-liners that he tells Hannie while teaching her the ways of being a gunslinger, with the most memorable being: "Win or lose, Hannie, you lose." Hannie Caulder may have historical drawbacks and shows obvious cracks with age, but there is no denying it's importance within the history of Western films and its resilient gunslinger.
Hannie Caulder is available to rent on Prime Video. in the U.S.
