A Western Divine Comedy. This Duke Western is a modern day Dante's Inferno, as two protagonists enter a Hell on Earth. This "Hell" is created by an evil sadist played by Nehemiah Persoff. The two protagonists are Jake, played by John Wayne, and Regret, played by Stuart Whitman. Jake is a no nonsense Texas ranger with a weakness. He's honest. Regret is a likable lady's man who never looks for trouble, but trouble always finds him. Ina Balin plays the love interest for Regret. She becomes the "guide" into Hell late into the film. She has two helpers, played by Michael Ansara and Richard Devon. At the time this was made, Ansara was playing honorable characters and Devon less honorable characters, so a "switch" was made on their roles in this film. Ansara plays a sadist even worse than Persoff's devil. Lee Marvin gets a high billing, but has a role that would normally be about 12th billing. The wit and charm of this Western really makes it a semi classic. It has the greatest of the famous Duke lines: "Don't make a habit of saying that too often, and once more will be too often". That lines sticks out among the great lines of his films as the coolest. The protagonists begin with Jake arresting Regret, but Jake has to take Regret through an outskirt of Hell, and Regret finds an opportunity to escape. Later, he accidentally finds Regret while working undercover to investigate Crow, played by Lee Marvin. The "Divine Comedy" of the West sees different supporting characters in this man made Hell, and how they react. There's McBain, Crow, Esteban, Gordo, and others. Who will reject Hell and who will fight to keep Hell intact?
