The Traveling Executioner

1970
X
1h 35m

IMDb RATING

6.3/10

472

YOUR RATING

Stacy Keach in The Traveling Executioner (1970)

Play trailer3:01

1 Video

9 Photos

Dark Comedy Comedy Drama Western

Stacy Keach is electrifying as Jonas Candide, an ex-carny who in 1918 travels around the bayou with a portable electric chair. At $100 a head, he renders his services with loving care. But t... Read allStacy Keach is electrifying as Jonas Candide, an ex-carny who in 1918 travels around the bayou with a portable electric chair. At $100 a head, he renders his services with loving care. But then he falls for a female "client".Stacy Keach is electrifying as Jonas Candide, an ex-carny who in 1918 travels around the bayou with a portable electric chair. At $100 a head, he renders his services with loving care. But then he falls for a female "client".

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.3/10

472

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

User reviews20

Featured review

`The traveling executioner' is a black comedy love-story with a western undertone.

A short word on this marvelous rare to find movie; Well what can I say, except we find here a Stacy Keatch in what my humble opinion may be, one of his greatest roles ever put by him onto screen. He's an executioner who gets paid 100 bucks for each execution. The year we're in is 1918 South states of America. `The traveling executioner' is a black comedy love-story with a western undertone. It's the music that creates that pleasure full funny western feeling. What for sure is marvelous in this movie. The moment he's starting philosophizing to the condemned to death by his electric chair are `quality moments' in this movie. Not even to mention the funny truck he drives thru the country to visit every possible jail to for fill his task. The conversations are sometimes hilarious. Example, the moment he rents out hookers to some inmates. They each have to pay him, and on the amount they pay, he decides how much time they get.

Executioner, `Well for this you get room 5 and 4 minutes'. Inmate, `What kinda cover can I shoot in 4 min?' Executioner, `Well you gat from now 4 minutes, so start shooting'.

So the humor is one of a kind, and the love tale is great. `The contract killer badly in love with his victim'. The story goes on to a strange, though org. road. I try not to spoil too much, but will the executioner exchange his chair for her life, or will he even meet his own electric chair for real by trying to save her. Well it is a fact he doesn't leave any way unexplored to rescue her from her death sentence. Are you in for a funny black romantic comedy movie. With a superb, strong acting Stacey Keatch go for this one, for sure a must see!

Dario/

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Trailer 3:01

The Traveling Executioner

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
This was filmed at Alabama's then recently closed Kilby Prison off of Coliseum Blvd. in Montgomery. As part of an agreement with the state for filming rights, filmmakers were supposed to have demolished the prison's massive walls with pyrotechnics during/after the film. However, the walls were so thick, three charges failed to do the job, and their remnants stayed around for years afterwards.

Goofs
An important plot point is the existence of a portable electric chair which makes the career of "traveling executioner" possible. Unfortunately, as shown in the movie, it can't work. To perform an execution Keach "starts" a big electric generator in his horse-drawn van. But the generator has no power source! At the time the story takes place the internal combustion engine was new and rudimentary. The only transportable source of mechanical power was the steam engine. There were no diesel powered generators. Of course a steam engine large enough to produce the necessary mechanical power to turn the electric generator would have been almost as large as the van and would have required hours to build up enough steam to do the job. Also, a substantial amount of coal to make the steam would be needed. In any case, no motive power is shown and this explains why there were likely no traveling electrocutionists. Why a remote prison would not simply hang convicted criminals is likewise not explained.