nadoosh 🍓

Two Mules for Sister Sara

i wanted to give this more than 3 stars but i couldn't ignore the misogyny. but anyway one thing about shirley she can ACT. i don't usually enjoy westerns but shirley made this one a little enjoyable.

BT1886

Two Mules for Sister Sara

Directed by Don Siegel, written by Ranown Western legend Budd Boetticher, scored by the great Ennio Morricone, and starring Clint Eastwood and Shirley MacLaine—on paper, Two Mules for Sister Sara feels like my perfect western. And for a good portion of its runtime, it really felt like it. The film follows Hogan, a pragmatic bounty hunter, as he crosses paths with Sister Sara, a devout nun aiding the Juarista rebels in their fight against Mexico’s Austrian occupation. A road trip movie at heart, Two Mules for Sister Sara builds an unlikely companionship between two vastly different people. Through their journey, Hogan learns to soften and see the good in others, while Sara begins to grasp the harsh realities of the world she wishes to save. This relationship is the crux of the film, fueled by Hogan’s hyper-masculine longing for Sara and her unwavering devotion to God. But then comes the third-act reveal: Sara is no nun—she’s a prostitute who exploited Hogan’s guilt to get him to help her. And while the twist is certainly surprising, it completely deflates the emotional weight of the film for me. All the nuance, shared experiences, and growth between these two now rings hollow. It’s hard not to feel like Siegel and Boetticher go out of their way to undermine the narrative foundation the film perfectly sets up, leaving a bitter aftertaste in what was shaping up to be something special. As a side note, I always love discovering films that Tarantino takes music from—it always catches me by surprise when it crops up. • Watched in 2025 — Ranked (https://boxd.it/C7Jq6) • Westerns — Ranked (https://boxd.it/AEquG) • 1970s — Ranked (https://boxd.it/C6MdW)