Lone Wolf McQuade (1983)

"My kind of trouble doesn't take vacations." - McQuade

A Texas Ranger takes on a dangerous crime boss.
Starring: Chuck Norris, David Carradine, Robert Beltran, Barbara Carrera

Link to IMDB

J.J. McQuade is not your average Texas Ranger; he's grumpy, disheveled and more interested in beer than being polite. But he's also one of the best Rangers alive, and his renegade style of law enforcement always gets the job done.
McQuade's captain isn't too keen on his unruly methods, so he's partnered him with the young and eager Deputy Kayo to try to reign him in, much to McQuade's chagrin, of course.

Next we meet Rawley Wilkes, a criminal kingpin that smuggles weapons and drugs around the country. Wilkes' front is that of a business man that also runs karate tournaments, so McQuade doesn't suspect him of any wrong doing other than being a jerk.

Wilkes and McQuade do have something in common though, and that's the beautiful Lola. She's clearly not happy about being married to Wilkes, so she and McQuade start getting romantic.
Tragedy strikes when McQuade's daughter is almost killed for witnessing one of Wilke's smuggling operations, and now McQuade and Deputy Kayo start investigating who has been causing trouble on their turf.

Kayo                                                Lola                                           Wilkes

The movie has a lot of fun with McQuade reluctantly accepting his new partner, but they slowly form a friendship as they learn to rely on each other. The closer McQuade gets to discovering Wilkes' crimes, the closer he's also getting to Lola, and this has "bad news" written all over it!

Instead of just mindless action there's more of a classic western tone to the story, with some unexpected moments that build tension. Heck, even the touches of romance fit into the story really well, but it does still have fun with exaggerated violence and machine guns blasting when necessary.

"Your lone wolf attitude has gotta change!" - Captain

There's not as much fighting as I expected, but there's still enough action to keep the pace fast, and of course the climactic battle between Norris and Carradine delivers the goods that you'd expect. My only complaint would be that Carradine doesn't get a lot to do through the movie, so he feels underused.

Although Norris is still the epic hero you'd imagine, it's fun seeing him play a more gritty version of himself here. Instead of an untouchable superman, he's more of an unwashed cowboy that doesn't fit into the modern world. I literally cheered a few times watching this, and it's easily one of the best movies Norris ever made!

Be sure not to miss:
- Wilkes' license plate is CARATE. Surely that's a portmanteau of Carradine and karate.
- McQuade hates vitamins!
- Falcon. He's so superbly melodramatic that he steals every scene he's in.
- The score is pretty fantastic, adding to the spaghetti western vibes.
- William Sanderson has a small role.

Internet review:
"Rough, tough, and rousing, this makes for completely agreeable entertainment." - Scott

Should I watch it?
Highly recommended.

Where can I find it?
Links here.

Lone Wolf McQuade gets...