The Traveling Executioner
1970·Comedy·1h 35m
7.1
★
Jonas Candide performs his job as state executioner in early 20th century Mississippi like a combination preacher and carnival barker, persuading condemned men to accept their deaths before electrocuting them on his electric chair. After he's assigned his first woman to execute, however, Jonas' sense of purpose is shaken.
Directed by Jack Smight
electric chair
murder of a policeman
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Stacy Keach
Jonas Candide
Bud Cort
Jimmy Croft
Marianna Hill
Gundred Herzallerliebst
Graham Jarvis
Doc Prittle
James Sloyan
Piquant (as James J. Sloyan)
M. Emmet Walsh
Warden Brodski
Ford Rainey
Stanley Mae
James Greene
Gravey Combs
Stefan Gierasch
Willy Herzallerliebst
Logan Ramsey
La Follette
Charles Tyner
Virgil
Val Avery
Jake
Crew
Jack Smight
Director
Jerry Goldsmith
Original Music Composer
Philip H. Lathrop
Director of Photography
Jack Smight
Producer
Jerry Goldsmith
Conductor
Popular Reviews
1 review
Jacob Paddison
7.0★ · 04/19/26
An ex-carny takes on a preacher persona as he travels around the Deep South working as the State Executioner with his trusty electric throne. As his latest execution nears — his first female victim — he falls for her and pleas to fake the electrocution so they can be together. Problem is he needs to bribe the prison's doctor to get away with it, and he's a bit low on cash. So he turns to some nefarious activities to get that moolah up, but because this is a black comedy, things do not go according to plan.
I wasn't really expecting the second act to turn into a money-making crime farce, but it's by far the funniest section of a film filled with darkly comical bizarro tonal dissonance. Reminds me a whole lot of Ravenous in that what's being presented is macabre, but the score makes it feel jaunty and upbeat and so playfully contradictory. Then that final morbid stretch lands one final blow to the viewer, and I simply must applaud the film for going the way it does. I have a feeling the Coen brothers are big fans of this film.
Stacy Keach is delivering one hell of a performance. I mean I knew he would, it's Stacy Keach for God's sake, but when he gets deep into a monologue he enters such a rhythmic flow state that he could talk about literally anything and it'd be music to my ears. Don't know about the haircut he's sporting here, but it's certainly something! This is my reminder to finally sit my white ass down and watch The Ninth Configuration.
I wasn't really expecting the second act to turn into a money-making crime farce, but it's by far the funniest section of a film filled with darkly comical bizarro tonal dissonance. Reminds me a whole lot of Ravenous in that what's being presented is macabre, but the score makes it feel jaunty and upbeat and so playfully contradictory. Then that final morbid stretch lands one final blow to the viewer, and I simply must applaud the film for going the way it does. I have a feeling the Coen brothers are big fans of this film.
Stacy Keach is delivering one hell of a performance. I mean I knew he would, it's Stacy Keach for God's sake, but when he gets deep into a monologue he enters such a rhythmic flow state that he could talk about literally anything and it'd be music to my ears. Don't know about the haircut he's sporting here, but it's certainly something! This is my reminder to finally sit my white ass down and watch The Ninth Configuration.
An ex-carny takes on a preacher persona as he travels around the Deep South working as the State Executioner with his trusty electric throne. As his latest execution nears — his first female victim — he falls for her and pleas to fake the electrocution so they can be together. Problem is he needs to bribe the prison's doctor to get away with it, and he's a bit low on cash. So he turns to some nefarious activities to get that moolah up, but because this is a black comedy, things do not go according to plan.
I wasn't really expecting the second act to turn into a money-making crime farce, but it's by far the funniest section of a film filled with darkly comical bizarro tonal dissonance. Reminds me a whole lot of Ravenous in that what's being presented is macabre, but the score makes it feel jaunty and upbeat and so playfully contradictory. Then that final morbid stretch lands one final blow to the viewer, and I simply must applaud the film for going the way it does. I have a feeling the Coen brothers are big fans of this film.
Stacy Keach is delivering one hell of a performance. I mean I knew he would, it's Stacy Keach for God's sake, but when he gets deep into a monologue he enters such a rhythmic flow state that he could talk about literally anything and it'd be music to my ears. Don't know about the haircut he's sporting here, but it's certainly something! This is my reminder to finally sit my white ass down and watch The Ninth Configuration.
I wasn't really expecting the second act to turn into a money-making crime farce, but it's by far the funniest section of a film filled with darkly comical bizarro tonal dissonance. Reminds me a whole lot of Ravenous in that what's being presented is macabre, but the score makes it feel jaunty and upbeat and so playfully contradictory. Then that final morbid stretch lands one final blow to the viewer, and I simply must applaud the film for going the way it does. I have a feeling the Coen brothers are big fans of this film.
Stacy Keach is delivering one hell of a performance. I mean I knew he would, it's Stacy Keach for God's sake, but when he gets deep into a monologue he enters such a rhythmic flow state that he could talk about literally anything and it'd be music to my ears. Don't know about the haircut he's sporting here, but it's certainly something! This is my reminder to finally sit my white ass down and watch The Ninth Configuration.
