The Villain

The Villain (Cactus Jack in the UK and Australia) is a 1979 American metrocolor Western comedy film directed by Hal Needham and starring Kirk Douglas, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ann-Margret, Paul Lynde (in his final film appearance), Foster Brooks, Strother Martin, Ruth Buzzi, Jack Elam, and Mel Tillis. It is a parody of Western films, blended with an homage to the Warner Bros. cartoon Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner. Plot A beautiful woman, "Charming Jones" (Ann-Margret), is being escorted across the west by a naive, slow-witted cowboy, "Handsome Stranger" (Schwarzenegger), after claiming a large sum of money given to her by her father, "Parody Jones" (Martin). However, bad guy "Avery Simpson" (Elam), who delivered Charming the money, decides he wants it for himself. He hires an old outlaw, "Cactus Jack" Slade (Douglas), to rob them when they leave town. Throughout the trip, Charming makes advances toward Handsome, all of which are met with indifference. Meanwhile, Cactus Jack proceeds to lay trap after trap for the two, all of which backfire. Jack's attempt to enlist the assistance of "Nervous Elk" (Paul Lynde), the chief of a local American Indian tribe, also fails. Finally, Jack confronts the couple openly, at which point Charming gives up on romancing Handsome and instead kisses Jack, who proceeds to bounce around in red-hot elation (in a manner reminiscent of Daffy Duck's classic "woo-hoo! Woo-hoo!" bounces).