There are moments of real quality to be found within this disjointed Western. I didn’t connect with this movie when I first saw it some time ago, but I hoped that revisiting it now would bring a fresh perspective. Unfortunately, One-Eyed Jacks has left me feeling let down and rather disheartened. Marlon Brando stepped in to direct after Stanley Kubrick was removed due to disagreements about the film’s direction; this resulted in Brando shooting for six months on what should have been a two-month project. This seems like a significant issue, as the characters lack depth, scenes feel truncated, and there are noticeable gaps due to editing cuts. For example, we see the protagonist sentenced to five years, then abruptly witness a bearded, worn man escaping prison chained to another inmate, only to find him clean-shaven in the next shot – an important conversation between them appears to have been omitted entirely. This happens repeatedly throughout the film. I imagine that the rumored longer version (ranging from 4 to 6 hours) might have been enjoyable, but as it stands we get a trimmed-down 141 minutes of footage that feels unnecessarily long. Getting through it requires considerable patience. Brando is undeniably captivating and rarely fails to be interesting; at times he commands the screen in his characteristic style. However, his performance has an air of self-indulgence about it, shifting focus away from the story itself. Karl Malden delivers a strong, tough portrayal as the antagonist, but Katy Jurado’s role feels minimal and like an afterthought. Pina Pellicer also struggles to make an impact in her sole American film, though that's beside the point considering she tragically took her own life at the young age of 29 (the exact age varies depending on the source). The cinematography by Charles Lang Jr is a definite highlight; the California locations are beautifully captured, especially the coastal scenes. I suspect this film is one that Brando’s fans overlook its significant shortcomings, his presence somehow elevating it beyond its actual quality. In its complete form, it might “have been a contender” among great Westerns, but as it currently exists, it's merely average and ultimately disappointing. 5/10

Source on TMDB