Friend & near contemporary to that better-known Spaghetti Western Sergio, writer/director Sergio Corbucci is always going to be in Sergio Leone’s shadow; rightfully so. But at his best (much chaff amongst the wheat), Corbucci’s work is a considerable achievement. None more so than this darkly existential, downright nihilistic snow-set Western with Jean-Louis Trintignant as a mute figure of frontier justice (and its limits) working against Klaus Kinski’s amoral bounty hunter. Suggested by real incidents, the main conflict has Kinski and confreres grabbing easy pickings out west where a small colony of outlaws hope to start new lives, many still with a price on their heads. Kinski, within his rights to kill & collect; Trintignant with a history of personal injustice that compels him to act for the oppressed. Shot in stunning wintry conditions (and slightly less stunning spaghetti Western town), the film has unexpected nobility to it, with excellent perfs up and down the line. The two leads exceptional. (Trintignant happy to avoid Italian with a mute characterization; though you shouldn’t as the film plays better in Italian with subtitles than in the English dub.) Corbucci uses a few brief subliminal flashbacks to explain past events and current motivations, something Leone also did that year to infinitely superior effect in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST. It’s the difference between talent and genius. Same goes for Ennio Morricone with this score not a patch on his legendary music for WEST. Still fine; the film better than that.
ATTENTION MUST BE PAID: A 50th Anniversary DVD out from Film Comment has an unusually sharp career appreciation Extra from British director Alex Cox.
DOUBLE-BILL: On our Main Site (scroll down to the View Web Version LINK if you’re on a SmartPhone), just type in Corbucci for a fistful of Write-Ups to choose from.
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