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#85 - Death Rides a Horse
Giulio Petroni, 1967
A pair of cowboys team up to take revenge on a gang of outlaws for their own personal reasons.
It should go without saying that just because a film is a Spaghetti Western doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be on par with anything Sergio Leone ever did. Death Rides a Horse isn't nearly that ambitious, but it still manages to serve as a decent little pot-boiler. The inimitable Lee Van Cleef definitely has more charisma than just about anyone else on screen, including his pretty blonde co-star (John Phillip Law). Their odd-couple chemistry and conflicting motives make for some interesting drama, especially when Law's thirst for bloody vengeance ends up complicating Van Cleef's plans to collect his debts. There isn't much in the way of action or drama - Law's good-hearted avenger is considerably bland compared to Van Cleef's morally grey ex-con, while the villains are definitely a vile bunch but generally lack definition. It takes until the end of the film for the action to get any good, and even then it feels like too little, too late.
Fortunately, the film is backed up by some appropriately gritty camerawork (and the notorious red-tinted flashbacks that Tarantino "appropriated" for Kill Bill), to say nothing of Ennio Morricone's repetitive yet iconic score (again "appropriated" by Tarantino in Kill Bill). It's definitely not a classic, but if you're looking for Spaghetti Westerns in particular then you definitely won't mind this film's shortcomings.
Giulio Petroni, 1967
A pair of cowboys team up to take revenge on a gang of outlaws for their own personal reasons.
It should go without saying that just because a film is a Spaghetti Western doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be on par with anything Sergio Leone ever did. Death Rides a Horse isn't nearly that ambitious, but it still manages to serve as a decent little pot-boiler. The inimitable Lee Van Cleef definitely has more charisma than just about anyone else on screen, including his pretty blonde co-star (John Phillip Law). Their odd-couple chemistry and conflicting motives make for some interesting drama, especially when Law's thirst for bloody vengeance ends up complicating Van Cleef's plans to collect his debts. There isn't much in the way of action or drama - Law's good-hearted avenger is considerably bland compared to Van Cleef's morally grey ex-con, while the villains are definitely a vile bunch but generally lack definition. It takes until the end of the film for the action to get any good, and even then it feels like too little, too late.
Fortunately, the film is backed up by some appropriately gritty camerawork (and the notorious red-tinted flashbacks that Tarantino "appropriated" for Kill Bill), to say nothing of Ennio Morricone's repetitive yet iconic score (again "appropriated" by Tarantino in Kill Bill). It's definitely not a classic, but if you're looking for Spaghetti Westerns in particular then you definitely won't mind this film's shortcomings.