Here’s a very interesting movie from the top 20 list which doesn’t yet have a poll & discussion topic.
I consider this to be an excellent minimalist western. I use the term minimalist because on the surface it looks like a small scale revenge movie, but below the surface there is a lot of depth, much which is revealed during the film with very few words.
This can be contrasted with Paolo Bianchini’s “I Want Him Dead” (aka. “Lo voglio morto”) which is listed as a runner-up to the top 20.
“I Want Him Dead” is also a low budget, small scale, revenge film. It might have a little more action than “Cemetery Without Crosses” but we learn a lot less about the characters and their relationships. That’s why I’d call “I Want Him Dead” a simple film and “Cemetery Without Crosses” a minimalist film.
(Please note: just because I used “I Want Him Dead” as a comparisson does not indicate that I am saying it’s a bad movie.)
This is one of my all-time favorites, top5 stuff. Great music and directing, the mood in the film is very dark and you can almost guess how is it going to end but that doesn’t really matter as the ending is perfect anyway. I agree with you what you said about minimalism, this film could work really good as a silent movie too(I love old silent movies also) there isn’t much talking in it anyway.
yeah I like it as well, I was surprised we didn’t have a topic for it yet.
I think it’s very dark, gritty and stylish, nice music and good acting, although I think Hossein doesn’t have much of a memorable screen presence, he looks like any other guy. If he were replaced by for example Nero or somebody with a more popular face, I am sure this movie would be a lot more popular and I think even better, as it lacks some charisma on the side of the main actor
Robert Hossein is a very good director and a bit outcast in french cinema
because he did intelligent entertaining movies not intellectual egotic borring movies.
Average people like him but parisian cinema “milieux” never.
He shot 15 movie all interesting and play in 100 movies.
As a player he was always like in Cemetery without cross, secret and not talkative.
But i think he fit well in Cemetery.
Since 80’s he create play/show around historical thema Marie-antoinette trial,Jesus,De gaulle…
Very popular but of course disliked by the critics
In 1961 he shot a pre-SW movie in spain “The Taste of Violence” a kind of western zapata.
What do you think of THE TASTE OF VIOLENCE? I see from IMDB that Giovanna Ralli is the co-star! Is this movie worth seeking out? Is it available on DVD?
In his book “Il etait une fois le western europeen” (once upon a time the european western)
Jean-francois Gire quote it as pre-SW , the story is about a group of rebels,mexican or south american
(its not say) who kidnap the dauther of the president.
I mistook the movie was shot in yugoslavia.
It can be interesting, Hossein direct and play and his brother Andre did the score like in Cemetery.
And there is also Mario Adorf.
But i dont know if its on DVD, i think the movie is completly forgotten in france.
Maybe in italy (its a co-production) italian title: “Febbre di Rivolta”
I have taste of voilence in german and its in black and white, is far as I know its never released in english. orriginal its in french. I didnt have the time yet to watch the movies but Im looking forwards to do!
What do you mean with the term fullscreen? 1,33:1 or maybe 1,78:1 which is a usual widescreen format, but not in the sense of cinemascope, which is 2,35:1.
Cemetery… was made for a 1,78:1 viewing, so the japanese DVD is in the correct aspect ratio.
The german SW book by Bruckner lists Cemetery… as a panavision(2,35:1) film, but I think that’s an error.
Just saw this one on german television. Since it is in the top 20 i had high expectations. Maybe it is because of this, that I was kind of disappointed. All the people in the cast look too alike. Where is the motivation for the main character. Allways expected a meaning behind the music when the main character put on hs gloves, but there is nothing given. And allthough i like the “lack” of dialogue in most leone westerns, it was annoying to me in this one.
Overall not a special movie. Atmosphere and story as cast was just average or worse. Am I the only one who is not into this one?? Maybe it just wasn´t my type of spaghetti western. Which movies would you call similar??
The german soundtrack is for about the half of the film newly arranged. It also uses in 5 central scenes music from Django Kill, which is very effective, but the original soundtrack works in these scenes also very well. There is also much more music in the german version, even in many scenes where in the original is only silence.
As a whole the original use of the music is much more effective, but I wouldn’t miss the Django Kill moments. Luckily I have both versions.
The scene with the gloves is also different, so you have to ask the german “rearranger” for the meaning of this.
The Tele 5 version is also shortened and has very bad quality with permanent changing colors.
There is a beautiful japanese DVD of it, and I hope that the forthcoming german DVD could match it.
The scene with the gloves is also different, so you have to ask the german “rearranger” for the meaning of this.
okay interesting, but in general tha lack of explaining flashbacks was not good for me. What is the motivation of the hero???
The Tele 5 version is also shortened and has very bad quality with permanent changing colors.
Yeah the bad quality was something that i took notice of, but that doesnt make a movie worse for me, im not that keen on a perfect image. Maybe i have to rewatch it to appreciate it.
Can someone please tell me where i can find an english, region one dvd of this film? This is the only top 20 sw i don’t own and i’ve been wanting it for long time!
Manuel’s motivation is obviously his long lost love to Maria. His knowledge that even after Ben’s death his love will never come to a fulfilment makes him a tragic figure from the beginning on. This is also mirrored in the possibility of an interest in Juana which is only suggested by Hosseins subtle direction. Manuel is also the most melancholic of all SW heroes, and the end of the movie is the perfect concluding to all the unpronounced motives.
I also think that Hossein plays this tragic hero very convincing.
One of the few SWs who has emotional depth.
And a great film, which gets better with every viewing.
[quote=“stanton, post:18, topic:403”]Manuel’s motivation is obviously his long lost love to Maria. His knowledge that even after Ben’s death his love will never come to a fulfillment makes him a tragic figure from the beginning on. This is also mirrored in the possibility of an interest in Juana which is only suggested by Hosseins subtly direction. Manuel is also the most melancholic of all SW heroes, and the end of the movie is the perfect concluding to all the unpronounced motives.
I also think that Hossein plays this tragic hero very convincing.
One of the few SWs who has emotional depth.
And a great film, which gets better with every viewing.[/quote]
In other words: the hero is a pussy, no just kidding. I guess it is just not my kind of western. And I think for a few dollars more is very emotional too, but what I like about it are the explaining flashbacks. But this(cemetery without crosses) movie just shows how many styles there are in the spaghettis. Wont make it into my top 20 though.
