I would tend to agree with you there.
Watched this one last night. Out of the four films in the new Arrow set this is definitely the one that I had the lowest expectations for; maybe I’m just easily pleased when it comes to spaghettis but I liked it much more than I thought I would. I definitely think more could have been done with some of the other characters, particularly the reverend, and the ending shot felt a bit schmaltzy but by no means did I find it to be a a dud.
Jeffrey Hunter was very good. The movie had a bit more of an American feel with him in the lead but like Cameron Mitchell in Minnesota Clay I didn’t find that to be a bad thing. I found the weakest scene to be the opening one, very uninspired gunfight and clumsy exposition. The scene with Giordano performing the theme song was incredible and one of the best of its kind I’ve seen. Good movie, I enjoyed it.
(Also, I can’t be the only who laughed their ass off when the reverend said “cursed bird of prey, Wings of Satan.”)
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So finally cracked open my Blood Money box set and this was the first one I popped in the player.
First off, the picture quality is stunning and such an upgrade from the old VCI DVD I have that the word upgrade doesn’t really seem adequate. Scenes which were so dark as to be indecipherable are now glowing, bright and crystal clear. And the difference this makes to the viewing pleasure is in equal measure. All of a sudden I realised that this film as actually really well shot and has some excellent visual compositions that I had genuinely never noticed before. This along with the excellent score lifts the film well above similar films of this type and budget and meant I enjoyed it a lot more than previously.
Of course, all the restoration in the world can’t fix it’s structural failings and these are what hold it back to be a solid 3 star film for me. A pity, because I think it had the potential to be a grade higher if a few things had been sorted. First off, it lacks a solid lead villain. Chato seems to have real potential and we are built up to expect someone special but he hardly appears and then is dispatched before you know it and without so much as a struggle. The journey to the mine turns out to have been a complete waste of time and they come straight back. Surely something better could have been done with that. And finally, the ending is decidely on the anti climax spectrum.
But, on the plus side it has some really first rate bits that make it properly memorable. The song scene in the cantina is the most often mentioned and for good reason. It’s a great song and a well crafted scene that manages to establish characters just through the passage of the song. It also, major villain aside, is really well cast. Jeffrey Hunter is very good I think and both female leads are right on the money. Plus you get Nello Pazzafini and Adolfo Lastretti. And finally, whereas so many Italy bound spags try and play down the geography, this one really seemed to embrace it and show some lovely vistas. Kudos for that alone.
In short, it has a lot to like and some bits which could and should have been better but overall it’s an enjoyable mid range spag with some genuinely memorable moments. I was glad to revisit it looking so good.
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You have perfectly encapsulated exactly how I feel about this film. I do think of this film fondly and the whole cantina scene is truly a stand out. The far away empty stare in Hunter’s eyes as he listens to the haunting song and recites the lyrics really leads you to believe that this is the destination of the film’s title.
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Both Phil and Brian’s feelings and thoughts sum up my own for ‘Find a Place to Die’.
I’ve always liked it, even watching a crappy, inferior quality DVD.
In comparison, the ‘Arrow’ bluray release is like a ray of sunshine.
A melancholic film throughout, but rather surprisingly ending on a high note and a happy ending for our hero…
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Off the back of watching Find a Place to Die I thought I’d also watch The Garden of Evil (Hathaway/1954) seeing as though FaPTD is apparently a “remake” of that film.
In truth I can see how they got away with not acknowledging the connection in the credits as it is not a remake in the same sense as For a Fistful of Dollars is a remake of Yojimbo. They use the same starting premise and some outline personnel but the way the story plays out is different and the characters themselves are also not the same once it gets going.
TGoE is a sumptuous looking film by the way and has a cracking mid fifties Hollywood cast. They make much more of the dangerous journey in that film than they do in FaPTD but then they had a much bigger budget which allowed for spectacular Mexican landscapes and an army of matte painters. They also turn the married couple’s relationship around and the husband is still alive when they arrive to rescue him. All in all an enjoyable film if you like mid fifties Hollywood westerns (I do) and similar to FaPTD but not in any way a like for like remake.
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I re-watched FaPtD last night after at least 15 years. Pretty much everything I was about to write here has already been said.
The (supposed) main antagonist is basically a red herring which doesn’t help building any tension in this particular constellation.
There’s some really bad acting in the bit parts (Pazzafini’s friend, for example), and in the opening scene it appears Pascale Petit’s “acting” of sorrowful despair basically consists of just a pretty weird makeup of fake tears.
But, these minor flaws aside, it was an enjoyable ride for me. The main group is a nice bunch of characters and actors, and it’s all well filmed and presented. And, yes, the Eagle’s Nest location is great. The collapsed and overgrown ruin the desperados have been washed up in is almost a character by itself - or at least an extension of the characters that live in it.
I also had to chuckle when Petit asks why they are riding so slowly. In a case of heavy-handed mansplaining Hunter berates her if she knew anything about horses, and that they couldn’t make the distance if they rode any faster. Yet Petit had just ridden the very same route as fast as she could without any noticeable effects on her horse. 
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I have recently come down with a stomach flu which furnished an occasion for a couple of re-watches. The movie is alright and actually a bit better than I’d remembered. The first half is evidently more impressive, but the rest of the flick isn’t bad by any means. As a matter of fact, the entirety of it feels rather consistent.This is a very solid mid-tier entry and though it is unlikely to wriggle its way into anybody’s Top 20, there is nothing wrong with it and it is quite enjoyable in its own right.
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Well, it is in one top 20, just check the last newly posted list in the top 20 thread …
The link is to my list and I don’t have Find a Place to Die in my Top 20.
This is the correct link:
Ooops, the correct one was 2 posts below.
Hey Roy, why you don’t replace Take a Hard Ride with Find a Place to Die, then it fits … 
No problem, I think I’ll stick with Take a hard ride😁, but if I had to choose a song, it’s definitely in my Top 20
So is one Crea movie, though to be fair, this is obviously more suited for a Top 20 list, just not the most obvious choice.
Seconded. 
I was fun till they spoiled the mystery… Then it had nothing interesting to offer.