Watching the WE release now, got about an hour and fifteen minutes in, when the audio gets really tinny and a voice different from the regular voice starts speaking. It also seems like the voice actors change through the film. Was there ever a problem like this in other English audio versions?
Castellariās western take on shakespeareās Hamlet. Not bad. Not perfect. The filmās plot is simple, Johnny must avenge his fatherās death, and while doing so,some of his close friends/ relatives are taken advantage of/killed. Starts off slow, and gets nasty by the end, however the film dosenāt feature anything most spaghetti western viewers havenāt seen or wouldnāt expect to see. The heart of this film lies in two actors/characters Andrea Giordana, as Johnny, and Horst Frank as Claude, both of whom shine in the roles, and the film features a great score by Francesco De Masi. Recommended, but not perfect.
I am a fan of this movie and enjoy my Koch DVD. But is there a compelling reason to get the Wild East version? I want one to justify spending $20 to get āChaco.ā Haha.
I usually like to watch the flicks in Italian with English subtitles, unless Lee Van Cleef is in it, so the English dub isnāt important to me.
I really, really like Italian titles at the beginning. What are they in the WE version?
No
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I just viewed the 1968 The Wild And The Dirty aka Johnny Hamlet for the first time with fairly high expectations and I liked the different mood, good acting and the Hamlet-like story.
The beginning on the beach with a traveling theatre company was original. Some fighting scenes were too long.
The final scene with the ācurse of the goldā was similar to the corresponding scene in Django Kill as well as the crusifiction like so they were probably both inspired by the 1967 Django Kill. There was also an āoriginalā Django borrowing in the end regarding the heroās last shooting with wounded hands.
As I understand it (or rather IMDb) the interesting mushroomlike rock formations were shot in the province of Huelva, Andalucia, Spain.
The title song is not that good and I think it or the singer reminds me a bit of the title song in Return Of Ringo (if I not remembered wrong here), but the rest of the soundtrack was OK obviously sometimes with some little thriller, horror taste to emphazise the unusual mood for this SW.
I will probably rate Johnny Hamlet as 7 of 10, if so qualifying in my 2nd group of SW below the Leone films which means a tie for rank 9-18, but must view it another time within weeks. IMO for the moment the similar different (but not in exactly the same way of course) Django Kill is a step better (including better main music theme) thus qualifying for the 1st group below Leoneās first 4 SW.
The mushroom rocks are actually at the Ciudad Encantada near Cuenca which is just south of Madrid. Ciudad Encantada - Wikipedia
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Aha, thank you ! That may explain why I late last night couldāt easy find the rock formations when googling on Cuenca Minera.
So Ciudad Encantada might be worth visiting together with other Madrid-surrounding SW locations such as Colmenar Viejo, La Pedriza (Manzanares el Real) etc.
I have lived for around 20 years spring and autumn in Andalucia but never visited Madrid, but at least some Almeria SW locations the last few years.
Yes, itās a trip Iāve been meaning to do myself for the past few years but never quite seem to get it organised. I have a āgraveā at Sad Hill now though so that might well be the extra reason I needed to get it sorted soon.
A grave at Sad Hill IS impressing !
Iām I the only one that feels that the acrobatic fist fights with Gilbert Roland (Who I find extremly dull as an SW actor) and Andrea Giordana is hurting the movie alot? I donāt know if itās attempted comedy or what but sure is awful. Rolandās stunt double is shit aswell. Gilbert looks like one of those stereotype cowboys from a tobacco commercial. I like the Bava-feel of the cave and the ending but other than that - It doesnāt do it for me.
I think that is just because Castellari couldnāt help himself. Even when trying to make an artier film he canāt resist chucking in a fist fight. Itās in his DNA
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No I agree. Those fist fights more lean toward by me unwanted comedy in an otherwise very nice, serious and a little bit different SW.
Even so I still rate Johnny Hamlet 7/10, with rank 21 on my SW Top 50.
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Watched the movie last Spagvember and was disappointed after hearing many positive comments - Not for me at all.
Gilbert Roland must have thought himself a very big deal !? Too big to actually think about a change of costume or look.
Same pencil moustache, dyed black hair, hat cocked to the side, smoking skinny cigars ā¦ very hip circa 1940 Iām sure.
I canāt stand him, in case you wondered!? 
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Thatās the feeling I get too. Just like Fulci and Four of the Apocalypse - when I first saw that one I was under the impression that I was in for something different than Fulci would normally do, and then comes the rape and tortureā¦
Horst Frank looks cool though. Love the music. Might even watch the film if they release a blu rayā¦
I like him too - a proper actor who always adds some sense of menace 
According to Alex Cox, who reveals in his book that Johnny Hamlet was originally to be directed by Franco Rossetti who turned down the offer. Rossetti who had cast Andrea Giordana in The Dirty Outlaws said that he wasnāt good with guns or horses enough to be in a Western - or something like that. I cannot help but wonder what the movie would have looked like if Rossetti directed it with all the blood, mud and grit that he so stylishly used in his only Western, that Iām a huge fan of. What do you think? Was Castellari the perfect man for the job or could someone else have done it better?
Always difficult to imagine a well loved film directed by someone else. Apart from some unnecessary fist fights (always a Castellari trope) I like the film just as it is. Itās Castellariās best in my opinion.
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