Colorado Charlie (1965) - Director: Roberto Mauri - 4/10.
Mauri’s debut predominantly follows in the footsteps of other pre-Leone oaters, emulating the look and feel of these antediluvian productions, which entails that other than Lorenzon’s vigorous performance, there is nothing out of the ordinary here whatsoever. The movie essentially revolves around the renowned gunslinger by the name of Wild Bill whose plan to retire is disrupted by Colorado Charlie’s rambunctious arrival; in spite of his oath not to participate in violent dealings ever again, he tracks down the bandit, brings him to jail and resumes preparations related to his retirement; the said ruffian then breaks out of jail and sets out to avenge his friend killed by Wild Bill. On the whole, the flick initially unfolds at a tolerable pace and is greatly animated by Lorenzon’s good showing here. The issue consists in that once Colorado Charlie is escorted to prison, the storyline basically comes to a standstill and starts to heavily rely on drama which regrettably happens to be on the milquetoast, mushy side apart from being wearisomely one-dimensional. Wild Bill’s wife exhibits pacifistic inclinations which gives rise to a number of sleep-inducing exchanges and generally meritless slush of the corny kind. At any rate, the plot thenceforth flounders towards the end with nothing in the way of an attention-grabbing attraction to invigorate the proceedings along the way. What with pic’s scarce shootouts, invariably bland characterization and increasingly decelerating pacing, both film’s action and drama prove uneventful insofar as the project is wont to pall on the viewer eventually.