On tv this afternoon there is Day of Anger, Posse (1975) & Yellow Sky and I have just come back from holiday in Poland and have yet to watch the Polish western which I bought called Summer Love 2006!
1 Like
Clint Eastwood’s Pale Rider:
This film isn’t a thrilling Western, but rather a swan song to the myths of the Western genre. Ordinary people have to work hard just to scrape by, and are bullied by those who possess money and, with it, power. If only there wasn’t a lone rider who, as it happens, still has an old score to settle. The story builds slowly, almost to the point of being boring, until the spectacular showdown. But Pale Rider is only compelling because of Eastwood’s presence. 6.5/10. That was the last Western I saw at the cinema in the mid-80s.
1 Like
Clint Eastwood’s High Plains Drifter:
This Western, created by and starring Clint Eastwood, really captures that classic Spaghetti Western vibe—gritty, dusty, bloody, brutal, and culminating in a major showdown. A stranger with no name arrives from nowhere like one of the horsemen of the apocalypse. He shows off his skills, gets hired for a high price, bullies everyone he can, and unscrupulously takes advantage of his position—even with women. The reason: revenge. Is there anything better?
Eastwood demonstrates his knack for outstanding direction, creating a film that couldn’t be any harder-hitting or more uncompromising. A worthy successor to Sam Peckinpah! 9/10.
1 Like
The film always fascinated me. This is what I said about it on my Western Blog:
By the way: I like Pale Rider as well
3 Likes
Very nice review. I read it with great interest. Thank you !
Caught Day of Anger on UK TV, ended up watching the whole movie
3 Likes
Watched ‘Doc’ (1971) with Stacey Keach and Fay Dunaway. Probably hadn’t watched it since the 70’s. Yet another re-hash of the O.K. Corral.
Wyatt Earp shown as a pretty unlikeable mercenary capitalist. The Clanton family shown more of victims of ‘progress’ than bandits.
And the ending with the shooting of an unarmed man seemed particularly nasty.
The film left a bit of a bad taste actually.
But I do like Faye Dunaway so there was that… 
For what was one imagines was intended as a revisionist truth-telling version, it was bizarre that OK Corral gunfight in Doc was totally fictional, with the Earps facing off and killing about 8 bad guys (and also treating the gunfight as the end of events, ignoring all the killings afterwards). The relationship between Doc and the (unnamed) ‘Kid’ seemed to be based on the one in the novel Who Rode with Wyatt - filmed earlier, much altered, as Young Billy Young.
1 Like
Decided to rewatch lot of spaghs I haven’t seen in a while.
Se sei vivo spara! aka Django Kill!
First half is just mesmerizing and full pretty cool scenes and ideas. Great score!
The second half? Let’s put it mildly, someone ran out of creative steam. It’s not horrible, just boring. There are some interesting tidbits here and there (scalping the Indian by townsfolk). Takedown of the main bad guy couldn’t be more lame.
I need to revisit my TOP 20, to do some kicking out.
2 Likes
Just watched Kill Johnny Ringo
Entertaining enough, American style, Brett Halsey is always good to watch.
1 Like
not even available on DVD, what a horrible state of world affairs
4 Likes
On YouTube anyway.
The Magnificent Seven:
One of the quintessential Western classics. But a few logical flaws have crept in, and in a Spaghetti Western, the Seven wouldn’t get off so easily or get their weapons back. 9/10
Return of the Seven:
A rather poor copy of the original; there’s plenty of shooting, but that’s about it. At least it still features Yul Brynner. 6/10
Guns of the Magnificent Seven:
An unnecessary sequel with the wrong actor in the lead role, a daft plot, no surprises – totally pointless. Well, there’s plenty of shooting, but that’s about it. 5/10
The Magnificent Seven ride:
This time it’s Lee van Cleef’s turn to play Chris, but he doesn’t fare any better in this hair-raising story. 5/10
4 Likes
Manitou’s Canoe. Boring usless sequel nobody needed. Yawn.
1 Like
‘The Unholy Trinity’ (2024). Pierce Brosnan, Samuel L. Jackson and Brandon Lessard in a pretty average but mildly entertaining effort directed by Richard Gray.
It’s Gray’s second Western after ‘Murder At Yellowstone City’ (2022) which was uninspiring and dull.
The new film is an improvement so if Gray makes a third Western maybe he’ll come up with something memorable.
Or not… 
2 Likes
Django kill (Se sei vivo spara)
This week I watched a few lesser known SW’s that are available on YouTube:
Durango is coming, pay or die - so so
7 nuns in Kansas City - poor comedy
7 pistols for a massacre - ok
3 Likes
Man Called Sledge, it was on UK TV, and I managed to finally watch it from the start… pretty good flik, Garner should have done more Euro-Westerns
2 Likes
Just before the holidays i found a second hand bluray of Gli Specialisti. I found it a great movie with some beautiful shots.
Now I am reading ‘Sons of Ringo’ by Blosser about the movie (after reading the thread). Nice to see that I am not the only one that liked it.
Of course the movie has some flaws and it looks like Corbucci got out of ideas to get his Hero brutalized but overall it is much above average
After the holidays I plan to rewatch with the Cox commentary
2 Likes
