The Big Gundown (Italian: La resa dei conti, lit. 'The Settling of Scores') is a Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Sollima, and starring Lee Van Cleef and Tomas Milian.
The Big Gundown | |
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Directed by | Sergio Sollima |
Produced by | Alberto Grimaldi |
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Music by | Ennio Morricone |
Cinematography | Carlo Carlini |
Edited by | Gaby Penalba |
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Box office | 1.441 billion ITL (Italy) |
Screenplay
Possessing a reputation for bringing criminals to justice, ready-to-retire bounty hunter Jonathan Corbett (Lee Van Cleef) is summoned to a party by a Texas railroad tycoon by the name of Brockston (Walter Barnes), whose daughter is getting married. Brockston plants the seed that Corbett should consider a run for the Senate, but not before doing one last bounty hunt.
Brockston offers Corbett his political backing in exchange for tracking down a 12-year-old girl's accused rapist and murderer, who goes by the name of Cuchillo (Tomas Milian), a Mexican who is fleeing back to his native land. Cuchillo means "knife" in Spanish, which is the rascal’s weapon of choice. Corbett expects it to be easy, even offering to do it as a wedding gift.
Corbett sets out in pursuit of Cuchillo, who is not as dumb as he acts, and who is rather crafty at vexing Corbett at every turn. As time passes and Corbett fails to get his man, Brockston turns to an Austrian, "The Baron," who prides himself on being the fastest draw of any man with a gun, to settle scores with Cuchillo and, if necessary, with Corbett as well.
- Lee Van Cleef as Jonathan "Colorado" Corbett
- Tomas Milian as Manuel "Cuchillo" Sanchez
- Walter Barnes as Brokston
- Nieves Navarro as the Widow
- Gérard Herter as Baron von Schulenberg
- Fernando Sancho as Captain Segura
- María Granada as Rosita Sanchez
- Robert Camardiel as Sheriff Jellicol
- Ángel del Pozo as Chet Miller
- Luisa Rivelli as the Prostitute
- Tom Felleghy as Mr. Miller
- Calistro Calisti as Mr. Lynch
- Benito Stefanelli as Jess, Widow's ranch hand
- Nello Pazzafini as Hondo, Ex-Union Outlaw
- Antonio Casas as Brother Smith & Wesson
- José Torres as Paco Molinas
- Antonio Molino Rojo as Widow's Ranch Hand
- Spartaco Conversi as Prison Guard Mitchell
- Romano Puppo as Rocky, Widow's Ranch Hand
- Monica Strebel as Kate Brokston-Miller
- Luis Barboo as Widow's Ranch Hand
- Frank Braña as Widow's Ranch Hand
- Fernando Bilbao as Widow's Ranch Hand
- Luis Gaspar as John O'Leary, Young Outlaw
- Barta Barri as Nathan Plummer, Old Outlaw
- Lorenzo Robledo as Dave, the Pioneer
- Herman Reynoso as Morman Leader
- Maribel Martín as Sarah
- Fernando Sánchez Polack as Willow Creek Sheriff
- Giovanni Tarallo as Wedding Photographer
- José Zalde as Mexican Barber
- Angelo Susani as Mexican Barman
- Silvana Bacci as Mexican Prostitute
The Big Gundown was shot in Almeria in late 1966.
The Big Gundown was released in Italy in March 1967 with a running time of 105 minutes. On its release in Spain, the climactic cane-field chase was shortened. In the United States and United Kingdom, the film was released in 1968 and edited down to 85 minutes and removed all references to the rape of the girl. The film grossed over two-million dollars when it was released in the United States.
In December 2013, Grindhouse Releasing in association with original rights holder Columbia Pictures/Sony, has digitally restored and re-released the film with two different cuts, the original 110-minute Italian version and a 95-minute "expanded U.S. cut" (in English) restoring several minutes of non-dialogue footage not included in the original American release.
In a contemporary review, the Monthly Film Bulletin stated that "at least this makes for a variation on the familiar solitary superman theme, and the two protagonists are given time to create characters with some personality." noting that "the violence is on the whole less gratuitously excessive than usual; and though the plot tends to ramble, there are several impressively staged sequences to keep interest alive-in particular a manhunt with the wily Mexican pursued through cane fields by dogs and an army of trackers"
In a retrospective review, Stuart Galbraith IV remarked that the film was "unusually fine" noting its "taut, intelligent screenplay" and "Lee Van Cleef's marvelous screen presence" and "especially the outstanding musical score by the great Ennio Morricone.“ Daryl Loomis of DVD Verdict commented: “The story, written by Sergio Donati (Duck, You Sucker), is strong, with a darker framing story than one often sees, and a lot of wit and humor throughout... Great performances and some amazing music, combined with strong direction, gorgeous locations, and top-notch camera work (by Carlo Carlini, Death Rides a Horse)... is among the best work of any of the participants' careers... There's no question that, had more people seen The Big Gundown, it would be clearly recognized at the pinnacle of the genre. Luckily, Grindhouse Releasing has graced us with one of the best Blu-ray packages I've seen in a long time... With the extras, the commentaries, and especially the soundtrack CD, this is my pick for Blu-ray release of the year.”