The Weekend Western: The Great Silence

September 22nd, 2007 Posted by Ian W | DVD Viewing Journal | no comments

A spaghetti western that features the bloody violence one would expect from the genre but also much that sets it apart. The spectacular snowbound locations give the film a unique look, while its mute hero displays a strong moral fibre that’s at odds with the usual Italian western anti-hero. Known as Silence because he cannot speak, he refuses to shoot first, preferring to goad his opponents into making their move, he also has a tendency to shoot their thumbs off.

It’s unusual for having a black love interest for the hero, in the shapely form of Vonetta McGee who later found fame in Blacula and a score of other blacksploitation flicks in the ‘7os. The film has an international cast with French actor Jean-Louis Trintignant playing Silence, while Klaus Kinski is the main villain, Loco. Sadly none of them provide their own voice on the dubbed English soundtrack.

The king of spaghetti western composers, Ennio Morricone contributes a striking score. It’s more subdued and less catchy than his more famous compositions for Eastwood’s Italian films but no less effective.

Climaxing with bloodbath so unremittingly bleak that an alternate happy ending was shot but not used, this isn’t your average shootout. It’s an ending that stays with you and makes you wonder what, if anything, director Sergio Corbucci was trying to say. Is it just nihilism or something more?

It may not rank alongside the best spaghetti westerns of Leone but it’s certainly a cut above the average and a film all fans of Italian horse operas should see.

The Friday Night Fright: Count Dracula

September 22nd, 2007 Posted by Ian W | DVD Viewing Journal | no comments

In 1970 Christopher Lee made two appearances as Dracula, Taste the Blood of Dracula, his fourth appearance in the Hammer series, and Count Dracula that teamed him with director Jess Franco.

The attraction of the film for Lee was the chance to play Dracula true to Stoker’s original book rather than the almost feral interpretation of the Hammer films in which he had hardly any dialogue. Things start off well enough with Harker making the journey to Dracula’s castle. Lee, playing the part sans cloak and with a full moustache, makes the most of these early scenes, delivering his lines as if they were Shakespeare. He even gets to do the famous “children of the night” line but given the cheap nature of the film those children are played by German Shepherds rather than real wolves.

After this impressive opening it all goes down hill, with Lee reduced to popping up just to nibble on the occasional maiden’s neck, in much the same way as the Hammer films he so resented doing.

When it come to casting Renfield it’s hard to think of a better choice than Klaus Kinski. The fly eating insane asylum inmate seems tailor made for the batty German actor but with no dialogue (according to Franco, Kinski said he could convey what was needed without words) and little screen time a great opportunity is wasted.