Blutiges Blei

"The Price of Power" (1969), directed by Tonino Valerii, is a Spaghetti Western starring Guiliano Gemma, Van Johnson, Fernando Rey and Benito Stefanelli. Made six years after the assassination of US President John F. Kennedy, it seeks to comment sharply on the situation, perhaps more bitingly than Hollywood wanted or was able to do at that time.

The plot is thus, with their 1963 equivalents blatantly obvious: in Dallas, Texas, 1883 an unpopular liberal President (Johnson) visits the city and is assassinated in a crossfire of lead. A black patsy is quickly found by the corrupt sheriff (Stefanelli) and is killed while in transit between prisons. The framed man's friend (Gemma) seeks to find out the truth, variously aided and set back by a mysterious government agent (Warren Vanders).

Reading the synopsis, it's pretty clear where Valerii is heading, and he does so with style and tension. Well-acted, photographed and edited, with some excellent gunfights, this is a Spaghetti Western that deserves a much wider reputation that the one it currently holds.

Based largely on the Kennedy Assasintion, Director Valerii's The Price of Power is quite a hard going, albeit very well made, film.

President James Garfield (Van Johnson) arrives by train in the state of Texas to debate his political reforms. His anti-slavery stance is extremely unpopular with the locals, particularly the corrupt Sheriff and the banker Pinkerton (Fernando Rey), who secretly plot his assassination, knowing that his probable successor can be bribed by incriminating evidence that they hold.

Ben Willer (Giuliano Gemma) discovers that his father has been murdered by the Sheriff, because he knew of the plan to kill the president. Despite his efforts to provide some protection, the assassination is successful, with Willer's Negro companion (a staunch believer of the President's cause) blamed and imprisoned. Willer attempts to seek justice, assisted by the President's aide Arthur Macdonald (Warren Vanders).

In truth, Valerii's film is an outstanding piece of Italian cinema, with a fine performance from Gemma, and an enjoyable Bacalov soundtrack. Despite this, I struggled to be really convinced by the movie, even though it is so highly respected in euro-western circles. I think in particular I found that some of the more typical Spaghetti Western fare (such as the rifle hidden in the crutch of the disabled newspaper employee) sat uneasy within the context of the film.

That said, there were a handful of great scenes, such as the failed initial assassination attempt as the President's train arrives, the flashback and the court sequence. But in the end, I couldn't help but find the whole thing disappointing - probably because I expected so much.

This movie uses the assassination of President Garfield as a plot device. The makers never intended to tell a historical story. It's an allegory to explore the JFK assassination and the Viet Nam war. Garfield's assassin was an erstwhile ally turned insane. He died because of incredible medical incompetence, 12 weeks later, and it happened in D.C. So, it's a plot device, not an historical movie.

And it works as a Spaghetti Western. It's among the best of the genre. I'm the kind of anorak that sits there and thinks about every detail, every shot, and I put this in the top 10 most important of the genre. The Italian version is much better than the English one, imho. I've never seen an Italian version of it with English subtitles, so good luck with that one. Bottom line, if you like to sit there and be a know-it-all and pick historical holes in what isn't a historical movie, or like something mindless, you probably won't like it. If you understand the complex cultural statements coming out of 1960's Italy about politics and violence, you will love it.

The Italians loved it. It's total revenue puts it at the 28th biggest grossing Spaghetti Western in history, 1.273 billion lire (no clue what year's lire that might be). That's about 1/3 of each of the Man With No Name trilogies receipts, which is pretty darn good for one that is virtually unknown here.

The reviewer that said it was a brain dead version of Stone's JFK has missed the point so many ways...well, the person must be a contortionist to get one's head so far up their own backside. I'm imaging some gen Y twerp that yells "Nu-uh!" to everything. And the length...those type usually love the sound of their own voice.

After the civil war, Willer (Giuliano Gemma) who was 4 years in prison for treason, lives in Texas when president Garfield (Van Johnson) comes to visit the unruly state. Although the president was his judge in the trial years ago, Willer rescues his life from assassins. But there is quite a big conspiracy going on involving sheriff Jefferson (Benito Stefanelli) and the owner of the bank of Texas (Fernando Rey) who blackmails the vice president, so plans for a new attempt to murder the president are made immediately.

Good quality western by Tonino Valerii who shot "Day of Anger" (also with Gemma) the year before and went on to make "My Name Is Nobody" with Henry Fonda and Terence Hill. "The Price of Power" may not be historically accurate (and by the way, the sweet little nothing the saloon dancer is almost wearing comes straight from a 1969 nightclub), and it plays too obviously with the similarities to the JFK assassination case, yet unlike many Italian westerns it rarely drifts away into a bizarre anti-hero fantasy world, the exception being the duel rituals between Willer and Jefferson.

This is a gripping story that borrows elements from the Kennedy assassination, and uses them successfully to create an excellent western tale.

The movie has a good music score, though it relies on repeating the title theme a little too much. Giuliano Gemma and the rest of the cast are superb. This is a more cerebral than usual spaghetti western that relies more on story than action, and it succeeds because the story is excellent. This is not to say that there is no action in the movie. There is plenty, and it is very well crafted. This movie pulls you in right away, and keeps you absorbed til the end. You'll always be wondering what's in those documents everyone's after. It also has some biting commentary on American politics.

This movie shows why Valerii, in my opinion, is in a three way tie with Sollima and Corbucci for second place in the rankings of spaghetti western directors.