El precio de un hombre: The Bounty Killer

(1968) The Bounty Killer/ El precio de un hombre / The Ugly Ones DUBBED SPAGHETTI WESTERN

A very blatant beginning, but resonating after awhile. And I guess back on those days, 'aid and abetting' and 'accessory' wasn't considered a crime back then- not on this environment at least. Based on a novel written by Marvin H. Albert of the same name. Starring Richard Wyler as #1 Bounty Killer, Luke Chilson, who at first, is going after two escaped convicts with one of them escaping into a particular little town of a few houses, to give a lady named Eden(Halina Zalewska) a certain message. When it's all said and done, and by the time Luke shows up and leaves this town, he ends up killing one person, while capturing the other. The film then jumps to another felon, by the name of José Gómez (Tomas Milian) with several guards escorting him by wagon coach. And they coincidently stop at the same inn as Eve happens to be eating. Eve who's sitting right across from José then hands him a gun underneath a table, and then leaves. Chaos ensures with many people killed including the inn keeper. After bounty hunter Luke collects his reward from another town, he then hears about José's escape, and already knows where he's heading to without informing authorities about where José is going to show up. By the time he goes back to the small little town, it appears they don't like Luke at all and feel that they know José more than Luke does. But, by the time José shows up, it appears that he's just psychopathic as other people claim him to be, and that the people who were helping him were completely wrong. Much of this movie dwells on this set up. As I was watching this, the hero, Luke reminds me of "The Man With No Name' character created by Sergio Leone, since viewers no absolutely nothing about him except for what does for a living which is that he captures or kills wanted felons for a substantial reward. Had Leone gotten his hands of this script, it would've been an instant ingenious classic, but what we're left with instead is just an interesting premise with a not so interesting action sequences that could've been better.

Great opening and closing shots, and everything wonderful in between as the camera captures both the wide open spaces and the claustrophobic confines of the station and its various buildings where much of the action in THE UGLY ONES takes place.

For a change well drawn characters rather than a catalogue of stock figures that you expect in a western. Unusually the female lead is a strong individual; the villain of the piece remains the most interesting and complex, and thankfully the bounty hunter does not succumb to becoming a romantic lead.

This film is violent for its time and I enjoyed the reliance on fisticuffs, rather than just gun-play.

The soundtrack is exceptional with a score by STELVIO CIPRIANI that exemplifies the unique qualities of the Euro western.

This is a film I would recommend to any film-goer, and equally important, certainly one that I would watch again (8 out of 10 for this genre).

The film stars Richard Wyler as a 'bounty killer'--a term I can't recall having ever heard except in Italian westerns (the correct American term is 'bounty hunter'). He's looking for José Gómez (Tomas Milian)--a guy who has escaped thanks, in part, to assistance from his girlfriend (Zalewska). She believes he's an innocent man and does not realize he's really a two-bit murderer.

Having seen a lot of Italian westerns, I find a certain sameness to many of them. Sure, the plots are a bit different--but not remarkably so. It's not a bad western but it also doesn't stand out in any particular way. The music is nice, the action decent and the story reasonably interesting. But, on the other hand there is a certain 'sameness' to the film--as if I'd seen a lot of other films like it. Plus, although Halina Zalewska is absolutely gorgeous in the film, she looks right out of 1967--with lipstick, hair and makeup that you'd never have found on a woman of the late 19th century. Also, while I don't want to see gallons of blood, this was an odd film because you see absolutely none--and this made little sense. Nor, now that I think of it, did the escape--as there is no way all these federal agents could be killed without the bad guys (who were outnumbered) even losing a single man.

This one starts out slow but gets good. It is reportedly Tomas Milian's first western. He turns in one of his best performances as an escaped convict who returns home, where the "bounty killer" of the title lies in wait for him. The townsfolk side with their old friend Milian, only to watch his behavior degenerate into that of the miscreant he's become. Soon his entire gang of freaky looking b**tards (the alternate title is "The Ugly Ones") has trickled into town and the villagers are at their mercy.

This film is the ideological opposite of "The Great Silence" in that everyone hates the bounty hunter, but in the end he turns out to be right. Just the same it's quite entertaining when it gets going and features the best "outlaws terrorizing the townsfolk" sequence of any western I've seen. Rivals the one in the first "Mad Max," which isn't even a western. One of the terrorizing outlaws is the drunk from "Cutthroats Nine." Actually, the cast all around is great, with more than one familiar face. The musical score works well once you get used to it, though it sounds a lot like a cross between a Morricone rip-off and something by that guy who did the "Brady Bunch" music. Eugenio Martin's direction, while it has some slow spots and flaws, shows true inspiration.

All in all, worth seeing for genre fans and a must for those of Tomas Milian.

This film was oh so close to nearly losing me. Maybe my attention span was limited - it had been a pretty tiring day after all (but thats another - and highly uninteresting - story!). But anyway, for pretty much the first third of the movie I was convinced that it was notable purely for being Tomas Milian's first foray into the Spaghetti Western genre that he is so renowned for (and rightly so).

Milian plays Jose Gomez, an outlaw treated with reverence by the small population that make up his hometown. He is freed from captivity by Eden (Zalewska), who looks at Gomez with wanting eyes, seeing him as a local hero. However, bounty hunter Luke Chilson (Wyler) is on his trail, and arrives at the town ahead of the escapee, to the wrath of the very protective townsfolk. When Gomez does arrive in town, with a group of bandits at the helm, the locals begin to experience that he is no longer the great man that they believed him to be, and begin to witness first hand why he has the bounty on his head.

Whilst the opening sequences are slow and stretched to near yawning point (even for me and, hey, I like slow films!), the second half of the movie more than makes up for it. The film really hits the heights as the locals witness the transformation of Gomez' character. Milian plays this role expertly, demonstrating clearly the promise that was to blossom fully in the very near future. Wyler's bounty hunter on the other-hand is far more restrained, yet apt for the character he portrays. There is also a fine supporting cast that includes Spaghetti favourites Mario Brega and Frank Brana, and a pretty powerful soundtrack provided by Cipriani.

All in all, I am relieved that I sat through the slow beginning, because the film does have so much going for it once it does get going. May day improved considerably. Well worth viewing.