Joe... cercati un posto per morire!

When a man is partially buried in an avalanche, his younger wife rides to the nearest town, bringing back a handful of dubious characters to the couple's gold mine, which happens to be in the middle of land controlled by a very dangerous bandit known as Chato.

No doubt inspired in part by Henry Hathaway's classic Garden Of Evil, Find A Place To Die stands apart from other Italian westerns in that it's dark and very atmospheric, without any of the flamboyant flourishes typical of the genre.

Set south of the border, this looks great with lots of rugged mountainous terrain, thick wooded areas, and crumbling Spanish architecture. They all add a lot to the movie's afore mentioned atmosphere.

Sadly, Jeffrey Hunter (who died the following year) is remembered by most people these days only as the predecessor to Captain Kirk in the original pilot episode of "Star Trek". Western fans though, know him as one of the great unsung anti-heroes in such films as The Proud Ones and The Searchers.

This is actually quite a sad film to watch. Not because the story is sad, but because it illustrates just how far (down) Jeffery Hunter had come since his hey-day. A couple are defending their gold mine from bandits (using dynamite!) when the husband becomes trapped under a collapsed wagon. Now rather than just use her horse to remove the offending bits of wood, "Lisa" (Pascale Petit) sets off to find some folks who will come to her aid. Unsurprisingly, she alights on a group of miscreants who are quite happy to help so long as they get her gold, herself - or, ideally, both! It might be, though, that "Joe" (Hunter) - a lapsed Confederate soldier - could have just a little more chivalry than the others and, of course, when they arrive at the mine we are soon to find out! Add to the mix, the fact that the original attacking banditos - lead by "Chato" (Mario Dardanelli) have not given up their own ambitions to seize the gold and we have a sort of explosive siege western where nobody can trust anyone. Adolfo Lastretti is quite entertaining as ruthless the "Rev. Riley", but otherwise this is a cheap and cheerful spaghetti-style western that was clearly made quickly, on a budget, and with scant regard to a decent script or production values. There's no chemistry at all between Hunter and Petit and indeed the whole thing has a rather unpalatable seediness to it that I found distinctly off-putting.

This movie is actually pretty watchable. It's actually better than some of those westerns they used to punch out in Hollywood back in the 30's. You know the ones. The ones where the Duke was doing 12 movies a year. LOL Saying this movie is pretty good is saying somethin' for a spaghetti western. The movie is good enough, it draws you in, and rivets you. And that is also sayin' somethin'. The photography, and the music, are good. The acting is tolerable. To the guy who wrote a review and obviously didn't watch the movie, what is wrong with people like you? // The Bushwacker 6/29/2021.

Though somewhat standard "gang hunts for gold" spaghetti western fare, it is well-directed and has solid performances. The score is also well-done, one of the better non-Morricone ones I've heard. Fast-paced with several nice action scenes, with a couple of great, cold-blooded sudden shootings. The VCI DVD is ok, letterboxed but the transfer is soft and rather noisy throughout, with a lot of grain in dark scenes. The mono sound, though, is rich and well-recorded. The film is definitely worth a look for anyone looking for an entertaining, obscure western.

Released in 1968-69, but not in the USA until 1971, "Find a Place to Die" is a Spaghetti Western starring Jeffrey Hunter as a dishonored ex-officer drinking his woes away in Mexico when a beautiful woman (Pascale Petit) hires him and several others to save her husband and their gold mine claim from a band of local bandits. Daniela Giordano is on hand as the beautiful Juanita at the cantina.

The plot is obviously borrowed (or, more accurately, ripped off) from 1954's "Garden of Evil" and combines it with a pensive Spaghetti Western flavor, lacking the goofiness and moral hollowness of, say, 1966's "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." The melancholy is heightened by a moving song Juanita sings at the cantina in the first act; the tune is reminiscent of Jerry Goldsmith's excellent acoustic piece for 1970's "Rio Lobo." Too bad Giordano (as Juanita) didn't have a bigger role, but it's big enough.

There are several other things that propel "Find a Place to Die" above most Italo oaters: The group Lisa (Petit) compiles consists of a few interesting people, including an ex-con turned minister who seems to be sincere but is dubious at the same time. Secondly, their ordeal becomes almost a survival situation and I favor survival flicks. Thirdly, the story arc of the disgraced ex-Confederate (Hunter) is almost inspiring. Lisa says she's naturally drawn to him because she knows he's not like the other worthless cutthroats. The warmth of love slowly wakens the laconic loner out of his brooding stupor and draws the best in him out. Love is power and, when you find it, you need to plug into it if you want to live. Only a fool rejects it or, worse, abuses it. Lastly, being shot in Italy at some kind of ancient ruins, particularly the notable building of the cantina, the movie has a unique look for a Pasta Western, which of course were typically shot in Spain.

The movie is lean at 89 minutes.

GRADE: B