Rojo (1966)

Richard Harrison channels Clint Eastwood, 21 May 2017

I titled this "Richard Harrison channels Clint Eastwood". I should have added "with little success". El Rojo (or just Rojo) seems to be a feeble attempt to recreate the success and feel of A Fistful of Dollars. The comparisons and influences are unmistakable. Harrison does his best at playing his version of The Man with No Name, but he doesn't have the charisma of Eastwood. Director Leopoldo Savona uses some of the same shot and lighting techniques, but he's certainly no Sergio Leone. And Benedetto Ghiglia main title theme is so similar to something Ennio Morricone would have written, it can't be a coincidence. These are talented men in their own right, but they can't compare with the people behind one of the greatest, most influential Spaghetti Westerns ever made.

I'll cut the writers some slack - all SW story lines seems to center on revenge. Here, the movie opens with group of settlers being massacred just as they reach their family's gold claim. The killings are made to look like the work of Indians, but we immediately know better. A town is built on the site called Gold Hill, One day, a stranger arrives in town (Harrison). It seems the four most respected (or feared) men in town were behind the massacre. And the stranger is the last living relative. He is (you guessed it) out for revenge.

Beyond what I've written earlier, there are other problems with Rojo. The biggest issue I had is the dull script. There are too few surprises to keep things interesting. Everything is sort of telegraphed from the very beginning. Also, I usually don't complain about dubbing (and I would never hold it against a film), but be warned - the dubbing on the version I watched was about as bad as I can remember. It's like someone ran the script though an online translator (I know, there was no internet in 1966) and didn't bother proofing the result. Parts are quite funny.

As for positives, there are a few. I mentioned the opening theme. It may sound like Morricone, but that's actually a good thing. It's a bit reminiscent of The Ecstasy of Gold. Some of the acting is good. Piero Lulli, as the head baddie and Nieves Navarro, as the love interest, were standouts. Finally, much of the movie does look good. The film has that sweaty, tight, dirty look to it that I always enjoy in a good SW.

Overall, Rojo is a lackluster attempt at recreating Leone's film. In short, it's unoriginal, predictable, and dull. I have probably overrated it with a 4/10.

4/10