Gunfight at Red Sands (1963)
"Duello nel Texas" (original title)

An avenging stranger guns down a gang of ruthless bandits in revenge for the murder of his family.

Director:

Ricardo Blasco

Writers:

James Donald Prindle (story), Albert Band (screenplay),

Stars:

Richard Harrison, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, Mikaela

Cast

Credited cast:
Richard Harrison	...	Richard - Ricardo 'Gringo' Martinez
Giacomo Rossi-Stuart	...	Sheriff Lance Corbett (as Giacomo Rossi Stuart, G.R. Stuart)
Mikaela	...	Maria Huertas
Sara Lezana	...	Elisa ' Lisa' Martinez
Daniel Martín	...	Manuel Martinez (as Dan Martin)
Barta Barri	...	Lou Stedman (as Barta Barry)
Aldo Sambrell	...	Juan Guardo (as Ald Sambrell)
Agustín González	...	Risitas Wilson (as Agustin Gonzalez)
Barbara Simon	...	Rosa Cardena (as Bruna Simoniato)
Ángel Solano	...	Miller (as Mike Solano)
Gonzalo Esquiroz	...	King Wilson (as Gonzalo Ezquiro)
Rodolfo del Campo	...	Doctor (as Sam Field)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Guillermo Vera	...	Mexicano

Storyline

An avenging stranger guns down a gang of ruthless bandits in revenge for the murder of his family.

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Plot Keywords:

revenge | murder | fistfight | mexican | horse | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Romance | Western

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Details

Country:

Spain Italy

Language:

Spanish Italian

Release Date:

19 September 1963 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Gunfight in the Red Sands

Filming Locations:

G.S.C.-Rome, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Gross:

ESP 31,765,340 (Spain)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jolly Film, Tecisa

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Composer Dan Savio is Ennio Morricone, using one of the two pseudonyms he used for early work.

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Soundtracks

"Gringo"
Lyrics by José Hierro

User Reviews

Shape Of Things To Come

1963...Sergio Leone had done 1 film as credited director..."Colossus of Rhodes"..; Clint Eastwood was still best known as "Rowdy Yates" on "Rawhide". Duello Nel Texas was released in Italy in Sept. 1963...Filmed in Northern Spain....using the set that would later be used as the town in FOD & FAFDM. Ricardo Blasco ..directed 8 other films..a couple of Zorro movies...most of his work was as Second Unit Director or Assistant Director. Massimo Dallamano, the cinematographer, went on to be director of photography on both Fistful Of Dollars and FAFDM.

Richard Harrison..had appeared in 1 previous "pre-spaghetti" Western..."El Sabor de la Venganza" (1963) (Gunfight at High Noon (USA) )....& went on to play Ringo in "$100,000 for Ringo"....Rocco in "Vengeance" (.Joko invoca Dio e muori).. & starred in "I'll Forgive You, Before I Kill You" .... .."Aquasanta Joe" & others. Gunfight at Red Sands is also noteworthy for being the first Italian Western to feature a Ennio Morricone score...& if my instincts are correct......a collaboration w/ Bruno Nicolai.

Harrison is Ricardo..a/k/a "Gringo"......who returns from an unsuccessful campaign fighting w/ guerillas in Mexico...& now just wants peace.......to discover that his adoptive father has been killed & the family's gold stolen. So he's gotta..avenge his father..& get the gold back.

This is Harrison without the stubble..not quite the antihero...an avenger...but not "The Stranger"...although he has been away for 4 years.

As for Ennio Morricone's first Western score.....parts of it are quite nice...others are just...OK...Hollywood-style stuff, as requested by the film's producers. ..Of course, early Morricone is very interesting...the title song (A Gringo Like Me) is a different version than the one that's become somewhat familiar...an earlier version w/ a different vocalist. He is also credited as musical director under the name of "Leo Nichols"...which for me is too close to Bruno Nicolai..that I suspect that to be a mistake..& Nicolai to be the true musical director.

The Italian Western was still very much an American Western imitation..but we see the SWlike quirk here & there..a lot of "roots" of what was to come in many films....the weird villain type (giggling..twitching guy)............& there's gold..Mexican revolutionaries...a corrupt sheriff who hates Mexicans....more than a few killings..a couple of not very well done fistfights..a final showdown that's OK.......minor red herrings & misdirection..pretty straightforward. Good bit early..the shootout w/ the Federales...although it does come off as too theatrical. Check out the scene early on when a jeep drives by in the background. Rest of the cast ranges from pretty awful to pretty good... nice turn by Sara Lezana as Lisa..who gets to show off some action chops that a year later became traditionally not done by women in SW.

Gunfight At Red Sands is really a PRE-Spaghetti Western....in tone... & spirit....dramatically & musically. It has more in common with the Hollywood knockoffs produced in Italy pre '64...but SW devotees will definitely notice & appreciate the elements of future films that are there...

The style hadn't arrived yet......nor the twinkle in the eye..but something quite unique and wonderful was just about to be born.

Spaghetti Western? Maybe an Antipasto Western.