I lunghi giorni della vendetta (1967)

Director:

Florestano Vancini

Writers:

Augusto Caminito (writer)
Fernando Di Leo (writer)

Release Date:

23 February 1967 (Italy)

Genre:

Western

Plot:

After three years of hard labor, Ted Barnett escapes from prison to seek revenge on the three men who framed him. |

Plot Keywords:

Revenge | Wrongful Conviction | Small Town | Barroom Brawl | Crooked Sheriff

Cast

Giuliano Gemma	...	Ted Barnett
Francisco Rabal	...	Sceriffo Douglas
Gabriella Giorgelli	...	Dulcie
Conrado San Martín	...	Mr. Cobb
Franco Cobianchi	...	General Porfirio (as Franco Cobianchi d'Este)
Nieves Navarro	...	Dolly
Manuel Muñiz	...	Pajarito (as Pajarito)
Teodoro Corrà		(as Doro Corrà)
Milo Quesada
Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia		(as Ivan Scratuglia)
Pedro Basauri 'Pedrucho'
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Omán de Bengala
Carlos Hurtado
Carlos Otero
Jesús Puche
Juan Antonio Rubio

Also Known As:

Days of Vengeance (International: English title)
Faccia d'angelo (Italy)
Les longs jours de la vengeance (France)
Long Days of Vengeance (USA)
Los largos días de la venganza (Spain)
The Deadliest Gunfight (International: English title)
Vendetta (International: English title) (poster title)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Italy | Spain | France

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:16 (cut) | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Almería, Andalucía, Spain

Company:

Mediterranee P.C.

Trivia:

Giuliano Gemma is credited as Robert Wood on the Finnish theatrical poster

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

The Gringo Of Monte Cristo

The memorable main theme of composer Armando Trovaioli's sole Western score, a slow and stately trumpet soaring over acoustic guitar and rolling percussion, kicks off 1966's Long Days Of Vengeance.

As 2 prisoners carry out a daring escape from a harsh, brutal military prison....we get our first look at Ted Barnett......, who, as we discover later, is serving his 3rd year of a sentence of 30 at hard labor...framed for the murder of an Army Colonel...as part of an elaborate plan involving & including the murder of his father....slave labor..gun running.. & the ownership & control of a railroad.

The story quotes quite clearly from it's inspiration .... "The Count of Monte Cristo". Guiliano Gemma, as Barnett..looking very much like the imprisoned Edmond Dantes....plots revenge against those who betrayed him. After making his escape, ...and a NOT your typical day at the barber shop...he manages to find some helpers for his plan to exact revenge...from a traveling medicine show..who are VERY aware of the $10,000 bounty now on his head.

The only Western directed by Florestano Vancini ........he makes use of a good plot...with definite noirish elements-- fall guy out for revenge.. the shady former lover , here played by Nieves Navarro , as the femme fatale, who may have access to evidence implicating the conspirators............greed, redemption and payback. It's a good story...one could see it used in an 40's B&W potboiler...as well as a lean, mean 50s American Western..but here it gets the Spaghetti treatment. ...there's even a bit of ninja fare thrown in..to good effect, I might add..as it plays into the final showdown..from which some will walk away unbowed, but none will walk away unbloodied.

Of course no Gemma film would be complete without the former stuntman's trademark athleticism.....he shows off his gymnast roots...but this is a slightly darker Gemma...the smile & the humor are there.....but also the grit of an avenger as one by one the conspirators are confronted......as evidenced by the lengths to which he'll go as he attempts to set the sides up for a fall...and by what he sets himself up for to carry out his plan.

A good supporting cast....which, atypically for most Italian Westerns, features 2 strong female supporting characters...the fetching Navarro....and a nice turn by Gabriella Giorgelli as the aptly named, sweet but feisty Dulcie...who proves equally adept w/ a guitar or rifle.

The catchy & varied score contains a variety of themes & influences...ranging from Morricone to Toots Thielman's harmonica soundtracks. The stunning main theme appeared in Tarantino's "Kill Bill", during the "Origin of O-Ren Ishii" anime sequence.

An interesting story..well told.. badly dubbed... nicely filmed....a nice fit somewhere in the middle of anyone's Spaghetti Western collection.

Recommended.