Un esercito di cinque uomini (1969)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Directors:

Don Taylor
Italo Zingarelli

Writers:

Marc Richards (screenplay) and
Dario Argento (screenplay)

Release Date:

20 February 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Plot:

Spaghetti western about a group of bandits, led by Peter Graves, who plan on robbing a train transporting gold for the Mexican army.

Plot Keywords:

Bandit | Spaghetti Western | Beautiful Woman

Cast

Peter Graves	...	Dutchman
James Daly	...	Capt. Nicolas Augustus
Bud Spencer	...	Mesito
Nino Castelnuovo	...	Luis Dominguez
Tetsuro Tamba	...	Samurai
Claudio Gora	...	Manuel Esteban
Daniela Giordano	...	Maria
Annabella Andreoli	...	Perla, the Mexican girl
Carlo Alighiero	...	Capt. Gutierrez
Giacomo Rossi-Stuart	...	One of Gutierrez' mexican officers (as Jack Stuart)
Marino Masé	...	Railroad man
Dan Sturkie	...	Carnival barker
José Torres	...	Mexican spy

Also Known As:

The 5 Man Army (International: English title) (alternative spelling)
The 5-Man Army (International: English title) (alternative spelling)
The Five Man Army (USA)

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | UK:15 | Brazil:18 | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 (1970) | Sweden:15 | USA:M

Filming Locations:

Italy

Company:

Tiger Film

Trivia:

Partially shot on C'era una volta il West (1968) location (the railroad and the farmhouse).

Joey, ya like spaghetti westerns? Including ones co-written by Italy's most famous horror director?

One of the many spaghetti westerns apparently filmed in English, "Un esercito di cinque uomini" (called "The Five Man Army" in English) is nothing really special but worth seeing. Peter Graves plays Dutchman, an American outlaw leading four other men to capture some gold to donate to the Mexican Revolution. This movie really has the feeling of a spaghetti western, what with Ennio Morricone's music and all. The scenery - rolling desert hills - is almost a character itself. Some people may wonder how many movies there can be about people battling corrupt generals, but that misses the point. The point here is to get enthralled, and I'm sure that you will. Overall, the whole movie gives one a really energetic feeling. Pretty interesting, and a neat start for Dario Argento.

Watching Peter Graves, I half expected him to blurt out one of his lines from "Airplane!". Maybe that's just me, but he gives me that feeling.