Condenados a vivir (1972)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent

Writers:

Joaquín Romero Hernández (story) &
Santiago Moncada (story) ...

Genre:

Crime | Thriller | Western

Tagline:

A nightmare on the loose

Plot:

A wagon load of convicts on their way to prison is being escorted through the mountains by a cavalry troop...

Plot Keywords:

Prisoner | Gold | Gore | Shot In The Head | Burned Alive

Cast

Claudio Undari	...	Sgt. Brown (as Robert Hundar)
Emma Cohen	...	Sarah Brown
Alberto Dalbés	...	Thomas Lawrence
Antonio Iranzo
Manuel Tejada
Ricardo Díaz
José Manuel Martín
Carlos Romero Marchent
Rafael Hernández
Eduardo Calvo
Lorenzo Robledo
Emilio Rodríguez
Xan das Bolas	...	Buddy (as Tomas Ares)
Francisco Nieto
Antonio Padilla

Also Known As:

Bronson's Revenge (USA) (video title)
Cut-Throats Nine (USA)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Spain

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-18 | USA:R | West Germany:(Banned) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Aragonese Pyreneo, Huesca, Aragón, Spain

Company:

Films Triunfo S.A.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-o-Rama Show Vol. 4 (1997) (V)

Bleak, mean spirited and unpleasant , this film is quite good if you divorce yourself from the reputation

Billed as the goriest or most violent western ever made, Cut Throats Nine is certainly over hyped. I doubt that it is either the goriest or the most violent. I do think its one of the bleakest westerns I've ever seen and leaves you feeling rather depressed and uncertain at the end (which I think is the reason many people dislike it)

The plot is simple. A band of really bad military prisoners are being transported to a new location. The wagon they are riding in is ambushed by people looking for gold, when they don't find any they destroy the wagon and leave the prisoners and their one surviving keeper (and his daughter) alone in wilderness with no way to get anywhere but walk.

No one and nothing is as it seems. In a weird way there are no good guys, only bad people trying to survive and get out of a really bad situation. Your expectations of who is who and what is what shifts around during its running time, so rarely are you on solid ground about what is happening and who you can root for. Its a kick in the pants for anyone looking for a typical "heroic" western, spaghetti or otherwise.

I don't think the film is perfect. It meanders a bit too much and on some level I think it thinks its more important than it is, but there is no denying that the film packs a wallop in the unremittingly ugly department.

If you want to see a dog eat dog western with no good guys see this film. If you want a film with heroes or anti heroes stay away.