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Unofficial lawman John Corbett (Lee VanCleef) hunts down Cuchillo Sanchez (Tomas Milian), a Mexican peasant accused of raping and killing a 12-year-old girl.

"The Big Gundown" hit American theaters thanks to the success of Sergio Leone's Clint Eastwood films. Despite being made before "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", it was that film's power that attracted people to "Gundown" and star Lee VanCleef. Unfortunately, the folks at Columbia did not give the film the respect it deserved and tried to pass it off as a film starring "Mr. Ugly" (who was actually Eli Wallach, not VanCleef, showing how little they cared).

Ennio Morricone, the biggest name in Italian composing, provides the score and it is among his best work. Actor Milian was actually Cuban, not Mexican, but he filled the role as well as anyone could (and starred in two more Sergio Sollima westerns in 1967 and 1968).

Through Grindhouse releasing, the film is now available on DVD and Blu-ray, completely uncut, looking sharp and sounding great. There are interviews with Sollima and Milian, as well as a complete commentary from Western authority C. Courtney Joyner. If the film itself were not enough, the booklet has a few essays and a bonus CD contains Morricone's entire soundtrack.