The Grand Duel (1972)

A grizzled ex-sheriff helps a man framed for murder to confront the powerful trio of brothers who want him dead.

Director:

Giancarlo Santi

Writer:

Ernesto Gastaldi (screenplay)

Stars:

Lee Van Cleef, Alberto Dentice, Jess Hahn

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lee Van Cleef	...	Sheriff Clayton
Alberto Dentice	...	Philip Vermeer (as Peter O'Brien)
Jess Hahn	...	Bighorse the Stagecoach Driver
Horst Frank	...	David Saxon / Patriarch Samuel Saxon
Klaus Grünberg	...	Adam Saxon (as Klaus Grunberg)
Antonio Casale	...	Holk (as Antony Vernon)
Marc Mazza	...	Sheriff Eli Saxon
Dominique Darel	...	Elizabeth
Alessandra Cardini	...	Anita (as Sandra Cardini)
Gastone Pescucci	...	Borghese the Caretaker
Elvira Cortese	...	Madame Oro
Anna Maria Gherardi	...	Saxon's Girl
Hans Terofal	...	Jo Barrel
Salvatore Baccaro	...	Saloon Servant
Remo Capitani	...	Bounty Killer (as Ray O'Connor)

Storyline

Philipp Wermeer has been framed for the murder of a powerful figure known as The Patriarch. Wermeer escapes, but the three Saxon brothers, sons of The Patriarch, have arranged for a large bounty on Wermeer's head. Clayton is a grizzled ex-sheriff stripped of his office in Jefferson after refusing to acknowledge Wermeer's guilt. During a series of fire-fights, Clayton contrives to help Wermeer escape from attacks of bounty-hunters. Together, the two make their way to Jefferson, where they can confront the three powerful Saxon brothers, and reveal the surprising truth about who killed The Patriarch.

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Plot Keywords:

spaghetti western | italo western | murder | bounty hunter | child killed | 

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Taglines:

... Be Quick or Be Dead!

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy West Germany France

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Storm Rider

Filming Locations:

Elios Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mount Street Film, Corona Filmproduktion, Terra-Filmkunst

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Marc Mazza is dubbed by another actor in the French language version.

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Goofs

Directors is misspelled as "drectors" in the end credits of the English language version.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Madame Oro, Stage Passenger: Hey Driver, can't you put the fear of God into those mules of yours?

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Alternate Versions

UK versions are cut by 5 secs to remove shots of a horsefall.

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Connections

Referenced in Eurocrime! The Italian Cop and Gangster Films That Ruled the '70s (2012)

User Reviews

Lee Van Cleef, Man In Black

I read the other comments previous to mine, and won't add to what's already been said, except to say that I really thought there were some remarkable features here.

For example, there's the device of panning a shot from point A to point B. I'm sure there's a technical term for this kind of shot, but I'm no professional, and don't know what it is. But what seemed to me unusual was the very smooth, automatic auto-timing of the transition. Say looking at Clayton for a few long seconds; then as if someone flips a switch, the camera looks from Clayton to Wermeer, traveling at a fixed rate of speed; and upon arriving at Wermeer, the camera proceeds to look at Wermeer for several long seconds.

There were some strange anachronisms. The hair styles seemed very much out of 1970s era. Some of the strangest "western" headgear I've ever seen were in evidence. These chapeaux looked more like something from the Mardi Gras of New Orleans or the Carnivale of Milano than any Western story. Likewise, the almost Gucci-esquire look of the attire of Adam Saxon.

Some very "spaghetti western" style over-the-top grittiness. So in the opening scene, the tall, tall, tall rock. Then we have Lee Van Cleef playing Clayton in a black, black Western outfit in stark contrast to the white outfits of the Saxons. Then we have this strange contraption involving a gun booby-trap set up to blow up their carriage on opening the door near Silver Bell. I loved the game of checkers played with full shot glasses that the players drank whenever they "jumped" someone. Then the room Clayton stays in, full of bullet holes in the walls. When he asks the proprietress if he could have another room, she says there are three kinds of rooms there: "rooms with women in them; rooms for card-games; and this one is for shooting bullets in." Nuff said, right? I loved the final scene ... sort of a Spaghetti Western version of the Shootout at the OK Corral. The love of the grotesque - such as Adam Saxon's pock-marked face - he is sardonically called "Pocksy" at one point. The typical spaghetti western tongue-in-cheek humor is present in such bits, and throughout the movie.

All in all, if you like spaghetti westerns, please do yourself a favor, get this one on DVD, and enjoy! Charles Delacroix