The Silent Stranger (1968)

An American gunfighter is tasked with delivering a valuable scroll to a feudal lord in Japan, and becomes embroiled in a feud between the lord and his rival cousin over ownership of land owed to a young princess in their care.

Director:

Luigi Vanzi (as Vance Lewis)

Writers:

Vincenzo Cerami (screenplay), Giancarlo Ferrando (screenplay)

Stars:

Tony Anthony, Lloyd Battista, Hitoshi Ômae

Cast

Cast overview:
Tony Anthony	...	The Stranger
Lloyd Battista	...	The American
Hitoshi Ômae	...	Lord Motori (as Kin Omae)
Kanji Ohara	...	Koeta
Rita Maura	...	Princess Otaka (as Kita Mura)
Kyôichi Satô	...	Koeta's Henchman (as Sato)
Yoshio Nukano	...	Motori Samurai

Storyline

An American gunfighter is tasked with delivering a valuable scroll to a feudal lord in Japan, and becomes embroiled in a feud between the lord and his rival cousin over ownership of land owed to a young princess in their care.

---

Plot Keywords:

italo western | surrealism | japan | cowboy | drifter | 

---

Taglines:

A secret scroll leads the stranger halfway 'round the world, and into the middle of a brutal war.

---

Genres:

Western

---

Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Thanks to a dispute between producer Allen Klein and MGM, the film was shelved and did not open in the U.S. until 1975, seven years after it was produced.

---

Goofs

The Stranger ask to be paid for the scroll in Ryo in 1884 Japan. Ryo was abolished as being use as a currency unit in Japan after the Meiji Restoration of 1871 and replaced by the Yen.

---

Connections

Follows The Stranger Returns (1967)

---

Soundtracks

My God How the Money Rolls In
(uncredited)
Traditional
Arranged and sung by Tony Anthony

User Reviews

A strange Western in the quirky '60s style that is so Italian

I saw this movie for the first time today. THE GOOD, BAD AND THE UGLY it isn't....neither was it as bad as PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE or the incredibly boring ISHTAR. Instead STRANGER was somehow strangely appealing in that quirky 'spaghetti western' style so well-known in films like TRINITY and ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST. The lead actor was nearly silent throughout, the Japanese ran around waving samurai swords and behaving unintelligibly, but I found the bizarre juxtaposition of a gunfighter in Shogunate Japan truly interesting.

I'd watch it again.....

Details

Country:

Italy Japan USA

Language:

English Japanese Apache languages

Release Date:

20 June 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Horseman and the Samurai

Filming Locations:

Kyoto, Japan

Box Office

Budget:

$1,600,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), ABKCO Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min 110 min (uncut 1968)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1