The Ugly Ones film review
Review of The Ugly Ones (1966) aka The Bounty Killer / The Price of a Man / El Precio de un Hombre
As I've said elsewhere, in the genre there's a wide range of quality, with the A-grade stuff (Leone), the not-quite A-list but still great (Sollima, some Corbucci and a few others), the Z-grade crap, and the huge amount of in-betweens. Eugenio Martin's The Ugly Ones (aka "The Bounty Killer") from 1966 is one of those in-betweeners: a good, solid plot great camera work, and decent acting.
It stars Richard Wyler as a bounty hunter named Luke Chilson. Chilson's on the trail of Jose Gomez, played by genre superstar Tomas Milian, who has just broken out of prison. He's returned to the small ranch where he had some friends and a love interest named Eden, played by the beautiful Ella Karin. At first, when he returns, they protect him, but as his outlaw buddies start to arrive, and Chilson gets on his trail, he starts to behave more like a caged animal, turning on his benefactors. Eventually, the big showdown arrives with him and Chisolm, with Chislom getting his man.
I enjoyed this film. A good, solid oater. It's an early one for Milian, and he does lapse into that overacting that he's known for from time to time. The overall acting (as well as the voice overdubs) is actually quite good, and the script is well-written. The camera work from Enzo Barboni (who's got a rather impressive resume in regards to the genre) shows some good craft at work, and Stelvio Cipriani's soundtrack is one of those sterotypical spag western soundtracks, but it succeeds quite well. Another thing I noticed (which I often do in these films but fail to point out) is how dangerous some of the stunts in these films were. There's a scene where a guy gets shot off of his horse, and after he falls, that horse rolls right over him. That couldn't have felt very good.
"I should shoot you dead right here for getting that haircut!"
So, not an exceptional film by any means, but not too shabby, either, and worth a watch if you can find it.
This article is part of the A Fistful of Pasta archive
