A Professional Gun [Il Mercenario] [The Mercenary] **** (1968, Franco Nero, Tony Musante, Jack Palance) – Classic Movie Review 7812

Director Sergio Corbucci’s 1968 A Professional Gun [Il Mercenario] [The Mercenary] is a notable spaghetti Western, with strong performances from Jack Palance and Franco Nero (as Ricciolo ‘Curly’ and Sergei Kowalski the Polish, the rival mercenaries of the American title) and Tony Musante (as the bad-tempered revolutionary guerrilla general called Paco Roman, who hires Kowalski). It is a first-rate example of director Corbucci’s imaginative work.

Plus there is a memorable Ennio Morricone score, good visuals shot in Technicolor by Alejandro Ulloa, a convincing Mexican setting, the usual Sixties spaghetti bloodbath, some oddball humour, dodgy sexual politics (Palance plays a gay nasty) and an exciting, well-constructed yarn, written by Sergio Corbucci, Luciano Vincenzoni, Adriano Bolzoni and Sergio Spina.

Also in the cast are Giovanna Ralli, Eduardo Fajardo, Bruno Corazzari, Franco Giacobini, Franco Ressel, and Álvaro de Luna.

The story is by Franco Solinas and Giorgio Arlorio. It was shot in Almería and Madrid, Spain.

A Professional Gun [Il Mercenario] [The Mercenary] is directed by Sergio Corbucci, runs 105 minutes, is made by Profilms 21, Produzioni Europee Associate (PEA) and Produzioni Associate Delphos, is released by PEA (Italy) and United Artists (UK and US), is written by Sergio Corbucci, Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Spina and Adriano Bolzoni, based on a story by Franco Solinas and Giorgio Arlorio, is shot by Alejandro Ulloa, is produced by Alberto Grimaldi, and is scored by Ennio Morricone.

Nero was to play as Paco Roman and James Coburn was cast as the mercenary (originally an American), but dropped out through disagreements whether he or Nero would be top-billed.

Nero previously worked with Corbucci on Django (1965). Corbucci is also known for the 1968 masterwork Il Grande Silenzio [The Great Silence] [The Great Silence].

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7812

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