DYNAMITE JOE

aka Joe L'Implacabile (I)
1966
Italy
Director: Antonio Margheriti
Script: Maria Del Carmine Martinez
Music: Carlo Savina
Photography: Manuel Merino
Cast: Rick Van Nutter (Joe Ford), Halina Zalewska (Betty), Mercedes Caracuel, Renato Baldini (Jury Nenson), Riccardo Palacios (El Sol), Barta Barry ('Signo'), Aldo Cecconi, Santiago Rivero, Dario De Grassi, Claudio Scarchilli, Vincente Roga, Mario Pluchino

Antonio Margeriti is rightfully considered to be one of the most versatile and consistent of Italian directors. From war films (The Last Hunter (L'Ultimo cacciatore, 80)) to gothic melodramas (Castle of Blood (Danza Macabre, 64), from spy stories (Lightning Bolt (Operazione Goldman, 66) to giallos (Schoolgirl Killer (Nude... si muore (68)), he seems to have dabbled in most conceivable genres (and even some that were pretty inconceivable - witness Mr. Hercules Vs Karate (Schiaffoni e karate, 73). Moreover, a large percentage of his output is actually quite good, give or take the odd abomination (err, Mr. Hercules Vs Karate)

This is one of his five westerns and is, unsurprisingly, thoroughly entertaining and watchable. The splendidly named Rick Von Nutter stars as John Ford, a kind of sagebrush Bond. Apart from the occasional bit of secret service work and chasing after every female with a human gene in her body, he is also a bounty hunter and explosives expert. He is contacted by Senator Sennet (Santiago Rivero) to help out with a particularly sticky problem; gold being transported out of Mineral City is being repeatedly attacked and stolen. His solution - transform all the supplies of the precious metal into your everyday post wagon with the help of some trusty forgers and the judicious use of brown paint.

Things, however, are not that easy, as a variety of decrepit individuals are after the booty. A traitorous local businessman, the odious bank manager and the wholly villainous bandit El Sol (Riccardo Palacios) have all joined hands to appropriate it. As always in cases such as these, the alliance is very uneasy to say the least.

Of course, the main gimmick in all this is the dynamite (or dyna-mighty as everyone refers to it) angle, and it provides some suitably (pun alert) explosive moments. At one point an entire mountain is blown up, giving rise to an outbreak of encroaching effects footage from some peplum or other. Booby trapped guns, cigars and other ephemera abound, and there's one true 007 moment in which our Joe is revealed canoodling with the main squeeze (Halina Zalewska) amongst the rubble of a devastated location.

On a technical side it is hard to find fault. Prolific Manuel Merino provides suitably eccentric photography and Carlo Savina a delightfully kitsch soundtrack that reaches a high point in the outrageous showgirl sequences. And talking about showgirls, the guys who designed the costumes for this MUST have been ingesting some derivative of peyote.

Van Nutter is actually quite good in the eponymous role, coming across as a slightly more dapper and older Clint Eastwood. He also appeared in Seven Hours of Gunfire (Sette ore di fuoco, 64), one of the earliest spaghetti's directed by a certain Jose Hernandez. Riccardo Palacios, however, walks off with all the acting honours as usual. The perennial baby faced bandito, his chubby presence has graced - and enhanced - such titles as Sharaz (La Esclava del paraíso, 68), Franco's Blood of Fu Manchu (68) and the absolutely hideous Monster Dog (83). He is not as easy on the eyes, however, as Mercedes Caracuel, who is very appealing in the vindictive tart role.

So then, one of Margheriti's better films? Well, not really, but that's not saying anything bad about it. His westerns were generally not his best work, but both this and the sombre Vengeance (Joko invoca Dio... e muori, 68) stand well above the mainstream. Despite the playful tone there are some wonderful atmospherics, with the camera creeping through the broken landscapes like some form of nature spirit. There appears to have been a respectable budget sunk into it, i.e. the bandit gang has more than four members for once, and there are a number of cheesy jokes. Could the line "If your name is Ford, you can call me Betty!" really have been unintentional?

Matt B