The Price of Power (1969)

I like the popular review titled, "A better film that I think it is". Spot on. It is truly unique, and if you collect and like the "Zapata Spaghetti Westerns", and the political undercurrent, then this is a must see. I'll leave it at that. Austin Fisher has done a great job analyzing it in his book on the subject. Good review of it here. He does better than I can, but, suffice to say, still waters run deep."http://tinyurl.com/oaqmdr7"One problem may be the release. I didn't like watching it in Italian with English subs, since one imagines the action being in English, and the English dubs are really bad. The most important line, the last one in the movie is completely left out! So, perhaps I liked it because I did my own edit with the English track, the Italian subtitles, English subtitles and the HD Italian vid track, so you can mix and match to your heart's content. Yeah, I don't know I'd give it over a 6 if I had to watch the dubbed English version.

On a trip to Dallas, the president of the United States (Van Johnson) is the target of a sinister cabal, led by Fernando Rey, intent on his assassination and the installation of the easily manipulated vice-president as their patsy. Disgraced former soldier Giuliano Gemma, whose father was murdered by the conspirators, attempts to stop them.The Kennedy assassination transplanted to the old west, this throws out all the facts and re-casts the assassin's role with that of a more convenient, politically correct villain, exactly as Oliver Stone did twenty years later, taking a few easy swipes at America along the way.Undoubtedly ambitious, this is held in high regard by many spaghetti western fans and critics. Personally though, I find it a bit too sanctimonious for it's own good, especially from a country electing Fascists less than a quarter of a century before and filmed in a country that was still under Fascist rule!However, action and suspense are competently handled. The production values are good. As pure fiction, it's not too bad.

In post civil war America the President, (Van Johnson), travels to Dallas and is assassinated by corrupt officials and businessman interested in installing the vice President whom they can blackmail due to incriminating documents. A gunman (Guiliano Gemma) convinced that his black friend is wrongly accused of the assassination aims to uncover the truth. Tonino Valeri directed this fascinating, if flawed film which obviously is an allegory for the Kennedy assassination. The film may wrongly present blacks as slaves working on plantations in Texas but the film is nonetheless enjoyable and presents an interesting interpretation - that Kennedy's death was the result of a coup de tat- which many Americans could not accept at the time. Oswald's murder is replayed here as the black accused of the assassination is murdered by the men responsible, on route to Fort Worth prison. This moment in the film is more melodramatic than Oswald's death with his various escorts shot down before his over the top death scene. Nonetheless this is definitely one of the more interesting and worthwhile spaghetti westerns. Worth a look!

This is a gripping story that borrows elements from the Kennedy assassination, and uses them successfully to create an excellent western tale.The movie has a good music score, though it relies on repeating the title theme a little too much. Giuliano Gemma and the rest of the cast are superb. This is a more cerebral than usual spaghetti western that relies more on story than action, and it succeeds because the story is excellent. This is not to say that there is no action in the movie. There is plenty, and it is very well crafted. This movie pulls you in right away, and keeps you absorbed til the end. You'll always be wondering what's in those documents everyone's after. It also has some biting commentary on American politics.This movie shows why Valerii, in my opinion, is in a three way tie with Sollima and Corbucci for second place in the rankings of spaghetti western directors.