Un minuto per pregare, un instante per morire (1968)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Franco Giraldi

Writers:

Louis Garfinkle (writer) and
Ugo Liberatore (writer) ...

Release Date:

1 May 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Tagline:

That's all McCord gives them!

Plot:

When outlaw Clay McCord learns the Governor of New Mexico has offered an amnesty to all who apply for it at the town of Tuscosa...

Plot Keywords:

Outlaw | Amnesty | New Mexico | Shirtless Male Bondage | Spaghetti Western

Cast

Alex Cord	...	Clay McCord
Arthur Kennedy	...	Tuscosa Marshal Roy W. Colby
Robert Ryan	...	New Mexico Gov. Lem Carter
Enzo Fiermonte	...	Dr. Chase
Renato Romano	...	'Cheap' Charlie
Franco Lantieri	...	Deputy Marshal Butler
Giampiero Albertini	...	Fred Duskin (Clay's partner)
Mario Brega	...	Krant (boss of Escondido)
Nicoletta Machiavelli	...	Laurinda (as Nicoletta Rangoni Machiavelli)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Fortunato Arena
Franco Balducci
Silla Bettini
Spartaco Conversi
Gino Marturano
Rosa Palomar	...	Ruby (as Rosita Palomar)
Osiride Pevarello	...	Fuzzy
Massimo Sarchielli
Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia		(as Ivan Scratuglia)

Also Known As:

A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die
Dead or Alive
Dove vai ti ammazzo
Escondido
Outlaw Gun

Runtime:

118 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16

Company:

American Broadcasting Company (ABC)

Movie Connections:

Featured in Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-o-Rama Show Vol. 5 (1998) (V)

a solid, well-made euro-western

"A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die" is a quality spaghetti western with a solid cast and an interesting storyline. It is filmed beautifully, with a relatively high production value for a film in this genre.

Alex Cord does a terrific job portraying Clay McCord, an outlaw who is suffering from increasingly debilitating seizures. He is seeking amnesty before his enemies close in on him, but is being too cocky for his own good when he asks for it. Robert Ryan delivers the best performance in the film as the governor of New Mexico. Mario Brega and Arthur Kennedy are also great here.

This movie is very good, but it doesn't stand out to me as being one of the best spaghetti westerns out there. It's lacking too much in style to be in the same league as any of the great ones. It does have some cool spaghetti overtones, but overall it's a bit too much like an American western. This is especially evident in the music score, which is OK as movies go in general, but pretty dull by euro-western standards. The soundtrack kind of reminds me of the music from "The Unforgiven." Although there is an interesting story here, it is told in a manner which is a bit too conventional for my tastes. If a spaghetti western fan and a Hollywood western fan had to watch a movie together, this one would be the perfect compromise.

All of this is not to say that anyone should avoid this film. I did enjoy watching it very much. As I said, it is a very well-done film and I recommend it to anyone who likes westerns, spaghetti or otherwise.