The Price of Power(Italian:Il prezzo del potere) is a 1969Spaghetti Westerndirected byTonino Valerii.The film starsGiuliano Gemmaas the hero Bill Willer who tries to get revenge against the killers of his father while at the same time trying to prevent an assassination plot against presidentJames Garfield(played byVan Johnson,withJosé Suárezplaying Vice PresidentChester A. Arthur) in 1881.[2]
| The Price of Power | |
|---|---|
 Italian poster | |
| Directed by | Tonino Valerii |
| Screenplay by |
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| Produced by | Bianco Manini[1] |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Stelvio Massi[1] |
| Edited by | Franco Fraticelli[1] |
| Music by | Luis Enríquez Bacalov[1] |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Consorzio Italiano Distributori Indipendenti Film (CIDIF) |
Release dates |
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Running time | 111 minutes[1] |
| Countries |
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| Box office | ₤1.273 billion |
Plot
editThe president ends up dying from an assassin's bullet, but Willer's further quest for revenge is ultimately more successful. Spanish actressMaria CuadraplaysLucretia Garfield,the President's wife. In her role she portrays pretty much the role ofJackie Kennedyas a glamorous President's wife. Even in the assassination scene, Cuadra seems to emulate many of the same actions from Jackie Kennedy's last moments withJohn F. Kennedyin Dallas in 1963.
Cast
edit- Giuliano Gemmaas Bill Willer
- Warren Vandersas Arthur MacDonald
- Benito Stefanellias Sheriff Benny Jefferson
- Fernando Reyas Pinkerton
- Ray Saunders as Jack Donovan
- Michael Harvey as Jeff Wallace(uncredited)
- Van JohnsonasJames A. Garfield
- José SuárezasChester A. Arthur
- Maria CuadraasLucretia Garfield
- Antonio Casasas Mr. Willer
- Manuel Zarzoas Nick
- Julio Peñaas Governor of Texas
- José Calvoas Dr. Strips
Production
editThe film's concept was conceived by Massimo Patrizi,Luigi Comencini's brother-in-law, and serves as an adaptation of the story ofJohn F. Kennedy's assassination in the form of a Western.[3]Patrizi also imposed another true story in his script, the murder ofJames A. Garfieldin 1881.[3]
Although the opening titles of the film credit the story and screenplay only to Patrizi, the film was rewritten by Valerii andErnesto Gastaldi.[4]Valerii commented that he did not remember Patrizi's script word-for-word, but described it as "extremely basic, whereas Gastaldi and I deepened it. We established the essential themes to develop, introduced the character played byFernando Rey,the banker who is also the assassination's mandator, and so on. "[4]Gastaldi stated that "Patrizi's treatment was simply thrown in the bin, but the producer had signed a contract with him which stated that he was to be credited as the sole author of the script. Since I didn't care about my name in the titles, I had no problem writing the script and not signing it."[3][4]
Release
editThe Price of Powerwas released theatrically in Italy on December 10, 1969, by Cidif.[1]It grossed a total of 1,273,858,000 lire on its domestic release in Italy.[1]It received a release in Spain on June 9, 1970, asLa muerte de un presidente.[1]
References
editBibliography
edit- Cox, Alex (2009).10,000 Ways to Die: A Director's Take on the Spaghetti Western.Oldcastle Books.ISBN978-1-84243-304-1.
- Curti, Robert (2016).Tonino Valerii: The Films.McFarland.ISBN978-1476664682.
- Hughes, Howard (2010).Spaghetti Westerns.Harpenden: Kamera Books.ISBN978-1-84243-303-4.