Thursday, January 28, 2016

Euro-western locations: Villa Mussolini




If you are watching a spaghetti western and you see the front of a white villa, by all appearances Spanish style, with porches, a well and a complex of other buildings surrounding it you can rest assured that you have just recognized the Villa Mussolini the most abused house in Euro-westerns. Known as the "Villa Mussolini" because, it was the summer home of the late Italian dictator.

In the years 1967/1968 the villa found itself in an incredible amount of films. Franco and Ciccio, with their parodies, frequently used the setting (see for example Two Rrringos in Texas); It was the haunt of Señor Zorro (where he holds  the sadistic feast which will cost Ray Lovelock his virginity) in Django Kill, a fort in the beautiful 7 in Winchesters for a Massacre; The Time of the Vultures opens in the villa and is explored during the opening credits. The same Sicilian duo used it in The Barbers of Sicily and The Grandchildren of Zorro.



However, it does not make much sense now to describe all the many scenes where you see the villa. Just look at the list of westerns below and have fun trying to recognize the place today, it has changed a lot especially from the point of view for its paint job. Today you can manage to find the house in question in Rome in the Settecamini area, specifically near the Avenue Tecnopopolo, Via Giacomo Peroni.



The house is still there along with the other buildings constructed in its vicinity. Lost is the characteristic white color in favor of a soft-spoken orange, but the facade is still recognizable, as is the building with porches that is next with the arcades. The well has disappeared and the square hut placed between the entrance and the villa itself, but most likely they have not been there for some time. The soil that was visible in very western has been replaced by grass, the low wall that surrounded the area was almost completely knocked down and ultimately the place looks more polished now, as a green oasis.


Films using Villa Mussolini
Requiescant (Pray and Kill) (1967) - The Time of the Vultures (1967) - Two Rrringos from Texas (1967) - God Made Them ... I kill them (1967) - Django Kill (1967) - Kill Them All and Come Back Alone (1967) - The Winchester Does Not Forgive (1967) – Gallows for a Bastard (1967) – The Last Killer (1967) - Seven Winchester for a Massacre (1967) - Poker with Pistols (1967) - Killer Kid (1967) - The Handsome, the Ugly and the Stupid (1967) - Lola Colt (1967) - Ric and Gian Conqueror the West (1967) - No Graves on Boot Hill (1968) – Hate Your Neighbor (1968) – And Then A Time for Killing (1968) - If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death (1968) - A Stranger in Paso Bravo (1968) - The Magnificent Texan (1968) -  The Nephews of Zorro (1968) – Quintana (1968) - Sabata (1969) - Django the Bastard (1969) – Sartana the Gravedigger (1969) ... And God said to Cain (1970) – The Brute and the Beast (1970) – They Call Me Trinity (1970) – Deaf Smith and Johnny Ears (1970) - Have a Good They Call Me Trinity (1970) – Have a Good Funeral, Sartana Will Pay (1970) - Mallory Must Not Die (1971) - He was Called the Holy Ghost (1971) A Man Called Django! (1972) - Trinity & Sartana Those Sons of Bitches (1972) – The Crazy Bunch (1973).

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