The Star
By Kay Kilingsworth
ROME –
Europeans have always taken their Westerns seriously and a halfbreed has sprung
up now to fill the demand: the Eastern Western.
The title, the
equipment, the acting, the lingo is Wild West. 100 per cent the producers
Hope, but the shooting-by six guns and camera, takes
place on the plains and in the mountains of Yugoslavia and Spain.
Two factors
created the Eastern Westerns. The Westerns made in California and Arizona often
tops boxoffice lists in Europe. Then film production is cheaper over here about
one-third of the U.S. Western costs by one estimate.
So, with one
more U.S. actors involved the result is Yugoslavia Westerns with such others as
“Massacre at the Grande Canyon” and “The Tramplers”. The Germans were the first
to act but now several Italian Yugoslavian productions are in the movie houses
or before the cameras.
One man behind
the films American producer Albert Band. For “Massacre” he had as star James
Mitchum, son of Robert Mitchum and hopes to sign other U.S. players for another
Western in Yugoslavia. Band said he made the film in eight weeks at a cost of $500,000.
Band hopes the
Eastern Westerns will take over the spot held by the Italian made Hercules and Maciste
spectaculars now saturating world markets.
In general however,
Band thinks the Eastern Westerns will go the way of the Hercules spectaculars.
‘They’ll make too many and they won’t be good.
But I’m in the business. One to make money, and two to make good pictures.
No comments:
Post a Comment