A Stranger in Town (1966) - Once Upon a Time in a Western

Tony Anthony is The Stranger, a nameless bounty hunter who arrives in the Mexican town of Cerro Gordo just as revolutionary bandits under the sadistic Aguila (Frank Wolff) massacre a squad of Mexican troops with the goal of stealing their gatling gun.

The Stranger dons the uniform of a U.S. Cavalry officer and tells Aguila something he might not know — that a cavalry troop is on its way to deliver a shipment of gold to the officer he just murdered.

The Stranger offers to intercede on Aguila’s behalf — in return for half the gold. The ploy works, until Aguila gets greedy.

Then The Stranger’s price goes up; he now wants all the gold. And, of course, lots more bloodshed follows.

Tony Anthony as The Stranger about to get mean in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Frank Wolff as Aguilar, the greedy Mexican bandit in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Review:

If you’re looking for snappy dialogue and a complex plot, head elsewhere. By the time the first word in spoken in this film, 7 minutes and 30 seconds have passed and one person is already dead.

We’re in for a violent film, complete with the drowning of a priest, the threatened shooting of a baby and a scene in which Anthony is whipped about the face. And it might be the only Spaghetti in which the final showdown finds one man armed with a shotgun; the other with a machine gun.

Unfortunately, that can’t make up for the fact that the film turns drab and boring for long stretches. And Anthony makes a poor substitute for Clint Eastwood while playing a character clearly modeled after Sergio Leone’s Man with No Name.

Gia Sandri as Maruca, Aguilar’s woman in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Jolanda Modio as Chica, the village woman in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Directed by:
Luigi Vanzi

Cast:
Tony Anthony … The Stranger
Frank Wolff … Aguila
Gia Sandri … Maria Pilar (aka Maruka)
Raf Baldassarre … Corgo
Jolanda Modio … Cica
Aldo Berti … Marinero
Antonio Marsina … Priest
Lars Bloch … Lt. Ted Harrison (aka George Stafford)
Fortunato Arena … Capt. Cordoba

Also with: Salvatore Puntillo, Rossella Bergamonti, Ugo Carboni, Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia as Ivan Scratt, Angela Minervini, Elio Angelucci, Nicola Di Gioa, Alberigo Donadeo, Enrico Capoleoni, Arturo Corso, Loris Bazzocchi

aka:
Un dollaro trai i denti
A Dollar Between the Teeth

Score: Benedetto Ghiglia

Aldo Berti as Marinero, one of Aguilar’s men in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Raf Baldassarre as Corgo, one of Aguilar’s men in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Memorable lines:

Aguila: “One mistake, and my men know what to do.”
The Stranger: “You just straighten your hat. And act like an officer.”

Lt. Ted Harris: “Just who are you, anyhow?”
The Stranger: ” I guess you’ll just have to figure that out for yourself.”
The Lieutenant: “Well, I’m a soldier. And, remember, a soldier who escapes is good for another time.”
The Stranger: “Be my pleasure, George.”

The Stranger, right before a showdown: “What kind of man am I?”
The Stranger, after the gundown: “A fair man.”

Tony Anthony as The Stranger, posing at a U.S. cavalry officer in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Lars Bloch as Lt. Ted Harrison, cavalry commander in A Stranger in Town (1966)

Trivia:

This marked the first of several Spaghetti Westerns for Tony Anthony. Here’s what he told Cowboys & Indians about his look in the film: “I had this vision of how cool I’m going to look. But the director hates everything I try on. It’s just, ‘No, no, no.’ So we go out to where they store the oldest costumes, and he pulls out the rattiest pair of Levis. Long underwear full of holes. A vest that’s falling apart. Wraps a serape around me. Takes a hat he found that must have been used in like 25, 30 movies. Puts it on me. And then he says, ‘If we get the beard right – that’s The Stranger.’ And I’m standing there thinking, ‘Damn. Can you believe this? I’m looking like a derelict.'”

In the same interview, he says he and director Luigi Vanzi argued over one scene in particular. Beaten and left to die by Aguilar’s men, The Stranger summons the strength to try to escape. Vanzi wanted him to return to the place he was beaten for his hat. Recalls Anthony: “I said, ‘I’m not going to stop in the middle of that and go back to get my hat. I’ll be laughed out of the theater for doing such a stupid thing.’ And he said, ‘You don’t understand. Every American cowboy — every cowboy in the world — has to have his hat.'” Anthony finally relented.

This film spawned three sequels, including The Stranger in Japan, which was shot in 1969, but not released until 1977 because of a lawsuit between the producer and MGM. The final sequel filmed was “Get Mean,” released in 1975. It finds the Stranger in Spain.