Ben and Charlie (1972)

Giuliano Gemma is Ben Bellow, who gets out of prison to find his good friend Charlie Logan (George Eastman) awaiting his release.

Charlie, however, isn’t there to greet him. He’s there to beat some sense into him.

Seems Ben landed in prison because he squandered money Charlie had saved, rustled a herd of cattle, then got caught trying to sell the herd to the former owner.

And since Ben shows no sign of changing his ways — he’s spent his time in prison dreaming up get-rich-quick schemes — Charlie insists that they part ways.

But they keep getting drawn back together. And when Ben robs the San Diego bank on a whim, he tosses Charlie the loot and, presto, they’ve become wanted outlaws with a bounty on their head.

The bounty draws lots of unwanted attention. It also attracts three no-goods — Kurt van Nissan, “Charro” Gonzalez and “Butch” Quarry — who want to join forces with the notorious Ben and Charlie.

Ben agrees. But that’s when the real trouble starts.

Van Niessan isn’t used to taking order. And Charlie doubts that any of the three newcomers can be trusted. And that’s especially true if there’s money involved.

Review:

Spaghetti fans will spot lots of familiar faces and humorous references to past genre films in this movie.

Gemma, of “One Silver Dollar” fame, is shot at one point. He’s saved because the bullet is stopped by both a pocket watch and a silver dollar.

At another point, Gemma’s Ben and the new gang members show off their shooting skills — just like Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef in “Fistful of Dollars.” The ending to that match is sure to make you smile.

But for all the good ideas, and a truly villainous performance by Luciano Catenacci as the outlaw van Niessan, this is also a rather tiresome film.

Nearly a half hour has gone by before Ben’s former finance Sara (Marisa Mell) shows up and viewers are given any hint of a plot or reason to care for the title characters.

And the three outlaws who take the second half of the film in a more serious direction doesn’t show up until more than an hour into the proceedings.

Eastman helps save the film as the more serious of the “buddies.” He’d be better off not caring about what happens to Ben, but can’t help himself.

Vittorio Congia also has a neat role as Allan “3%” Smith, a former bank clerk to joins our heroes on the outlaw trail. He earns his nickname because he demands just 3 percent of any loot the duo steals.

Directed by:
Michele Lupo

Cast:
Giuliano Gemma … Ben Bellow
George Eastman … Charlie Logan
Vittorio Congia … Allan “3%” Smith
Marisa Mell … Sara
Luciano Catenacci … Kurt van Niessan
as Luciano Lorcas
Giacomo Rossi-Stuart … Pinkerton Detective Hawkins
Remo Capitani … Jose “Charro” Gonzalez
Nello Pazzafini … George “Butch” Quarry
as Giovanni Pazzafini
Franco Fantasia … Sheriff Robbins of Red Rock
Aldo Sambrell … Sheriff Walker
Roberto Camardiel … Silvertown Sheriff
Luis Induni … Winfrey Sheriff
Cris Huerta … San Diego bank manager
George Rigaud … Preacher
Francisco Sanzz … Samuel Cobb, gunsmith

Also with: Gioia Desideri, Vittorio Fanfoni, Fabián Conde, Jesús Guzmán, Antonio Casas, Giovanni Cianfriglia, Tom Felleghy, Carla Mancini, Jose Manuel Martin, Osiride Pevarello, Arnaldo Dell’Acqua, Angelo Susani, Franco Daddi, Claudio Ruffini, Antonio Orengo, Fulvio Mingozzi, Renzo Pevarello, Joaquin Parra

Runtime: 118 min.

aka:
Amico, stammi lontano almeno un palmo
Amigo, Stay Away
Humpty Dumpty Gang

Music: Gianni Ferrio
Song: “Let it Rain, Let it Pour” sung by Stefan Grossman

Memorable lines:

Ben Bellow: “Who can beat us between your shootin’ and the ideas I got goin’ on? Got the whole thing figured out.”
Whereupon, Charlie starts riding off.
Charlie: “You listen, saddle-head. When one of us goes west, the other goes east. You got it?”

Ben Bellow: “Nice day, ain’t it ma’am?”
Sara: “It would be, if there weren’t so many pests around.”
Ben: “This bug don’t bite.”
Sara: “You may not bite, but you’ve been bitten. And by something pretty foul, I might say.”

Ben Bellow, on what he’s chasing: “It’s like a promisory note that reads: Ben Bellows got the right to be free and rich and happy. Now I’ve got to find the beggar who signed that thing and make him give me what’s comin’ to me.”
Sara: “You might discover that beggar wears a black cape with a skull and crossbones.”
Ben: “I’ll take that risk.”

Ben Bellow, when three bounty hunters show up on their trail: “They’re mean lookin’, ain’t they?”
Charlie: “They’re just plain homely.”

Ben Bellow to van Heissen: “You know, my friend Charlie used to say you had the poison of a rattlesnake and the meanness of a boa constrictor. I used to say, ‘He ain’t all that vile, Charlie. He’s just vermin, a coward, one who might even plug you in the back.”

Trivia:

George Eastman, using his real name (Luigi Montefiori) wrote the story and co-wrote the screenplay. According to Simon Gelten’s review on the Spaghetti Western Database, his version of the story had a much more tragic ending.

Luciano Catenacci, the villainous Kurt van Niessan in this film, appeared in 10 Spaghetti Westerns, usually in the role of a bad guy. One exception, he played the father of Countess Pamela de Ortega, the woman Tomas Milian falls for in the Western comedy “Here We Go Again, Eh Providence?” (1973)

Michele Lupo directed two other Spaghetti Westerns starring Gemma, both of a more serious nature — “Arizona Colt” (1966) and “California” (1977).

Marisa Mell is the top-billed female here, but her role amounts to one scene at a stagecoach stop. She’d have a much larger role in her next and last Spaghettti, “Miss Dynamite” 1972. It, too, is a comedy.

George Eastman as Charlie Logan, realizing a bigger gang might not have been the better idea in Ben and Charlie (1972)

Giacomo Rossi-Stuart at the Pinkerton detective on the outlaws trail in Ben and Charlie (1972)

Giuliano Gemma as Ben Bellow, realizing it’s the Winfrey sheriff (Luis Induni) he’s been cheating at cards in Ben and Charlie (1972)

Aldo Sambrell as San Diego Sheriff Walker catches up with Charlie in Ben and Charlie (1972)

Francisco Sanz as the gunsmith, held up with one of his own guns in Ben and Charlie (1972)

George Eastman as Charlie Logan, smiling in spite of the noose in Ben and Charlie (1972)