Law of Violence (1969)

Double-crossed by the town leaders in Red Rock, Jack Barrow (George Greenwood) has spent three years in jail and been cheated out of $10,000.

When he returns, seeking his money plus $10,000 in interest, he’s knifed and left for dead by Sheriff Buck Landon.

But he doesn’t die. He’s nursed back to health by a friend named Chris, who believes in law by the books rather than the law of the gun.

Jack sees the law differently — as a might makes right proposition where the fastest, meanest gun wins.

And once, he’s regained his strength, he tracks down the sheriff, whips him to death, then decides to put the leaders of Red Rock under his thumb.

He uses hired gun Bill Hackett to do some of the dirty work. He even claims town whore Clementine, a favorite with the town leaders, as his personal plaything.

And he makes Chris the new sheriff, knowing he’s unlikely to pose any problems because of his peaceful tendencies.

Review:

A somewhat disjointed film that makes one wonder if the 83-85 minute runtime listed on movie sites wasn’t actually longer.

But it’s still effective in spots. The opening leads the viewer to believe that Jack Barrow might be the wronged hero of the piece, double-crossed, cheated, then ambushed.

Instead, he turns out to be the villain, a man willing to do pretty much anything to gain more leverage over the town leaders, then rub his power in their faces.

That’s precisely what he does when he takes Clementine to a fine party thrown by the leaders of the town, knowing their wives scorn the scarlet woman. He even has Clementine wear the jewelry that town leaders have given her as gifts as an intentional affront to the wives in attendance.

The film’s turning point is also well done, with Jack blackmailing town Mayor Garrett for $100,000 to save his son from scandal, even if it means the death of an innocent man.

Directed by:
Gianni Crea

Cast:
Giorgio Cerioni … Jack Barrow
as George Greenwood
Igli Villani … Clementine
Angel Aranda … Sheriff Chris
Miguel de la Riva … Bill Hackett
Ugo Adinolfi … Sidney
Gaspar Gonzalez … Buck Landon
Manuel Gas … Fillmore, railroad president
Murriz Brandariz … Joe
(as Pajarito)
Osvaldo Genazzani … Middleton, bank president
Gracita Guerra Fernandez
Manuel Bonchuo
Conrad Steeve
Francisco Marquez

Runtime: 83 min.

aka:
Todos o minguno
Le Legge della violenze

Score: Stelvio Cipriani

Memorable lines:

Jack Barrow, of a law book, to Chris: “These books weren’t written for men like us. Our law — our law is made of bullets.”

Jack Barrow to Chris, upon finding his six-gun rusty from a lack of use: “You have to take care of a gun, like you would a girl.”

Clementine to Jack: “You’re used to being listened to, aren’t you? Well, so am I. So this time, you can listen to me.”

Clementine to Chris: “What a pleasant surprise. I must say, I didn’t expect it. You wouldn’t imagine that a man who has the reputation of a saint would come down into hell.”

Trivia:

Fetching Igli Villani does a fine job here as the popular town whore whom Jack Barrow has made his own and trots around as his trophy. But according to IMDb, this was one of just three films in which she appeared. One of the others was a Bruno Corbucci helmed comedy “Nel giorno del signore” (1970), in which she plays a mistress framed for murder.

This marked the directorial debut for Gianna Crea, who went on to shoot four more Westerns between 1971 and 1975. They included “Finders Killes” (1971), “Magnificent West” (1972), “On the Third Day Arrived the Crow” (1973) and “Seven Devils on Horseback” (1975).