Son of Jesse James (1965)

Claudio Undari plays Bill James, the grown son of Jesse, who heads West to escape his past and start a new life.

As a young boy, he watched as his father was gunned down by a friend named Bob Ford.

As a young man, he finds himself in San Antonio, having lost his horse and gun in a poker game and badly in need of a job.

At the recommendation of new acquaintance Allan Davis (Adrian Hoven), he heads to the Three Stars Ranch in hopes of finding work as a cowboy.

After a display of his horsemanship and his knack with a six-gun, he’s hired by the pretty owner Dorothy Power (Mercedes Alonso) and over the objections of her foreman Bruce (Raf Baldassarre).

It doesn’t take long for Bill to realize he’s stumbled upon a damsel in distress.

A rich rancher named Marshall has been buying up small ranches and would like to own Three Stars as well.

Dorothy is too stubborn to sell, but she’s also being harassed by rustlers who make off with 50 head of horses on the very night she hires Bill.

Bill and Alonzo Almodoros set off in search of the stolen stock and discover that Bruce is involved.

But they also realize he’s not the man at the root of the problems in San Antonio.

Claudio Undari (Robert Hundar), showing off his six-gun skills shortly after arriving in San Antonio in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Mercedes Alonso as Dorothy Power, ordering an untrustworthy employee off her ranch in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Review:

An early Spaghetti that owes more to John Ford than anyone named Sergio.

This one offers up a spirited performance from Undari in the lead role, a lovely leading lady in Alonso and a memorable scene in which Bill escapes a gunfight in which he’s outnumbered by zipping down a cable in a mining cart.

But it’s also largely predictable, and viewers learn quite quickly who’s behind all the trouble hounding Three Stars Ranch.

The film also features an Oklahoma Land Rush style race. But watching a Spanish language version without subtitles, I couldn’t quite figure out the point of the race or how it fit into the plot.

If anyone knows, feel free to drop a line in the comments section below.

Adrian Hoven as Allan Davis, trying to convince Bill to avoid a bloody shootout in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Robert Camardiel as Alonzo Almodoros, the cook who befriends Bill in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Directed by:
Antonio del Amo

Cast:
Claudio Undari … Bill James / Jesse
as Robert Hundar
Mercedes Alonso … Dorothy Power
Adrian Hoven … Allan Davis
Raf Baldassarre … Bruce, the Power foreman
as Ralph Baldwyn
John Bartha … Judge Strator
Robert Camardiel … Alonzo Almodoros, cook
Luis Induni … Marshall
Jose Jaspe … Mike, a Marshall henchman
Giuseppe Frisaldi … George, a Marshall henchman
as Joe Kamel

Also with: Jaime Blanche, Tomás Torres, Mike Brendel, Fernando Sánchez Polack, Hilario Flores, Santiago Rivero, Agustín Bescos, Rafael Cortés, Giovanni Petti, Román Ariznavarreta, Todd Martin, Pier Andrea Caminneci, Adolfo Torrado

Runtime: 94 min.

Music: Angelo Francesco Lavagnino

aka:
El Hijo de Jesse James
Solo contro tutti
Jesse James’ Kid
One Against All
Man Alone

Luis Induni as Marshall, the powerful landowner who’s been gobbling up smaller ranches in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Raf Baldassarre as Bruce, about to discover one of his men has been caught rustling in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Memorable lines:

Sorry, I watched a Spanish language version of this film.

Trivia:

* This marked the only Euro Western from Antonio del Amo, who began directing films in the late 1930s.

* Mercedes Alonso appeared in two other early Spaghetti Westerns — “Tomb of the Pistolero” and “Gunfighters of the Casa Grande,” both released in 1964. She did most of her subsequent acting on Spanish TV shows.

* Claudio Undari studied to become a lawyer, according to Tom Betts’ Westerns All’Italiana blog site. But he landed small roles in a couple of Sword and Sandal films and quickly became one of the early stars of Euro Westerns. His first were “The Shadow of Zorro” (1962) and “Implacable Three” (1963).

Claudio Undari (Robert Hundar) as Jesse James, about to fall victim to a trusted friend in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Raf Baldassarre as Bruce, reacts to Bill’s claim that his last name is Smith while Dorothy (Mercedes Alonso) looks on in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Claudio Undari (Robert Hundar) as Bill, being tied up for a beating by Bruce and his men in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Jose Jaspe as Mike, one of Marshall’s henchmen, picking a fight with Bill when he arrives in town in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Mercedes Alonso as Dorothy Power and Robert Camardiel as Alonzo Almodoros, watching riders approach in Son of Jesse James (1965)

Claudio Undari (Robert Hundar) as Bill with Mercedes Alonso as Dorothy Power in Son of Jesse James (1965)