A Town Called Bastard [A Town Called Hell] **½ (1971, Telly Savalas, Robert Shaw, Stella Stevens, Martin Landau, Michael Craig, Fernando Rey, Dudley Sutton) – Classic Movie Review 6345

Director Robert Parrish’s cold-blooded, crudely made and excessively violent 1971 Spaghetti Western (or paella Western as it is filmed in Spain), with its main assets in the dependable cast – especially Robert Shaw, Martin Landau, Stella Stevens and Telly Savalas- and plenty of gutsy action.

Stella Stevens stars as the widow Alvira, who arrives in a town called Bastarda to seek out and take revenge on the men who killed her husband ten years earlier when the town’s community of Christians was wiped out by a group of Mexican revolutionaries under the leader Aguila (Robert Shaw).

The town is now run by the corrupt and cruel Don Carlos (Telly Savalas), who promises to help Alvira find the killers in return for her gold bounty. Aguila is now an at least partly reformed character as a booze-addicted priest.

It also stars Martin Landau as the ruthless Colonel, Michael Craig, Fernando Rey, Dudley Sutton and Al Lettieri.

It is a serious addition to the very short list of British Westerns that includes Carry On Cowboy, Shalako, The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw, The Legend of the Lone Ranger and Pancho Villa (1972) also with Savalas, who was also involved with the same production team’s Horror Express (1972).

It is filmed in Spain at the Estudios Madrid 70 and Almería, Andalucía.

Also in the cast are Luis Rivera, Aldo Sambrelli, Paloma Cela, Maribel Hildago, Casa Martin, Antonio Mayans, Tito Garcia, Tony Cyrus, Adolfo Thous, Elizabeth Sands, Felipe Solano, Bruce Fisher, Jorge [George] Rigaud and Chris Huertas.

It is written by Richard Aubrey, shot in Technicolor and widescreen by Manuel Berenguer, produced by S Benjamin Fisz, scored by Waldo de Los Rios and designed by Julio Molina.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 6345

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