bletcherstonerson The musical score, cinematography, and strong performances make this particular western a great story that goes beyond the standard thematic gunslinger opera. This is an epic western filmed by a camera crew that let's the scenery interact with the performances. The music is great, and the opening credits have the hook that set the mood and the film delivers it with full fury. Lee Van Cleef gives his best performance on film. A many layered character study with humor and depth, the audience is rewarded by great on screen chemistry between Gemma and Cleef. A must see for anyone who is a fan of westerns, or the writing style of Elmore Leonard and Larry McMurtry.

tcaramela Day of Anger (1967) is considered a top 20 by most fans and critics. I definitely agree this is a great SW movie with good music and acting by Lee Van Cleef, and Gemma. The story is great about a simple man with dreams to have respect and to own his own colt, but unfortunately Scott Mary (Gemma) is treated like dirt by the townspeople of Clifton and verbally and physically abused and it is a revenge style theme about a man name Talby (Van Cleef), who gets out of jail and goes to collect 50,000 from Wild Jack, who in return was lied and double crossed by some of the good old folks of Clifton so Talby goes to collect and helps mentor Scott, who becomes a side kick. It all changes when Talby kills someone close to Scott and then he gets a reality check and faces off with his mentor. Movie is overall fast paced with good action and story.

merklekranz Giuliano Gemma gets no respect in "Day of Anger", but this film might be getting too much respect in the "spaghetti western" sweepstakes. The performances by Lee Van Cleef and Giuliano Gemma are fine, but the film is very choppy, with little or no character development of anybody else. Sure there are lots of closeups, and some familiar faces from the "Dollar Trilogy", but the script is pretty simple. Van Cleef teaches Gemma the tricks of the gunfighter trade, then once he gains respect, it eventually leads to conflict. Although "Day of Anger" is good, it certainly is no threat to "The Big Gundown", which is often considered the best of the non-Leone "spaghetti westerns". - MERK

spider89119 "Day of Anger" is an incredible western. Not only is it one of the 3 or 4 best non-Leone spaghetti westerns, It also has just about the best non-Morricone music score I have heard.Lee Van Cleef is at his very best in this movie as Talby, the slick, intelligent, and ruthless gunfighter. As is the case with many spaghetti westerns, this movie draws a very thin line between "good" and "evil." Talby is a killing machine who is out for his own personal gain, yet he is also very likable in many ways. When he takes Scott under his wing and teaches him not to put up with being treated with disrespect from the "good" citizens of Clifton, Talby actually becomes the only person who represents any real sort of "justice" in the whole town. Then we find out that the pillars of the community have something to hide, and Talby delivers his own brand of justice to them also.Giuliano Gemma always delivers a great spaghetti western performance, and he is at the top of his game here as well. In the role of Scott Mary he has to play a character who goes through a lot of different emotions, and a couple of life-changing events. When Scott becomes a gunfighter like Talby, we relate to him and like him even more as he demands and gets respect from the people who used to spit on him. Talby's comment to the townsfolk of Clifton sums up why: "He was born a wolf, but you made him rabid." What a great line! The final showdown at the end is one of the classics. It is wonderfully choreographed with the film's music, and has that artistic, operatic quality that the very best spaghetti westerns possess. There's lots of emotion going on in this one, as it is plain to see that the two men squaring off still have respect and admiration for each other. On some level, it even still seems like they are friends, but this moment was inevitable, like an uncontrollable force of nature. As Talby says, "once you start killing, you can't stop." Talby's killing finally draws that thin line, Scott ends up on the other side of it, and the final showdown begins. I will say no more.Riz Ortolani's score is awesome. I love the opening theme, and the pictures and movements on the screen that accompany it. It pulls you right into this film before the story even begins. Not only is the music great, it is very original as well. It is not a Morricone rip-off at all. Ortolani's style here is all his own. It is much more of a swinging 60's sound that retains just enough western flavor to make it appropriate for this type of film. This is a soundtrack I would like to have on CD.This is one of those movies that I just can't say enough about. I would recommend it to anyone, and if you like spaghetti westerns you really need to own it.