ironhorse_iv What is the price of power? Not much, since I got this movie at a dollar bin at Wal-Mart. The movie isn't the worst Spaghetti western movie I ever saw, but it's no way, has the power to become well-known. You have to suffer from a head blow to think this match up with Sergio Leone's films. In my opinion, it's alright. Directed by Tonino Valerii, this 113 minutes is pretty hard to find, that's if, you can figure out what the title of the film is called. The movie comes with different titles depending on where you lived. The movie been known as the Price of Power, Texas, a Bullet for The President or Dallas. This is often confusing when trying to seek this movie out. Tonino Valerri's western movie is very much serve as an allegory to the assassination of President Kennedy and racial politics in 1960s America. It's seems like the director and writers wanted to put fistful of JFK conspiracy theories in Western settings for some odd reason that end up being good, bad and ugly results. The good thing about the film is how well-made it is. The acting is so-so, but the English dubbing is a little off kilter. Surprising, Giuliano Gemma is pretty good lead in this film. Benito Stefanelli is great as the villainous and corrupt Sheriff Jefferson. Some pretty good excellently staged action. The whole train bridge shootout was pretty intense. I love the whole gun fight in the dark idea in another scene from the movie. I have to say, this movie has one of the oddest trial scenes in the history of film. The music score by Luis Bacalov was pretty daring. The movie has a good music score, though it relies on repeating the title theme a little too much to the point, it got annoying. 'Catch a star in the sky' was a pretty catchy number by singer Norma Jordan AKA Annie in the film. The English audio is perfectly audible but has some pops and hiss in the background. The movie moves in a steady pace, and I didn't find myself bored at times. The film plot reads like this, in 1881 Texas is still divided from the ashes of the Civil War. A American President, President James Garfield (Van Johnson) despite warnings of assassination, comes to Dallas to help establish a new police of equality. Bill Willer (Giuliano Gemma) and two of his friends, a black man named Jack Donovan (Ray Shaunders), and a crippled guy named Nick (Manuel Zarzo) are determined to prevent the President's murder, at any cost. While, the movie doesn't claim to be historical accuracy, I have to say the movie takes great liberty to the historical event leading to Garfield's murder. James Garfield was not assassinated by racists, who wanted to reinstall the confederacy in Texas, but in Washington DC train station by mentally unstable Charles Guiteau who was reject by Garfield's staff after trying to seek a job. The way, the movie version of President Garfield ends up dying isn't even close to what happen to him in real life. It wasn't only the bullet that killed him, according to most experts, what actually killed Garfield over two months later were incompetent doctors who probed and probed to retrieve a bullet to no avail. They never bothered cleaning their hands or implements in the process. Garfield most likely died due to malpractice. I like how Van Johnson also doesn't even look like Garfield in the film. He's missing the beard, has the wrong hair color and style and is just not even close in any way! He is as close as looking like Garfield as Garfield the cat is of looking like the president. I also feel bad for President Chester Arthur. In the film, Garfield's Vice President Chester A. Arthur was being blackmail by Neo-Confederate conspirator banker Allen Pinkerton (Fernando Rey). While, Chester A. Arthur did had a corrupt past, he was no way one of the people conspiring to kill Garfield in real history. Also, in real history, Allan Pinkerton worked with Union intelligence in the Civil War and established the U.S. Intelligence Service, the forerunner of the Secret Service. In the movie they got nothing of history right whatsoever. Still, the film doesn't mention the name Garfield on the film, as the President character is mostly nameless in the film. It's the producers that says that he is supposed to be President Garfield. If he was, or wasn't playing Garfield. The story is fictitious. The whole 1960's feel to the film seems to shine through the dirty 19th century settling, anyways. Even Warren Vanders's character, Arthur McDonald looks sometime out of a Dirty Harry movie and Annie AKA Norma Jordan out of a James Bond film. The film automatically raises the question of whether it reflects Valerii or screenwriter Massimo Patrizi's actual beliefs about the Kennedy assassination. The film makes it look like JFK's assassin, Lee Oswald was innocent who was set up by rightists to take the blame, due to the character of Jack Donavan. If this was the filmmaker's attempt to show, I have to disagree with them. Lee Oswald clearly kill JFK. If anybody help him, is up to question. Oddly, The Price of Power ends up endorsing the idea of a cover-up for the good of the nation. Take it at as it is. It's a good Spaghetti movie that stand out due to its JFK juxtaposition. This is a Spaghetti Western that deserves a much wider reputation that the one it currently holds.

MartinHafer This film is bundled along with "Gli fumavano le Colt... lo chiamavano Camposanto" and both films leave a lot to be desired in the way of their DVD prints. First, both films are very dark--occasionally making it hard to see exactly what's happening. Second, neither film has subtitles and you are forced to watch a dubbed film--though "Il Prezzo del Potere" does seem to have a better dub. Personally, I always prefer subtitles but for the non-purists out there this isn't a problem. These DVD problems, however, are not the fault of the original film makers--just the indifferent package being marketed four decades later.As for the film, it's about the assassination of President Garfield. This is a MAJOR problem, as Van Johnson looks about as much like Garfield as Judy Garland. In no way whatsoever does he look like Garfield. He's missing the beard, has the wrong hair color and style and is just not even close in any way (trust me on this, I am an American History teacher and we are paid to know these sort of things!). The real life Garfield was a Civil War general and looked like the guys on the Smith Brothers cough drop boxes. Plus, using some other actor to provide the voice for Johnson in the dubbing is just surreal. Never before or since has Van Johnson sounded quite so macho!! He was a fine actor...but certainly not a convincing general or macho president.In addition to the stupid casting, President Garfield's death was in no way like this film. It's obvious that the film makers are actually cashing in on the crazy speculation about conspiracies concerning the death of JFK, not Garfield. Garfield was shot in Washington, DC (not Dallas) by a lone gunman with severe mental problems--not a group of men with rifles. However, according to most experts, what actually killed Garfield (over two months later) were incompetent doctors--who probed and probed and probed to retrieve a bullet (to no avail) and never bothered cleaning their hands or implements in the process. In other words, like George Washington (who was basically killed by repeated bloodletting when suffering with pneumonia) he died due to malpractice. In the movie they got nothing right whatsoever...other than indeed President Garfield was shot.Because the film bears almost no similarity to real history, it's like a history lesson as taught from someone from another planet or someone with a severe brain injury. Why not also include ninjas, fighting robots and the Greek gods while you're at it?!?! Aside from some decent acting and production values, because the script is utter cow crap, I don't recommend anyone watch it. It's just a complete and utter mess.

unbrokenmetal After the civil war, Willer (Giuliano Gemma) who was 4 years in prison for treason, lives in Texas when president Garfield (Van Johnson) comes to visit the unruly state. Although the president was his judge in the trial years ago, Willer rescues his life from assassins. But there is quite a big conspiracy going on involving sheriff Jefferson (Benito Stefanelli) and the owner of the bank of Texas (Fernando Rey) who blackmails the vice president, so plans for a new attempt to murder the president are made immediately.Good quality western by Tonino Valerii who shot "Day of Anger" (also with Gemma) the year before and went on to make "My Name Is Nobody" with Henry Fonda and Terence Hill. "The Price of Power" may not be historically accurate (and by the way, the sweet little nothing the saloon dancer is almost wearing comes straight from a 1969 nightclub), and it plays too obviously with the similarities to the JFK assassination case, yet unlike many Italian westerns it rarely drifts away into a bizarre anti-hero fantasy world, the exception being the duel rituals between Willer and Jefferson.

tankjonah In post civil war America the President, (Van Johnson), travels to Dallas and is assassinated by corrupt officials and businessman interested in installing the vice President whom they can blackmail due to incriminating documents. A gunman (Guiliano Gemma) convinced that his black friend is wrongly accused of the assassination aims to uncover the truth. Tonino Valeri directed this fascinating, if flawed film which obviously is an allegory for the Kennedy assassination. The film may wrongly present blacks as slaves working on plantations in Texas but the film is nonetheless enjoyable and presents an interesting interpretation - that Kennedy's death was the result of a coup de tat- which many Americans could not accept at the time. Oswald's murder is replayed here as the black accused of the assassination is murdered by the men responsible, on route to Fort Worth prison. This moment in the film is more melodramatic than Oswald's death with his various escorts shot down before his over the top death scene. Nonetheless this is definitely one of the more interesting and worthwhile spaghetti westerns. Worth a look!