Blake Edwards
Intrigo a Hollywood (Sunset)

Since I was a child—about six or seven years old—I have loved cinema as a place and, above all, certain kinds of films. I mean, the ones with Maciste (the so-called “peplum”, etc.) and Westerns. Ahem, then as I grew older, my love for Westerns (whether Italian or American) increased, while my love for “peplum” faded almost completely. In fact, already quite grown up, I rushed to see “Conan the Barbarian” when it was released in theaters, and I had a great time.

I’m saying all this to introduce one of the reasons that pushed me yesterday to see—or maybe rewatch (I wasn’t sure if I had or hadn’t)—this almost Western by the legendary William Blake Crump, a.k.a. Blake Edwards, simply titled “Sunset” in the original. He was already sixty-six when he directed it and had a bunch of great movies under his belt. It was his fourth-to-last film, and critics were very harsh, but still the movie runs smoothly right to the end, keeping us glued to our seats in a fun and gripping way. Even with all that, the box office didn’t go well at all, as the 16 million dollar budget only yielded 4 million dollars in returns—a real flop!

Here, we see a young Walter Bruce Willis in the role of the actor Tom Mix (although already 33 years old), full of hair and full of energy. Artistically speaking, he gets surpassed by the more capable (though older) James Scott Bumgarner as Sheriff Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp. Not up to par is Mariel Hemingway (granddaughter of writer Ernest Miller Hemingway), to the point she ended up winning a prize as worst supporting actress—that is, the not-so-prestigious “Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress”. Finally, in the role of a super villain, we find an always excellent Malcolm McDowell.

I enjoyed it both as a simil-western and as a detective-story for an hour and a half of healthy pre-dinner relaxation. The soundtrack is also excellent, crafted by the faithful and talented composer Enrico Nicola Mancini (for friends just “Henry”) and that’s it…