Review: His Name Was King
Richard Harrison stars as John ‘King’ Marley on a vengeance mission to kill the scummy Benson brothers (led by Goffredo Unger) gun smugglers who murdered Marley’s brother and raped the brother’s new bride (Anne Puskin). Klaus Kinski plays a sheriff who is friends with ‘King’, whilst Luciano Pigozzi plays an antagonistic government agent. Lean and mean at under 80 minutes, this 1971 spaghetti western from director Giancarlo Romitelli (a bit more prolific as an assistant director) goes under several titles, but I saw it under “His Name Was King” . Mind you, it turns out the main character’s name is John Marley so that’s a lying arse title (and lying arse accompanying song, which is otherwise cool). Still, solidly directed by Romitelli and scripted by Renato Savino ( “Hey, Amigo…Rest in Peace!” ), this is a solid spaghetti western that deserves wider recognition. In a way you could almost call this an anti-Leone spaghetti western given how short and breezy it is, no fat on the bone