Passable Western being well starred by ordinary genre stars as Robert Woods , Antonio Casas , Jose Luis Martin , among others . The film packs action , shootouts , drama , treason , high body-count and it's fast moving , being quite entertaining and approaching increasingly American style , but keeping some details that make it special in this particular genre . Colonel Jackson (Antonio Casas) assigns a dangerous mission to Capt. Roy Dexter (Robert Woods)of the U.S. Cavalry : to escort a fortune in Confederate gold coins . But outlaws ambush the little detachment and only Dexter survives the attack . At a martial court Roy was subsequently accused by a false witness (Antonio Molino Rojo) and a prosecutor (Gerard Tichy) ; being defended by a defending military lawyer (Miguel De La Riva) . Then , Roy is wrongly convicted to life prison and hard labor for the dark betrayal of his colleagues . After long time of heavy physical labor in a painful jail , the former soldier breaks out , carrying out a spectacular escaping from the infernal prison. After that , Dexter , helped by a Mexican bandit (Tomas Torres), sets about tracking down and exposing the true culprits . He becomes a two-fisted gunslinger desperately wanting to deliver justice and vengeance .
It is an exciting Chorizo or Tortilla/Macarroni western that contains a story full of thrills , violence , good dramatic pace and slick direction . Agreeable Butifarra-Spaghetti Western mostly produced by Spain and Italy ; being proceeded in American style more than Sergio Leone wake , but also including close-ups , zooms , and choreographic duels . All in all, this film is predominantly a Spanish film rather than an Italian one and it results to be a special rendition inspired by The count of Montecristo by Alexandre Dumas . It's a two country co-production but is clearly dominated by the Spanish contingent and the traditional leanings of the Spanish producers of the time have their stamp on the entire proceedings . The Spanish westerns of this era were far more likely to try and emulate their American source material than cultivate a distinctive style of their own the way the Italians were doing but their product , though here is developed in the US wake with brief Spag remarks . It's a thrilling western with spectacular scenes and breathtaking confrontation among protagonist Robert Woods and heartless enemies as well as dubious US officers and nasty gunfighters . It's a middle-budget film with ordinary actors , professional technicians , adequate production values and pleasing results . As lighthearted as can be, "4 Dollars of Revenge" is very reminiscent of the bygone American western feature from the golden era of Saturday matinees with a twist of the "Euro" filmmaking style . If you've seen even one vintage B-Cowboy picture, you've probably figured the whole ending . Charismatic performance for the whole casting . "Four Dollars for Vengeance" is well starred by Robert Woods as cavalry captain sentenced to life in prison on the false belief he masterminded a criminal ambush . Robert starred several Tortilla/Ravioli Western as "Five Thousand Dollars on One Ace" , "Seven Guns for the MacGregors" , ¨Black Jack¨, ¨El Puro¨, "Gatling Gun" , among others .. The notorious Spaghetti actor , Antonio Casas as Colonel Jackson is good in his ordinary role as an important secondary , he is famous from his character along with Lee Van Cleef in ¨The good , the bad and the ugly ¨ by Sergio Leone . In the film appears familiar faces from Tortilla or Spaghetti Western such as Jose Luis Martin , Gerard Tichy , Angelo Infanti , Osvaldo Genazzani , Tomas Torres , Gustavo Re . Being mostly filmed in a Western village located in ¨Splugues De Llobregat¨ (Barcelona) , and in Fraga (Huesca) , both of them resulted to be the locations where were shot lots of Western produced and directed by Catalan people as Alfonso Balcazar , J.J. Balcazar , Jose Antonio De La Loma , Juan Bosch, Ignacio F. Iquino , Jose Maria Zabalza and Julio Buchs , among others , because Almeria was too far and the landscapes bear remarkable resemblance . There are many fine technicians , nice assistant direction and appropriate set design , creating an evocative scenario . It contains and some decent photography throughout . While the print used contains its share of imperfections , mostly minor , the overall presentation of the film is average . Attractive as well as energetic musical score by maestro Angelo Francesco Lavagnino , including catching leitmotif and a few enjoyable musical queues. Atmospheric and evocative cinematography by Victor Monreal .
"4 Dollars of Revenge" was professionally directed by Juan Jose Balcazar , although with no originality ; he managed to make a fluid and acceptable SW , though sometimes mediocre . Juan Jose Balcazar alongside his brothers Francisco Balcazar and Alfonso Balcázar produced and directed a lot of Tortilla or Butifarra Western , most of them starred by Jorge Martin or George Martin , Luis Davila , Daniel Martin or Robert Woods ; such as 1972 The return of Clint , 1972 Judas... ¡Toma Monedas! , 1968 Sartana no Perdone or Sonora , 1967 With Death on Your Back, 1966 Dinamita Jim , 1965 Doc , Manos De Plata , 1965 Viva Carrancho , 1965 Five Thousand Dollars on One Ace . Rating : 5'5/10 . Average though some moments entertaining . If you like traditional Spaghetti westerns remains watchable .
