Audience Member
Not the best I ever saw was still worth watching James Welch, Henderson, Arkansas, July 8, 2023
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
07/07/23
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delysid d
this is a good movie, its not as good as the directors later films like django, navajo joe and the great silence. its not as good as a fistful of dollars that came out the same time. but as far as westerns go, this is a good but standard picture
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
03/17/18
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Audience Member
From The S[agetti Western Bible Vol 3. Now Minnesota Clay is one fast guy with a gun. Possibly the fastest in the world. Unfortunately he is also slowly losing his eyesight, with his vision now so impaired that one more punch could cause complete loss of sight.
The movie begins with Clay (Cameron Mitchell) escaping from imprisonment, and intent on getting revenge on the man who set him up. The man in question is Fox (George Riviere), who has appointed himself as the Sheriff of Clay's hometown and abuses this power, with the townsfolk living in terror of his gang. They had initially paid Fox to protect them from bandit Ortiz (played by the ever excellent Fernando Sancho), who himself terrorises the town. In the middle of these two waring parties is Clay's daughter, Nancy, who believes her father is dead, and thinks Clay is merely a local hero. They are reunited, but caught in the crossfire between the two gangs, co-ordinated mischievously by Estella (Ethel Rojo) who is as devious as she is beautiful (and my is she beautiful!).
Minnesota Clay is one of the earliest Spaghetti Westerns, directed by a pre-Django Sergio Corbucci. Whilst it is not as captivating or as dark as the films he directed during the Spaghetti boom of 1966-1970, it is still a very enjoyable movie, with the usual sprinkling of injustice that we have come to expect within his films. 4 Stars 11-27-13
Mitchell, Sancho and Riviere are captivating throughout, and Rojo could win the heart of any man with her portrayal of Estella (no wonder her character is so able to use those around her so ably). My only complaint would be the vocal overdub on the English soundtrack for the characters of Nancy (drippy) and Andy (who comes over as a Frank Spencer type character - apologies to any non-English readers that may not understand this comparison!). Once you get used to these minor grumbles about the overdub (which, honestly, does not take too long), you can really start to enjoy Minnesota Clay for the highly watchable film that it
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/23/23
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Audience Member
140319: The movie description here really sucks, doesn't sum it up well. Regardless, this is a decent spaghetti. Good characters with some bad acting. Mexican bandits & six guns. Fun enough.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/31/23
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Audience Member
Aging gunman escapes prison work camp to take care of unfinished business back home, now run by a corrupt lawman who failed to exonerate him years before. Cameron Mitchell lifts the film a notch or two, which would mark his dubious film resume all thru the 70s and 80s.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
02/24/23
Full Review
Audience Member
This is one of Corbucci's earlier westerns. It feels more American than Italian. Minnesota Clay was made around the same time Leone was filming Fistful of Dollars. Which would explain it's lack of the Leone trademarks that you come to expect from spaghettis. Instead of a reinvented action hero, we get an old school John Wayne type. Rather than a timeless Morricone-like score, you get a bunch of forgettable tracks. And the story is just plain boring.
The main character is Minnesota Clay, a aging outlaw who escapes from a prison camp to settle a score with an old rival, Fox. Like in his other films, Corbucci gives his hero a disability. With Clay, it's his eyesight. By the end of the film he is nearly blind and must take on Fox's men under the cover of darkness to equal the odds. This scene is done with little to no score, which helps enhance the tension.
(SPOILERS)
In the final duel with Fox, Clay is completely blind and is almost tricked into shooting his daughter. His enhanced hearing prevents this from happening, but doesn't prevent his death. The sad ending is the most satisfactory part of the film. Clay's demise is bittersweet because you know his daughter will be taken care of once his body is turned in to the authorities. Sure it's a downer, but tame compared to the ending in Corbucci's masterpiece, The Great Silence.
(END SPOILERS)
Minnesota Clay is worth watching simply to see Corbucci's preliminary work. I like to think of it as one of his dress rehearsal westerns. It includes some of the same themes as his golden era spaghettis, but lacks the dark tone and rich style that you come to expect from a Corbucci western.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/14/23
Full Review
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