At first glance Red Sun seems like a standard western, however, the first thing you notice is the starry international cast: Charles Bronson (American), Toshiro Mifune (Japanese), the recently deceased Alain Delon (French) and Ursula Andress (Swiss) – it truly is an interesting film. This is one of the aspects that makes this Spaghetti Western directed by Terence Young (known for directing three James Bond films including Dr No (1962), featuring Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder), such a unique experience.
The film starts with Link (Bronson), a bandit, and his partner in crime Gauche (Delon), attempting to rob is that of the Japanese Ambassador who is bringing a ceremonial gold sword to give to the President of the United States. The bandits end up taking it but Gauche betrays Link, trying to kill him whilst also killing one of the Ambassador’s bodyguards. The other bodyguard, Kuroda Jubei, played by the always great Toshiro Mifune, vows revenge and to retrieve the stolen sword. This results in Link and Kuroda teaming up, after some early friction, to get the sword and Gauche.
I have only seen one other film featuring Charles Bronson, The Great Escape (1963), so my knowledge of him is severely limited. Without that experience, his role in this film was hard for me to like what with his character being the smart ass of the film – akin to Chris Pratt and Ryan Reynolds, two actors I have a hard time with. This made the first thirty minutes of the film unpleasant, especially since they focused more on Bronson’s character instead of the more interesting one, in my opinion, Mifune’s. Obviously Mifune is a great actor, but it’s something else to watch his samurai character take down Native Americans with his samurai sword and in, the beginning, besting Bronson in hand to hand combat. However, as the film goes on, Mifune and Bronson are given equal screen time, redressing that early imbalance as they set out to kill Delon’s Gauche.
Ursula Andress’ character (Cristina) is introduced about half way through, giving us time to warm up to Mifune’s and Bronson’s characters – yet, the lack of Andress does hurt the film in the early moments. Her character is a prostitute, though she is exclusive to Gauche. Cristina maintains a cold relationship with Link throughout, and it is not usually clear whether she agrees with him/likes him, or if she is just trying to manipulate him (usually with her feminine charms). There is a scene where Andress is topless which came as a surprise for me, I did not expect nudity from a named actor in a 70s Western.
The cinematography by Henri Alekan is another standout. Like a lot of Westerns, the locations are brilliantly captured and display the beauty of the desert, however in this case, it wasn’t shot in the Western U.S. but Spain. In my opinion, the best shots are at the end, the final fight in the high grass; even though I haven’t seen a lot of older westerns, it seemed like an unique place to have an important scene. There were some great close shots in the high grass that give the viewer a more personal view of the action. Before this, in any other fight, there are some other first person shots that also feel unique within the genre and really enhance the viewing experience.
The film is a treat, even to someone like me, a Western Beginner. The inclusion of international film icons, Toshiro Mifune, Alain Delon, and Ursula Andress really make the film feel like a special, memorable event. The cinematography and story are strong points too, enhancing the viewing experience. The 4K steelbook and Blu-Ray releases (Region B) from Studio Canal included a new interview with Steven Okazaki, an archive behind the scenes special feature from Pour le cinéma, and four art cards.
Red Sun is out now on Studio Canal Blu Ray
Ben C’s Archive – Red Sun (1971)
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