The Hellbenders
"A coffin without a corpse... crammed with millions in cash!"
A Southern Colonel, his three sons, and a card shark embark on an odyssey through the Southwest carrying a coffin full of stolen money with which the Colonel plans to revive the Confederacy.
Curator's Take
“Joseph Cotten stars in this grim tale of a Confederate fanatic refusing to accept defeat. It’s a heavy, melodramatic film about the destructive nature of obsession and the weight of a lost cause.”
Why This Movie Is Important
A bleak, fatalistic tragedy that subverts the American Civil War narrative. Instead of noble soldiers, we get fanatical, delusional losers dragging a coffin of stolen money through a wasteland. It is Corbucci at his most cynical, dissecting the futility of blind patriotism and obsession.
Production Details
The Hellbenders is a 1967 western film directed by Sergio Corbucci. Originally released in Italy under the title "I crudeli", the film was produced during the golden era of European westerns. The film features a score composed by Ennio Morricone. Cinematography was handled by Enzo Barboni. The screenplay was written by José Gutiérrez Maesso. The film stars Joseph Cotten as Colonel Jonas, Norma Bengell as Claire, and Aldo Sambrell as Pedro. Running 1 hour and 30 minutes, it is a well-paced entry in the genre. The film features a notable on-screen body count of 40 kills. It holds a solid average rating of 6.5 from 59 ratings.
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Did You Know?
Joseph Cotten's coffin, which serves as a central plot device, was actually filled with rocks in some scenes to give the actors' struggle to carry it genuine weight and physical strain.
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