The Hellbenders

"A coffin without a corpse... crammed with millions in cash!"

1967 1h 30m IT

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 68

Western

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

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.

“A coffin without a corpse... crammed with millions in cash!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Joseph Cotten
Colonel Jonas
Norma Bengell
Claire
Julián Mateos
Ben
Gino Pernice
Jeff
Ángel Aranda
Nat
Claudio Gora
Reverand Pierce
María Martín
Kitty
Ennio Girolami
Lieutenant Soublette

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sergio Corbucci
Writers: José Gutiérrez Maesso, Ugo Liberatore, Albert Band
Languages: Italian, Spanish
Countries: Italy, Spain

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

90 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

59 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Italian, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Italy, Spain.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sergio Corbucci, shot by Enzo Barboni. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Ennio Morricone. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Alberto Gallitti shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Joseph Cotten and Norma Bengell and Julián Mateos carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sergio Corbucci directs. Enzo Barboni behind the camera. Ennio Morricone scores. Alberto Gallitti cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Italy, Spain. Dialogue in Italian, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

190 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
259 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Italian, Spanish.
4International production across 2 countries: Italy, Spain.
5Directed by Sergio Corbucci, shot by Enzo Barboni. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Ennio Morricone. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Alberto Gallitti shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Joseph Cotten and Norma Bengell and Julián Mateos carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "A coffin without a corpse... crammed with millions in cash!".
10IMDB entry: tt0060261 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Only 68 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Enzo Barboni
Original score: Ennio Morricone
Editing: Alberto Gallitti
Costume design: Nori Bonicelli
Makeup / hair: Piero Mecacci
Stunt coordinator: Benito Stefanelli
Runtime: 90 min · 1h 30m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: IT
Certification (US): 18
IMDB: The Hellbenders (1967)

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Sergio Corbucci

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2018-07-26
★ 6/10
The Cruel Ones: The madness of a lost cause Joseph Cotton stars as Colonel Jonas, an unrepentant Confederate who led a regiment called The Hellbenders during the Civil War. Lee surrendered and the war's over, but not for Jonas and his three sons. They ruthlessly rob a Union convoy in the Southwest carrying $1 million. The group not only has to evade the Union Army, but also a posse, Mexican bandits, vengeful Natives, and even each other if they are to get back East with the money. The ratings for this film are all over the place. Some viewers say it's trash whereas others grant it a surprisingly high grade; and I can see why on both counts. Let's look at the positives and negatives respectively. While some complain about Joseph Cotton's supposedly wooden performance, his deadpan expressions superbly capture his character's single-minded vision. Jonas' family is nigh insane because they refuse to admit that the Civil War has been lost. His ultimate harebrained purpose is to finance a renewed Civil War. Everything else is secondary, including life itself. Hauling their loot around in a coffin is a symbol for the hopelessness of their cause. You'll hear Jonas talk about God & Scripture now and then, but it's all outward adornment, even while I'm sure he's sincere. He justifies killing Union soldiers on the grounds that they're still at war while he rationalizes murdering hirelings because their motivation is not the Confederate cause but rather filthy lucre. The man's brutal and despicable, but interesting nevertheless. He’s a “Christian” fake, but just doesn’t know it. I'm thankful for the characters of Ben and Claire without whom there'd be no one to sympathize with amongst the protagonists. In her prime Norma Bengell was one of the most stunning women to walk the earth and the filmmakers were sure to capture this in a pond-bathing sequence where she strips down to black stockings and modest lingerie. Another positive is that the movie's filled with action and generally maintains your interest even while glaring flaws regularly surface. For the family's nutty scheme to work they resort to nigh absurd deception; and you know what Sir Walter Scott wrote: "O what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive." Something else I liked that can easily be overlooked takes place when the Indians come seeking justice for the death of the chief's daughter and it provokes brother against brother, the Civil War in microcosm. Ennio Morricone (as Leo Nichols) composed the score with a decent leitmotif. It's full of guttural sounds with interesting percussion, harmonica, trumpets and guitar. But it’s pedestrian compared to “Death Rides a Horse” (1967) and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” (1966). As far as shortcomings go, someone complained about the movie on the grounds that it comes across as if the producers just enlisted several actors & extras and a couple of alluring women, then got some horses, a couple of coaches, a coffin, some Mexican clothes and made the whole thing up in the Spanish desert as they meandered along. This is my main objection to the movie, particularly in the second half where the scriptwriters awkwardly try to fit one episode after another into the story. At one point, for instance, Mexican bandits suddenly appear who had absolutely nothing to do with the plot up to this point. They disappear just as quickly when the Federals swiftly arrive. The worst example of this is the odd beggar who appears out of nowhere in the desert in the last act. This entire sequence is so badly done it horribly mars the movie. A technical cavil: Jonas and his three sons are the remnant of Confederate Hellbenders regiment and you see them equipped with Winchesters. This can be overlooked on the grounds that there were "Yellow Boy" Winchesters in 1866, but the six guns they carry are Colt 1873 Peacemakers, an anachronism that should have been corrected and is hard to ignore if you are familiar with the weaponry. The melodramatic climax reveals that good intentions were there, but the filmmakers just didn't have the funds to execute properly. If only they had the money, "Hellbenders" would rank with the best Spaghetti Westerns. As it is, it's still worth catching for the highlights noted. It runs 1h 30m and was shot in Spain and Italy. GRADE: C+/B-

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