Tonino Valerii's first Spaghetti western showed that Sergio Leone's former assistant director had talent to spare. Craig Hill stars as Hank Fellows, a shrewd bounty hunter of sorts who wields a Winchester with a telescopic sight as well as the usual six-shooter on his hip. He is a little odd. First, Hank is illiterate, meaning that he cannot read. Second, he doesn't rush in like a fool where angels fear to tread. He sticks to the high ground and uses that telescopic sight to keep track of lawbreakers. In the first quarter hour, he knocks three baddies, one of which is the prolific Spanish character actor Fernando Sanchez, who usually endures for the length of the picture. George Martin plays Gus Kennebeck, a black-clad, mustached ruffian in Hispanic apparel. He wants to rob the Bank of Omaha of approximately $100-thousand dollars in gold. Typically, Hank waits until the outlaws have appropriated the loot, like Fernando's gang during in the opening gambit robbery. Here, things are changed. Hank must keep the villains from getting the gold. If he can frustrate their efforts, he will receive an $10-thousand along with his own $10-thousand that he picked up for the Mexican bandits. So his character has to change his modus operandi from letting the outlaws steal to stopping the outlaws from stealing. Thoroughly satisfying and entertaining throughout its 85 minutes, "Taste for Killing" also benefits from an exceptional Nico Fidenco orchestral score that is lively and memorable.
Review of Taste of Killing
