Day of Anger

A strong mentor-and-pupil western in which an aging gunfighter takes a despised town sweeper under his wing and teaches him the killer's trade, only for the student to surpass and threaten him. Lee Van Cleef and Giuliano Gemma play the pair, and the film builds toward the inevitable confrontation between them.

Tonino Valerii, who trained under Leone, directs with real craft, and Riz Ortolani's driving score powers it. The ten rules of the gunfighter that structure the film are a nice touch. A model example of the cycle's second tier, which is a high standard.