Little-known Clint movie [The Witches]

[Dannyman]

I was checking my TV listings for Clint Eastwood and this movie came up that i'd never heard of before, The Witches (1966) The cast looks French, have any of you seen this film?

[KC]

Try Italian.

The Witches (original Italian title Le streghe) is a five-part film originally released in Europe in 1966. Each of the episodes had a different director and a different cast. The common link was the female lead, Silvana Mangano, who was the wife of the producer, Dino De Laurentiis. Eastwood appeared in the fifth episode, "A Night Like Any Other" ("Una sera come le altri"), which was directed by Vittorio De Sica, with whom Clint had had a hankering to work.

You can read all about it in the Filmography on this site.   (There's a little more information in the IMDb.)

BTW, when and where is it showing? It never had a real U.S. release and is rarely seen on T.V.

[KC]

Never mind ... I found it on TV Now ...

The Witches
110 minutes- NR, France/Italy, 1965

Directed by Luchino Visconti [and others, they should have said] and starring
Silvana Mangano, Annie Girardot, Clint Eastwood
Francisco Rabal, Alberto Sordi, Massimo Girotti

Five separate stories relate the tragic influences of a quintet of different women.

Tue  Jan  6  07:30A   MYST- Encore's Mystery Channel
Wed  Jan  7  05:20A   MYST- Encore's Mystery Channel
Fri  Jan 16  04:30P   MYST- Encore's Mystery Channel
Fri  Jan 16  05:30P   PLEX- Encore's Movie Plex
Fri  Jan 16  11:35P   MYST- Encore's Mystery Channel
Sat  Jan 17  12:35A   PLEX- Encore's Movie Plex

Ms. Giradot is indeed French, so you're not entirely off base there, dannyman.

[Dannyman]

Too bad I don't get that channel. Did Clint had to learn Italian like for example GB&U, A Fistful of Dollars, etc. Or was it.....an italian voiceover w/ Clint?

[KC]

Eastwood never spoke Italian in any of the four films he made that were Italian productions or co-productions. The practice at the time in the Italian film industry was not to record any of the voices for the final soundtrack "live," but to dub in all the dialogue after filming was completed. If there was an international cast, as was often the case, everyone could speak his lines in his native language ... then, everyone would be dubbed into the language or languages of release. That is, for instance, in A Fistful of Dollars, Eastwood spoke English during the shooting and the rest of the cast spoke Italian, German or Spanish. Then there were releases in each of these four languages in which all the voices were dubbed, but Eastwood dubbed his own lines in the English-language version ... and the Italians in the cast dubbed their own lines in the Italian-language version ... etc. I hope that is clear.

The version of Le streghe I've seen, probably the same one showing on TV next month, was dubbed into English. At any rate, Eastwood, who plays the dull banker (American) husband of an Italian housewife with a very active imagination (Mangano) doesn't have a great deal of dialogue, if I recall right.

[Dannyman]

Yeah, I figured it was set up like that because when I watch the Man With No Name westersn if you look at the actors mouths most of them aren't speaking english,  but a voice-over.

[nyna]

As I was about to post yesterday I got disconnected 5 times Gr.... after all that typing, the temp was 41c about 106f in Melbourne and everytime its hot my computer does this so I just switched off.
About the movie the witches, what a coincidence its going to be on Sunday night the 4th of Jan on SBS channel,  so set your videos, I've seen it Clint  he is in one of the stories about 10 minutes he is very well dressed in a suit and very young and handsome only I dont think that is his voice as I know it.

[Matt]

I've seen Le Streghe and it's definitely Eastwood's voice in the English version.

For the curious who can't watch it in their area, here's a few stills from the film:

[Christopher]

Somehow I wouldn't think that those two images would come from the same film.

[Matt]

One is reality... the other is a fantasy.

[Christopher]

Ah, that would certainly explain it.

I wonder which is which?

[Dannyman]

HAHA, gee.............well unless Clint is Superman I think the second one is fantasy.

[Philo Beddoe Jr]

Who has seen it, and what did you think of it?

WKC.

[KC]

I, and not much!

To expand a bit, it demonstrated Eastwood's willingness to take chances and his desire to work with "serious" European directors (he has often cited his experience with De Sica as helping to form his own "know what you want and shoot only that" filmmaking philosophy). It's amusing to watch but impossible to take seriously.

[Philo Beddoe Jr]

Thanks KC,

I have never seen it, but am of the understanding that this film is not considered to highly. I am surprised though that the 'completists' here do not discuss it a little bit more often...

WKC.

[Agent]

I recall it being discussed a few times in the past, but most of it was on the old board. I bought a bootleg copy off Ebay a couple years ago. The clip with Clint in it is only around half an hour or so. Personally, I think it's one of the most humorous (yet bizarre) performances I've ever seen him put on.

[Agent]

Here's some shots taken from the movie. The bootleg VHS tape I have is really bad quality, recorded in SLP mode I believe, so the caps aren't so clear. But since most here will probably never see this flick and perhaps a side of Eastwood you've never seen before, here they are:

[philo]

For US readers this not often seen film is showing on the following ....

Fri  Oct  1  11:15A on Encore Mystery Channel
Fri  Oct  1  12:15P on Movie Plex
Thu  Oct 14  06:40A on Encore Mystery Channel
Sun  Oct 17  07:20A on Encore Mystery Channel

As far as I know one single UK channel 4 screening is the only time it has been shown in 16:9 widescreen.


Philo .

[donald]

For US readers this not often seen film is showing on the following ....

Fri  Oct  1  11:15A on Encore Mystery Channel
Fri  Oct  1  12:15P on Movie Plex
Thu  Oct 14  06:40A on Encore Mystery Channel
Sun  Oct 17  07:20A on Encore Mystery Channel

As far as I know one single UK channel 4 screening is the only time it has been shown in 16:9 widescreen.


Philo .

The Witches looked like a good alternative character at that time for Clint!
did you see it?
What was Clint's "conservative character" dressed in eye-glasses like to watch, i mean your reactions??

[Lin Sunderland]

I have tried so hard to get a copy of the Witches but it just isn't available over here.  I'd like to know your reactions to it as well please, Philo.  Thanks