The Wrath of God


The Wrath of God is a 1972 offbeat Western genre film directed by Ralph Nelson and starring Robert Mitchum, Frank Langella, Rita Hayworth and Victor Buono. Filmed in Mexico, it is based on the 1971 novel by Jack Higgins writing as James Graham.

Premise

Van Horne, a bank robber dressed like a Roman Catholic priest, is spared from a firing squad in 1922 in an unnamed Central America nation resembling Mexico in the Cristero War and sent to kill a local desperado.

Cast

Actor Ken Hutchison had a near catastrophic accident near the end of filming in which he cut himself on some broken glass, opening a gash from wrist to elbow. He was discovered by Mitchum's wife Dorothy, who applied a life saving tourniquet to stop the bleeding. Since Hutchison was in nearly every scene, the insurance company covering the production shut it down for a month for him to heal. When he returned, he was unable to do anything strenuous, and had to keep the arm covered. With the long layoff, the cast and crew just wanted to get the film done, resulting in confusion, continuity gaps and dislocation.