China 9, Liberty 37 (1978)

★ 5.3 1h 45m IMDb

Action Western

Gunslinger Clayton Drumm is about to be hanged when he is given a chance to live if he agrees to murder Matthew, a miner who has steadfastly refused to sell his land to the railroad company. Matthew’s refusal is a major obstacle to the railroad’s plans for expansion.

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Cast

Fabio Testi as Clayton Drumm Age 84 · Peschiera del Garda, Verona, Italy Fabio Testi (born 2 August 1941) is an Italian film actor, notable as the star of, among many other films, First Action Hero. Born in Peschiera del Garda, Italy, the 1.84m tall actor started his film...

Warren Oates as Matthew Sebanek Died 1982 · Depoy, Kentucky, USA Warren Mercer Oates (July 5, 1928 – April 3, 1982) was an American actor best known for his performances in several films directed by Sam Peckinpah including The Wild Bunch (1969) and Bring Me the Hea...

Jenny Agutter as Catherine Sebanek Age 73 · Taunton, Somerset, England, UK Jennifer Ann "Jenny" Agutter (born 20 December 1952) is an English film and television actress. She began her career as a child actress in the mid 1960s, starring in the BBC television series The Rail...

Sam Peckinpah as Wilbur Olsen Died 1984 · Fresno, California, United States From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. David Samuel "Sam" Peckinpah (February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter who achieved prominence following the release of...

Isabel Mestres as Barbara Sebanek Age 78 · El Masnou, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

Director Monte Hellman

Cast Fabio Testi, Warren Oates, Jenny Agutter, Sam Peckinpah, Isabel Mestres, Gianrico Tondinelli, Franco Interlenghi, Charly Bravo, Paco Benlloch, Sydney Lassick

Wuchak 7/10 Apr 03, 2026

**_Jenny Agutter as a bored wife on a remote ranch in west Texas, 1885_**

The original Italian title translates to “Love, Lead, and Fury,” which, needless to say, is an all-around superior name. For video release in the USA, it was called “Gunfire”; in Spain it was named after the protagonist, “Clayton Drumm.” The official title, “China 9, Liberty 37,” makes it sound like a high school football score between two east Texas towns. Speaking of which, there are two such towns northeast of Houston with just such a mileage sign between them, as shown in the opening of the movie, but the location in the film is obviously supposed to be west Texas since the landscapes of southeastern Spain don’t look anything like southeastern Texas.

The flick was one of the last Spaghetti Westerns, which were produced for fifteen years from 1964-1978. Of course, like a lot of Spaghettis, this isn’t purely an Italian-Spanish production. For instance, director Monte Hellman, cowriter Jerry Harvey and star Warren Oates were all Americans, and Agutter is English, not to mention American Sam Peckinpah, who has a curious acting cameo.

It shoots for eccentricity to distinguish it or try something new, similar to other Westerns from the late 70s: “The Missouri Breaks,” “The Shadow of Chikara,” “Goin' South” and “Eagle’s Wing.” Unlike those, it throws in quite a bit of (tame) nudity, mostly involving Agutter (which was nothing new for her, if you’ve seen “Walkabout”). Peter Fonda’s “The Hired Hand” from the early 70s, which also costars Oates, is a good comparison.

The story revolves around a romantic triangle between Catherine (Agutter), her grizzled husband, who’s twice her age (Oates), and a pardoned young gunfighter named Clayton (Italian Fabio Testi). In the small circus sequence, you’ll catch a glimpse of the beautiful redhead Helga Liné, who was 45 during shooting.

The film drives home the boredom and loneliness of life in the Old West, particularly if you’re living on a small ranch far outside of town. When romantic enticement rears its head, it’s an understandable temptation. When gunfights suddenly break out, they’re realistic.

It runs 1h 42m and was shot in the fall of 1977 in Tabernas, Almería, Spain, with studio work done in Rome.

GRADE: B