The Grand Duel

An ex-lawman named Clayton sets out to help Phillip Vermeer, a young man accused of murdering the powerful Saxon family patriarch. Vermeer is being hunted by bounty hunters eager to collect the reward, while the dead man's sons are determined to see him punished. Clayton knows who really committed the killing but holds back from revealing it, and his efforts to keep Vermeer alive become increasingly difficult as the pursuit closes in.

The film is a Western directed by Giancarlo Santi from a screenplay by Ernesto Gastaldi, produced across Germany, Italy and France. It stars Lee Van Cleef as Clayton, with Alberto Dentice as Vermeer, Horst Frank as the Saxon patriarch, and Klaus Grünberg, Antonio Casale and Jess Hahn among a credited cast of forty-one. Santi had worked as an assistant director before taking the helm here, and this was among the earliest features he directed.

Released in late 1972, the film runs 98 minutes. On TMDB it holds a rating of 6 out of 10 from 112 votes, indicating a modest but positive reception among those who have logged it.