The Spaghetti Western thread

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

I love ONE SILVER DOLLAR. It's my favorite Giuliano Gemma western, as well as one of my all-time favorite spaghettis in general. Great story and cast, and the Gianni Ferrio score is superb too (Tarantino used a bit in INGLORIOUS BASTERDS). The best looking dvd is probably the expensive Japanese Cinefil disc, I have that and the older Japanese disc, the Cinefil was a big improvement. I have no idea how that NEW dvd Richard posted an image of looks though. It's also in one or two of those budget sets.

You should give it another go sometime, Ian. It gets better every time I watch it.

[Paul L Scholar of Sleaze Find all posts View Profile Close Paul L]

It's a good film with some strong photography, a great score and a decent narrative; like Andrew, I'd say it's one of my favourite Giuliano Gemma films - although I'd put it a notch below THE RETURN OF RINGO, admittedly.

I've got the NEW disc, and it's a fine presentation of the film. There's also a release from Triple X in Thailand, but I would guess that release, like most of Triple X's discs, has a fake and intrusive 5.1 upmix.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

With such positive reports I'll have to get the NEW German disc of ONE SILVER DOLLAR.

I love ONE SILVER DOLLAR. It's my favorite Giuliano Gemma western, as well as one of my all-time favorite spaghettis in general. Great story and cast, and the Gianni Ferrio score is superb too (Tarantino used a bit in INGLORIOUS BASTERDS). The best looking dvd is probably the expensive Japanese Cinefil disc, I have that and the older Japanese disc, the Cinefil was a big improvement. I have no idea how that NEW dvd Richard posted an image of looks though. It's also in one or two of those budget sets.

You should give it another go sometime, Ian. It gets better every time I watch it.

What other spags do you love that you haven't mentioned, Andrew?

I just watched Bruno Mattei's SCALPS. I spent way too much on the Spanish DVD. At least $28 more than it is worth. But the film is a good, solid western and the transfer is fine. I accept the premise that the post commander is insane with nothing but rape and enslavement on his mind and a regiment who follow suit without question. I try not to notice Mattei's continuity errors. It's a better film than SOLDIER BLUE, to which it is often compared, and more honest because it's doesn't try to be anything more than exploitation. I've always thought American westerns were not extreme enough in depicting Indian warfare, and those that attempted to be gutsy were out of balance in historical perspective, if not outright mis-informed (LITTLE BIG MAN) or blatantly dishonest (SOLDIER BLUE). It is true that atrocities were committed on both sides, but it is also true that tribes had a thousand years to practice atrocities on each other before teaching atrocities to European immigrants and white pioneers. I mention this tiresome topic because Bruno Mattei brings it up in SCALPS. He makes the usual mistakes, and his depiction of the atrocities -- which he limits to rapes, scalpings and decapitations -- is mild compared to the real thing. The story is set in post Civil War Texas, which means the Indians probably would have been Comanches, who were very frightening indeed, but Mattei is careful not to identify the tribe. The soldiers would have been ex-confederates in Union uniform, or more likely black soldiers in Union uniform under the command of white officers. In real life, the young girl warrior represented by Yari in this film would have been naked except for a breachcloth, her skin covered with carvings and tatoos, she would have carried a spear and knife, and she would have been extremely adept at mutilation and torture by the time she was fourteen. Instead of going thirsty in the desert, she would have simply drank her own breastmilk. Mattei's version is almost wholesome compared to that. But setting history aside, I like SCALPS well enough to say it's a shame Bruno Mattei couldn't think of a more plausible, more reality-based motivation for his post commander and soldiers. I wish he had directed more spaghetti westerns in the 1980s. He's just what the genre needed.



A young warrior and squaw dress up for the photographer in 1872.

[Horace Cordier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Horace Cordier]

Richard - is this the DVD you are talking about? I'm sort of interested in this now.

http://www.amazon.es/Bianco-apache-I...s=bruno+mattei

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

Nope. There's no English option on that. This is the one:

http://www.amazon.es/dp/B001442PIQ/r...41_3p_M3C_dp_1

The marketplace sellers have thinned out and the price gone up since I bought mine.

[Horace Cordier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Horace Cordier]

The Spaghetti Western thread

Nope. There's no English option on that. This is the one:

http://www.amazon.es/dp/B001442PIQ/r...41_3p_M3C_dp_1

The marketplace sellers have thinned out and the price gone up since I bought mine.

Ouch.

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

It's a good film with some strong photography, a great score and a decent narrative; like Andrew, I'd say it's one of my favourite Giuliano Gemma films - although I'd put it a notch below THE RETURN OF RINGO, admittedly.

I can't argue with that, Paul. THE RETURN OF RINGO is probably a hair better realistically but sometimes (like after just watching it) I rate ONE SILVER DOLLAR on top.


"What other spags do you love that you haven't mentioned, Andrew?"

Richard, I listed about 20 favorites on an earlier page of this thread - as did Paul - when you asked for some picks. Probably several pages back.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

FrancoCleef informs me that he is working on VENDO CARA LA PELLE / I'LL SELL MY SKIN DEARLY (1969) from a newly acquired source that is DVD quality, widescreen and uncut. "...hopefully we'll wind up with the full version, totally in English. Leave it with me," he says. This has title has been hard to get, so I'll be happy with whatever he comes up with.

[Paul L Scholar of Sleaze Find all posts View Profile Close Paul L]

I'LL SELL MY SKIN DEARLY is pretty good. I like it. Till now, the only DVD I'm aware of is the German Marketing Film release, which is missing about 15 minutes and dubbed into German. However, there's a fan-dubbed composite on the Internet. I look forward to seeing what Franco Cleef does with this title.

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

Good news about FC working on I'LL SELL MY SKIN DEARLY. Thanks for the heads-up, Richard. I figured FC had retired from doing new projects. I wonder what happened to his plan to do DRUMMER OF VENGEANCE? That was the last thing I heard he was working on (years ago). I have that composite of I'LL SELL MY SKIN DEARLY...I like it too, quite a bit actually. The lead, Mike Marshall, has an intense, crazy-eyed countenance and the score is aces.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

I see DRUMMER OF VENGEANCE on FrancoCleef's updated list. So I guess he completed the project.

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

Been watching a few spaghettis from the Echo Bridge 8-Movie Western Pack budget set - 5 bucks at Wal Mart. I think we discussed it briefly a few pages back. I had a dvd-r of AND SARTANA KILLS THEM ALL but the print on here is an improvement. It's letterboxed (not anamorphic) and in english. I think this is the only english friendly dvd around, authorized or not. It's a decent film, with Gianni Garko as the title character - though not the same Sartana as he plays in the series with the trick guns. A buddy film with some (thankfully fairly brief) light comedy moments. The title song, Ride Along, by Marcello Giombini is just fantastic! I wish I had the soundtrack.

There's a couple other films on the set that are relatively rare: DIG YOUR GRAVE...SABATA'S COMING (low budget trifle, though not awful; fullscreen and with a line of dialogue in unsubbed Italian now and then), HOLY WATER JOE, and BUFFALO BILL, HERO OF THE WEST. Haven't watched the latter 2 yet but I have an import disc of HOLY WATER JOE already. I think BUFFALO BILL is fullscreen too.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

... getting back to SCALPS, Mattei pushes the third act beyond credulity. It's impossible to believe that a man pierced and hooked through his pectorals with his tendons hanging out is going to run for miles and miles uphill in the desert heat without bleeding to death very quickly. Mattei had a lot to offer the western, but he really self-destructs here, damn him. A little more thoughtfulness here and there and this is could have been a breakthrough film.

I just received YANKEE (1966), BLACK JACK (1968) with Robert Woods and BLACK KILLER (1971) with Klaus Kinski.

[Richard--W a straight arrow Find all posts View Profile Close Richard--W]

Anyone get the Arrow blu-ray of DJANGO PREPARE A COFFIN from the U.K.?

Rarely does DVDbeaver review a spaghetti western:

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film4/blu-r...in_blu-ray.htm

[Paul L Scholar of Sleaze Find all posts View Profile Close Paul L]

Anyone get the Arrow blu-ray of DJANGO PREPARE A COFFIN from the U.K.?

No, I bought Arrow's DVD a few months back, as an upgrade from the German DVD. I'd be interested in buying the Blu-ray at some point, but only when it drops in price to below a tenner.