An American mercenary goes deep and hitches up with a group of bandits on a hidden agenda as they go around Mexico to steal arms from the army to sell for money.

The Good

Hey look! Gian Volonte gets to play the protagonist for once!!

This is not only a great spaghetti western, but it is also a good example of the political bend westerns were achieving in the late 60’s. The script was co-written by Franco Solinas who was known for his political films, especially The Battle of Algiers. Teaming up with director Damiani, they weave an action packed parable about how it is easy to be blinded while living the life of a revolutionary. Almost everyone plays their part well including Klaus Kinski, who plays the crazy theologian El Santo.

The story was even in pace as well. It wasn’t to fast or too slow. It build characters effectively while still keeping it full of action to keep the audience involved.

The Bad

I really would like to wring the neck of the American PR department for this movie. The name they gave this movie totally killed the suspense of the picture. If given another name, the picture would have more impact and would have been more well known.

Also, a lot of people see this as a Buddy movie. It isn’t. Volonte is a the colourful protagonist while Castel’s character, Gringo, was the one sided opportunist antagonist. Castel, I think, was doing everything that was expected of him, but he forgot to add a little something more to the character. So, when he has scenes with Volonte, his character is a paper doll compared to Chuncho.

The DVD!!!

The Blue Underground disc is a carryover from Anchor Bay. While the sound is nice and crisp, the visuals are a bit washed. I’m a fan of “natural transferal” so this doesn’t bother me none. The extras are sparse. Just a domestic and an international trailer.

Conclusion

While this is a collectible for Spaghetti Western fans, I would hold and possibly ask for a better reissue. General fans should look this up if you have a hankering for westerns.

3 Stars

Forced into hiding, a queen and her son run from a bloodthirsty general. They find themselves under the protection of a stranger who’s fighting off a secret while looking to get revenge on the general

The Good

This is pretty much Shane without the metaphorical metaphysical hero and knives in the place of six shooters. Camron Mitchell does a great job as the stranger and ‘Lissa is freaking hot as Queen Karin.

Also, Bava made this on a real short budget on a real short time frame. From what I hear, this movie was originally already worked on by another director and the production company ran out of money and lost the director. Bava picked up the project and put his own touches into what we have today. Which shows Bava as a very versitile director in any situation.

He also create something that feels like an understanding of space. You get a feeling that it does take a bit of time to get from one destination to another. Something you think is rare in movies.

The Bad

I think the script could have been better constructed. Sure there are clues as to what Mitchell’s character has done. I do think that it would have made the movie better if the reveal was held off a bit longer so it would have a much bigger impact.

The DVD!!!

This movie is part of the Mario Bava Collection Vol. 1. It’s the same as the Image DVD, but without the Italian dub track. The video and audio is alright for people who dig a more natural feel to the stock. The DVD is pretty bare bones. Besides the Italian dub, you get a black and white trailer as well as a Bava bio.

Conclusion

If you’re a Bava fan, this is a flick you really need to have in your collection. Fantasy fans would dig it too. General film fans should at least give it the time of day as a rental.

3 Stars

After several gruesome incidents, a priest is sent to investigate an abbey suspected to be haunted by a demon. It is there that he finds something worse then demons.

It’s a Bruno Mattei movie. YAY! Say what you will about the guy, even though his movies are sub par, they sure as hell are entertaining. He’s that bag of white cheddar popcorn you have for the first time and you think it’s pretty good enough that if offered, you wouldn’t mind a handful. The Other Hell is that introductory bag of popcorn. This movie has good pacing and an interesting story. Mattei was working with Claudio Fragasso, who was the young buck back in the day. Claudio is known for his entry in the Zombi series as well as his contributions to Italy cinema. The acting is awesome as well. All around talent from Carlo De Mejo, Franca Stoppi who is big in cult cinema. You even got some decent work from Franco Garafalo (Frankie Garfield!) who’s a fan favorite.

I have to be honest with you, this isn’t really highbrow material. You might be saying this isn’t nunsploitation either. There’s no nudity or lesbianism in it. A lot of the story is a couple movies spliced together. Hell, the soundtrack is borrowed from another movie. In fact, Mattei and Fragasso where doing two movies at the time. So you got a bit of a rushed feel to this movie. Some…eh…let’s be honest. All the f/x on this movie was cheap and easy. I mean, you had flickering lights as an effect. How cheap can you get after that?

Media Blasters put out a great DVD of this movie. The audio is great. There is some pops and hums, but to me, that adds to the experience. The visuals are clean and neat. Even though the extras are meager, they are worth it. The disc gives you a trailer and interviews with Mattei and Carlo De Mejo who was an actor of the set. Both were educating and entertaining. So if you want to get into nunsploitation and you’re looking for a starter kit for your collection, this movie would be a fun one to get.

Three stars.

A Nun who had brain surgery to extract a tumor goes into drug induced hysteria and tortures the patients of the hospital she serves. All while a string of murders happen in the same mental hospital she works in. But is she behind the killings?

Y’know, out of all the nunsploitation films I’m covering, I think this might be the lightest of them all. I mean, it was pushed here in America as a horror, but it feels more like a giallo. The pacing is as slow as a giallo as is the setup of characterization. The characters aren’t ones the viewer could latch on. there’s no reason to hook on to them in some way. It’s like the director Giulio Berruti was about to take off for flight and then he pulled back the last couple feet.

I mean…it feels like I’m sitting in a waiting room. And it affects the actors as well. The film totally desexualizes former sex symbol Anita Ekberg. I mean, yeah, it’s been fifteen years after La Dolce Vida was filmed when this film was made, but any chance to look the least bit attractive is ruined by the conservative directing of Berruti. It’s nice to see these people earn a paycheck, but this movie didn’t feel worth it from anyone.

Blue Underground did a good job with the DVD of this movie. Audio/Video is acceptable. There was a piece of audio missing, but it’s covered by subtitles. Nothing too bad. The extras are OK. It has a poster/still gallery, a trailer and a small interview with Berruti about the movie. The interview is OK as well. Movie collectors should get this if you just have pocket chance or if you don’t feel like bargain hunting.

2 stars.

trailer brought to you by Nunsploitation.net

Flavia, daughter of a nobleman, finds herself in a convent, forced to become a nun. After an escape attempt goes sour, she plans her revenge against mankind and seeks a way out of her enslavement, even when it comes at a high cost.

To say this is an euro exploitation movie is an understatement. While it does make time for the explicit gore, the film is well thought out and the characters are well developed. The story takes somewhat of a feminist feel, but given the times this movie characterizes, it’s not as preachy as it seems. Florinda Bolkan really makes the title character her own. I mean she totally runs the ball. She makes you feel the oppression she’s felt. The film is beautifully shot. Even the surreal and explicit scenes felt like they have a place. And the music. The music is very good. It’s really works with the movie and without. I found myself humming a few bars.

What’s the downside of the film? Well, besides the real horse castration (God, that hurts just typing that. Look away guys. Look away. I’ll be ok. Gimme a sec.). Besides the c-word on a male horse, it did feel a bit overdrawn somewhat. Now, I know everything needed to be set up correctly, but I was finding myself nodding midway through. Not a good sign.

Synapse does a great job cleaning up and putting together the full movie on DVD. The audio and video defiantly gets high marks. The cool thing is they didn’t brighten the colors. They were supposed to be washed out. That’s how it was filmed. They also added a posters and stills gallery that’s nice. There’s also an interview with Ms. Bolkan on how the filming process was and where she was taking the character. This a good DVD that Nunsploitation fans need and general film fans can have as a proud part of the collection.

minus the horse castration.

Three and a half stars.

Sabata returns to America as a “Shoot artist” and teams up with an old war buddy to find out if a robber baron with the penchant to tax everything under the sun is actually using the money for city improvement or lining his own pockets.

As the poster says, “The Man With The Gun Sight Eyes Is Back”. Van Cleef returns to the role he made and relishes every moment of it. This movie almost out trumps the Wild, Wild West series. The only thing that holds it back a bit is the legitimacy of the palm pistol. that gun is Bad Azz. No “s”s, “z”s. That’s how bad ass that gun is. Over the top action. Total popcorn. loved every minute of it.

With all that being said, I’d like to say that this movie had the same set up as the first two. “A little help for my friends except one can double cross me at any moment.” Doing that twice is forgivable. Doing that three times can cause damage to a possible franchise. They tried to make to make the movie more interesting by adding a few more twists and turns, but painting a few extra colors on a peacock doesn’t make the peacock any more special. It’s still a peacock. I mean really, I can do the same review for all three of these movies, but it wouldn’t be fun for me or you now would it? You’d be quite annoyed about it. other then that, it’s a pretty solid popcorn flick. leave your mind at the door. it’s fun.

As always, this box set was not up to par. The only good thing I do have to say about it is that the audio is great and the video is very nice. It’s cleaned up nice yet hasn’t lost it’s age. I like stuff like that.

Three stars.

Sabata hangs out in Mexico, helping the people fight Maxmillian’s men. He sets out with men to find the Austrian war chest so that they can supply Mexico’s army.

This was supposed to be a stand alone movie, but with the “Sabata” name was a big sell, so they packaged the movie around it. Yul Brynner takes Van Cleef’s place and he totally makes the character his own. That’s good and bad in a way, I think. It’s a comic book western in a way. It’s fun, no need for thought and very colorful. This is a total popcorn movie. Anything totally out there is in this movie.

I think the problem with this movie is that it’s almost the same movie as Sabata. All that made it different was a few extra characters. Brynner’s Sabata is totally different then Van Cleef’s. If the company was pushing these two as the same guy, it’s totally wrong. If I were to sell this, I’d sell it more as the characters are different and the only thing that links them is the name Sabata. Like the Sabata family, y’know? It totally devolves into one mess of a gunfight. Nothing wrong with that, just that after a while, it’s gets a bit long.

As I said in the first installment, this is a box set that could have put out a little something special for the fans, but MGM totally drops the ball on it. Get this if you want to, but wait for a better substitute.

Two and a half stars.

After stopping a major theft of army funds, a gunfighter and his two down and out friends blackmail the high society for orchestrating the theft so that they may buy off land to establish a railroad company.

One of the more outlandish spaghetti westerns. This is the movie where Lee Van Cleef shines through. His opus. The character that makes him big. While the movie is mostly tongue and cheek, Cleef gives it a seriousness needed for it. The camera work is great. The characters are interesting, including Banjo, played by William Berger. He really gives the character the opportunist edge he needs.

The real big problem I had with the movie is the first say…half hour felt convoluted. Like I was supposed to be in on the inside joke and I missed it somewhere. I literally watched the movie a couple times to see if I was missing anything. Some people might not like how it turns into Sabata vs. hitman for the most of the movie, it’s still very good. But yeah, I can see the repetitiveness of it. I do wished there were more twists and turns. They also really picked the wrong wig for Alleycat. It totally looked fake.

What really pisses is me off is that this is one part of a trilogy box set. You’d think they’d add maybe a Sabata retrospective showing how the movies inspired folk, maybe interview people who were part of the movies or even maybe a Lee Van Cleef memorial. None of that is there. You do get some subtitle and language tracks and that’s it. Other then trailers for MGM’s new releases and a stupid ass PSA telling kids not to rip off their shitty movies. Who in the hell under the age of twenty five is going to watch the Sabata Trilogy to see that. Get this for your collection if you want it, but hope for a better substitute. This st sucks.

3 stars