Spara, Gringo, spara (1968) Online

Spara Gringo Spara is a particular favorite of this spaghetti western fan in that it combines the expected Italian western bravado and action with a respectable attempt at offering unique character relationships.

While lacking the depth and intrigue of classics of the genre, such as "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", Spara Gringo Spara (aka Shoot Gringo Shoot) does manage to avoid the confusing plot lines and over-indulging intensity that often spoils many shoot-em-up films. Westerns, at least the better ones, more often than not revolve around a simple theme of good vs. evil. And although many recently produced old-west films successfully cloud that issue ("Open Range" for one), most films of the genre are better served remaining faithful to the standard, to-the-point presentation that exemplifies the western... keep the storyline simple and punctuate it with in-your-face, gun-blazing action.

Spara Gringo Spara delivers these elements without watering down the dialog, mixing in unnecessary plot twists, or exceeding the duration required to achieve its goals.

The bottom line... Spara Gringo Spara makes no attempt to deliver anything beyond its capabilities. Sometimes, less is more, as this movie properly demonstrates. A nice addition to any spaghetti western collection.

Criminal Brian Kelly escapes from prison by pretending to have leprosy. Finding himself at the wrong end of a rope, he agrees to bring home the son of a wealthy Spanish landowner, who's fallen in with fun-loving (and duck loving!) outlaw Keenan Wynn and his gang of misfits.

A sense of deja vu does hang over the proceedings. However, the action is plentiful, the scenery nice to look at, and the stars (particularly Wynn) full of roguish charm, all making this a breeze to watch, even if it's not very original. The twist at the end is cool.

Cult Euro-babe Erika Blanc is nice to look at too, even though her screen time here is as short as her dress is long (way too long, that is).

Writer/director Bruno Corbucci may not be as fondly remembered as his brother Sergio (even though he helped pen some of his best work), but his direction is quite solid too, making for a satisfying if not entirely memorable western.

This movie has an interesting story and plenty of gun-blazing action. The overall plot is easy to follow, but could have been smoothed out a bit more. I'm not sure if the English version was poorly edited or if the production was a bit sloppy to begin with, but it just seems like some of the events in the story need a little more background or explanation than is given.

Brian Kelly and Fabrizio Moroni give very good performances in the lead roles. Moroni seems kind of like a 19 year-old Tomas Milian in this film. The other actors are just so-so. Keenan Wynn's performance is a bit disappointing considering that he is the most well-known actor in the film.

This is not one of the most highly stylistic Euro-westerns, but it does have it's moments, especially near the end.

The best thing about this movie is the music score. In fact, it's almost too good for the film. I don't remember ever seeing the name of this composer, Sante Maria Romitelli, before. But if I ever do again, I will surely take notice.

All things considered, this is a pretty entertaining film for spaghetti western fans.

I'm pretty picky about my Spaghetti Westerns, so it's very rare that I watch one with fair to middling ratings that I think is much better than that. This is one of those rare cases. I really don't understand all the meh-ness about it. I thought it was creative, well made and very enjoyable. It definitely has some odd touches for the genre, but I thought they worked very well and were never over the top or distracting. A solid contribution to the filone, I say!

Guess IMDb's never heard that brevity is the essence of wit. This didn't need the extra two lines, IMDb. And still not enough. Is the 10 line minimum based on something or did a programmer just make that up?

Brian Kelly, looking like Sam Elliott's older brother, and Fabrizio Moroni, looking like an Italian Dirk Benedict, play mismatched buddies in a frontier "road" movie. Their cross-country travels, and the various adventures they encounter, make for a plot-line that's more straightforward than is usually found in these spaghetti westerns, though one misses some of the stylistic touches found in the more exaggerated examples of this genre. (True, the irate father tries to have his "son" nailed to an x-shaped cross, but this only occurs in the last reel and does not easily mesh with the tone of the preceeding footage.) The result is a modest but satisfying piece of entertainment. Brian Kelly, whose promising career was prematurely curtailed by a motorcycle accident, makes for an adequate anti-hero and his sideburns are truly impressive. It's curious that he keeps his shirt on throughout the entire proceedings. Some "beefcake" would have been welcome. Co-star Fabrizio Moroni has great eyes and the make-up man makes the most of them.

While I wouldn't say that "Shoot, Gringo, Shoot!" is a downright bizarre experience, I think even seasoned spaghetti western fans would admit that there are plenty of odd touches here. It's directed in a very loose and casual style, almost seeming like the script was being written as the movie was being filmed. There are some strange stabs at humor, like Keenan Wynn's outlaw leader character having a pet duck. And the humor doesn't always pair well with the action elements, such as the fact that we have a protagonist who will kill innocent people. Still, the movie does have some definite rewards. The plot - returning a young man to his family - is different than most spaghetti westerns. There is some grit and atmosphere here and there. And the movie does get you curious as to how things will be wrapped up in the end, though the middle portion of the movie at times gets dangerously close to be labelled as boring. I would recommend this to spaghetti western to fans of the genre who want something a little different than usual.

Brian Kelly plays a swift-shooting gringo who searches for the errant son of a Mexican land baron in this contrived Spaghetti western. Sergio Corbucci' s brother Bruno wrote and directed "Shoot, Gringo, Shoot," with "Hate for Hate" scenarist Mario Amendola. Our unshaven gunslinger hero, Chad Stark (Brian Kelly of "Around the World Under the Sea") engineers an improbable escape from prison when he fakes a guard off with what appears to be a case of leprosy. After he breaks out, Stark washes the dirt from his face, finds horse, and kills a man. During this frenzied gunfight, he kills four of Don Hernando Gutierrez's pistoleros. Gutierrez's vaqueros bring Stark before the landowner who gives him a chance to live if he will find his boy, Fidel (Fabrizio Moroni), and bring him home. Unfortunately, a predictable pattern sets in, and Stark loses but then recaptures Fidel. Meantime, Major Charlie Doneghan (Keenan Wynn of "The War Wagon") is searching for Fidel, too. The big revelation occurs when Don Hernando tells Stark that Fidel isn't his son. The sun-scorched, Spanish scenery, Sante Maria Romitelli's evocative orchestral score, and Carl Chan and Fausto Zuccoli's cinematography cannot make up for the mediocrity of the plot. Sadly, Wynn spends more time off screen than on but easily steals every scene that he has. Corbucci stages the gunfights with reasonable finesse in a western that is devoid of humor. The scenes in the desert with Stark leading Fidel by a rope as his prisoner recalls Eli Wallach leading Clint Eastwood across the desert in "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly." Brian Kelly makes a good anti-heroic gunman.