I have become more of a Sabata fan than I used to be.
Showing on UK cable channel Virgin 1 this weekend at the bizarre time of 3pm - with a few cuts, probably.
I thought about giving LvC a chance.
Gave it another look last night. If Yul Brynner would have worn some different duds this could possibly have been classified as a really good SW, even with a somewhat patchy script. The setting and score are superb. I have always enjoyed the gadgetry of the Sabata/Sartana films.
Recently this one was on German TV. I got a glimpse of it during a commercial break. This time I was able to bear Brunners pathetic dress-up. Maybe I’m finally able to rewatch and rate it fairly.
Brynner had already a suitable and quite stylish Sabata like dress in Invitation to a Gunfighter. Somebody in Italy must have hated him …
Attire withstanding, he still seems out of place. Deters from what could be a very good movie. Maybe he was not set of for success as I assume this was the 2nd installment in the series. LVC in the first then…you change leads?
It originally wasn’t a Sabata movie. Brynner was called Indio Black in Italy, but most (all?) international distributors changed it to Sabata. Of course the character is just the same (except for the fringes and the bald).
I’m still wondering about the soundtrack in which the line “Adios Sabata” can be heard. Was it changed too?
Adios Sabata has nothing to do with Sabata. It was renamed for monetary purposes. Originally it’s called Indio Black.
Ooops, Too late, Stan was faster…
I think it wa not difficult to modify the soundtrack. It’s just a man crying “adios Sabata” that’s all. Even I could do that.
BTW this Sabata-cry is another reason for my hitherto existing Adios Sabata abstinence.
No it’s not difficult, but it shows that they had maybe the blessing of the producers.
What’s the problem with the cry? It isn’t used very often and is actually more a whisper than a cry.
However, I don’t like that crying wisper…
I saw this on BBC1 back in the 80’s. I seem to recall it was called The Bounty Killers then. I loved Bruno Nicolai’s score and it definitely stuck in my mind. Over the last 20 odd years, I’ve found that whenever UK shows would do any kind of pastiche of Italian Westerns, it was always the score from this movie that they used - that whistling theme mainly. I don’t know if the music rights are public domain or just a lot cheaper to use than Morricone’s music, but I swear that every time some Italian Western music was used in a show it would be from this movie - the even used it in an episode of red Dwarf!
Your probably thinking of the score to forgotten Pistolero whih sounds vey similar but is none the less different. Very very similar. But I’m positive you thinking of FP.
I’ve just listened to a couple of versions of Roberto Pregardio’s ‘Ballata Per Un Pistolero’ and you’re absolutely right korano. That’s definitely it. Thank you for clearing that up.
The director, writer, and producer are all the same, and we have several supporting players returning, but Brynner supplants Van Cleef as The Man With The Gunsight Eyes. Does it work?
Well, yes, to a point. ADIOS SABATA is, like the other movies in this series, a densely plotted, somewhat tongue-in-cheek western yarn. In each of the Sabata films, I promise you, you will lose track of who is plotting against whom, and with which ne’er-do-wells on his side. There will also be moments of wry humor, along with acrobatic stunt work. And stuff will blow up, and people will be improbably shot from a long distance away.
All of that happens in ADIOS, but it happens with Brynner at the helm, so the charisma factor is lessened by a notch or two. Where Van Cleef had steel-eyed machismo and a barbed tongue, ol’ Yul provides an exotic gypsy-style appeal, all flowing frills and phallic rifle. For real, this Sabata looks like a backup dancer in a Vegas revue, with his all-black outfit and open-shirt styling. As for the sense-of-humor aspect of the character, Brynner’s unusual accent tends to give those sardonic Sabata one-liners a bit of a Schwarzenegger feel, but still yet, he’s charming, so it works.
Brynner, like LVC, has a great supporting cast to back him up. Returning from the first film (in different roles) are the stolid Gianni Rizzo and the boisterous Pedro Sanchez. American ex-pat Dean Reed is present as a handsome, sleazy sidekick; Gerard Herter portrays a cruel Colonel; and the wonderful Sal Borgese shines as Sabata’s mute, music-box-obsessed cohort. All are excellent, with Borgese and Sanchez really notable for fine work.
Gianfranco Parolini/Frank Kramer, who handled the direction of all three Sabata flicks, is equally capable of staging big, booming explosions and a subtle eyebrow tilt; I’d say he’s more adept at the latter. He gets a lot from a knowing glance, curious peek, or simple crossing of legs, putting each actor’s business to great use in moving the story.
At 1 hour 44 minutes, ADIOS SABATA gets a little long, with its protracted showdown and search for gold. That said, the pic is an ably-produced, entertaining Spaghetti Western, good of its type, and recommended to fans of its star and genre enthusiasts. 7/10.
I don’t think the story is very good in this one, and it felt too long… But i’d still give it a 3, nice atmosphere, and very impressive action scenes.
I enjoyed Sabata for the campy, tongue-in-cheek western it was, the ‘sequel’ seemed like it was going to take a similar route, but also go for a much more over-the-top approach, taking it to the next level, if you will. Too bad it got none of the first film’s charm and endearing characters. Also, even if Bruno Nicolai’s score is beautiful, it doesn’t work with the silly nature of the movie, unlike Giombini’s which actually fitted and contributed to the movie.
As for the actors and the characters : Yul Brynner makes an okay Sabata, but Lee Van Cleef is much better and much more likable, Gérard Herter makes a good “Imperialist European stereotype” kind of villain, definitively beats Franco Ressel, but otherwise they’re rather lame. Ignazio Spalla’s character is an interesting revolutionary chief (I’m thinking about the José Bódalo kind), because he cares more about his cause and his men than the usual ones but, overall he’s not a very convincing character (the way he laments the death of his friends almost makes it look like it’s some kind of joke) and even if I wasn’t the biggest fan of Carrincha, I’d take him over Escudo any day. Sabata had one mute and that was alright, but here we got two? Okay, so one of them actually speaks, but they are very similar characters and having two of them was overdoing it. The first one had the best Sabata, Banjo, a sweet saloon girl, just one mute character and the exuberant Carrincha, so yeah, Adiós, Sabata fails to deliver in this regard.
Story-wise, I din’t expect greatness, just another simple tale of murder, deceit and robbery with an episodic feeling. Well, the story feels less episodic, but in the end it’s has disconnected has the first one, hell, it’s even more all over the place. The action that accompanies it ain’t so hot either, they tried to be more epic and bigger in scope, but once again it fails. The first one had charm and atmosphere, this one is dull and lifeless.
I was expecting some good extravagant fun, but I got a ridiculous unfunny bore that seems to NEVER freaking end! The last 40 minutes were excruciating painful to watch. Worst Zapata western I’ve ever seen and one of the most boring spaghetti I’ve had to sit through. A pretty bad film, but at least it tried (and it has some originality).
So this is your one-star spaghetti (instead of OUATITW)
It’s a film that apparently fails to make any impression on me
I’ve watched it several times (always on television), but wouldn’t be able to tell you what’s it’s about
I know it stars Brynner and Spalla (an actor I do not like, by the way) and is set in some kind o Mexico, but that’s all I remember
Did I ever like it? Hate it? Chépa