Hi everyone!
I just discovered this forum and I’m excited to try my luck here. There’s so much passion for spaghetti Westerns, so I’m optimistic you might help me out!
I have a childhood memory of watching a film with my father, probably in 1980 or so, when I was about 6. It aired on RAI, the Italian national TV. I don’t remember much about the plot, but I do recall it being pretty gritty—definitely not a Bud Spencer and Terence Hill comedy! It might have had some humor, but to a 6-year-old me, it wasn’t the kind of film that made me laugh. There was also possibly a child character hiding from bad guys.
What really stands out to me, though, is the finale. There’s a duel (or something similar), and the bad guy gets shot by someone hiding. What I’ll never forget: when the bullet hits him (I’m pretty sure he had his back to the camera), it actually pierces the film itself, leaving a hole surrounded by printed paper, as if the film were made of newspaper. This hole then leads into the end titles.
I imagine this isn’t one of the more famous spaghetti Westerns, or I would’ve found it by now! If anyone knows what film this is, I’d be extremely grateful.
Thanks for the title, but I just checked the finale and it doesn’t end with a bullet at all.. so not sure why you mentioned it, nevertheless, thanks for trying to help!
Haha definitely not. It’s one of those childhood memories that occasionally plays in my mind as the scene is so clear in my mind (while the rest of the film is almost completely gone) and I would just love to see it again. The film was pre 1980, as that’s when I probably watched it. All my previous attempts to find it failed, but I’m hoping sooner or later I can find it.
The bit when Bean shoots the Albino. Bean, who is hiding in a barn behind the guy, shoots him in the back and the camera zooms into a big hole in his chest and then freezes. Not exactly the same as your description but pretty close.
It could have been indeed, I have no recollection of the film a part from the finale, a vague and unreliable memory of the theme of a child hiding (perhaps the protagonist was trying to keep his son safe), and the finale with the bad guy getting shot through the film and the newspaper visible on the tear edges. I remember the feeling of being quite tense watching the events unfolding but then surprised and relieved by the almost comedic finale. It’s my first memory of me actually reflecting on film making language rather than just passively watching something, I loved that finale and that’s why I’d love to see it again. There is obviously a real chance that it was a totally crap movie and the finale only good for a 6 years old. But I also remember having a good laugh with my dad about the bullet scene so I remember him liking that surprise finale too. It must have been one lazy sunday afternoon watching tv together, a very rare occasion.
