I don’t know if you’ve seen it, in any case even Straniero… fatti il segno della croce!/Stranger, Say Your Prayers! is different from the next SWs directed by Fidani and in particular is almost completely devoid of the distinctive look that characterizes his westerns of the 70s.
Yes, I have seen Straniero. One of his better ones, but I remember it as typical Fidani.
For Prega dio it is pretty unlikely that I will ever change my opinion.
Asked on Facebook by a German SW fan Bobby Woods, back on the plausible side of life, has a new and better fitting theory who directed Pray to God:
"Mulargia directed it and Fidani produced it. "
Apart from the different running time, are there differences between your 83 min version and the YouTube version called Sua arma era o Colt (English master, Portuguese dub) in this respect?
Don’t know. The stupid ending seems to be the same.
I have meanwhile a much better version in 1,85:1 with the same 86 min runtime. A Tijuana Edition, Spanish audio with German subs. But not watched yet
Then we’ll see.
In the Portuguese dub there’s music from A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and even A Pistol for Ringo!
Prega Dio… e scavati la fossa! (1967) (firmato da Edoardo Mulargia, ma diretto da Fidani)
Source: Dizionario dei film italiani stracult (Marco Giusti)
Just watched this - and mightily pleased am I.
After 15 mins or so I hoped that I might be in the El Puro realm of genius (whether by Mulgaria or not) . It didn’t get there, but it was thoroughly enjoyable nonetheless .
Revenge for a murdered family, the nastiest bit of being buried up to your neck in sand, and trumpets to herald it, all bode well.
Robert Woods was great (as usual) and despite that faffing around with the runtime - and a remote in and out of hand, along with the beer bottles and an opener - I managed to watch it in order, without spilling a drop.
4 stars - maybe alternative top 20…
The first part of a Mini Special (the REVIEW) is on-line now (the second part, the EXTRA PAGE) will be uploaded tomorrow:
It’s on my TV schedule in two weeks, I’m looking forward to it - it’s got to be worthwhile since it deserved Mini Special 
I started to re-watch it yesterday, but was too tired to make more then 20 min. But there was some really good stuff in it. Better than remembered so far.
The idiotic ending will not come as a surprise this time, and it is now in acceptable picture quality and it is a widescreen version, at least in 1,85:1. And every scene in the right order …
I brought the discussion on this ending to a seperate page. This movie is not one of those that virtually all have seen, so I wouldn’t like to spoil anything for viewers …
Still working on that page. I’ll have to add a note as well on these scenes in the wrong order in some versions. I watched the 1,85:1 version too, and it all seemed in the right order. However there’s one flashback scene (at about three-thirds of the movie) that I didn’t fathom. We see Cameron firing his gun but don’t see who or what he’s firing at.
A scene of of primary importance: vision, not flashback. And as a consequence Cipriano, well-aware the fight is hopeless and already lost, renounces to join Fernando.
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Slight correction for the excellent Film Review: leading ladies are Cristina Penz and the unknown actress Selvaggia (only one film to her credit) as Don Enrique’s daughter. Lea Nanni (Blood Calls to Blood) plays Fernando’s sister, named Asuncion in the Italian dub.
[quote=“JonathanCorbett, post:53, topic:1540”]Slight correction for the excellent Film Review: leading ladies are Cristina Penz and the unknown actress Selvaggia (only one film to her credit) as Don Enrique’s daughter. Lea Nanni (Blood Calls to Blood) plays Fernando’s sister, named Asuncion in the Italian dub.
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Just saw this post. I watched this a couple of weeks ago, this time in the correct order but just got around to the DB yesterday. I had concluded that the Maria character must be Selvaggia but not being sure I added a question mark. JC, do you believe this is unquestionably correct? Another question, do you know anything about Carmelo Artale? The DB had this actor as Mammacita, but isn’t Carmelo a masculine name?
Carmelo is undoubtedly a masculine name, so the possibilities for Selvaggia are Don Enrique’s daughter, Fernando’s mother or a couple of really minor female characters: considering that her name appears on credits and posters in third-fourth place next to Cristina Penz and that it would be pretty strange for a middle-aged actress to be credited with her forename only, it is natural to think that Selvaggia (means “wild” in Italian) plays Maria Carmen. But if you prefer just to be sure we can keep the question mark.
Antony Stewens is Calisti but both names appear on posters and lobby cards, in all probability as a result of a mistake.
Artale is the priest: here is Carmelo in Il processo di Verona (1963), directed by Lizzani, with Silvana Mangano and Frank Wolff as Galeazzo Ciano. There is also Vivi Gioi (Kill the Wickeds) as Donna Rachele!
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And here is Vito Cipolla in 1975 TV Mini-Series L’amaro caso della Baronessa di Carini. I’ll take the necessary time to check Vito’s role in Prega Dio… e scavati la fossa.
I remember that as a child the opening credits with that Sicilian ballad seemed to me deeply disturbing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1v_UcjLrGoY[url]http://postimage.org/
Good work, Jonathon
The aforementioned padre
I’m thinking Ramirez, the young bandit with Cipriano or the young man who escapes with Ascencion (husband, fiancee ?) could be Vito
Interesting that you mentioned this.
I have noticed these interlocking Vs a few times (which form a third V at the top 
) in words that would contain a V rather than a W. I figured that was what happened somewhere along the line with Stevens.
- Here are other two pics of Vito Cipolla from another TV Mini-Series, L’Edera (1974).
With this look is easier to identify him as the young man with Asuncion.
- Ramirez is played by Fabian Cevallos: the pics are from Sierra Maestra (1969), an experimental film in black and white with Antonio Salines (Theo/Ted in Matalo!) as lead actor.
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Prescott’s son is played by the Italian singer Rino Sentieri a.k.a. Joe Sentieri.
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Strangely I don’t remember a houseman or a character named Renaldo in the English dub, in any case Fedele Gentile (the first pic is dated 1942, the second is from Killer Kid) is the third landowner.
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I too have noticed this W thing, but what I meant to say is that both names, Stev(w)ens and Calisti, appear on posters and lobby cards!
Looks like you have hit the nail on the head with these pics of Cipolla and Cevallos. Regarding Gentile, I got the impression he worked for Don Enrique, seeming to be in charge of the servants and distributing the bread. I don’t remember him as being another landowner or neighbor. In my notes I have him being referred to as Renaldo, Looks like I’ll have to re-watch his scenes with your remarks in mind.
In the short sequence before Maria is kidnapped the Dons are discussing the peons and Gentile is called Renaldo (in the English track) by Enrique. Of course you are correct, coupled with the sequence at the church (why would Fernando start shooting people, didn’t understand why he would risk his mission at this point), he would be another landowner. Ascencion calls her lover Juan in the cave and later he is named by Fernando, along with Alvaro, as being one of the objects of his revenge. Prescott’s son is called Charlie on several occasions. It appears we may have discovered all the credited cast save the mysterious Tommy Roy :).