Return of Sabata / È tornato Sabata … hai chiuso un’altra volta! (Gianfranco Parolini, 1971)

Spaghetti Westerns 🎬
61

[quote=“Stanton, post:57, topic:98”]Bought me the DVD (this one and Adios Sabata are really cheap to get now here in Germany), so I got the idea to rewatch it. And I really enjoyed it again, especially his elegant directing.

I’m now so used to Parolini’s excessive over-the-top ideas that his 4 Sabata/Sartana film belong in the great fun category.
At the moment I have to admit I would prefer this one to the original. Return is the stylistically more coherent film with the better dialogues, and I prefer the roles of Giampiero Albertino (McIntock, the main villain) and Reiner Schöne (ex-Lieutenant Clyde, the untrustworthy partner) to their counterparts in Sabata played by Franco Ressel and William Berger.

But still both films are very close, as is Adios Sabata.[/quote]

Stanton, it never ceases to amaze me that two people who agree on so much (as you and I often do) can also disagree so strongly. (Boot Hill anyone?) Everything you have written above is the direct opposite to how I feel. I can only put this down to your sharing Parolini’s fondness for the circus. Or an impish delight on your part in provoking me into outraged reponses.

Return of Sabata is a dreadful film which loses all the charm of the original. Albertino and Schone over Ressel and Berger?!? In the immortal words of John McEnroe “You Can Not Be Serious!!” The score, while passable, is a mere shadow of the original and, unless my prejudice is getting the better of me, Van Cleef is sporting one of his laughable wigs.

The original Sabata was one of the earlier spaghetti viewings I had and was an important film in fostering my love of the genre. If I’d seen Return of Sabata first I’d still be watching John Wayne.

Excuse me while I go and lie down with an ice pack on my forehead. I’ll be alright again in a minute.

62

I watched this movie twice but still cannot remember what happened between the beginning (which I like) and the shoot out at the end. :slight_smile:

63

[quote=“Phil H, post:61, topic:98”]Stanton, it never ceases to amaze me that two people who agree on so much (as you and I often do) can also disagree so strongly. (Boot Hill anyone?) Everything you have written above is the direct opposite to how I feel. I can only put this down to your sharing Parolini’s fondness for the circus. Or an impish delight on your part in provoking me into outraged reponses.

Return of Sabata is a dreadful film which loses all the charm of the original. Albertino and Schone over Ressel and Berger?!? In the immortal words of John McEnroe “You Can Not Be Serious!!” The score, while passable, is a mere shadow of the original and, unless my prejudice is getting the better of me, Van Cleef is sporting one of his laughable wigs.

The original Sabata was one of the earlier spaghetti viewings I had and was an important film in fostering my love of the genre. If I’d seen Return of Sabata first I’d still be watching John Wayne.

Excuse me while I go and lie down with an ice pack on my forehead. I’ll be alright again in a minute.[/quote]

Yeah, but we must have our small healthy disagreements. That’s allright.

Without needing an icepack the general disliking of Return of Sabata and Boot Hill (which I accept as a fact) and the general praise for Death Rides a Horse are the most puzzling things in the SW universe. I watch Return and Death more often then necessary just to get a clue, but Return gets better for me with every viewing.

I of course enjoy “outraged responses”, if nobody takes it personally. At least not too much.

I have to admit that I never was a great fan of Sabata. It was one of the 30 or 40 SWs I had watched before my real SW craze started a few years ago, and it was a mediocre and forgettable film for me, and I also thought that Parolini was a lousy director (didn’t liked Adios too, and spared me Return). Even when I rewatched Sabata in 2005 (or so) it was still average for me.

But since then Parolini has grown in my respect. Of course he’s far from being a genius or one of my favourite directors, but I began to enjoy his films, despite them being silly in parts, a sillyness which is meanwhile often enjoyable instead of annoying.

So, now I like Sabata, but it has some rhytmical problems in the middle part where the story dwadles around. But I still care not too much about the Banjo character (and Berger in general btw).
And I really enjoyed the way Sabata plays around with the unreliable Clyde, and how Clyde reacts to it. And I also liked the workingman’s looks and the dialogues of the sanctimonious McIntock. I also think that the acrobats and Pedro Sanchez with the drums are better included in the plot than in Sabata (and in Adios).
All in all the whole film works more smoothly and has a wider range of interesting characteres (we won’t forget Anabella and the other girl and the nutcracker face of Ken Wood in a small role).

The score is ok and Van Cleef was better before, that is generally before he began to act in this self ironic way, in which he isn’t as good as others.

It’s easy for me to accept if someone dislikes Return, it’s easy to accept that someone thinks Return is a bvit weaker, but it ain’t easy to accept if someone likes Sabata, but heavily despises Return.
That’s ???
(Of course, the other way round would also be puzzling for me. But that will of course never happen as it’s absolutely hypothetical.)

Ohh, and Phil, thanks for the word “impish”. Great. I will use it here and there.

64

Agreed that Miss Incontrera would have been a welcome addition to the original. Although I fear Parolini would have under utilised her there too. In a genre notorious for its chauvenistic portrayal of women Parolini seems to be one of the worst in my eyes. Although one of his westerns, The Tall Women, is about a group of strong women crossing the country alone apparently so maybe that is the film which would disprove my convictions. I haven’t been able to see it so cannot comment.

As for Berger, again I concede he is probably the weakest character in the original but somehow I like his pseudo hippy image in this in a way that I don’t like Schone’s coiffeured dandy in the Return. No logic really, just an instinctive feeling.

But on the whole, if I were to try and encapsulate the reasons why I prefer the original to the Return it would be (apart from those reasons stated previously) that the original had an innocence and authenticity about it that the sequel lacked. It’s still nonsense of course but that doesn’t matter. It is part of its charm. I have the feeling when I watch the Return that Parolini was simply trying to recreate something that he had originally created instinctively and anyone who has tried to do something creative understands that as soon as you try and manufacture something clinically any heart the thing may have had will be lost.

65

Parolini’s involvement in The Tall women was most probably a minor one. There are 3 directors mentioned and the German version credits the Austrian Rudolf Zehetgruber (it was an Austrian co-production), while I’ve read somewhere that probably producer Sydney Pink directed most of it.

I’ve also read that Parolini had probably nothing to do with it.
Who knows?

66

[quote=“Stanton, post:65, topic:98”]Parolini’s involvement in The Tall women was most probably a minor one. There are 3 directors mentioned and the German version credits the Austrian Rudolf Zehetgruber (it was an Austrian co-production), while I’ve read somewhere that probably producer Sydney Pink directed most of it.

I’ve also read that Parolini had probably nothing to do with it.
Who knows?[/quote]

Ah. That would make sense. The synopsis really doesn’t read like a Parolini film.

I just checked Giusti’s book and he says that Rudolf Zehetgruber was apparently the only real director here. Parolini’s name it would seem was added to the Italian release for’economic purposes’. Sidney Pink ‘supervised’ the project. We should really change that in the DB. I’ll do it now.

67

I wasn’t expecting much after the series took a nose-dive with the last installment, going as far as making me slightly angry. But here it is, Sabata is back to a smaller scale and coincidentally, also back to “not sucking”. The Return of Sabata opens with one of the best scene in the whole trilogy and follows immediately with a delightful credits sequence which also introduces the charming character of the Lieutenant. Of course, the rest of the movie can’t exactly keep up in terms of quality, but it doesn’t stop it from being good, let’s not complain.

So yeah, that guy Clyde, I liked him a lot, Reiner Schöne (whom I didn’t know) exudes a certain charisma and a cocky attitude that I like (hum, cock-ness?), a fun and weaselly character that always ends up getting the short-end of the deal because of his cheating ways. And that’s another good news, fun characters are back! Aside from Clyde, we have Ignazio Spalla’s best character yet, a villain who’s not completely over-the-top (for a change and he’s also the best of the series) and two lovable bowler hat wearing crooks. You know, I think I’m beginning to understand why I didn’t like the two similar characters in Adiós, Sabata, they weren’t happy-go-lucky guys like these jackasses, they were serious and dull (even Alley Cat wasn’t like that), well, they were ridiculous, but played seriously. Oh, and I almost forgot, there is a female character. A classy lady, but not as lovely as the one in the first Sabata.

One thing that I noticed is that the film is less serious than the two that preceded it, but also less campy… if that makes sense. And I think that it’s a good thing, it has found the perfect tone, it’s fun lighthearted stuff and it doesn’t go too far with it’s silliness, even if there is more humor. I’d say the whole movie itself is more restrained (except for the fact that it has more gimmicks, but they are better integrated and also kind of cool), even Gianfranco Parolini’s camera-work is not as extreme, or at least not as extreme as Adiós, Sabata (one particular scene in mind). And that’s also a good thing, because it’s still energetic and wild, but not overly so, striking a perfect balance. The “circus” theme, which appears to be close to the director’s heart, is also more present, I enjoyed that. Some people seem to believe that they took the Sabata formula and went too far with it, but I disagree, Adiós did that, but this one, I think it goes farther than Sabata, but without exaggerating and, like I said, in a fairly restrained manner. Action-wise, it’s pretty good too, maybe less brutal, but still a whole lot of fun and a definitive step above the boring action sequences in Adiós. Bref, the quintessential Parolini, I’d say.

I definitively agree with Stanton when he says that it’s a “stylistically more coherent film”, the whole film also feels more like a unified whole than the previous two. Personally, I think this one has all of the charms of Sabata (even if it’s less serious than Sabata, which wasn’t really serious either), but it’s better constructed and better directed. As much as it pains me to admit it, I think it’s the best of the trilogy, yes, even if it doesn’t have the Lee Van Cleef and William Berger clash or a soundtrack as good as the other ones (it is good, though).

And I still don’t understand why people are disappointed that it’s “less serious” than the first one, can you take the first one even remotely seriously? It was so camp! Anyway, as far as lighthearted and fun spaghetti westerns go this is one of the best. It’s a bit better than Sabata, miles above Adiós, Sabata and on the level of If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death.

Oh and the ending where Sabata shoots Clyde finger’s was just an awesome way to end the show. Parolini’s best western.

68

You’re going to have a very good friend in Stanton, M.E.

69

If only he didn’t like Adiós, Sabata, we could be best friends! ;D

70

I gave this a 1 because, in my opinion, it is one of the worst sequels ever in the history of Spaghetti Westerns. The opening scene is simply ridiculous. I do, on the other hand, like Adios Sabata quite a lot.

71

But the opening scene alone is better than the entirety of Adiós, Sabata!

72

Say M.E. when did you last watch Adios Sabata?

If it wasn’t in the last years, there is maybe a good chance that you will like it much more now.

73

Something like two weeks ago, I think. I’m in no hurry to re-watch it.

74

This is the main problem. Return of Sabata is mostly just camp (even more so than the first one). The opening “circus” scene is about as campy as it gets in a SW. It is also mostly just a re-hashing of the first movie with similar side-characters (the same actors in some cases) and like you said it lacks William Berger. With Adios Sabata, Yul Brynner brought some seriousness and fine acting to the series. It has an original plot (in contrast to the first 2 Sabata films) and has real emotion. I give it 4/5. Return of Sabata Parolini’s “best western”? In my opinion that’s a huge insult to the classic If you meet Sartana, Pray for your Death.

75

Well, I liked it a tiny bit more. And like I said, I don’t think it’s a very campy movie. Silly? Yes. Campy? No (edit : well, actually it is a little, just less than the other two, in my opinion). Franco Ressel’s character was definitively high camp and even if Banjo was a cool guy, he was kind of tacky too. I don’t think the circus scene was campy, just goofy, but well shot, atmospheric and fun. I guess it’s a bit of a rehash, but it’s done better and it’s not like the first sequel didn’t do a lot of recycling too (another over-the-top aristocrat villain, stolen money, acrobats, ridiculous Spalla and a scheming secondary character). Let’s face it, the three movies have very similar themes and plots. Also, Yul Brynner’s “serious” acting made it even more contrasting with the grand-guignolesque of Adiós, not a big fan of the guy either (I have yet to see him in a role that I really like).

The first Sartana is good serious fun, this movie is good silly fun. I don’t think that one is really better than the other.

76

For me the quality of all 4 is pretty close.

Sartana is more “serious” and violent, while the Sabata films always underline the tongue in cheek character of the movies. But some scenes and ideas in the more sinister Sartana would have worked better within a tongue in cheek style.

77

I remember the opening scene was amazing, I really liked the colours in that scene… but I only saw it once 5 years ago.

78

very funny spaghetti! some cool action scenes but nothing like the original sabata

79

[size=18pt]And for a real Circus western[/size]

[url]http://img11.imageshack.us/i/sbta.gif/[/url] [size=24pt] Go to:[/size]

[size=14pt]http://www.spaghetti-western.net/index.php/Return_of_Sabata_Review_by_Scherpschutter[/size]

80

Your two recent Sabata reviews made me want to revisit the series. I’ve re-watched certain parts of Sabata and The Return of Sabata and I’m wondering why I said that the latter was less campy than the first one, some elements are (the villain for example), but the “funny” scenes, the music and other stuff make it more so. Trying to remember what I was thinking exactly when I said that (because it takes itself even less seriously it negates the campy-ness? That doesn’t make much sense). Still I like the tone of this one better and just re-watching parts of it made me remember just how fun this little flick is.