Seems like it is a very good flick. Haven’t seen it yet. opinions?
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This is one of the better Spaghetti Westerns I can remember seeing. Its a collaboration between Antonio Margheriti (director) and Richard Harrison (main actor), two people who spent their entire careers working in cheap, B quality genre movies. However, with the two uniting in a production like this, it results in one of their better efforts.
As the title points out, this movie is all about Vengeance! The movie opens up with Richard Harrison (Rocco) being tortured by a gang of thieves. They torture him in several different ways for the first half of the movie as they travel through the desert, for example, one of the tortures is forcing Richard Harrison’s eyes open and making him stare into the sun. Brutal stuff. During the 2nd half of his movie, Harrison is on the path of vengeance, dispatching the gang one by one until making it to the leader Mendoza… portrayed by Claudio Camaso. This is when the film really starts to pick up. Mendoza is one of the most colorful villains in a Spaghetti Western ever, a true psychopath with a child-like laugh and a good sense of fasion to boot–he’s complete with a white suit and white hat. The final scene in the movie takes place in an underground mine, and Margheriti makes good use of this environment to create a very claustrophobic final bout between Harrison and Camaso. One of my favorite scenes here is when Harrison is desperately trying to locate Camaso and Camaso–sensing a psychological advantage, laughs and screams inside the mine, resulting in his manical voice echoing in a thousand different directions and totally disorienting Harrison. It’s sad to know that Camaso would later commit suicide in an Italian prison after his talent was showcased so well in this movie.
This movie comes recommended.
I absolutely agree with ShaolinWolf !!! Not among the really good ones but still a flic you shouldn’t miss, especially the uncut version. There’s a German dvd release called ‘Django’s blutige Stricke’. Stay away from that, it’s terribly cut !!!
*Fünf blutige Stricke
*Djangos blutige Stricke
*Vengeance - Fünf blutige Stricke
Produktionsland: Italien * 1968
Originaltitel: Joko, Invoca Dio… E Muori
Englischer Titel: Vengeance
Sie waren vier in der Bande: Rocko, Richi, Domingo und Mendoza. Letzterer war das
Gehirn und plante den größten Goldraub aller Zeiten. Aber die Sache lief nicht wie
geplant. Mendozza starb in einer Explosion. Richi, Rockos bester Freund, geriet
in einen Hinterhalt von fünf Banditen. Domingo war der Verräter. Richi wird zu
Tode gefoltert, indem man ihn mit fünf blutigen Stricken auseinander reißt. Nachdem
Rocko von der grausamen Tat erfährt, beginnt er einen blutigen Rachefeldzug gegen
die Mörder.
Ein kurzweiliger, harter Streifen mit überraschendem Ausgang.
Regie: Antonio Margheriti
Darsteller: Richard Harrison
Claudio Camaso
Spela Rozin
Guido Lollobrigida
Werner Pochath
Paolo Gozlino
Alberto Dell’Acqua
Pedro Sanchez
Mariangela Giordano
Goffredo Unger
Veroeffentlichungen:
DVD: X-Rated (FSK 18 - ungekürzt)
DVD: X-Rated (FSK 18 - ungekürzt)
+ Bonus DVD: “Beichtet Freunde, der Italo-Western kommt” Trailershow
DVD: VZM (FSK 16 - in den Gewaltszenen gekürzt)
Video: UFA (FSK 18 - gekürzt)
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you don’t have to attach images that already are on the main site, such as the german dvd cover, by the way. you can link or embedd them using the [ img ] tags for example, just on a sidenote. and you can always add stuff to the database whenever you feel like it
just caught it on Encore. too bad it was in the middle of the night and i forgot to DVR it. seems like a decent sinister little revenge flick
Available in decent quality from Image Entertainment. Shop around and you’ll find it cheap. No extras though. It’s one of my favourite “second tier” SW’s. I love the score.
Just watched this one for the first time and would agree with the previous posts. A decent revenge flick from genre regulars and overall above average.
Claudio Camaso does make a very colourful villain and with his cape and cane is almost an old horror film character. In fact the score by Carlo Savina sometimes sounds like it is from a Hammer horror film with pipe organs and such.
It’s also one of Richard Harrison’s better outings and has some good action scenes and shootouts. My favourite is when Harrison dispatches one of his enemies with a double footed kick, cutting the guy’s throat with his spurs.
Recommended but not top twenty.
Well not a bad film, above average, but nothing special. Camaso is not as fascinating as in his other Spagetti’s, he looks ridiculous and is a bit over-acting.
Margheriti’s And God Said to Cain, which followed a year later, is a clear improvement.
Death Sentence is a similar (and also better) SW, which also tells a revenge story in episodic form.
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[quote author=Bluntwolf link=topic=325.msg4248#msg4248 date=1153134729] There’s a German dvd release called ‘Django’s blutige Stricke’. Stay away from that, it’s terribly cut !!!
I Finally Got Around To Watching This One.I Really Liked It.Plenty Of Great Shootouts,Not Too Mention An Abundance Of Violence,
Which Is Always A Good Thing!
Does Anyone Know If The Image R1 Is Also Cut?
I Kind Of Got That Impression At The Very End Of The Opening Scene.
A good revenge western.
It’s also one with a nice twist: the avenger (Harrison) is himself an outlaw who is betrayed by one of his three partners in crime after a succesful robbery, contrived by the brilliant leader of the gang (Camaso). Harrison’s best friend (Dell’Aqua) as well as Camaso die as a result of this betrayel. In the end Harrison will get his revenge, but like James Garner in SLEDGE ('70) he’ll loose the loot of the robbery, which is recuperated by a Pinkerton agent.
Slightly more plot-heavy than most revenge SWs it still is rather straightforward, with a few plottwists that are all too predictable, but director Margheriti uses his experience in the giallo/horror genre to create a great gothic atmosphere. He also uses the widescreen to good effect, so obviously the film suffered a lot on a pan & scan VHS.
I still have my doubts about the protracted finale, set in an underground mine: like I said I just don’t like these sequences in which the protagonists stalk each other for some time, but that’s personal and at least the thing is handled well and beautifully shot here.
No classic, but certainly worth looking for. 3,5 out of 5
I watched the french Seven7Sept DVD. Video quality is good, although colours are a bit washed-out, and the DD 1.0 french soundtrack is excellent, with crystal clear dialogue and the unusual melancholic score coming through very strong. But of course this won’t help you if you don’t understand the language. The company used an Anglo-Saxon master for this release (the credits are in English) so I suppose the same master has been used for an English friendly release.
Still it’s a pity that Seven7Sept never (?) includes English soundtracks, since their releases are otherwise nearly impeccable.
Thanks Scherp I appreciate your comments.
You stick with RICHARD HARRISON , Anthony Dawson, revenge and gothic for good fun 
Antonio Margheriti is a director with numerous classic and top notch film credits.
It does matter very much if you are able to see a FILM in widescreen/anamorphic with
the correct dubbing or a language you are familiar with.
Nothing worse than seeing a FILM with repulsive subtitles, pan and scan and poor picture
As you may have guessed if a film has subtitles and is made from poor pan and scan etc
I LEAVE IT ALONE and wait for a remastered, widescreen/anamorphic and DUBBED 
Their The Stranger and the Gunfighter-release includes the English dub and looks brilliant.
Definitely agree about the pan and scan or poor picture quality but I don’t have a problem with subtitles at all. In fact sometimes I prefer a film in Italian with english subs than a dub version. Django is a good case in point.
Thanks Avatar. Not one of my favs, although not bad for a comedy spag.
Nearly all Seven releases look brilliant; apart from the Leone releases, they’re visually the best around. And most of the time they have interesting extras too: the two Ringos have interviews with Giuliano Gemma’s daughter, Vengeance has an interview with Ruggero Deodato on Margheriti’s body of work etc. Most of them also have an excellent ‘introduction to the film’ too.
But, as said, usually they lack an English dub; some of them do have Italian audio (Texas Addio, Se sei vivo, spara!, Al di là della legge, I giorni dell’ira), so that’s why I always recommend them to Italians. But the two Ringo films, with their glorious image quality, sadly lack English audio; I don’t understand it: Seven would sell much more copies world wide when they added an English dub.
VENGEANCE / Joko 1968 RICHARD HARRISON Claudio Camaso Spela Rosin
This quintessential , virtuoso, exciting revenger VENGEANCE 1968 is along with Harrison’s
EL ROJO 1966 , an exquisite leading example of the SW gothic revenge film at its best.
RICHARD HARRISON , a prolific, handsome, rugged 1960s/1970s leading SW man is
perfect for the role as he is very similar in screen presence and acting ability to the
Man With No Name : Clint Eastwood.
My analysis concerning “subtitles” is very simple and straightforward logical:
MY EYES are needed 100% to concentrate and enjoy the PICTURES on the TV screen.
MY EARS are used ONLY to hear the sounds from the FILM . If DUBBED thats 100% OK.
It is absolutely nonsensical to ask a Film Viewer to watch a picture and read subtitles
as that strains his/her eyes and leaves the ears Un-employed.
You also cannot adequately watch the Film Screen Action and read clumsy subtitles :’(
I have noticed that ALL the most popular, highest quality WESTERNS/HORROR/GIALLOS
are correctly DUBBED and can be enjoyed by millions around the world.
I would never watch and appreciate a Thriller with ALAIN DELON is it was subtitled.
The only subtitled films left are those very talky, tedious, pretentious “arty farty” drama
type film that is best avoided by genuine fans of Cinema like myself. :o
That is my OPINION on subtitles, if anyone enjoys them like Phil said…do feel free 
I think we all agree that pan & scan is extremely detrimental. I saw Vengeance on VHS the first time, and since Margheriti makes excellent use of the full scope of the wide screen, that might well have been the reason for not liking it then.
As for subtitles, I think it may be important in what country you are born. In the UK or USA people are not used to subs, in Holland you grow up with them (and I think that is the situation in Scandinavion countries too): nearly every foreign language program or film is subtitled, only programs and films aimed at children are dubbed. Growing up with subs, you learn how to read and look at the same time; and after a while even a quick glance is enough to understand what has been written.
And there’s something else: since nearly all films are subtitled over here, we don’t identify subs with a specific genre; the BBC hardly ever show a movie that is subtitled, and if so, it’s most of the time an art house movie, the kind of movie SD desribes as ‘talky’, tedious’, ‘pretentious’ and as God knows what more. I guess many British and American people dislike subs not only because they’re not used to them, but also because they identify the process with the kind of movies they do not like.
That said, I think the best language for a western is English; for a spaghetti western Italian is acceptable, if only to hear how actors like Giuliano Gemma or Franco Nero sound like in their native tongue (I was moved when I heard Giuliano Gemma speak Italian for the first time). I have learned to live with German and French dubs, so to me those languages are OK, even for Lee or Giuliano, but I guess many people think otherwise.
I agree Seven7 (whatever…) releases look very good, but unfortunately many of their releases are cut. Vengeance seems to be cut, Stranger & Gunfighter is cut, Pistol for Ringo is cut… I believe God Forgives, I Don’t is cut as well (even though it says uncut…)! I think Day of Anger is missing something as well…
If that matters…
Waste of time for me then !
What is cut from that one? I was under the impression that it was uncut.
I have the French version of Stranger and the Gunfighter which is a truly excellent 2.35 print, and if the the forced subtitles bug you just use DVD shrink to remove them.