"Atlas Against the Czar" director Tanio Boccia's Spaghetti western "Kill or Be Killed" isn't in the same class with Sergio Leone, Sergio Corbucci, Sergio Sollima, Tonino Valerii, Gianfranco Parolini, or Giuseppe Colizzi. Basically, everything in "Shoot First... Ask Questions Later" scenarist Mario Amendola's screenplay has been depicted before and done better. A stranger rides into town, and he is the spitting image of Clint Eastwood with his poncho, unshaven jaws, and narrow-brimmed Stetson. The big difference is Jerry (Utah-born actor Rod Dana aka Robert Mark of "Hornet's Nest") plays a fiddle to pick up spare change. He riles a bad-tempered kid Spott Griffith (Fabrizio Moroni of "Shoot, Gringo . . . Shoot!") and gets into a fistfight with him and three others and leaves them wishing that hadn't tangled with him. Spott's cattle rancher baron father Jonathan Griffith (Furio Meniconi of "Duck, You Sucker") is ashamed of his son, and the drunken lout decides to pay back Jerry for the indignity. Predictably, Jerry blasts them all off the face of the earth with his fast-draw and accurate shooting. This outrage prompts the elder Griffith to hire a notorious gunslinger, Baltimore Joe (Gordon Mitchell of "Reflections in a Golden Eye"), to kill Jerry. Meantime, Jerry riles Jonathan's oldest son Chester (Alberto Farnese of "The Gold of Naples") because Jerry easily wins the affection of Lisa Drummond (Elina De Witt of "Isabella, Duchess of the Devils") and Chester has sworn to kill anybody who has anything to do with Lisa. Eventually, Jerry reveals the truth about his identity to Lisa. He is really named Ringo and he has killed a lot of bad men. Now, Ringo calls himself Jerry and tries to avoid trouble, but he has little luck. It doesn't take the angry Chester long to catch up with Ringo as our hero is being escorted out of the territory by two deputies. Chester and his gunmen kill the deputies, beat the living daylights out of Ringo, and leave him to die from exposure to the sun. These dastards have buried him up to his neck in the desert, and Ringo is a sure candidate for a coffin except he is rescued by an old-timer out shooting rabbits for his supper. Indeed, Ringo survives and breaks up Chester's wedding with the usual results and saves Lisa from a lifetime of unhappiness. "Kill or Be Killed" benefits from a zestful orchestral soundtrack by composer Carlo Rustichelli who also scored both "Ace High" and "Boothill." Rod Dana makes a good stand-in for Clint and he knows how to shoot a gun. This one looks like it was produced in Rome instead of Spain because the scenery isn't as spartan. The costumes look realistic, and "They Call Me Trinity" lenser Aldo Giordani's widescreen cinematography is above-average. Director Tanio Boccia handles with horse opera with enough competence that it is fun to watch. Craggy-faced Gordon Mitchell plays a gunslinger in black who doesn't have all his marbles, and our hero dispatches him with apparent ease. Only die-hard Spaghetti western fans will appreciate this sagebrusher.
Review of Uccidi o muori
