Wily roving gunslinger Sartana (a typically fine performance by Gianni Garko) kills three corrupt lawmen and has himself put in prison. Sartana escapes from jail with his equally shrewd partner Grand Full (well played by Piero Lulli), who knows where a fortune in both gold and counterfeit money is hidden. Naturally, several other treacherous folks also want to get their greedy hands on said fortune. Director Giuliano Carnimeo, working from a clever script by Tito Carpi, Ernesto Gastaldi, and Eduardo Manzanos Brochero, relates the tricky and absorbing story at a steady pace, maintains a suitably harsh and gritty tone through (the moments of sadistic violence and torture are pretty rough stuff), stages the exciting shoot-outs with considerable skill and brio, and further spices things up with a nice line in wickedly amusing sarcastic humor. The charismatic Garko truly shines in the lead; he receives able support from Lulli, the fetching Nieves Navarro as sly scheming widow Senora Manassas, Jose Jaspe as the vicious and unhinged General Monk, and Franco Pesce as a rascally, quick-witted old goat gambler. Moreover, this movie has a few nifty gimmicks which include a deadly organ and an equally lethal wind-up walking cigarette lighter. Both Julio Ortas' expansive widescreen cinematography and Bruno Nicolai's robust sweeping score are up to par. A very enjoyable film.
