George Ardisson is Amen, a wanted gun slinger convinced to join an insurance agent known as Solitaire (Isarco Raaioli) in an attempt to recover $1 million in stolen gold coins.
The money is believed to be in the possession of a bandit named Buseba (Paolo Carlini), who has a large band of henchman at this beck and call and the local town sheriff under his thumb.
But he’s also been forced to stash the gold, lest he be caught trying to smuggle his stolen fortune across the border.
And when efforts to eliminate the new threat posed by Amen fail because he keeps being protected by a mysterious gunman, Boseba also launches an all-out effort to locate the “ghost” serving as Amen’s protector.
Amen isn’t sure who the ghost is either, but when Solitaire is taken prisoner by Boseba, he knows a sure fire way to win his freedom: by kidnapping Muriel (Lorenzo Guerrieri), Boseba’s lover.
Review:
Better than average Spaghetti thanks to a snappy script, some humorous moments and some plots twists you probably won’t anticipate.
For the record, Ardisson’s Amen is not pronounced the typical way. It’s ahh-men, with a strong emphasis on the second syllable. And he’s a deadly serious guy, especially when gold is involved.
He’s also typically one step ahead of Brodie, Buseba’s lead enforcer.
But that doesn’t keep Zurli from injecting some levity into the proceedings. For instance, check out the scene where Buseba is getting a shave, threatening to break the barber’s neck if he cuts his throat. All the while, Buseba is getting more and more agitated from talking to Brodie, increasing the likelihood of a slip up on the part of a very nervous barber.
George Ardisson as Amen in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Isarco Ravaioli as Solitaire in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Directed by:
Guido Zurli
Cast:
George Ardisson … Amen
(Giorgio Ardisson)
Isarco Ravaioli … Solitaire
Lorenza Guerrieri … Muriel
Fred Coplan … Brodie
Paolo Carlini … Buseba
Mara Krupp … Regina / Millie
Calisto Calisti … Johnny Siringo
Gipo Leone … Buseba’s servant
Pierro Del Pappa … Henchman in poncho
Attilio Severini … Buseba’s henchman / Captain
Akim Tamiroff … Pig Sty
Runtime: 91 min.
aka:
O tutto o niente
Either All or None
Music: Gino Peguri
Song: “Song of the Cowboy” sung by Peter Boom
Paolo Carlini as Buseba in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Fred Coplan as Brodie in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Memorable lines:
Amen, about a wanted poster a man is hanging up: “You ever seen him?”
The man, turning to face the speaker: “Just now.”
Amen: “Then why don’t you cross yourself?”
The man: “Why don’t I …”
Amen: “You’d better. Otherwise, you’re gonna go to hell.”
Officer: “No need to worry, Mr. Love. I promise you: We’ll get your shipment there. Neither rain, nor hail, nor snow will stop us, sir.”
Mr. Love: “Except this ain’t no bag of mail.”
His partner: “It is a bandit’s holy dream.”
Solitaire:”The sign of the cross. Would you explain that?”
Amen: “What’s to explain? My old man used to tell me, come your turn to go, the only way to make it to heaven is to cross yourself. Even then, you might only make purgatory.”
Akim Tamiroff as Pig Sty in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Lorenza Guerrieri as Muriel in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Solitaire: “Who better than you, a man of religious principles, to purify the greedy sinners.”
Buseba: “Beanheads! Brainless, thick-skulled, stupid. jackass, idiot beanheads! To think: Five against one. Three of your get yourselves killed. And you can’t tell me who did it!”
Muriel: “The ghost. You have to get him too.”
Buseba: “Yeah. He’s the real fly in the ointment. And when I capture flies, I pull their wings offf and squash them!”
Solitaire: “My plan was perfect.”
Dean Light: “Plans always are. It’s men who always ruin them.”
Calisto Calisti as Johnny Siringo in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Paolo Carlini as Buseba with Isarco Ravaioli as Solitaire in A Man Called Amen (1968)
Trivia:
This marked the only Spaghetti Western for the film’s villain, Paolo Carlini. The veteran actor had a role in 1953’s “Roman Holiday,” starring Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn.
This film has nothing in common with two later “Amen” Westerns, “They Called Him Amen” (1972) and “They Still Call Me Amen” (1973), both of which are comedies starring Luc Merenda in the lead role.
Mara Krupp, best known for her impressive cleavage and a small role as a hotel manager’s wife in “For a Few Dollars More,” has a bit part here as a saloon girl.
George Ardisson as Amen in A Man Called Amen (1968)
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