God Will Forgive My Pistol (1969)

Wayde Preston is Johnny Brennan, a Texas Ranger sent to investigate a stage holdup for which Jimmy Prescott is awaiting a hangman’s noose, his father wound up dead and the Prescott ranch was seized.

A golden watch announces his arrival and tips off those responsible for the holdup that trouble might be on the horizon.

Brennan’s impressive showing with his fists and his six-gun create more anxiety for wealthy wheelchair-bound rancher Charlie Clanton (Giuseppe De Santis) and his secret partners, who framed the Prescotts for a robbery they ordered.

Clanton has a whole army of henchmen to do his bidding, including the Ramirez brothers, led by Ramon (Livio Lorenzon). And has the town’s deputy (Dan Vadis as Jason Martin) on his side as well.

But Brennen find allies as well, including the sheriff, a dwarf named Bart and a mute blacksmith name Kit with a penchant for turning things like a crutch and a hat into lethal weapons.

Then there’s Clanton’s daughter Gladys, who once planned to marry Jimmy Prescott and hates that fact that her father resorted to violence to build his fortune and orders more killings to hold onto it.

Review:

Odd film that probably seems more disjointed because the available German print runs about 78 minutes and the official running time for the film is 94.

It all starts routinely enough, Preston’s character arrives in town, the villain gets nervous and orders his death, only to find out that our hero is capable of outwitting, outfighting and outgunning his best men.

But then Johnny Brennan suddenly picks up the aforementioned sidekicks – with an intended comic touch that isn’t very funny. He also starts slipping into disguises and resorting to trickery to dispense his justice.

At one point, he breaks a star witness (Jerome) out of prison, takes his back to town and passes him off as the victim of a disease no one – including the town doctor – has ever heard of. To make it more convincing, he paints red dots on Jerome’s face.

Another scene you’re likely to remember has Clanton whipping his daughter because he discovers she’s been helping the Texas Ranger.

Directed by:
Marrio Gariazzo
and Leopoldo Savona

Cast:
Wayde Preston … Johnny “Texas” Brennan
Giuseppe De Santis …. Charlie Clanton
as Joe de Santis
Loredana Nusciak … Gladys Clanton
Dan Vadis … Deputy Jason Martin
Giuseppe Addobbati … Sheriff Brennan
Jose Torres … Jerome
Salvatore Furnari … Bart
Luciano Bonanni … Kit, mute blacksmith
Livio Lorenzon … Ramon Ramirez
Ricardo Pizzutti … Manuel Ramirez
Pasquale Basile … Pablo Ramirez
Arturo Dominici … Judge Collins
as Arthur Kent
Bruno Arie … Tommy barman
Arnaldo Fabrizio … Burt
Fedele Gentile … Dr. Stevens
Nino Marchetti … Mike O’Connor

Runtime: 94 min. (78 min.)

aka
Dio perdoni la mia pistola
God Will Forgive My God

Music: Vasili Kojucharov
Song: “A Man Called Texas” sung by Raoul (Ettore Lovecchio)

Memorable lines:

Charlie Clanton, about Johnny Brennan: “I’m sure you know what he’s up to. He was to dig up something, something from the past. Something that should stay buried, like the Prescotts.”

Sheriff Brennan to the Ramirez gang: “If you want to stay a while, give me your guns.”
Ramon Ramirez: “Take them if you can. All at once.”

Gladys Clanton: “That man is still alive, despite Jason and all your men. And it’s your men that are being killed — all of them, father — one by one because of what you started.”
Charlie Clanton: “Did you say that dang trouble making stranger is still alive?”
Gladys Clanton: “Yes, and do you know why he isn’t dead?”
Charlie Clanton: “Because Jason and my men are a bunch of idiots! That’s why.”

Trivia:

* According to the Spaghetti Western database, filming of this movie began in 1966 under Mario Gariazzo, but the project was aborted. Leopoldo Savona completed the film three years later.

* In Germany, this became yet another Django film — Django – Gott vergib seinem Colt. Or “Django – God Forgive His Colt.”