Gun Shy Piluk (1968) - Once Upon a Time in a Western

Sebastian Mason (Peter Holden) kills the sheriff of Boise with a bullet in his back.

But the sheriff hangs on long enough to pass his badge and his gun to his father, Piluk (Luigi Barbieri). And to whisper the name of his killer.

Solving that murder is just one of the problems facing Roger Brown (Edmund Purdom) when he arrives to take over as new sheriff.

The Masons are feuding with the Wylers. Someone has killed old man Wyler. And someone has cut off the water supply they need for their cattle ranch.

The Masons are posing problems in town to. They’re used to having things their way, and none too pleased when the judge and local doctor try standing up to them.

Meanwhile, Piluk goes about his job of making coffins, including one with an “S” carved in it. He balks, just a little, when the new sheriff starts romancing his granddaughter Margaret.

But he won’t give up the name of his son’s killer. And this coffin maker isn’t as harmless as he seems.

Edmund Purdom as Sheriff Roger Brown in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Luigi Barbieri (Luis Barber) as Piluk in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Review:

Don’t let the title fool you. This is a serious Western, not a comedy. The Italian title translates to: “He Swore … and Killed Them One by One.”

It is a rather old-fashioned Italian Western, with the action coming fast and furious.

There are a couple of oddly staged showdowns — one between the new sheriff and a gunman hired by Sebastian; another between the Wyler clan and the Mason clan — though they lack the normal Spaghetti style.

The big difference here is that the old man is the hero of the story, though that remains a secret between Piluk and the new sheriff in town.

Peter Holden as Sebastian Mason in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Micaela Pignatelli Cendali as Margaret Amelia Morehead in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Directed by:
Guido Celano

Cast:
Edmund Purdom … Sheriff Roger Brown
Luigi Barbieri … Piluk
as Luis Barber
Peter Holden … Sebastian Mason
Micaela Pignatelli Cendali … Margaret Amelia Morehead
Bruno Piergentili … Bill Wyler
as Dan Harrison
Livo Lorenzon … Doc Burt Lucas
Aiche Nana … Daisy Sugar Candy
Sergio Tedesco … Deputy Gregory
Michele Branca … Roy Mason
Fedele Gentile … Saloon owner
Ivan Scratuglia … Doc Lucious Reed
Attilio Dottesio … Judge Everett
Guido Celano … Zac Wyler

Other cast members: Massimo Campagnoli, Salvatore Carona, Emo Caruso, Giuseppe Castellano, Arturo Croce, Pietro De Santis, Elio Angelucci, Benjamin Gigli, Luigi mannoia, Gavino Simi, Silvano Zutter

Runtime: 97 min.

aka:
Giurò… e li uccise ad uno ad uno’
Piluk, the Timid One

Music: Carlo Savina

Sergio Tedesco as Deputy Gregory in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Michele Branca as Roy Mason in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Memorable lines:

Sebastian Mason, after plugging a sheriff in the back and watching his horse gallop off: “There goes law and order.”

Sheriff Roger Brown, as a smiling saloon beauty approaches: “Miss, ugh …”
Daisy Sugar Candy: “Daisy Sugar Candy.”
Sheriff Brown: “Sugar Candy?”
Daisy: “Honey sugar, it’s all candy.”

Sebastian Mason to Margaret: “Alright now, you listen to Sebastian. Maybe your father could pull a gun, but your grandfather’s an old fool who ain’t worth anything. He don’t scare anybody. He’ll only plays that beat-up violin, bad. Now, we’re gonna go out and pay a little visit to your husband. And if he doesn’t hand me back my brother, I swear that when I get back I’ll cut you in two with this axe.”

Sheriff Brown, about his wife, when she wants to join the posse: “Piluk, look after her. You hear? And sit on her, if you have to?”

Livo Lorenzon as Doctor Burt Lucas in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Guido Celano as rancher Zac Wyler in Gun Shy Piluk (1968)

Trivia:

The film was produced and the story written by Guido Celano, who pays the patriarch of the Wyler clan, a character also gunned down by Sebastian Mason early in the film.

This marked the only Spaghetti Western for Micaela Pignatelli Cendali. Aiche Nana, who appears here as saloon girl Daisy Sugar Candy, appeared in two others, “The Sheriff Won’t Shoot” (1965) and “Thompson 1880” (1966).

Edmund Purdom starred in three other Euro Westerns — “The Last Ride to Santa Cruz” (1964), “Assault on Fort Texas” (1965) and “Shoot to Kill” (1965). He had his handprints placed outside Grauman’s Chinese Theater after he appeared in The Egyptian (1954). But they were removed over public outcry because it was just his third film.