Silver Saddle (1978)

Giuliano Gemma plays Roy Blood, a young man who saw his dad killed by a Barrett man at age 10, then grabbed the gun and shot down that man in turn.

He took the killer’s horse, adorned with a silver saddle and has been looking for revenge against the Barretts ever since.

Now fully grown and deadly as they come, Blood stumbles across the aftermath of a stage holdup. Everyone’s dead except for a man called 2 Strike Snake (Geoffrey Lewis), who makes his living robbing the dead.

But he also knows where Barrett has settled. So he guides Blood to the town of Sarridas where Roy’s old flame Seba (Licinia Lentini) runs the finest “house” in Texas.

He comes to her assistance by tracking down and killing a man who was demanding she pay protection money. That leads to a scheduled appointment in a cemetery where he thinks he’ll finally have a chance to avenge his father’s death.

But the Barrett who shows up is a young boy, Thomas Barrett Jr. (Sven Valsecchi). And it’s a trap.

Blood escapes thanks to his quick gun and deadly aim. But he can’t seem to shake the youngster, though he has no real interest in helping anyone with the last name of Barrett.

Eventually, he comes to realize that Thomas Jr. is in danger too. He’s next in line to inherit a fortune, and someone wants to see that fortune go elsewhere.

Review:

It’s great to see Gemma back in the saddle, looking fine at age 39 as he leaps around and dispatches opposing gunmen with the uncanny ease. But this is a film that could have and should have been better.

One one hand, Geoffrey Lewis turns in a fine performance as 2 Strike Snake, who recognizes the Silver Saddle and decides to follow Roy Blood. Because where Blood goes, there’s bound to be corpses.

Cinzia Monreale makes for a fetching Spaghetti heroine. And the film also features appearances from three veterans of the genre: Ettore Manni, Aldo Sambrell and Donald O’Brien.

But there’s also young actor playing Thomas Barrett Jr. who’s annoying as often as he’s adorable. Speaking of annoying, the theme song has to go down as one of Spaghetti’s all-time worst. And the plot takes viewers on a few tortured twists and turns.

The tone of the film is odd too. When Roy Blood draws his gun, we’re engaged in a good, old-fashioned, violent and gritty Spaghetti Western. When Thomas Barrett Jr. shows up on scene, the outing takes on a sugary sweet Disney tone the just doesn’t fit.

Scenes featuring a kite and a Shetland pony don’t help.

Directed by:
Lucio Fulci

Cast:
Giuliano Gemma … Roy Blood
Geoffrey Lewis … 2 Strike Snake
Sven Valsecchi … Thomas Barrett Jr.
Ettore Manni … Thomas Barrett
Donal O’Brien … Fletcher
Gianni De Luigi … Turner
Cinzia Monreale … Margaret Barrett
Licinia Lentini … Miss Sheba
Aldo Sambrell … Garrincha
Philippe Hersent … Sheriff
Sergio Leonardi … Butch
Karine Stampfer … Peggy

Also with …. Agnes Kalpagos, Anna Maria Tinelli, Juan Antonio Rubio

Runtime: 98 min.

aka:
Sella d’argento
The Man in the Silver Saddle
They Died with Their Boots On

Music: Bixio-Frizzi-Tempera
Songs: “Silver Saddle,” “Two Hearts”
by Ken Tobias

Memorable lines:

Roy’s dadr: “No land, no money. How do you expect us to live?”
Luke: “Put your wife in a whorehouse. The work ain’t hard. It’s easy money.”

2 Strike Snake: “Wait up. I think maybe I’ll just shadow along behind ya for a while.”
Roy Blood: “Why?”
2 Strike: “Cause whereever you go, there’s corpses. And my job’s to pick up after the dead. It’s gonna be terrific.”

2 Strike Snake: “The stuff you take off a dead man is as good as the stuff you take off a live one. Maybe better, because they don’t come chasin’ after ya.”

Margaret Barrett: “How come you hate the Barretts?”
Roy Blood: “If the dead were here, they’d be answering. Someone here could answer you who’s still living.”

Thomas Barrett Jr. to Roy, after almost shooting him by mistake: “Padre Terro says he who shoots first, dies later. That’s what the padre taught me.”

Garrincha, looking at a cross stolen from a mission: “A man can’t even trust a priest anymore. Look, it’s painted. The damn monks painted it to look like gold.”

Trivia:

Geoffrey Lewis, who plays Snake in the film, is best known for his roles in Clint Eastwood films, including “Every Which Way But Loose” and “Any Which Way You Can.” He played Clint’s buddy Oville Boggs in both films.

This marked the last true Spaghetti Western for Giuliano Gemma, who had gained fame in 1965’s A Pistol for Ringo. He would return to the genre in 1985’s “Tex and the Lord of the Deep,” based on a comic book character.

Director Lucio Fulci was best known for his thrillers, but also directeed “The Brute and the Beast” (1966), “The Four of the Apocalypse” (1975) and a couple of the White Fang films.

This marked one of the first credited roles for Cinzia Monreale, who was busy as an actress through the early 1990s — often in horror films or thrillers — and continued her career well into the 2000s.

Phillip Hersent as the sheriff, putting Roy Blood under arrest for possible involvement in a kidnapping in Silver Saddle (1978)

Licinia Lentini as Miss Sheba, happy to have a reunion with Roy Blood (Giuliano Gemma) in Silver Saddle (1978)

Giuliano Gemma as Roy Blood, getting acquainted with Margaret Barrett in Silver Saddle (1978)

GIuliano Gemma as Roy Blood, realizing the Barrett he’s been offered money to kill is only a child in Silver Saddle (1978)