Antonio Margheriti and his movies

Antonio Margheriti was another of the Italian directors who made just every genre they could. And I haven't seen enough of his movies. Actually only three, all of them westerns. I'm ashamed and feel I need to fix it. So this article would be just an overview of the movies I and you also need to explore.

Space Men (1960)
When the Italian genre movies were just born, Antonio a.k.a. Anthony M. Dawson was already here and making first space operas. This really predated the mid-sixties boom of genre movies of all kinds. Other of his 60's science fictions were : Battle of the Worlds (1961), The Space Devils (1965), Wild Wild Planet (1965, co-starring Franco Nero!), War Between the Planets (1966), and The Snow Devils (1967, with Nero again).

The Fall of Rome (1962)
In the early 60's probably every genre director had to shoot a sword and sandal movie. Margheriti did several of them. This one with the German Carl Möhner and two Italian beauties, Django's Loredana Nusciak and Ida Galli a.k.a. Evelyn Stewart.

The Virgin of Nuremberg (1963)
What is Margheriti among his fans most known for? Yes, his gothic horrors. This was his first, and he was very prolific in the genre. Starring Christopher Lee!

Hercules, Prisoner of Evil (1964)
Another of his sandal movies, in the original title it's Ursus instead of Hercules. Starring Reg Park, one of many musclemen of the genre.

Giants of Rome (1964)
And another sandal movie, this time with Richard Harrison.

Castle of Blood & The Long Hair of Death (1964)
Two gothic horrors, both starring Barbara Steele. Sergio Corbucci co-wrote the first one. Both look interesting.

Killers are Challenged (1966)
And in 1966 Margheriti added eurospy movies to his catalogue. This time Richard Harrison appears again as James Bond clone for a change.

Dynamite Joe (1967)
And in 1967 he finally directed a western too. Someone named Rik Van Nutter wears a Clint Eastwood poncho in this movie. Don't mistake it for Dynamite Jim, a comedy from the previous year, made by someone else.

Naked You Die (1968)
Margheriti developed Italian space movies. Margheriti developed Italian horrors. So which way would he go next? Yes, giallo! Still haven't seen it, but it's supposed to be good. In 1973 he made another giallo called Seven Deaths in a Cat's Eye with Jane Birkin and Anton Diffring, both his gialli are mixed a bit with gothic elements.

Vengeance (1968)
Finally something I've seen... A really good, atmospheric spaghetti western starring the wooden, but fitting Richard Harrison and Gian Maria Volonte's brother, Claudio Camaso. Recommended.

The Unnaturals (1969)
Another of his gothic horrors, made in coproduction with West Germany.

And God Said to Cain (1970)
A gothic spaghetti western. Really! Klaus Kinski as the good guy. Really! He's after revenge and he gets it hardly. Half of the movie takes the final countdown. Kinski kills with a rifle. Kinski kills with fire. Kinski kills with the church bell... Is he a living person? Is he a ghost? I need to rewatch it.

Web of the Spider (1971)
Klaus Kinski co-starring as Edgar Allan Poe in another gothic horror. Leading parts taken by Michele Mercier and Anthony Franciosa. Looks very promising.

Finalmente... le mille e una notte (1972)
In 1970's Margheriti began to shoot comedies and it doesn't seem like a good idea. This one is some medieval erotic stuff, notable only for the cast of Barbara Bouchet, who, I believe, is in this movie fucked by an invisible man... Awful.

Hercules Against Karate (1973)
Even worse. Margheriti did a few kung-fu movies. Italian kung-fu movies! And he casted a clone of Bud Spencer, Fernando Bilbao! Oh, god, why... He made with him also a movie called Manone il ladrone (1974), a rip-off of Spencer's Flatfoot.

The Stranger and the Gunfighter (1974)
But this, somehow, works, and well. It's a spaghetti western comedy with kung-fu, a little bit erotic, and starring Lee Van Cleef. A weird cocktail? It works, it's actually very watchable! Co-starring Lo Lieh, Femi Benussi or Erika Blanc.

Take a Hard Ride (1975)
This one bored me, but it could've been the dubbing... Another weird mix, this time a spaghetti western mixed with blaxploitation! Starring Lee Van Cleef again, Jim Brown, Fred Williamson and Jim Kelly. I'd probably watch it again someday...

Death Rage (1976)
Margheriti's only eurocrime, starring Yul Brynner and always nude Barbara Bouchet. Maybe it's not very bad.

The Squeeze (1978)
Lee Van Cleef again, but this time in a contemporary movie about robbers. Co-starring Karen Black, Lionel Stander and Robert Alda.

Killer Fish (1979)
Another Jaws rip-off, this time Margheriti's. Or is it rather a Piranha rip-off? Co-starring Anthony Steffen.

The Last Hunter (1980)
In the 1980's Margheriti was probably even more active than before, and he ripped off everything he could. This time it was Cimino's The Deer Hunter, starring David Warbeck.

Cannibal Apocalypse (1980)
Zombies and cannibals in one movie! I guess Italians did it more times. Starring John Saxon.

Tiger Joe (1982)
David Warbeck in the war again.

Hunters of the Golden Cobra (1982)
David Warbeck as Indiana Jones! Must be funny... The next year they made another movie, Ark of the Sun God.

The Last Blood (1983)
Antonio rips off Rambo, but not with David Warbeck this time.

Yor, the Hunter of Future (1983)
Reb Brown as Conan the Barbarian!

 

Code Name: Wild Geese (1984)
Lewis Collins (from The Professionals TV series) stars as a mercenary in one of Margheriti's mercenary movies he did with him. Others were Commando Leopard (1985) and The Commander (1988). In the first and the third one was Lee Van Cleef as a co-star, in the first two co-starred Klaus Kinski. The cast was quite stellar -also Ernest Borgnine (Wild Geese), Mimsy Farmer (Wild Geese), Donald Pleasence (The Commander).

Jungle Raiders (1985)
Another Indiana Jones rip-off, this time with Christopher Connelly and Lee Van Cleef again.

Alien from the Deep (1989)
Margheriti in the space again, an Alien rip-off.

Indio (1989)
Another action movie, with Francesco Quinn. After 2 years Margheriti did a sequel - with someone else.

Virtual Weapon (1996)
And his last movie was a movie with Terence Hill, that is supposed to be so terrible that I didn't have the courage to watch it yet.

Enzo G. Castellari and his movies

Enzo G. Castellari is one of my favourite Italian genre directors. His movies are always a promise of n action-packed ride, not mean spirited and often funny movies. He began in 1960's with westerns, made war movies, poliziotteschi, one giallo, adventure movies. He inspired Tarantino to make Inglourious Basterds and even appeared in the movie.

Some Dollars for Django (1966)
Although credited to Leon Klimowsky, Enzo was not only the assistant director, but he actually directed the movie himself. It's a mediocre Anthony Steffen vehicle, but it's not his worst. Nobody is called Django in the movie, of course.

Any Gun Can Play (1967)
A typical Castellarian spaghetti western riot with a lot of doublecrossing, doublecrossing of the doublecrossers and doublecrossing of the doublecrossers who doublecrossed other doublecrossers. George Hilton, Gilbert Roland and Edd Byrnes are the stars, but Hilton is the only one who leaves any impression - especially in the opening scene, where he kills Django, the Man with no Name and Colonel Mortimer from For a Few Dollars More!

Payment in Blood (1967)
Edd Byrnes meets Guy Madison this time, in a western that looks pretty similar to the previous one. I haven't seen it.

Johnny Hamlet (1968)
Shakespeare in the west! Visually great movie, but the plot goes downhill in parts that have nothing to do with the original play. Horst Frank is a great villain, Gilbert Roland is not a good sidekick.

I Came, I Saw, I Shot (1968)
Antonio "I am the greatest" Sabato, Frank Wolff and John Saxon are fighting for gold again, but this time it's more comedy. A comedy I haven't seen.

Kill them all and come back alone (1968)
Action, action, action! Seven prisoners on the way to steal gold from a confederate camp. Or something like that. The copy that is available today is really yellow.

Eagles over London (1969)
I haven't seen this war movie, but it has Evelyn Stewart and also Eduardo Fajardo as a Nazi!

Cold Eyes of Fear (1971)
Enzo's only giallo and by many viewers not a good one.

Tedeum (1972)
Another spaghetti western comedy, with an awful theme tune. Jack Palance is in it.

High Crime (1973)
Enzo goes to the crime movies, for the first time with his regular star Franco Nero. Not their best collaboration, but it's a beginning for something better, with great soundtrack by De Angelis brothers.

Street Law (1974)
I really liked this one the first time, I think I need to rewatch it. Franco Nero kicks ass and his chase with the Ford Mustang, where he's running in front of the car is priceless. The music is really good too - containing Dune Buggy from the Bud Spencer-Terence Hill movie!

Cry Onion (1975)
Either you hate or like this spaghetti western comedy. It's popularity in the Czech Republic is probably given by the fact it was one of the few SW¨s screened in the communist Czechoslovakia, and it has a really good dubbing that eliminated the nonsense like Nero's fake high voice or a talking horse. But wasn't this only in the English version? So which one will we choose? An onion or a pistol?

Keoma (1976)
The best movie by Castellari, starring Nero again. The music is a little bit hurting, but in the movie it makes a great atmosphere. One of the best spaghetti westerns.

The Big Racket (1976)
Another eurocrime, this time a team work against the omnipresent criminals. Nero is replaced by Fabio Testi here. A great hard rock OST by the De Angelis brothers again, making this their sixth collaboration with Castellari in a row.

Heroin Busters (1977)
Testi again in a movie that is almost like an antidrug study in the first half and a non-stop action ride in the second. Music by Goblin this time.

Inglorious Bastards (1977)
Castellari goes to the war again, with Bo Svenson, Fred Williamson, Raimund Harmstorf and a few others. Lots of cheap action, but sometimes really funny.

The Shark Hunter (1979)
Castellari returned to Nero and De Angelis brothers in a Jaws ripoff.

The House by the Edge of the Lake (1979)
One of the very few horror movies by Castellari. 

Day of the Cobra (1980)
Nero again as a cop, but in San Francisco. Co-starring Sybil Danning.

The Great White (1981)
Another Jaws ripoff! This time with James Franciscus (Cat O'Nine Tails) and Vic Morrow as Robert Shaw.

1990: Bronx Warriors (1982)
And Enzo goes more and more trashy. I haven't seen these movies. This is like an Escape from New York ripoff starring someone called Mark Gregory, Fred Williamson, Vic Morrow, Christopher Connelly (who was almost in all of these Italian 80's trashy movies) andGeorge Eastman (detto).

Escape from Bronx (1983)
And it has a second part! With Gregory there's Henry Silva or Antonio "I know I'm really great" Sabato.

Warriors of the Wasteland (1983)
Enzo has seen Mad Max 2 as well So he took Eastman and Williamson again and created some postnuke shit.

Tuareg (1984)
Another action movie taking place in Africa this time.

Lightblast (1986)
Erik Estrada as a cop in a crime-sci-fi movie! Ok...

Striker (1987)
Even Castellari made his own Rambo?

Hammerhead (1987)
And he worked with Daniel Greene of Hands of Steel too. A crime movie apparently.

Sinbad of the Seven Seas (1989)
Cannon produced fantasy TV series directed by Castellari was stopped during filming. One year later Luigi Cozzi took the filmed scenes and edited them into a really, really crappy movie, but signed only by Castellari.

Jonathan of the Bears (1993)
Enzo returned to the spaghetti western in 1990's, again with Nero and John Saxon too. But this time he shot it in Russia... I'm not sure I really want to see this...

Caribbean Basterds (2010)
You ripped off the title of my movie, Quentin? I'll rip off yours! This looks like a real shit...

Keoma Rises (201?)
The long time prepared western, with Nero to star. Originally they intended to have also Tomas Milian, Gianni Garko, George Hilton, Fabio Testi and Bud Spencer in. Spencer and Milian died meanwhile. Would the movie be ever made? Do we want to see an attempt of another Keoma with 77 years old Nero by 80 years old Castellari? Would there really be the opening scene with Tarantino, Rodriguez and Roth? If it will be made, I'll be in the first row to see it. If not, I won't be sorry.