Rosalba Neri and her spaghetti westerns

Now this could be even more interesting. Women had only occassionally a big part in spaghs, mostly they played just a second fiddle. Still there are some actressesconnected tightly with the genre and Rosalba Neri was one of them. She actually starred in many SWs, but mostly she just appeared somewhere in one scene or so. Let's see her resume.

Arizona Colt (1966)
She didn't appear in the western genre till 1966 but that year she made three of them. In this one she has just a small part of a prostitute that gets killed. Bad luck. Even for us, because the unsympathetic Corinne Marchand lives till the end of the movie.

Johnny Yuma (1966)
Now that's a good part - the villain of the movie! I don't remember much but her stripping sequence, that is too hot even for the parrot.

Dynamite Jim (1966)
A comedy, that I haven't seen. Just the awful title sequence.

Wanted Johnny Texas (1967)
Rosalba gets murdered in the first 30 minutes. That's all I know. Oh, and Fernando Sancho is blonde in this one.

Days of Violence (1967)
And again, dead at the beginning. I still have to watch that one.

This Man Can't Die (1968)
A really crappy movie with Rosalba in a tiny part with an ugly red curly wig.

Killer Adios (1968)
And she has the wig again! I don't know much about the size of her part here.

A Long Ride from Hell (1968)
Another of her typical small prostitute parts. The star of this one is Steve Reeves in his only western.

Sonora (1968)
George Martin, Jack Elam and Gilbert Roland are the stars and Rosalba probably plays again the same part.

El Puro (1969)
Another I haven't seen. Rosalba gets beaten to death in a long sequence, as far as I know.

Arizona Colt Returns (1970)
Rosalba plays a slightly bigger part in the sequel with Anthony Steffen, but most of the time she pretends being kidnapped and doesn't really have a lot to do.

The Day of the Judgment (1971)
She is even in the flashback only! As a long dead wife!

Watch out, Gringo! Sabata Will Return (1972)
She is now a hostage from a coach robbery. Not a big part, but more interesting one than the previous movies. At the same time she was starring mostly in horror pictures and in medieval erotic comedies...

The Great Treasure Hunt (1972)
And finally a movie where she plays a really big and good part. She really shines in this one and overshadows everyone in the cast. You really want more Rosalba as you watch it, and you get a lot. She's not nude in this, but that really doesn't matter. If you want her nude, watch Slaughter Hotel. Or rather Amuck instead.

In the West There Was a Man Named Invincible (1973)
A really lousy idea, letting one of the prettiest actresses play a widow with a moustache! A silly western comedy, too silly for me to try to watch it.

Charity and the Strange Smell of Money (1973)
I have even never heard of this comedy, so i don't have anything to write.

Blood River (1974)
And the last one... I still have to see this. It stars Fabio Testi and John Ireland, yet it can be really bad.

So altogether it's 17 westerns. I've seen 6. I believe the only bigger part of Rosalba's in a western is in Dynamite Jim and Blood River, otherwise she wouldn't be the reason to watch the movie. She did probably better in gialli, maybe worse in horrors - she had big parts, but the movies are all crappy.

Anthony Steffen and his spaghetti westerns

A new series that would serve as a guide to spaghetti westerns with actors, who made so many of them. I think Steffen as a hero was the most active actor in the genre - his number goes to like 25 or something? Let's count. I haven't seen all of them, but I guess most of them. So let's look at the filmography of a guy with a small hat

Last of the Mohicans (1964)
Ok, this is now a German western based on the James Fenimore Cooper book. Steffen plays Hawkeye, the white hunter, in his first western. I haven't seen it. Other notable names in the cast is Karin Dor, wife of the director Harald Reinl, who at the same time made a lot of other German westerns based on the Karl May novels.

Why Go On Killing? (1965)
A first spaghetti by Edoardo Mulargia, first with Steffen, probably first with the beautiful Ida Galli, who finds a cruel destiny in this movie. Pretty violent one for 1965, but otherwise nothing special.

A Coffin for the Sheriff (1965)
Another revenge tale, Steffen gets into the gang to find out who killed his wife. There's a blonde Eduardo Fajardo in a part that would suit more to Klaus Kinski. Nothing special about this movie.

Seven Dollars on the Red (1966)
Another one I haven't seen yet. Steffen must get his revenge once again. His enemy is Fernando Sancho. Who else?

Some Dollars for Django (1966)
A first Django clone, Steffen is a sheriff this time. His enemy is and isn't Frank Wolff. Nothing memorable.

Blood at Sundown (1966)
A big revenge tale against Steff's own brother, played by Gianni Garko. And the brother's name is Sartana! But not the big Sartana from the latter movies. A slightly better movie, but not a great one by any means.

Gentleman Killer (1967)
Steffen against Fajardo and I still haven't seen it.

Ringo the Face of Revenge (1967)
This title is really confusing, because it's a tale of several men and one map to the hidden treasure. Fajardo is Steffen's friend this time, the enemy is played by Frank Wolff again.

Killer Kid (1967)
Steffen gets mixed with the Mexican revolution and with Fernando Sancho once again. Haven'T seen this one.

A Train for Durango (1967)
A comedy within the Mexican revolution, and a good one. Steffen meets Mark Damon, Roberto Camardiel and Enrico Mario Salerno as a Tuco-like sidekick.

The Man Who Cried For Revenge (1968)
Steffen meets Ida Galli again, but most importantly William Berger as the bad guy. Steffen loses his memory and has to find out who he is.

Cry For Revenge (1968)
A confusing title, but two movies that are nothing alike. This one is more comedic one, Steffen has a partner in form of Mark Damon, and they are two bounty killers involved in a land stealing scheme by a wealthy rancher. Piero Lulli plays a mean sheriff.

A Stranger in Paso Bravo (1968)
Another revenge tale I've yet to see. The enemy is Eduardo Fajardo this time again.

No Room to Die (1969)
Bounty killer Steffen vs. bounty killer Berger and I don't know what was it all about anymore. A stylishly made film, but made in a sandpit, so it doesn't look that great.

Garringo (1969)
Steffen vs. Peter Lee Lawrence! But I still haven't seen this one.

Django the Bastard (1969)
Steffen is a ghost! Or not? Again a Sergio Garrone movie, very stylish, very dark, and probably one of the best that Steffen can offer.

Shango (1970)
Another Mulargia, a cruel picture set in a village occupied by a crazy colonel Fajardo, who doesn't want to believe that the civil war is over.

Arizona Colt Returns (1970)
Another cruel picture that starts with a goofy song and behaves as a comedy, but turns pretty violent later. The bad guy is Aldo Sambrell, we have here also Roberto Camardiel as the sidekick and Rosalba Neri as a kidnapped woman. Is it a sequel to Gemma's Arizona Colt or not?

Viva Sabata (1970)
Steffen meets Peter Lee Lawrence and Eduardo Fajardo again. But this one looks like a bad comedy.

Apocalypse Joe (1971)
A really funny movie with a great Bruno Nicolai music. Eduardo Fajardo is a bad guy once again. It's something about a silver mine, but ratherabout shooting every five minutes, with the final battle that lasts 30 minutes!

W Django (1972)
This one is somehow similar to the previous western, but it's a revege tale. Steffen has a Tuco-like partner and it's called Django, because he wears black. Like in the other movies.

Too Much Gold For One Gringo (1972)
Juan Bosch gets to the director's chair and not for the last time. I still haven't seen this one. Fernando Sancho is in it. Again.

Tequila (1973)
Oh, this one is a turkey that tried to be funny... But wasn't. Roberto Camardiel is the really annoying sidekick and Fajardo is a confused bad guy.

Dallas (1975)
That looks like the worst one. It was shot in 1972, but never got released till 1975. Sancho is Steffen's sidekick in it.

My top 5:
Django the Bastard
Apocalypse Joe
A Train for Durango
Cry for Revenge
Blood at Sundown

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.