Old Shatterhand

As other reviewers have already pointed out, this sure is not the best movie in the series. The cast is actually with the usual suspects and a refreshing Dalilah Lavi. And she is the one who gives us a first in the Karly May movies, she shows some fur and takes a nude bath ;-)

Born in Brest,Britanny ,and recently deceased,Pierre Brice is a French actor who is virtually unknown in his native country whereas he is considered an icon in Germany;He used to live in Garmish-Partenkirschen , a splendid town in the mountain ,where you can see his house.

Hugo Fregonese ,who worked in Argentina ,America ,England ,and here in Germany enjoyed a good reputation ;his work here is effective, notably in the attack of the farm ,treated with a remarkable economy of means (one only sees a little boy in the house), in the somber scenes :the colonel lying in a room of the fort,and the finale ,which avoids the obligatory happy end .The cinematography is luminous and attractive .

In this second part,Winnetou takes a back seat to his paleface brother Shatterhand ;apart from the single combat ,he keeps a low profile, playing the part of the wise man, the pacifist ,urging his people to smoke the pipes of peace; Shatterhand has the active part , and it's funny to see him pit against baddie officer Bradley; in "il boia di venezia " , Lex Barker (the brave good guy) already played opposite Guy Madison (the calculating villain). On the other hand, Paloma (polyglot Daliah Lavi) is a character who does not bring much to the plot .

Not a western masterpiece, but an entertaining one ,with never a dull moment.

To my mind, it s the best movie about Winnetou. It's less romantic than Harald Reinls films about Winnetou. It's more realistic. But it is unforgettable. Pierre Brice's Winnetou is fascinating. It's simple, but noble and very convincing. Especially the scene in which he find his dead son Tujunga, is very touching. His antagonists are strong characters. Guy Madison, Rik Battaglia Mirko Ellis. Sam Hawkens (Ralf Wolter) is a vivid character as always. Daliah Lavi is exotic as Paloma. Lex Barker isn't a very interesting actor, but he has a right figure and face for Shatterhand. This movie have the very best 2 man's fighting scene (Winnetou and the Comanche's's chief) and the best big battle's scene in Winnetou movies. Only the music isn't so good as music of Peter Thomas ("Winnetou and sein freund Old Firehand") and Martin Boettcher (other Winnetou movies).

Before a peace contract with the natives will be signed, Captain Bradley and a bunch of outlaws try and sabotage it by faking Indian attacks on settlers. Old Shatterhand and Winnetou start searching for the members of this conspiracy.

It is a little bit strange that the movie doesn't really click, because it has all the ingredients of a typical Karl May western of that period, plus a perfect cast with Lex Barker, Pierre Brice, Daliah Lavi and Ralf Wolter as the good guys, facing excellent villains (Guy Madison, Rik Battaglia). It is somewhat too long with two hours for a rather straight story, and with its occasional brutality (even murder of a child) and carelessness for detail never develops the sense of magic that was typical for the best contributions to the series. Ultimately a disappointment.

This movie stresses to Lex Barker, and Winnetou degenerates as a helping rider. For those music fans, rely on Martin Boettcher, Daliah Lavi didn' t sing a typical song. Some kind of action is worth watching the non original Karl May picturization.