Brazil, early 20th century: Espedito (Tomás Milian) is the only one to survive a government massacre in his city, an act of revenge for harboring cangaceiros (Brazilian bandits). In the process, his father and his (stolen) cow die, although the latter is what seems to bother him the most. Espidito survives the massacre of his entire town and is later taken in and helped by a hermit, believing that he is a figure similar to Jesus. Espedito believes him and calls himself that from then on. The hermit finally brings out Espidito's tempestuous reaction, becoming a messianic madman and embarking on a further journey towards crime, religious fanaticism, tragedy and final enlightenment. Meanwhile, this "Redeemer" goes out to help the poor by resorting to weapons and his own rebel band. The man becomes an outlaw and begins to feel like a self-proclaimed saint. But the discovery of oil twists everything. Espedito creates his own band of Cangaceiros and distributes his stolen goods among the poor. On behalf of an oil company, Dutchman Vincenzo Helfen (Ugo Pagliai) discovers oil deposits on the coast of Bahia that his company wants to exploit together with the Brazilian government. But the area is firmly in the hands of the Cangaceiros. Helfen proposes to the cruel governor Branco (Eduardo Fajardo) to make a deal with Espedito, whom Helfen has already met and who seems to trust him.
Fictional account of the adventures of the gunman Cangaceiro, which partially recounts the last days of rural banditry in real Brazilian life. The film follows Espedito in a life of crime, joining a gang against a sworn enemy. A gripping Brazilian spaghetti western that contains a story full of violence, surprising close-ups, emotions, fights, murders, chases, agile performances, ordinary zooms and adequate performances abound and at the end the touching final confrontation occurs. It follows in the wake of the Brazilian classics: "God and the Devil in the Land of the Sun" and its sequel: ¨Antonio Das Mortes¨ directed by Glauber Rocha, which formed an essential part of Brazilian Cinema Novo. Truth and imagination are the key words of the film. Inspired by real events ("truth") elevated to almost mythological heights ("imagination") by pamphlet literature and Brazilian folklore, the film follows a poor cowherding peasant in his terrible saga through the Brazilian Sertao ( the arid interior of northeastern Brazil) .and his encounters with God, bandits and corrupt authorities personified by the corrupt governor and finally confronting the last of the "cangaceiros", heavily armed bandits who terrorized the "sertao" and became popular antiheroes, not unlike the bandits of the West. It stars Tomás Milian, who is quite good as the mercenary found by a hermit who convinces him that he is a reincarnation of the Savior and is being hired by local politicians to kill other Cangaceiros. Starring Spaghetti actor Tomás Milián, who is not the first time he plays the role of a poor and illiterate revolutionary, this time he doesn't make it easy for us like Espedito, because he often seems very selfish, too gullible, too willing to accept the offer of a man who, after all, had his people massacred. But that's what makes the character so interesting and not so easily accessible. The blonde Ugo Pagliani plays Vincenzo Helfen, a man who gains Espedido's trust because he seems very honest, but he has a mission to accomplish. Eduardo Fajardo plays Governor Branco with memorable casual malice. Branco is not cruel because he enjoys it, for him the poor are simply worthless, and if mass murder is the cheapest solution to a problem, so be it. This is a co-production of Italy and Spain, in fact the interesting script was written by Rafael Romero Marchent who made several famous Spaghetti/Paella Westerns, being atmospherically photographed by the prestigious cameraman Alejandro Ulloa in wonderful Brazilian landscapes (not Almería) and here there're various notable Spanish secondary roles appear, such as Leo Anchoriz, Jesús Guzmán and of course Eduardo Fajardo.
Composer Riz Ortolani offers an evocative soundtrack, which varies with attractive Brazilian themes, while the quieter moments transport us to the Italian-Western. Giovanni Fago's third directorial job after "Uno di più all'inferno" (original title) or "Tres por tres para el diablo" or "One More to Hell" " and this O Cangaceiro (1969) or "Django - Melody in Lead" is usually classified as a Spaghetti western. Although the location is in Brazil, stylistically we are, at least in part, in a typical Spaghetti western. This ¨O Cangaceiro (1969)¨ was well directed by Giovanni Fago who frequently used the pseudonym Sidney Lean, he directed all types of genres, such as crime films, such as one titled "Kidnapping", Drama such as "On the Beach Beyond del dock" and Spaghettis like ¨O' Cangaceiro¨ and ¨ Por 100,000 Dollari T'Ammazzo¨, among others.
