Mátalos y vuelve

No pun intended - Enzo G ... anyone who cares about Western movies is aware of this name. Really into them that is - because yes anyone knows Sergio Leone (or John Ford and many other people who made their name in the Western business) ... but Enzo? Almost like a litmus test to see if you really are a fan - only slightly kidding here by the way.

The movie is quite fast paced - although it also has a few passages, where you may question why the movie ... well moves slowly. And depending on your moral code ... you may take issue/offense with how the characters are portrayed. Especially our main character ... but it is a movie. So lack of emotion (morally speaking) is probably a good thing ... if you want to survive and not be counted to the all of the title ... a lot of action, a lot of hand to hand combat/fighting too. A bit aged, but surely top noth at the time it was made - and nothing that should deter you or take any of the fun you can have away. Just be sure you know what this is ... and hopefully you're also a fan of Western ... I did mention this already, right?

Chuck Connors stars in KILL THEM ALL AND COME BACK ALONE!, not to be confused with GO KILL AND COME BACK by the same director. He's assigned, along with his hand-picked team, to make off with a huge sum of Yankee dollars from an impregnable fort, to thwart the Union buying weapons to defeat the south, Connors' employers. Among his team, the usual: a knife thrower, dynamite expert, the Kid, the strongman. Along for the ride is the Captain (Frank Wolff) who dreamed up the whole scheme. The expected treachery occurs and when the dust settles not too many of the characters are still around to divvy up the loot. Connors is very good in this, although he's not, as one of the prints in the poster gallery boast THE SUPREME American ACTION STAR! Most of the team is played by stuntmen like Ken Wood and Alberto Dell'Acqua and seeing them leap and tumble is part of the fun. Nicely produced, with sweeping panoramas of the Spanish countryside, and with a great score by Francesco de Masi, this one is a lot of fun. The Wild East version is widescreen and in English for the first time, and has an interview with Ken Wood that reveals many interesting facts about the Italian cinema of the 60s and 70s.

Parte de la pelicula se rodó en el pantano del Burguillo , en Avila, no en Toledo, como dice en lugares de rodaje, cerca de Navaluenga. Mi padre era el medico y atendió a Franco Citti, de un esguince ynos invitó al rodaje. Citti estuvo en mi casa, un actor de El Padrino estuvo en mi casa.

In 1864, mercenary Clyde McKay leads a squad of determined daredevils tasked with a dangerous mission by Captain Lynch of the Confederate high command: to infiltrate and raid a Unionist army fortress where a million dollars in gold has been hidden in boxes of dynamite.

A single Colt bullet could send the whole treasure sky high but for these scoundrels - Lynch the killer, Deker the dynamite specialist, Hoagy the hit man, Blade the knife expert, the vicious Kid and Bogard with his brute strength - nothing is impossible. Only madmen could pull off such a job, piercing the enemy lines at the only river crossing and creating a diversion for the garrison where the arsenal is situated.

But before long the betrayals begin as the men attempt to double cross each other in order to take the money for themselves in this bloodthirsty Civil War tale of revenge.

The plot and characters are straightforward and simple to the point of being cartoonish - which it is meant to be. A hard-boiled collection of scoundrels, each with their own lethal skill, plan a daring heist of a hoard of gold from a desert fortress during the Civil War. And as expected, Double crosses crop up, well they captured and learn that the mastermind backing the heist is playing both ends against the middle. There's not much depth in the story nor has it any subtlety or suspense - it's just non-stop action, stunts, gunplay, combat, heroic last stands and betrayal. The stunt work is amazing, the action set pieces are well thought out and the terrain of Almeria in Spain are as cruel as the double crosses. Chuck Connors fits the SW mould really well - pity he didn't do much more. The rest of the cast is good. Having said that, the morally bankrupt and greedy characters can be shallow, nihilistic, and there's no one to root for, unlike in traditional westerns of the 40's and 50's.

Confederate secret-agent Chuck Conners assembles a group of master thieves and cutthroats in order to steal a large shipment of Union gold. His orders are then to kill them all and come back alone with the gold, a task that isn't so easy for him to do.

Typical of director Enzo G. Castellari, Kill Them All And Come Back Alone is pretty light-hearted, with tons of humorous moments and wall-to-wall action, staying true to the winning formula he's perfected over his career and across genres. (Watch the real Inglorious Bastards.)

The ever smooth Chuck Conners is also in fine form here, his first of only a few spaghetti western appearances. He should have stuck around a little longer and made a few more!

Helping Chuck out is a great cast of familiar European faces, including Spanish actor Leo Anchóriz, who was also quite memorable opposite George Hilton in A Bullet For Sandoval.

More people should definitely check this out!