C'è Sartana... vendi la pistola e comprati la bara!

Sartana (George Hilton) is a freelance gunman who at the initiation of the film works as a bounty killer . After that , he helps a Mexican family against a ¨posse¨ of cruel bandits (whose leader is Nello Pazzafini) who try to kill and reckoning him . He , subsequently , is hired by a wealthy landowner (Piero Lulli) to guard the miners's payroll that is continuously robbed . Another cocky gunman (Charles Southwood) appears in the city and the confrontation will be inevitable .

The first movie on Sartana is made by Frank Kramer (Gianfranco Parolini) interpreted by John Garco (or Gianni Garco) , besides it was starred by Klaus Kinski and William Berger . After being continued by Alfonso Balcazar (Sartana non perdona or Sonora). Miles Deem (Demofilo Fidani) directed two Sartanas which are considered as awful . Anthony Ascott(Giuliano Carmineo) realized several movies with George Hilton who replaces Garco . Hilton plays more natural and roguish than Garco who was cold and peculiar . In this one Sartana has a partner (Charles Southwood) called Sabbath but he isn't the hero named Sabata created by Frank Kramer with Lee Van Cleef . The movie has typical Spaghetti characters , as the violent facing off , greedy antiheroes , bloody and spectacular showdowns , quick zooms , extreme baddies, and musical score with Ennio Morricone influence . In the picture there are the ordinary Western's secondaries as Folco Lulli , Nello Pazzafini (also usual in Peplum), and the Eurotrash Goddess , the babe Erika Blanc . The Francesco De Masi's soundtrack is nice and atmospheric , he's a good Western musician with enough scores . The movie was regularly directed , but is entertaining.

There's so much insane gun play in this film I was hardly in need of a plot. At one point, there's a bandit lighting matches stuffed between his toes for a laugh, and then along comes Sartana, knocks the guy out by shooting a sign that falls on the guy's head, then Sartana lights the last match by shooting it, then sparks up a cigar using the match! Why didn't this film win dozens of Oscars?

You've got Sartana after gold, the bandits after gold, some shady businessmen after gold, the gold miners after their own gold (how dare they!), and a bar owning chick...after gold. Oh, and another gunslinger called Sabbath after gold. He carries a white parasol, reads Shakespeare's sonnets, and constantly refers to his mother. Again, why no Oscars?

There's also a running gag where the bandits constantly try to get the drop on Sartana, but Sartana's always got a pistol hidden somewhere. I can't think of a single slow spot in this film at all, and Stelvio Massi's hyperactive camera-work coupled with Carnimeo's direction make for one of the more entertaining Italian Westerns.

So the third entry to the Sartana anthology gets a new - Sartana. It seems to be the only one with a different actor and it is even simpler than the other ones. But that might not make it worth less than the other movies. A lot of shootouts, big body count and so forth. So all the pillars for a successful Spaghetti Western one might think.

Then again, there is repetition. And not just repetition from other movies, but repetition in the shootouts. While they may come up with some nice ideas (a hole here, a hole there, hidden gun there, hidden gun there and a slapstick "rifle"/knife combo towards the end), it may not be enough to convey others. Whatever floats your boat ... or rides your horse I guess ...

Although the main character of the movie is named "Sartana", is finely dressed in black, pulls off a number of clever tricks, and the movie was titled "I am Sartana... Trade Your Guns for a Coffin" in some quarters, with George Hilton in the role instead of John Garko, I am not sure if this is an official entry in the "Sartana" spaghetti western series. However, this question didn't bother me that much while watching this movie, so I'll put it aside. Hilton does fairly well in the role; he doesn't beat John Garko, but he does give the Sartana character enough quickness and intelligence that he seems to know what he's doing. And the atmosphere of the movie has some definite bite; director Antony Ascot makes things rougher and dustier that what you usually get in a spaghetti western. There is also plenty of fairly well done action sequences as well. I just wish the script was a little better. The story is somewhat thin in the first half and somewhat meanders at times. In the second half, there is more plot, but it sometimes unfolds in a somewhat confusing manner; you really have to be paying attention. Spaghetti western fans probably won't mind the uneven script since the movie delivers in other areas, so if you are such a fan, it's probably safe to give this movie a look.

George Hilton replaces Gianno Garko as Sartana and does a competent job and is very cool as he shoots, bluffs, double bluffs, and triple bluffs his way through this fairly entertaining western. It's standard stuff, and though some times the story elements can be puzzling ( its those double bluffs again), it's keeps one watching. It's OTT, but heys it's Sartana with his bag of tricks ( includes a shooting loaf.) Its fun.