Chuck Mull, O Homem da Vingança

After a jaunty, upbeat credits sequence, we cut straight to a bunch of bad guys who think it's a good idea to set fire to the local loony bin in order to cause a distraction while they rip off one hundred grand. Four of these lunatics escape: religious maniac Woody Strode, card shark George Eastman, some knife guy, and a guy called Chuck who has no memory of who he is or where he comes from.

These four immediately head for the hills, which is just as well, because the locals are more concerned that they have escaped and less concerned with the missing money. So while the robbers are double crossed and some young upstart takes all the money, a bunch of bounty hunters stalk our four guys through the woods. Eventually some sort of plot starts to form itself, and it isn't centred around Woody Strode's organ playing and holy rolling.

Turns out the town they all end up in has two opposing factions in it (as usual), and Chuck may have belonged to one of them. The bad faction however, once they discover that Chuck ain't got no memory, decide to convince him that they are his family and that it might be a good idea to go kill the head of the other faction – his own father!

This film jumps crazily from subtle humour (usually involving Woody Strode or George Eastman), a wee bit of slapstick, and violent showdowns to the extent that most of the cast are dead by the end. There's also the young bad guy who puts the moves on his own sister that adds to the schizophrenic atmosphere. The showdown at the end is pretty good and you get a sense of the companionship that grows between the four lunatics. George Eastman, as usual, looks like he's having a lot of fun.

That'll do.

Wow! I wasn't expecting much from this little known movie. I think it comparable to any of the spaghetti westerns and I must have watched nearly all of them now. After breaking out from a lunatic asylum 4 inmates band together. Chuck Mool has no recollection of his past prior to the asylum and the rest follow him on his quest to discover his true identity. Things don't go smoothly for the foursome but their friendship is strong. Excellent characters and acting, great story..but I don't want to give away the ending.

This spaghetti western might have been the germ of inspiration for the movie "Four of the Apocalypse", which came out five years after this one. (Though both movies only have a few minor similarities in the end.) Anyway, while "Apocalypse" has in recent years been rediscovered and acclaimed, this one has mostly been forgotten. To a degree, this is understandable. As others here have pointed out, the movie is quite slow, not only taking a very long time to set up the plot and characters, but also that the last third of the movie drags at times. Strangely, even though the movie doesn't have all that much plot elements, not only are most of the members of "the unholy four" not fleshed out well, there's at least one plot thread that's unresolved at the end.

But despite the sluggish pace, the movie does have its share of rewards. While there isn't a terrible amount of action, what there is (ranging from gun fights to fist fights) actually packs some punch, thanks to the skillful direction and editing. The musical score, while a little repetitive, is upbeat and pleasing to the ears. And while the movie is often slow and uneventful, it's a credit to the filmmakers that all the same things never get downright boring. While the movie isn't really all that memorable - I'm sure I'll eventually forget everything I saw in it - it does manage to engage and entertain the viewer while he or she watches it.

Amnesiac Leonard Mann escapes from a sanitarium with fellow inmates Woody Strode, George Eastman, and Peter Martell. The four make their way to a town where Mann's father and angry brother are feuding with vicious rivals that try to use him and his state of amnesia for their own benefit.

This re-teaming of Mann and Martell (after The Forgotten Pistolero) has an intriguing premise and a slew of familiar faces, but takes way too much time for things to heat up. Everyone involved has definitely done better.

That being said, this isn't bad. The four leads have great chemistry and keep things fairly interesting. The direction by E.B. Clutcher (best known for They Call Me Trinity and it's sequel) is adequate enough and the final thirty minutes fairly good.

The actress that plays Mann's love interest here, previously played his mother!

Starting with the very first scene, this flawed masterpiece of pastaland gunslingin' grabs your attention and keeps it locked in until the final, intricately choreographed shootout.

When some bank robbers set fire to the local nut-house to create a diversion, four inmates manage to escape and take in on the run. One is an amnesiac who is searching for his identity and in the process the four find themselves on the trail of the bank robbers. The trail leads to a town where Chuck Mool's family is located, but who are they? And why is everyone in town deathly afraid of him?

The plot outline may not sound like much but this top-notch spag is excellently made with great camerawork, a well written script, exciting, intricately choreographed action and hell, even the costumes and sets are done with style.

It's not just plot that makes a classic spag, but character bits, atmosphere and action, and this one's got it in spades. One of the more amusing character moments is when Eastman finds Strode in the local church cheerfully playing the organ and singing hymns while an exhausted preacher, in fear of his life, is madly pumping the instrument.

From blazing infernos and barroom brawls to cat n' mouse gunfights in dark cemeteries this one is a winner from the first frame. Too bad nobody seems to know about it.