Un colt pour 3 salopards

After she is raped and her husband murdered, a woman (Raquel Welch) hires a bounty hunter to instruct her in the use of a gun so she can get her revenge on the three outlaws (Ernest Borgnine and two guys) responsible.

Quentin Tarantino said the film was one of his inspirations for Kill Bill. "Why I love Hannie Caulder so much is Robert Culp. He is so magnificent in that movie. I actually think there's a bit of similarity between Sonny Chiba and Uma (in Kill Bill) and Raquel Welch and Robert Culp in Hannie Caulder." You can totally see it during the training montage, which smacks of kung fu movies more than westerns.

And Christopher Lee is in this? How many westerns has he done? None other that I can think of. But what do I know? It is still great seeing him here.

Pretty terrific western is outlandish, yet engrossing, satisfying and often funny (both intentionally and unintentionally). After being violently raped, widowed and left for dead by three dirty, cackling brothers, Raquel Welch learns to shoot a gun from hot-headed bounty hunter Robert Culp and hopes to seek her revenge on the mangy trio. Welch is sexy and droll as Hannie Caulder, and we are on her side from the get-go. She receives excellent support from Culp, Christopher Lee as a gunsmith and the three villains, Jack Elam, Strother Martin and Ernest Borgnine. A fairly unusual western which, until "Ms. 45" and "Sudden Impact", pretty much stood alone in the female sharpshooter genre. A large portion of its success belongs to Ms. Welch, convincing and sympathetic while riding the vengeance trail...but always remembering, "win or lose--you lose." Nobody won any awards for this, but it is exceptionally well done. *** from ****

Hannie Coulder (Raquel Welch) is living along with her hubby when three nasty brothers (Ernest Borgnine , Jack Elam , Strother Martin) kill her husband and she is raped . She is healed by a bounty hunter (Robert Culp) who teaches her how to be an expert gunwoman . Later on , a gunsmith (Christopher Lee cameo) builds Hannie a specialized revolver for her journey ahead . The revenge starts and early she is ready for it .

The picture contains action , gun-play , humor and a little bit of violence when the violation and murders are happening . The film follows Spaghetti Western rules , thus gets violent feuds , greedy and extreme baddies , spectacular shot'em up , rapid showdowns, and habitual plot : the vengeance ; besides , being shot in Almeria (Spain) where during 1960s-1970s years had been filmed several Italian/Spanish Western . Quentin Tarantino later said the film was one of his inspirations for "Kill Bill . Raquel Welch is enjoyable and enticing , though wooden , Robert Culp as the veteran gunfighter is top-notch . Special mention for the humorous and ironical trio of brothers , they are amused parodying the Western killer gang . The usually villain Christopher Lee makes a brief intervention as good guy at a cameo , in his seven decade career , this is Christopher Lee's only Western . It appears Stephen Boyd as a ghostly gunman , he is uncredited at a brief appearance as the gunfighter simply known as "The Preacher" .

Lively and catching music by Ken Thorne . Glimmer and colorful cinematography by Edward Scaife . The film is produced by Tigon ,a known British production habitual in Horror films . The motion picture was directed by Burt Kennedy , a specialist in Western genre , he also rewrote the screenplay but was not credited . The film will appeal to Raquel Welch fans and Spaghetti Western enthusiasts .

This offbeat Western could have been another standard revenge flick, but the vivid portrayals from the stars inject lots of spice and no small amount of humor into the proceedings.

Raquel Welch portrays "Hannie", and Robert Culp craftily plays "Luther Price", ace bounty hunter, mankiller, and Hannie's mentor.

The real stars of this piece are Strother Martin, Jack Elam and Ernest Borgnine. If you can imagine 'The Three Stooges' as utterly filthy, scummy vagabonds with a propensity for murder, rape and theft, you might get an idea of how this family operates.

Strother Martin in particular is a delight; in the middle of a gunbattle he engages in a clumsy fistfight with one of his brothers over some trivial matter. Another priceless moment is when he presides at a brother's funeral, using a stolen Bible that he cannot even read.

Look for Christopher Lee's subtle and well-crafted performance as a former Confederate gunmaker.

Not your usual Western, this film is well worth watching despite its flaws.

Rated 7.7/10.

The main virtue is more the acting than the story. The smart use of the mix of tension and humor. The presence of Christopher Lee in an atypical role for his career and the most than decent result , Raquel Welch demonstrating more than you expect and Robert Culp giving all the flavors of the lonely stranger from westerns. And, not the last, off course, a great dirty, vulgar, cruel, defining the term family in admirable way , trio gived by Ernest Borgnine, Jack Elam and Strother Martin. So, just impressive.