5 gachettes d'or

TODAY IT'S ME...TOMORROW YOU!, aka TODAY WE KILL, TOMORROW WE DIE!, is a 1968 spaghetti western directed by Tonino Cervi and starring Brett Halsey as a Django lookalike who goes on the warpath to avenge the death of his wife. The film's origins are clear, with the straightforward revenge story concocted by Dario Argento no less. The first half sees posse members being assembled (a bit like THE DIRTY DOZEN) while the second sees them carrying out their mission of vengeance.

There's little in this movie you won't have seen elsewhere, but I was surprised at how well shot it is. The locations are atmospheric and the cinematography is excellent, with plenty of gritty shoot-outs for action fans. Characterisation is slim but the characters themselves are engaging, from Halsey's taciturn lead to the likes of William Berger, Bud Spencer and Wayde Preston as various members of the posse. The music is stirring and as a whole the production values can't be faulted.

The best actor of the lot is a real surprise: Japanese star Tatsuya Nakadai, star of the late Kurosawa movies RAN and KAGEMUSHA: THE SHADOW WARRIOR, playing the bad guy. Nakadai gives a multi-layered and extremely decent performance straight out of Japanese samurai cinema, and acts everybody else off screen. Simply said, he's brilliant and lifts the movie whenever he appears. The rating gains a star due to his presence alone.

WOW ! This was one good western, and it also has Bud Spencer (one of my fave actors) as one of the main roles! Heres the plot :

A man named Bill Kiaowa was sent to prison for 5 years for killing his wife....a crime which he didn't commit.When he's released from jail, he rounds up his old buddies to help him kill the man who killed his wife....

Yeah, your thinking, oh, just another boring western! It is just one of those simple westerns that were rip offs of " The good, the bad, and the Ugly" but give it a shot! Its worthwile!

Today it's me.... gets 6/10

Dario Argento… Italian horror-specialist?! Well one of them anyway. Yep Argento co-penned this highly enjoyable spaghetti western that had a strong ensemble cast of interesting names to boot. Featuring Brett Halsey, Bud Spencer, William Berger and quite a memorable Tatsuya Nakadai… with a machete! Not only fun and absorbing, but one of the better entries of the long-listed and wide-ranged spaghetti sub-genre. The story is your basic revenge formula, but the script is sharp, unsparing and riddled with well-judged humour that never takes away from the gradual build-up to a thrilling, if offbeat standoff in swampy woodland terrain. These final passages are very well delivered by director Tonino Cervi, by pulling out an atmospheric tone together with the bold violence. But before even leading up to all of this, are some reliably creative and gusty set-pieces that aren't out of place. The brisk style is evident, and music composer Angelo Francesco Lavagnino's flamboyant score randomly punctuates some uncanny sounds. While, the formidably cunning camera-work of Sergio D'Offizi adds to the intensity. Japanese actor Nakadai is stupendous, and had me transfixed with his vibrant expressions as the shady, clever weasel-like villain. He stole every shot he was in. Halsey basically just looked good in black, and stared you down with that steely glance in a fitting performance as the revenge seeking heroine. Spencer bombards the screen with his robust personality and stature. The pacing stays tight, and pretty dry with little in the way of lapses.

Yes, it is true, giallo master Dario Argento helped write this speghetti western from the late 60s. I have never been a big fan of western movies, but my love of Italian horror cinema has taken me into this genre. They just don't make

westerns, or any genre for that matter, like this anymore.

This film has all the great makings of what a good western movie should be.

You have the duels, the horse chases, and the classic saloon card game. The

fact that this is a low budget film is what attracts me. The sometimes badly

dubbed in english also humors me. But put those things a side and you have a

pretty good story. The way the final "duel" comes together is classic.

Overall, this is may not be "the one" when it comes to speghetti westerns, I am by no means a connoseur of Italian western film. But I walked away pleased.

Now I have to go and watch a few more Italian cowboy flicks to compare.

I've always liked Italian westerns and I enjoyed this one as well. Good script by Argento, great music by Lavagnino (who composed the score for such great Italian as Tutti a casa). But let's admit it, there is an evident problem with the casting. Bud Spencer, William Berger and the other dude are O.K. within the limits of the genre, but - oups ! - in the role of the bad guy, they're facing one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, no less. Ladies and gentlemen, Tatsuya Nakadai ! English being only my second language, I am a little bit limited when it comes to finding the right words to describe the work of this phenomenal actor. His fame outside Japan mostly came from a series of outstanding samurai movies such as Hara-Kiri, Sword of doom or Goyokin. (Among many others) Yet all those samurais are remarkably different from one another, for Nakadai's trademark is mercurial versatility. His acting technique sometimes seems so different from one movie to the next that you'd hardly believe it's the same man. And of course he interpreted plenty of other characters besides samurais, such as the unfortunate hero in Kobayashi's monument The Human Condition.

I could go on talking about this artist for quite a while. Suffice it to say that watching this western put me somewhat in a sad mood. I'm sure Mr. Nakadai enjoyed himself a lot doing this movie - and it shows ! - but when you have the incredible luck to get such an actor in your cast, frankly it is your responsibility to come out with an outstanding spaghetti western, not just an average-to-good like this one unfortunately is. It's too bad such a project didn't fall in the hands of a more imaginative Italian western director - Sollima or Corbucci or even Colizzi.

Yet again, this western is good enough, and is certainly worth watching would it be just for Tatsuya Nakadai alone, playing the villain - and madman - James Elfego with rejoicing maestria. Since the character is in no way a Japanese, Mr. Nakadai does not have his legendary 'sword of doom' with him - but watch your head, for he does have a machete !