The Stranger, a half-breed bandit, is part of a band of thieves that steal a cargo of gold from a stagecoach. However, the Americans in the band betray him, and shoot all the Mexicans. The Stranger is not completely dead though, and crawls his way out of his shallow grave, continuing his pursuit of the gold, and exacting a bloody vengeance. Various factions, including a half-breed bandit, a gang of homosexual cowboys and a priest, feud over stolen gold in a surreal town. This is really a cult within a cult. The first few scenes are the standard revenge and search for gold spaghetti fare. However, after the bandits entire the strange town, the movie really enters a surreal land. I was quite bemused watching the various sub-plots but it was extremely compelling. It gives the impression of two scriptwriters who love westerns just brainstorming the most outrageous script. Despite its confused feel I give it 10/10 as it has many startling, original and occasionally jaw dropping moments'. Highlights are , 'digging for gold in the bandit', Zorro the 'affable sadist', the black-shirted gay muchachos, the commentary by the parrot and the liquids gold 'House of Wax scene. What the 'traditionalist American Cowboy fans make of the gay muchachos, god only knows. Highly recommended. There are good moments and touches of atmosphere in this western but the plot's too muddled to pull things together. Tomas Milian seems to have been cast for his "beefcake" appeal and, sure enough, he winds up stripped to a loincloth and tied to a cross inside a jail-cell for a bit of torture that's obviously meant to evoke religious parallels. (The question is, where would a man in frontier America get such a peculiar undergarment?)
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372 weeks ago