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It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

While Italian movie director Lucio Fulci is best known for his bloody horror movies, he actually did dabble in other genres in his career. He even made a few spaghetti westerns, "Silver Saddle" being one of them. Made when the spaghetti western genre was breathing its last breath, it's been all but forgotten today. To a degree I can understand this. It does have more than its share of dull spots, and Giuliano Gemma is only adequate in the lead role. But the movie all the same has enough interest to satisfy spaghetti western fans. Fulci throws in some interesting direction at times, such as with some particular camera movements as well as how he composes what's in front of the camera. Though there isn't enough action, what action there is in the movie does catch your attention, particularly with some very bloody squibs thrown in. Gemma's somewhat underwhelming performance is made up for by the presence of American actor Geoffrey Lewis, who is amusing without being overbearing. And the music is great; you'll be humming the title song for days after watching the movie. It's no classic, but it's a respectable final effort for a genre that was breathing its last.

This fairly late entry to the western genre is fairly typical of its sort, kept lively thanks to some interesting characters and well-staged shoot-outs in the desert. The twisty-turny plot - almost episodic in nature - concerns the trials and tribulations of the bizarrely named Roy Blood, who began his life at 10 years old when he witnessed his father getting shot dead in cold blood by a crook. Picking up his father's fallen gun, he shot the man in the back and thus the legend of the "Silver Saddle" was born, a man who brings death and destruction wherever he goes.Director Lucio Fulci (taking a break from his more usual horror fare) keeps the events pacy and invests the many shootings and murders with his trademark penchant for exaggerated violence, with bullets entering faces and chests, although don't expect any of the gory special effects he brought to the crime thriller CONTRABAND. He also keeps the eye close-ups and zooms to a bare minimum, although the film is not totally lacking in them. The fast-paced story concentrates on incident over dialogue, which is a plus, and also which makes it a very easy viewing experience.The film's biggest flaw is probably the overly cheesy theme song which keeps on recurring throughout the movie, although it did make me burst into laughter every time it kept popping up. The shoot-outs are extended and well staged, throwing in imaginative props (like carbide bombs) into play along with lots of explosions and stunt work. Other unusual ingredients include a kite acting as a rescue beacon (!) and a monastery of monks getting slaughtered and hanged (what with this and CODENAME WILDGEESE, I'm beginning to think Italian directors have something against religious pillars of the community).Another problem is with the film's lead, the wooden Giuliano Gemma, who bears an uncanny resemblance in profile to James Woods. Gemma isn't that bad, but he fails to make his leading character likable, so its hard to get enthused about his actions. To make up for this, we have a strong supporting cast including Ettore Manni as a baddie, the surprisingly likable Sven Valsecchi as the kidnapped kid who has a prominent part (despite looking annoyingly cute like the kids in Fulci's horror films, he's actually not a bad actor and sympathetic with it), and Cinzia Monreale as the damsel in distress.On top of this, good ol' Dr Butcher himself, Donald O'Brien appears as a hired hand, while genre favourite Geoffrey Lewis puts in another excellent and charismatic turn as Two Strike Snake, an unlucky thief who enjoys picking the pockets of the dead. Lewis' strong turn is one of the film's highlights. Despite treading much the same ground as many other westerns, SILVER SADDLE is a fresh and entertaining movie with a plot complex enough to stay interesting yet without getting muddled, and one which I thoroughly enjoyed watching.

This 1978 release is generally considered as the last spaghetti western in the cycle commenced in 1964. The occasional entries from the eighties were simply a one off attempts to revive a genre which formally ended in 1978 but which had been in its death throes since the early seventies. This is a western for children directed by of all people Lucio Fulci with his trademark gore nowhere to be seen. Gemma who was always a heroic presence rather than an anti hero was perfectly cast for the film intended by the producers. The story has a young boy seeing his father murdered and murdering the Killer and taking his silver saddle.Growing up as a feared bounty hunter he saves the life and befriends the young nephew of the man he intends to kill for having commissioned his father's murder and from this point on the action and mild violence take a back sear to th relationship between Gemma , the kid his beautiful aunt and his partner a sympathetic crook excellently played by Geoffrey Lewis. A good but not exceptional score is aided by a catchy title theme in the De Angelis mold. Not a great film, maybe not even a great spaghetti western but very enjoyable from start to finish.

...and which adults might enjoy, too. Fulci's best western was the imperfect but striking and alchemical "Four of the Apocalypse," which was alternately shocking and touching, and meandered along at an engaging pace, letting the viewer soak in the detail and peripheral touches. While this is not up to the standard of that film, I find Silver Saddle to be preferable to his conventional, by-the-numbers "Massacre Time" (which, for some strange reason, its director insisted on referring to as "oneiric," although there is nothing dreamlike about it). If you enjoy this film, you might want to check out "White Fang," also by Fulci.