Réquiem Para Matar

This one has to take the prize for the reviews completely failing to set expectations. I really could not believe the difference. I can see why people would say the things they have...but it doesn't change the fact that they have watched this movie and not seen most of what was happening.

On pure production values and in terms of story, yes, the story is absurd, on the face of it, but so are most the stories in musicals and so are the production values of B horror movies. If anyone said that, though, you'd give them a look because everyone knows that is the case. That's not what you're watching it for. So, I can see disappointment if you're watching this as a Hollywood Western.

But Spaghetti Westerns were made by left wing radicals, this one actually has one of the leading lights of the PCI (Italian Communist Party) in it, and that is very much the focus for director Carlo Lizzani. Whereas most all of the sub-genre were Westerns with an Italian artistic slant and some radical sub-text, this one is a straight-ahead, let's give the young communistas some proper learning, Western movie style. The story is thin because it's totally unimportant. There aren't plot holes; there's a bit of hand waving to acknowledge it, much like you might add a box to a flow diagram to represent an input you're not fully diagramming. Those bits are deemed unimportant. "How does he learn to shoot?" It's not important. It's not telling a story, it's acting out critical moments in life to provoke thoughts about class struggle.

I couldn't believe how dense the political/social message was. EVERY little scene, EVERYTHING is there for symbolic value. And the story isn't that bad as I never felt it dragging. So preachy, such a thin story, it should have become tedious. It never did. I usually watch the classics in installments to get every detail, but I watched this one start to end because I couldn't stop watching it. I couldn't believe he had made such a pure vehicle for talking about class struggle, the role of violence, when should violence be used, how does doing so change the person, etc., etc., etc.

You can certainly argue that that's not a valid way to make any kind of Western. But if you like Spaghetti Westerns for that reason, this is not to be missed because you will never find another that is so straight-ahead about what it's doing. Lizzani basically said, "Damn it, I'm tired of pussy footing around with a few abstract comparisons. Let's lay it all right out there". Most the other reviews on this are like reading Alice in Wonderland and saying, "That doesn't seem very realistic. How can that be about logic?" But I'm not complaining. It was very nice to be so pleasantly surprised after having very low expectations.

Lou is a young preacher dude, one that doesn't remember his entire family being massacred when was child, mainly due to him taking a bullet to the head. Now he's a travelling preacher with his adopted family and his quasi-sister, who stupidly runs off to join a dancing troupe. This means that Lou will have to go after her, with only a bible to begin with.

Lou quickly realizes that he's deadly shot while during a robbery in the street, he picks up a gun from a corpse and effortlessly kills two raiders with it. Lou finds out that his half-sister Princy has become a whore, and pimped by one of the guys who was present when his family where massacred, and his boss is the vampire like Mark Damon, who's character has a lot of space to move around in. This is not your usual Western, even if the basic plot is.

Franco Citti's character likes to rub a little doll on his face, Lou and Mark have a shooting contest, shooting out candle flames while drinking. Lou has to hide inside a bell while people throw bombs at him. There's also a duel where Lou and another guy stand on stools with nooses round their necks and tries to shoot the legs off the stool before the other does. Most of the actual emotional stuff comes from Mark Damon, who has trouble with his wife, gets riled at the mess caused by his men, and might even be gay.

I've read somewhere that this is some kind of communist Western, but that's up to others to figure out.

Carlo Lizzani is more of a realistic director as he didn't intend to be spectacular and impressive in any of the details. Real-life facts like killing and humiliation make the work done.

The BSO is not its forte so that's why I didn't give it 10 stars but it was more centered around the story. There's too many scenes that are silent with the only sound of footsteps, horses, guns and crying -except when there's a peaceful scene where some little melody appears and in the opening and closing scenes.

The main antagonist (a lot of western-fans know him) is well developed as a character and he can be quite contradictory with morals as any politician would. There are many philosophic stuff so it's quite agreeable when giving sense to life and death and the script in general was well done. I think the script is what was best done in the whole story and I don't agree with people who think that they were silly games because I'm aware those games existed and still exist nowadays.

The photography can be quite catching to the eye but in this film is very realistic and the quality is quite ordinary. There's no "paysage scenes" (if you know what I mean in Western films) as is always centered in the people and surroundings.

I would like apologizes with Italians filmmakers and all people who really loves this exotic and unique sub genre from western, firstly for many times devalue one thing for that matter didn't understood completely, it takes so long to reach in this final point, l used to compare those spaghetti with American classic westerns, then l've realize that those classic western were a personal style introduced by American usually focused in a male hero, as Cooper, Wayne, Murphy, stewart and so on, instead the exotic sub genre created by Italian filmmaker were driven to their odd characters modeling a quant variation that established for itself ever since, in this picture we have a exactly sample whom l'm talking about, a wounded boy rescued by a preacher, when he grow up has in first meeting with a gun, his skillful wasn't explained, he uses a rope to carry the gun, the characters all around no make sense at all, the bell and all are a true elements of the this meaningful sub genre they don't need any Waynes or Coopers they are quite opposite in the whole concept, these pictures were unique, colorful unusual characters were the key's success of this kind, please my fellow friends once more my deep apologizes to my lack of experience to enjoy such delightful sub genre!!

Resume:

First watch: 2019 / How many: 1 / Source: DVD / Rating: 7.25

Offbeat Spaghetti Western with a good cast with the first two in spades , Lou Castel and Mark Damon , as well as a particular role for Pier Paolo Pasolini as Mexican guerrillero . The son of a Mexican rebel (Lou Castel) is adopted by a family headed by a preacher who travels in a wagon captioning ¨In God we trust¨ along with his wife , son and daughter but when his step-sister runs away , Requiescant sets out in rescue . Requiescant is very close to his stepsister Princy (Barbara Frey) who has fled to work as a saloon girl . One time grown-up Requiescant , searching for his adopted sister , comes upon a little town that is under the thumb of a powerful owner . Requiescant soon finders her in the employment of George Bellow Ferguson (Mark Damon) , an evil landowner who manipulates the young man for his own amusement . When his history is heritage is discovered it is revealed Ferguson was the man who ordered the death of the man's family all for the control over the land that belonged to them . Meanwhile , Requiescant aids the unappreciated although terrorized town in the process and suddenly finds his sister . Requiescant executes a single-handedly revenge , as he shoots , ravages and murders each person involved in his father's killing . He is relentless in his vendetta , deadly in his violence . Requiescant is submitted a tempestuous trap by Fergurson and is caught and he faces the vicious bandits .

It's an exciting but slow-moving western with breathtaking showdown between the protagonist Lou Castel against the heartless Mark Damon and his hoodlums , including a fine set on the Aztec temple . This ¨Requiescant¨ playing out the Spaghetti Western formula like clockwork , yet retains a moral compass often lacking in its more famous brethren . The film packs violence , gun-play, explosion , high body-count and rare happenings . This picture is defined by its heightened visual style , its brutality , and its amorality well represented on the Ferguson/Mark Damon character . Requiescant may not be the strongest story for a Western and it does tend to fluff over a few scenes . Lou Castel takes the lead role in Requiescant , Castel as merciless hero is mediocre , he plays a young man raised to be a pacifist by a travelling preacher who discovered him as a baby after a massacre of his family . Lou shoots , hits , runs and kills but also receives violent knocks , punches, kicks and wounds . In the film premiere attained little success , nowadays is best valued and I think it turns out to be a very strange Spaghetti Western . Mark Damon is terrific as a cruelly baddie role , he plays a deranged former Confederate officer who is stealing land from the Mexican people with phony land grants , he bears a hysterical and mocking aspect , an offbeat role who dresses , garments and make-up in ¨Dracula-alike¨ . Screenplay is written in leftist feeling , that's why it is included peculiar actors as Pier Paolo Pasolini and two players of his factory : Franco Citti and Ninetto Davoli .

Poor production design but including an impressive Aztec temple creating an excellent scenario in which takes a place a massacre at the beginning and the ending . The musician Riz Ortalani , composes a passable soundtrack in Morricone style ; it's full of guttural sounds, and a haunting musical leitmotif. Striking , vibrant and crisp cinematography by Sandro Mancori . Interior filmed at Elios Studios Rome and outdoor sequences filmed at Italian landscapes , from El Lacio , Rome .

Carlo Lizzani's direction is regularly crafted , here he's more thought-provoking and broody and more inclined toward violence , because he's a expert on serious cinema . Although he filmed another S.W. titled -under a pseudonym named Beaver- . Lizzani was member of the P.C.I. (Communist Party) whose leftist wing tending is well shown in his flicks . He directed good films as ¨Last days of Mussolini¨, ¨Bandits in Milan¨, co-directed ¨Dirty game¨, ¨The Verona trial¨, ¨chronicle of poor lovers¨ and today he goes on directing movies until his recent death at 91 . Rating : 6 , acceptable and passable . The picture will appeal to Spaghetti Western fans.