$1,000 on the Black

I had tried to watch this movie before, like a couple years ago, and I found it boring. I was slowly getting into spaghetti westerns at the time. I've started binging them recently, so I thought I'd try again, and without fail, I had the same reaction. This genre is known for its grittiness, realism, and unique storylines that don't necessarily revolve around racial clashes and land disputes like mainstream westerns. I'm all for that, but $1,000 on the Black has cringe acting. For a plot that's serious in nature - two brothers engaging in a vicious battle with each other - the performances are so silly. Johnny Liston (Anthony Steffen) returns to his hometown after enduring imprisonment for 12 years, for a crime that he didn't commit, only to encounter his brother, Sartana (Gianni Garko). He's taken control of the town and has everyone living in fear. He also stole his fiancee, Manuela (Daniela Igliozzi). No one is on Johnny's side, not even his own mother. She praises Sartana, completely ignoring that he's a psychopath. Johnny takes on Manuela's brother, Jerry (Roberto Miali), as his partner, a mute who's not afraid to fight back.

I had hard time seeing this as a drama. I even laughed at one point, when Johnny basically said he was in charge, and Sartana replied 'since when???' With dialogue like that, a movie's not suspenseful or powerful, even if that was the filmmakers' intention. The cast's delivery of their lines sounded so unnatural, and there was just a lot of overacting. Like the scene where Johnny told Jerry that he talked when he was a kid, then asked what happened, which led Jerry to start whimpering hysterically. I didn't wanna laugh, because the reason was evidently traumatic, but his performance was unnecessarily extra. Another issue was scenes dragging on for too long. One of the members of Sartana's gang is chasing around Joselita (Erika Blanc), the woman Johnny rescued from bandits at the beginning of the film, in a circle on his horse. He's getting substantial pleasure out of causing her distress. It took Johnny too long to intervene, to the point that it had got uncomfortable to watch. I think what sealed the deal that this movie was absurd, is during the opening, when Johnny discovers Manuela living in Saratana's compound. He tells him 'I had to do it,' as if his brother being in jail for a dozen years gave him a moral obligation to steal his woman. Johnny should've had a duel with Sartana right at that moment, but he leaves instead. How much sense does that make? So there really wasn't even a need for this almost 2 hour long dumb story if he had beaten the crap out of his brother 5 minutes into the movie.

By the way, for anyone who doesn't know, there's another version of this movie, Blood at Sundown, made in 1965. It says online they're the same film, but the synopses are different on here, so I was confused. I kept doing research, but didn't obtain the answer until I asked Copilot, because Google just wasn't helping. There's actually two Blood at Sundown films. One is translated to "$1,000 on the Black," and the other "Why Go on Killing?" The plot summaries are different because they were marketed under the same name in different regions. Why Go on Killing is shorter in length, so I imagine it's probably more entertaining. I'll probably check it out, but I plan on spending the next week or so watching other spaghetti westerns. I know 1,000 on the Black mostly has positive reviews, but I personally didn't see what the big deal is.

Steffen and Garko have been in a lot of awful movies, no doubt about that, so "Sartana" can easily be considered a climax in their careers, respectively.

It's the story of two brothers fighting each other, Steffen playing the straight and honest one, Garko portraying a sadistic, screaming blond loony. Their mother tries to stop him. Intense pictures, intense emotions, the director even alluded to Shakespearean tragedies a few times, but you needn't take that too seriously. All in all, well done, spaghetti western above average.

Nice Italian Western with sad atmosphere , marvelous musical score and elements of Greek tragedy about two brothers : Cain/Abel alike . It deals with an ex-con (Anthony Steffen) out of prison and seeks justice and vengeance against his brother who wrongly incarcerated him . His sibling is called Sartana (Gianni Garco or Gary Hudson who took this pseudonym based on Gary Cooper and Rock Hudson) , a violent bandit dressed in soldier clothes and including the usual poster : ¨Wanted 10.000 dollars , dead or alive . Sartana is a leader of a nasty gang (Sieghart Rupp of ¨Fistful of Dollars¨) who carry out blackmails and massacre against various locations as Campos , Wishville, and Blackstone . The unsettling and disturbing Sartana supported by the corrupt Judge Waldorf (Carlo A'Angelo) proceeds his activities at whatever cost , acting as judge , jury and executioner . The film ends in a sentence : ¨Non Odiare Il Tuo Fratello Nel Tuo Cuore , E Non Levanti Contra Al Tuo Sangue ; Levitico XIX¨

It is a typical Spaghetti Western including common scenarios , two-fisted antiheroes , rapid zooms and strong confrontations full of shots , crossfire and violence . Nice production design shot in Elios studios and Almeria , of course , and adding a peculiar Aztec temple where the villain Sartana lives , in similar style to ¨Requiescant¨ (Carlo Lizzani) temple . Italia/Yugoslavia actor Gianni Garco or Giovanni Garkovich and the Brazilian Anthony Steffen give their ordinaries performances . Support cast is pretty well , it is filled with familiar faces from Spaghetti such as Sieghardt Rupp , Franco Fantasia , Carlo D'Angelo and Carla Calò as tragic mother . Besides , brief appearances from Sal Borghese and Riccardo Pizzuti . Evocative and thrilling musical score by Michele Lanzeranza in Ennio Morricone wake .

Being decently filmed by Colmenar Viejo and La Pedriza , Madrid , Spain and El Lacio , studios Elios Rome , Italy . This Spaghetti Western was decently shot by the Italian professional Albert Cardone . Albert was a prestigious assistant director to popular films as ¨Ben Hur¨, ¨Purple noon¨, ¨Cagliostro¨ , ¨Carmen¨ , ¨Don Camilo¨ , ¨Return of Don Camilo¨. And shot some films , most of them entertaining Westerns such as : ¨¨ Blood at Sundown¨ , ¨Kidnapping¨ , ¨Il Lungo Giorno Del Massacro¨ , ¨20.000 Dollari Sul¨ , ¨L'ira Di Dio¨ and starred by usual genre stars as Brett Halsey , Gianni Garco , Peter Martell , Wayde Preston , Fernando Sancho and Anthony Steffen . Rating : Better than average 6.5/10 . Only for Spaghetti Western aficionados .

This ¨Mille Dolollari Sul Nero¨ was first movie in which showed up ¨Sartana¨ , but this Sartana has nothing to do with true Sartana who appeared in ¨Se Incontri Sartana Prega Per Tu a Morte¨(1968) by Gianfranco Parolini or Frank Kramer , along with screenwriter Renato Izzo . Here Garco performed an unforgettable role as the ¨Mantello Nero¨ hero , as Sartana is a cunning card player ,elegantly dressed in black , he looks like a magician -Mandrake- more than a gunslinger . Parolini gives this character a ghostly style , introducing cynicism and amorality . To be followed by other Sartana (his origin name seems to be Satan) starred by Garco such as ¨10.0000 Dollari Per Un Massacro¨ (1967) by Romolo Guerrieri and ¨Per 1000.000 Dollari T'amazzo¨(1967) by Giovanni Fago . Then , Anthony Ascott or Giuliano Carmineo filmed 4 Sartana entries , such as : ¨Soni Sartana Il Vistro Becchino (69) , ¨Buon Funerale Amigos , Paga Sartana¨ (70) , ¨Sartana arrives¨(70) and ¨Sartana Vendi La Pistola E Comprati La Bara¨ (71), most of them starred George Hilton . Giuliano Carmineo shot with Gianni Garco two similar roles to Sartana as ¨Gli Fumavano Le Colt , Lo Chiamavano Camposanto¨(71) and ¨Lo Chiamavano Spiritu Santo¨ (72) . Subsequently , Sartana was played by William Berger in ¨Sartana in valley of the gold¨ (70) and Peter Lee Lawrence performed ¨A dollar for Sartana¨(71) by Leon Klimovski .

After returning from twelve years in jail for a murder he did not commit, a man returns to his home town to confront his brother Sartana who he knows framed him for the crime. Sartana now rules over the area with the help of his gang of thugs but not only that, he's also stolen his brother's woman. The good brother sets about putting this right.

This is quite notable for being a more serious minded spaghetti western than was the norm. Despite this, it's still a fast-paced and entertaining affair. The plot-line is still fairly typical for the genre and by the end of this you can't say it doesn't deliver the usual spaghetti goods. Ultimately, though, it boils down to a tale of two brothers, with Anthony Steffen playing good one and Gianni Garko the one who's psychotic.

Johnny Liston heads back to his hometown after 12 years in jail, during which time his ruthless brother Sartana (Garko) has taken his sweetheart, taken control of the town. He's now the town's undisputed boss and doted over by his possessive mother, who thinks he's perfect, strong and justified in doing what he's doing. And she vilifies Johnny, thinking him weak.

Johnny is determined to stop Sartana's cruelty with the help of a mute, who was Sartana's slave and punching bag- twisted family loyalties ensure that neither brother will openly attack the other but they struggle against each other until their mother's death when a showdown is inevitable.

Gianna Garko as Sartana ( no, not that Sartana, whom he plays in later films), a psychotic, sadistic and Oedipal cretin who rules with an iron fist with his extreme cruelty, is excellent in his role, scene stealing with aplomb, yet the other players, namely Anthony Steffen as his good guy brother, hold their own quite well. Steffen, with his trademark steely-eyed gaze, is excellent as the sympathetic yet morally right brother. Carlo D'Angelo is suitably reptilian as a duplicitous judge. The female parts are quite strong - Erika Blanc as the feisty, bereaved daughter, Angelica Ott as the abused wife of Sartana and Johnny's former sweetheart, and Carla Calo as Rhonda Liston, the dominating matriarch whose existence is the very reason the people are suffering under Sartana's reign of terror. The scene when she comes out, dressed in black, with a rifle in her hand and her death throes is pure operatic delight.

1000 dollars on the Black is an excellent western which oozes with Shakespearean tragedy, biblical themes( Cain and Abel and Samson against the Philistines), and has enough melodrama and action to keep one transfixed. It's a bit unusual with that Aztec temple ... the landscape is top notch. Ends with a slam bang shoot-em up and tragedy. Quite brooding and gripping.