Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die!

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 !

It's a pleasure to watch this movie because it's hero has a clear and direct plan, no messing around. Bill Kiowa (Brett Halsey) is released from prison and wants revenge on Elfego (intense villain: Japanese actor Tatsuya Nakadai), the killer of his wife. He looks for the best gunmen he can find (played by William Berger, Bud Spencer, Wayde Preston and Chet Davis), then searches for Elfego and his bandits to challenge them. Simple, but extremely effective. Brett Halsey does an excellent 'silent stranger' job, obviously following the footsteps of 'Django' Franco Nero, also in his outer appearance. The scenes are very well arranged, sarcastic Italian western style at its best. For example, when Bill purchases a gun - without saying a word - then shoots two guys in front of the store, and the owner says what a great gun that is, and he'll order some more of the same type. Professional attitude, isn't it? Another example is when Wayde Preston's character, the sheriff of a town, is joining Bill's team. He simply makes a prisoner new sheriff so he can leave town. So much for law, two sides of the same coin, one might say. Supported by the powerful musical score A.F. Lavagnino composed, 'Oggi a me, domani a te!" is a very recommendable tough flick.

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.

After five years in jail, Bill Kiowa (Montgomery Ford) is released and he hires four skilled men for his gang: the tough O'Bannion (Bud Spencer); the sheriff Jeff Milton (Wayde Preston); the gunman Bunny Fox (Stanley Gordon); and the gambler Francis 'Colt' Moran (William Berger), using the money his father gave to him. Bill seeks revenge against the sadistic leader of the Comancheros James Elfego (Tatsuya Nakadai), who killed his Indian wife Mirana Kiowa (Diana Madigan) and framed Bill that was sent to prison.

"Oggi a me... domani a te!" is an entertaining western with a story of revenge written by Dario Argento and the director Tonino Cervi. The poor DVD released in Brazil by Diafilme Distributor has many mistakes in the cover: the name of Dario Argento is highlighted as actor in the front cover; the synopsis is totally wrong; and the name of the director is also wrong (Giulio Petroni, instead of Tonino Cervi). Further, the DVD does not have the original audio in Italian, but only dubbed in Portuguese and in English without subtitles. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Mato Hoje, Morro Amanhã" ("Kill Today, Die Tomorrow")

Co-written by Horror-great Dario Argento, one of the filmmakers I have the highest respect and admiration for, Tonino Cervi's "Oggi A Me... Doani A Te!" aka. "Today It's Me... Tomorrow It's You" of 1968 is an average Italian revenge Western that has its highs and lows, certainly no highlight of the great Spaghetti Western genre, but a film with some definite qualities and some very good moments.

After spending five years in prison, Bill Kiowa (Brett Halsey) seeks nothing but to take revenge on merciless Outlaw James Elfego (Tatsuya Nakadai), who has destroyed his life. In order to fight Elfego's notorious gang, Kiowa hires five men, among them the huge O'Bannion (Bud Spencer) and gambler Francis 'Colt' Moran (William Berger)...

It is beyond doubt that Dario Argento is not only a Horror genius, but also a brilliant writer of Westerns, since he co-wrote the story to Sergio Leone's ingenious "Once Upon A Time In The West". The plot of "Today It's Me... Tomorrow It's You!", however, certainly has some interesting points, but is ultimately nothing more than average. One of this movie's biggest qualities is the cast, as it features the legendary Bud Spencer in one of his early Western roles, the great Spaghetti Western regular William Berger in one of his typical cool-cat roles, and the famous Japanese character actor Tatsuya Nakadai, who is just great as the diabolic villain. Brett Halsey is not too charismatic in the lead, but his performance is not bad either.

The quality of the score differs throughout the movie, I didn't like the main theme, but some parts of the soundtrack are pretty good, especially the drum sections, accompanied by a yell, and Nakadai's character's theme. The movie's biggest flaws are the buildings and locations. They look OK at times, but over-all the movie delivers the visual impression of European woods in the fall much rather than the old West. This could have been a lot better if it had been filmed on better locations (such as the Spanish Almería), but it is an overall decent Spaghetti Western. My fellow Spaghetti Western enthusiasts should have a good time. 6/10