God's Gun

Rating:
Summary: a must for van cleef fans!
Review: Gods Gun has a good storyline and a good musical score. There are also a lot of familiar faces and Jack Palance is terrific as the villain!! Worth a look.

Rating:
Summary: so bad, it's actually quite good
Review: I saw this film a few years ago, on a home TV channel, and I thought I had just entered the twilight zone. I could not believe my eyes! What on earth was going through the filmmaker's mind as they sat down to green light this one? The main idea was a passable one, if a little unoriginal, but it was the execution that went wrong. It is hard to think that both the director and star of this one were responsible for the excellent 'Sabata' nearly a decade earlier.

A few highpoints of this film to watch out for:

1. In the saloon scene, note the whore in the red dress doing a very 'groovy' dance despite the actual music that is playing. Great arm movement, eh?

2. Another gem is the scene where Lee van Cleef confronts Jack Palance while they are camped for the night. Was it my imagination, or were the villains sleeping in the middle of the road? A bit dangerous, isn't it? I know that they are hardened criminals, their evil posturing has already alerted us to that fact, but this really is dicing with death.

3. A final word about the costumes. What happened? Most of the money seemed to go on the whore in the red dress (a talented dancer) but it seemed that van Cleef was forced to wear his own trousers for most of the shoot. How can I tell? The film was made in the late seventies or early eighties and this is reflected in the circumference of the bottom of his jeans. This is most noticable in the introduction of the twin brother mid way through the film.

That said, I have never laughed at an italian western so much in my life. Go on, buy it.

Rating:
Summary: so bad, it's actually quite good
Review: I saw this film a few years ago, on a home TV channel, and I thought I had just entered the twilight zone. I could not believe my eyes! What on earth was going through the filmmaker's mind as they sat down to green light this one? The main idea was a passable one, if a little unoriginal, but it was the execution that went wrong. It is hard to think that both the director and star of this one were responsible for the excellent 'Sabata' nearly a decade earlier.

A few highpoints of this film to watch out for:

1. In the saloon scene, note the whore in the red dress doing a very 'groovy' dance despite the actual music that is playing. Great arm movement, eh?

2. Another gem is the scene where Lee van Cleef confronts Jack Palance while they are camped for the night. Was it my imagination, or were the villains sleeping in the middle of the road? A bit dangerous, isn't it? I know that they are hardened criminals, their evil posturing has already alerted us to that fact, but this really is dicing with death.

3. A final word about the costumes. What happened? Most of the money seemed to go on the whore in the red dress (a talented dancer) but it seemed that van Cleef was forced to wear his own trousers for most of the shoot. How can I tell? The film was made in the late seventies or early eighties and this is reflected in the circumference of the bottom of his jeans. This is most noticable in the introduction of the twin brother mid way through the film.

That said, I have never laughed at an italian western so much in my life. Go on, buy it.

Rating:
Summary: Great Title, Great Actors, Bad Movie
Review: Parolini, directing under the American-friendly name "Frank Kramer," comes up with a film that almost succeeds.

Jack Palance and his gang take over a small town. Leif Garrett and priest Lee Van Cleef stand up to the gang, and Van Cleef is killed. Garrett rides off to find the priest's twin brother, a gunfighter, also played by Van Cleef. They ride back and defeat the baddies.

The film makers give Van Cleef the world's most hideous wig in his scenes as the priest. He and Garrett seem to be competing in a contest for the film's most unappealing hairstyle. Palance, as the outlaw gang leader, must get on his knees every day and thank God "City Slickers" came along and rescued his career from messes like this. Sybil Danning, as Garrett's mother, is given little to do but stand around wide eyed, worry about her son, and flash her right breast in a rape scene to be discussed later. Richard Boone, desperately missing John Wayne and the chance to be in his films, plays the stereotypical drunken sheriff who cannot stop the outlaws.

Garrett, who does not sing in this, heads to Mexico to find the gunfighting brother. It takes him just two days, since apparently Mexico is the size of a city block. Van Cleef as the gunfighter is more effective, especially in a clever plan to stop the outlaws by making them think the priest has come back from the dead. The gunfighter does this with the minimum use of guns, and it is entertaining.

The bad news? Ennio Morricone should sue the composer here for ripping off "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly"'s soundtrack. Every time Van Cleef is shown, you here that "aahh" sound that pops up all time in the superior Sergio Leone film. About an hour into this, the gang tries to rape the judge's daughters. They then go to the saloon and proceed to rape the women there. Then Danning tells Palance he is the father of Garrett, and we are treated to her flashback when Palance raped her years before. I do not know why the majority of modern westerns must feature rape, but this trio of scenes lasts a very long SIX minutes, and seems longer. They are ugly scenes that did not have to be done, and only pander to the lowest form of viewer who needs to have it hit over their head that these are villains, in case all the murders and robberies were confusing.

Parolini finally starts doing some funky things involving his camera with about twenty minutes to go, but it is too late. The baddies are defeated, Garrett learns a big life lesson, and gunfighter Van Cleef rides home.

"God's Gun," also known as "A Bullet from God," had a lot going for it, but cannot overcome its own ugliness. I cannot recommend it.

This is rated (R) for physical violence, gun violence, strong sexual violence, gore, some profanity, brief female nudity, brief male nudity, and sexual references.

Rating:
Summary: Clever
Review: This film is actually quite clever. When I saw it the first time I thought that Lee Van Cleef (the priest) did not have a main role, because he died within the first half an hour. But then his brother (Lee Van Cleef) turned up and takes revenge on the murderers (Jack Palance etal).

One of the better Spaghetti Western with a suprise effect. Worth to watch any time.

Rating:
Summary: once again
Review: This has to be the worst movie I have ever seen (right below "Green Slime"). Ever a big Richard Boone fan: he is forgiven in this movie. Jack Palance: not believable, no matter what role except "City Slickers" where his persona, a dead cowboy playes true. Lee Van Cleef ever steely eyed, ever smooth talking is the only reason to see this film. The downfall, and major blunder, was to cast an amature (immature) to the film: preteen hearthrob Leif Garret. "Thankfully" throughout the video he is a mute boy but his acting skills, I give this flick a 1

Rating:
Summary: Misfired
Review: What a wretched, wretched movie is GOD'S GUN. A promising plot is ruined by inept direction, over-exposed film and an under-exposed Sybil Danning.
An otherwise competent cast is wasted and embarrassed in this one. Jack Palance, who plays the villain most effectively the less he talks acts like a hyperkinetic speed freak. Richard Boone, who usually earned half his salary with his voice and great, braying, sarcastic laugh, is dubbed by a voice actor! In fact, everyone in GOD'S GUN is dubbed by someone else, which is a mystery. The only explanation I can imagine is that the international cast were presenting such a polyglot of languages that the film makers decided to record the dialogue track after the film was in the can and the original actors were no longer available.
The only good thing in GOD'S GUN is the final scene showdown between Palance and Lee van Cleef. Unfortunately it's unlikely that a majority of viewers will stick around this stinker long enough to see it.


Rating:
Summary: Great Title, Great Actors, Bad Movie
Review: What potential - A great title "Gods Gun" - three of the best tough guys ever, all with very respectable careers - Lee Van Cleef, Jack Palance and Richard Boone.
What is right?

Jack Parlance comes off OK. At times there are some clever script elements. That's it!

What's Wrong?

What "Plan Nine From Outer Space" was to Bella Lagosi, "Gods Gun" might be to these three actors. "Gods Gun" rivals Terror In Tiny Town in ineptitude. The actors in this Israeli - no budget Western must have been very hungry. You watch this film and wonder - how did this happen to them?
Van Cleef (who must have had the worlds worst agent), had all but lost his menacing charm. At this time in his career you wonder if directors were purposely mocking him -having him wear embarrassing costumes, wigs and at times singing awful theme songs. He must have realized he wasn't getting paid for this abomination because he obviously didn't stick around to loop in his own voice. He is ludicrously dubbed to sound like "A Sons of Hercules" character. Cheep sets, lame clichéd music, horrendously bad costumes, awful peripheral actors, stereotypes, and a bland and confused teen idle - Leif Garret. The whole thing would be unintentionally funny if it were not for the sadness of seeing three quality actors trying desperately to make this thing work. At least you don't feel so bad about Palance who went on to some better things - some quality Hollywood films and push-ups during an Academy Award ceremony. It is very disturbing watching Van Cleef, and Boone knowing that for the remainder of their lives they were hopelessly stuck in poverty row films like this one. "Gods Gun" has a very high cringe factor for those of us who were once entertained by these guys. Others who don't care may be able to laugh at the film. I personally could not stand watching what seemed like three old reliable pals being degrading junk like this.

Rating:
Summary: Great Movie!!!
Review: What's wrong with you people??? This was a great all round Spaghetti Western!!! Sure, it may not rate up there with "The Good the Bad and the Ugly" or the other two of the trilogy, but it is nonetheless a very good movie. Lee Van Cleef plays a great dual role of the priest (Father John) and the twin brother gun-slinger (Lewis), Sybil Danning (Jenny) is flat out beautiful and Leif Garrett is plays a very believable Johnny son of Danning. Oh, and lets not forget Jack Palance as the very bad Sam Clayton. All these characters blend together to make a very memorable movie. One the better scene's in the movie is when Johnny is trapped in the church bell tower and he takes a metal bolt and flings it at his pursuer hitting him in the head, causing him to go head over heals to the ground below. I also enjoyed the wonderful dancing lady in the Saloon. Sante Maria Romitelli produced a sound track equal to anything Ennio Morricone ever did and Orlando Signorelli did an equally good job in editing the film. This is one of my all time favorite Spaghetti Westerns and one I would recommend YOU buy. Forget the prior reviews and buy this movie.