If You Meet Sartana Pray for Your Death (1968)
"Se incontri Sartana prega per la tua morte" (original title)

After a stagecoach is robbed and the passengers murdered, a long and tangled series of surprise attacks a murderous double-crosses leaves the coach's strongbox in the hands of the killer ... See full summary »

Director:

Gianfranco Parolini

Writers:

Adolfo Cagnacci (story), Luigi De Santis (story),

Stars:

Gianni Garko, Klaus Kinski, Fernando Sancho

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gianni Garko	...	Sartana (as John Garko)
Klaus Kinski	...	Morgan
Fernando Sancho	...	Jose Manuel Mendoza
William Berger	...	Lasky
Sydney Chaplin	...	Jeff Stewal
Gianni Rizzo	...	Alman
Andrea Scotti	...	Perdido (as Andrew Scott)
Carlo Tamberlani	...	Pastor on stagecoach
Franco Pesce	...	Dusty
Heidi Fischer	...	Evelyn
Maria Pia Conte	...	Jane
Sabine Sun	...	Girl at the saloon (as Sabine (III)
Gianfranco Parolini	...	Gambler (as John Francis Littlewords)
Sergio Jossa
Rossella Bergamonti	...	(as Patricia Carr)

Storyline

After a stagecoach is robbed and the passengers murdered, a long and tangled series of surprise attacks a murderous double-crosses leaves the coach's strongbox in the hands of the killer Lasky. It is up to the legendary hero Sartana to track down the missing money and determine just who is ultimately behind the grisly robberies and killings.

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Plot Keywords:

money | killing | surprise | stagecoach | robbery | 

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

Italy France West Germany

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

14 August 1968 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Gunfighters Die Harder

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paris Etolie Films, Parnass Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Telecolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

References $1,000 on the Black (1966)

User Reviews

He is your Pallbearer

Sartana (played superbly by John Garko) has one of the greatest entrances on screen of all the Spaghetti protagonists. When accused of looking like a scarecrow, he utters the classic line "I am your pallbearer" before gunning down all the bandits facing him. A classic moment, with the black clad Sartana setting the scene perfectly for this Gothic tinged western.

The story itself is a very complicated affair, and one which I'm not completely sure I followed from beginning to end (I blame the wine consumption). In simple terms, the story evolves around a stagecoach robbery and murder (with the culprits themselves hijacked and massacred by Lasky - played by the ever brilliant William Berger - and his gang). Enter Sartana, in the midst of further double crossing and more double crossing. And cue bloodshed aplenty!

Sartana combines the gadgetry of Parolini's later Sabata movies, with the darkness and brutality of Django. There are classic performances from Garko and Berger together with the familiar faces of Fernando Sancho and Klaus Kinski.

The success of Sartana is clearly demonstrated by the string of sequels (and name-checks) that followed. And rightly so, the character is in equal parts cool, mysterious and deadly. Much like the film. I just wish I understood it better (time to put away the bottle, and rewind the video perhaps).