The Four of the Apocalypse... (1975)

Four petty criminals, three men and a woman, wander through the trackless terrain of the Wild West Utah and are hounded by a sadistic bandit.

Director:

Lucio Fulci

Writers:

Ennio De Concini (adapted for the screen by), Bret Harte (stories) (as Francis Brett Harte, Brett Harte)

Stars:

Fabio Testi, Lynne Frederick, Michael J. Pollard

Cast

Cast overview:
Fabio Testi	...	Stubby Preston
Lynne Frederick	...	Emanuelle 'Bunny' O'Neill
Michael J. Pollard	...	Clem
Harry Baird	...	Bud
Adolfo Lastretti	...	Rev. Sullivan
Bruno Corazzari	...	Lemmy
Giorgio Trestini	...	Saul
Donald O'Brien	...	Sheriff of Salt Flat
Tomas Milian	...	Chaco

Storyline

Follows the adventures and travels of four petty criminals in 1873 Utah whom include gambler and swindler Stubby Preston, pregnant prostitute Bunny O'Neal, drunkard Clem, and a mental disturbed man, named Bud, who's obsessed with the dead. The quartet travel aimlessly through the Utah Badlands looking for food, water and people to swindle, while they are harassed by a villanous Mexican bandit, named Chaco, whom Stubby vows revenge after the bandito sexually assaults Bunny.

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Plot Keywords:

topless female nudity | italo western | pregnant prostitute | revenge | gambler | 

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Genres:

Fantasy | Western

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

12 August 1975 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Four of the Apocalypse...

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Coralta Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min (uncut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technospes)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite Lynne Frederick's character (Bunny) being portrayed as a smoker, she actually had an immense dislike of smoking and cigarettes in real life. The once scene where her character is seen with a cigar was one of the few times in her life that Frederick smoked.

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Goofs

When Stubby takes the doll from the dead little Swiss girl, she moves her left hand.

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Quotes

Chaco: Chaco is the name my friend, and I would be very happy to join your group.
Stubby Preston: Nobody invited you.
Chaco: But I did. I'm a damn good hunter you know. Wherever you go you'll have a piece of meat every day.

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Alternate Versions

The original US release cut the most graphic moments from a scene in which Tomas Milian cuts some skin off of a man's stomach, as well as cutting some dialogue from the climactic scene in which Milian taunts Fabio Testi about Milian's earlier rape of Lynne Frederick. Both scenes have been restored in Anchor Bay's recent DVD release. However, because neither scene was ever dubbed into English for the original release, these scenes are in Italian with English subtitles.

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Connections

Referenced in Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

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Soundtracks

Let Us Pray
Music by Franco Bixio, Fabio Frizzi, & Vince Tempera
Words by Rink Greenfield & Peter Cook
Sung by Greenfield & Cook and Benjamin Franklin Group

User Reviews

A real surprise from Fulci

I'm a fan of Fulci's work but until now had only ever seen the splatter movies from his mid- to-late career. On the basis of this, I will dig deeper and check out more of his earlier films.

This is a very strange Western, beautifully shot with a bizarre psychedelic score. Performances are good, theatrical and a little overblown (the dubbing never helps), but they fit well within this unusual morality play.

The film is loaded with symbolism, concerned with themes of birth, death and redemption. Fulci was an artful director when he wanted to be, but never concerned himself with linear plots. The story here is easier to follow, but takes an interesting turn towards the end when Stubby and Bunny find the town populated by men. Pacing up to this point was sharp, but here things did drag a little.

There are some well-handled action sequences, a little hard-boiled violence (but leagues away from the incredible sadism of something like 'New York Ripper') and some humorous touches, mainly provided by the character of Clem, the town drunk. The whole thing has an acid-fried feel that's a bit redolent of Jodorowsky.

Worthy of repeated viewings and further study. The conventions of the Western have provided a great canvas for many auteurs - Fulci makes the most of stock characters and visual cues, imbuing them with all the sub-text he wanted to get across.

I'll definitely check out 'Massacre Time' after this. Anyone who's been bored or insulted by the director's later stuff like 'Voices From Beyond' should watch this and see the full breadth of the grumpy old feller's ability.