gavin6942 A half-breed ex-Union gunfighter (Franco Nero) attempts to protect his plague-ridden hometown from being overridden by his racist half-brothers and a Confederate tyrant (Donald O'Brien).While participating in the filming of "21 Hours at Munich", Franco Nero was approached by his longtime friend and collaborator Enzo G. Castellari and producer Malono Bolognini on the proposition of appearing in a Spaghetti Western, despite dwindling demand for films of that genre. The original treatment was written by actor George Eastman and developed into a script by Mino Roli and Nico Ducci, neither of whom were experienced writers of Spaghetti Westerns.This ends up being one of the better latter-day spaghetti westerns, with great slow-motion fights, horses falling and everything that should be in a big budget western. There is a great examination of race -- both native Americans and more -- that is honest and fair. The one big down side, as others have pointed out, is the awful soundtrack. The score is alright, but every time someone sings it is just atrocious.

Scott LeBrun Excellent stunts and use of slow motion mark this intelligent and absorbing Spaghetti Western directed by the versatile Enzo G. Castellari. Franco Nero stars in the title role, a half- breed who's served in the Civil War and who is now tired of killing. He returns to his home town to find a desert despot named Caldwell (Donald O'Brien) in control of things, and his resentful half brothers in league with the guy. He also buys trouble for himself when he takes pity on a pregnant woman named Lisa (Olga Karlatos) who is believed to be carrying a plague. Fortunately, Keoma has on his side his loving father (William Berger) and his fathers' former ranch hand George (Woody Strode), who's now a drunk.Castellari, who can always be depended upon to deliver a fun film, directs with his customary style. The cinematography, by Aiace Parolin, and scenery are beautiful. The characters, heroes and villains alike, are well portrayed. Nero is as charismatic as he's ever been, sporting a shoulder length wig and a full beard. The enchanting Ms. Karlatos of Lucio Fulcis' "Zombi 2" is a fine leading lady. O'Brien is the kind of bad guy you will enjoy booing. And the three men playing Keomas' siblings are solid as well: Orso Maria Guerrini, as Butch, Antonio Marsina, as Lenny, and Joshua Sinclair, as Sam. Berger and Nero are an appealing father-son combo, and Strode wonderfully plays a man to whom your heart just goes out. That makes it all the more enjoyable when later on he's kicking ass.The action is mostly confined to the last half hour or so, but is very well orchestrated. Castellari also creates a final confrontation that is genuinely suspenseful, and he gives it a unique feel when he lets the soundtrack become restricted to Lisas' moans while she gives birth. The viewer does feel the satisfaction of seeing Keoma do what he knows he will have to do.Based on a story by actor Luigi Montefiori, a.k.a. George Eastman, who also co-wrote the screenplay.Recommended to all fans of the genre.Eight out of 10.

JohnWelles "Keoma: The Avenger" (1976), is a Spaghetti Western directed by Enzo G. Castellari (who would late make the 1976 film "Inglorious Bastards", a film that Quentin Tarantino paid a large homage to in "Inglorious Basterds" [2008]) and stars genre stalwart Franco Nero. This film comes from the dying days of the genre, when it was in its protracted and some times painful decline. Only one or two more Spaghetti Westerns were made before it died, but this particular entry is among the best and can stand comparison with anything made in the 1960s. It is a great last hurrah, all the better for being resolutely un-nostalgic.The script is by Mino Roli, Nico Ducci, Luigi Montefiori, and Enzo Girolami; it covers familiar territory but in an unusual fashion: Half-breed Indian Keoma (Nero) returns, after the American Civil War, to his border hometown where he finds it under the control of an ex-Confederate raider called Caldwell (Donald O'Brien) and his gang. Keoma's three half-brothers have also united with Caldwell and want to make sure Keoma doesn't hang around.What distinguishes this banal storyline is the overt use of not just allegorical mysticism, but also borrowings from ancient Greek plays, such as the wandering Earth-mother character, which is splendidly played by Gabriella Giacobbe. This surprising if obvious use of symbolism coupled with apocalyptic imagery really makes the film standout in your memory.The direction from Castellari is highly efficient, and one of the best parts of the film. However, the frequent use of slow motion, while well done, is derivative of Sam Peckinpah, but without his mature understanding of violence. Here, it is just done for "cool" effect.The cast is exceptional in its bringing together icons of the genre, from Franco Nero, "Django" himself, to such great supporting actors as William Berger, Woody Strode and Donald O'Brien. All give performances perfectly suited to their roles and are almost reason enough to watch the film.On the debt side, unfortunately, is a fairly terrible score by Guido & Maurizio De Angelis, with some terrible singing (sounding like drunken amateur folk singers) punctuating the action like nails on a blackboard; ah well, you can't have it all, can you? Still, this is a hugely enjoyable late entry in the spaghetti Western oeuvre that I highly recommend.

thisissubtitledmovies Keoma (Franco Nero), a half-Indian half-Caucasian civil war veteran returns to his homeland to find it in squalor and disrepair at the hands of gang leader and presiding landlord Caldwell (Donald O'Brien) and his enforcers; keeping the inhabitants in poverty and cureless from the plague that's going around. Those who do circum are rounded up and dumped at the old mine on the outskirts. It is here that a passing Keoma saves a pregnant woman (Olga Karlatos) – wrongly assumed to be infected – from imminent murder.Keoma is a solid, gripping and mythical western that is incredibly stylish and not entirely without substance either. The only major flaw is the film's overly-insistent and frequently agitating score in the form of a warbling diva and throaty male vocalist taking it in turns to sing what is happening in the film as it happens with some very on-the- nose lyrics: "Now I'm here in front of these men/Gun in hand, I'm waiting for what will be…" and; "There's my father and my brothers and me/Tell me now father, why they hate me so." The instrumental sections fair a lot better providing some effectively cathartic moments.