Wonderful character development!

The greatest movie ever made..!

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Although it lacks the usual great roster of star support players (the Pedro Sanchez part was obviously tailor-made for Gian-Maria Volonte, while Gerard Herter lacks the personality and the charisma that someone like Gert Frobe would have brought to the role), this movie is also even more unusual in that it lacks any female role whatever (aside from Caterina Dalin's brief uncredited spot as a saloon girl). Yul Brynner is capably smooth as Sabata, and we loved Gianni Rizzo's delightfully rotund villain. Also worthy of note is Sal Borghese, who has certainly an unusual method of dispatching opposition. All told, what we have here is an entertaining, expensively produced western, aided by a fine Bruno Nicolai music score (which would be impossible for a late- coming patrons to distinguish from Morricone), with lots of shooting, shouting, dynamiting and destruction, all filmed on natural locales. Director Gianfranco Parolini likes to get a bit too close to the action for my taste, and the color photography tends to be a but grainy, but these are minor irritations.

See it -I bet you didn't know Yul Brynner was in a spaghetti western. Well this is one of my favorite spaghetti westerns, and it's as "spaghetti" as they come. You've got crazy-looking guns, plenty of camera close-ups, and even a cowboy who specializes in kicking musket balls at the enemy. An insanely fun western that will keep you entertained with its plethora of action-packed, over-the-top gunfights and battles. Brynner plays the stereotypical cowboy lead character, but the plot isn't stereotypical at all. The story takes place in Mexico, where a revolution is brewing against the Austrians. You know you want to see a movie featuring cowboys vs. Austrian soldiers! An underrated western that shouldn't be taken seriously, but should seriously be taken…home from the store…when you buy it. 5 out of 5 action rating

The director, writer, and producer are all the same, and we have several supporting players returning, but Brynner supplants Van Cleef as The Man With The Gunsight Eyes. Does it work? Well, yes, to a point. ADIOS SABATA is, like the other movies in this series, a densely plotted, somewhat tongue-in-cheek western yarn. In each of the Sabata films, I promise you, you will lose track of who is plotting against whom, and with which ne'er-do-wells on his side. There will also be moments of wry humor, along with acrobatic stunt work. And stuff will blow up, and people will be improbably shot from a long distance away.All of that happens in ADIOS, but it happens with Brynner at the helm, so the charisma factor is lessened by a notch or two. Where Van Cleef had steel-eyed machismo and a barbed tongue, ol' Yul provides an exotic gypsy-style appeal, all flowing frills and phallic rifle. For real, this Sabata looks like a backup dancer in a Vegas revue, with his all-black outfit and open-shirt styling. As for the sense-of-humor aspect of the character, Brynner's unusual accent tends to give those sardonic Sabata one-liners a bit of a Schwarzenegger feel, but still yet, he's charming, so it works.Brynner, like LVC, has a great supporting cast to back him up. Returning from the first film (in different roles) are the stolid Gianni Rizzo and the boisterous Pedro Sanchez. American ex-pat Dean Reed is present as a handsome, sleazy sidekick; Gerard Herter portrays a cruel Colonel; and the wonderful Sal Borgese shines as Sabata's mute, music-box-obsessed cohort. All are excellent, with Borgese and Sanchez really notable for fine work.Gianfranco Parolini/Frank Kramer, who handled the direction of all three Sabata flicks, is equally capable of staging big, booming explosions and a subtle eyebrow tilt; I'd say he's more adept at the latter. He gets a lot from a knowing glance, curious peek, or simple crossing of legs, putting each actor's business to great use in moving the story.At 1 hour 44 minutes, ADIOS SABATA gets a little long, with its protracted showdown and search for gold. That said, the pic is an ably-produced, entertaining Spaghetti Western, good of its type, and recommended to fans of its star and genre enthusiasts. 7/10.

Writer / director Gianfranco Parolini's crisp follow up two years later was simply just another crack, but Lee Van Cleef wouldn't return. Instead we get Yul Brynner decked in black as our man the bounty hunter Sabata, who's quick with a gun. As much as I liked Van Cleef in the title role, a curt Brynner stuck with me more. As it's hard to take your eyes off the man. While the cold edge was there, the humane side still showed without really letting you in. This made his shady character a lot more mysterious. Although Van Cleef would return to the Sabata role in Parolini's next sequel "Return of Sabata".Hired gunslinger Sabata takes on a job to steal a wagon of gold from the Austrian army to help the fighting Mexican revolutionaries, but the job doesn't entirely go to plan. The narrative had some recurring themes that feel like they have been lifted right out of the original source. Despite the familiar staples, the pessimistic plot is never too straight-forward with its scheming, humour and there's a new gimmick or two (anyone up for stone marbles). The surprises are foreseeable, but its operatic style consists of flair and danger in a much more expansive manner. The shoot-outs (involving Mexicans and gun-runners) are mechanically staged, but there are some jarringly artistic shots, local flavour from the locations and sharp camera-work along with the bombastic music score. The way the camera presented some scenes, if would have you believing that maybe this was shot in 3D. That would have been interesting if so. The performances are spot on and fruitful in characterisations, as Parolini reuses some the actors from the original in different roles. Dean Reed works off Brynner quite well, which reminded me of the pairing of Van Cleef and Berger in Sabata. Too bad I found the latter to be better implemented though. Ignazio Spalla gives an animated turn as one of the Mexican revolutionaries and Gerard Herter is imposing as the gleefully sadistic Austrian Colonel Skimmel.Conventional, but capable Italian western."I play solo".