Protraph Lack of good storyline.

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Tayloriona Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Cody One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

gavin6942 A history professor (Gian Maria Volontè) has a chance meeting with an infamous outlaw and eventually assumes leadership of his gang.Although in no way historically accurate, I have to appreciate that the writers included the personage of Charlie Siringo (1855-1928). Frankly, I was not aware of his existence, and I am somewhat surprised that anyone in 1967 really knew, either. Though I suppose at that time westerns were still in fashion, so even second-tier outlaws were probably lionized.Even more interesting, how many Italian-Americans were there in the 1850s? I suspect not many more than a handful, which might explain how he would be known to Italian filmmakers. And, heck, a book called "Charles A. Siringo: A Texas Picaro" was published in 1967...

ma-cortes Spaghetti with Chorizo Western co-produced by Italy (Alberto Grimaldi , P.E.A Productions , which financed ¨¨The Dollars trilogy) and Spain (Arturo Gonzalez who co-produced ¨For a few dollars more) . This is the original second installment from Cuchillo trilogy and again an awesome Tomas Milian accompanied by an extraordinary Gian Maria Volonte . Very good S.W. about a relentless and exciting confrontation set against spectacular scenery of Almeria . History teacher named Brad Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonte) heads Texas for his health, but falls in with Soloman Bennett's (Tomas Milian) bandit group . Fascinated by their way of life , Fletcher finally takes over the band , leading a sad event and cruel happenings . Turned into a ruthless outlaw Fletcher makes rush deeds , showing that not always a good action produces good results . Solomon 'Beauregard' Bennet is a roguish thief and being pursued by Charlie Siringo (William Berger) . Charlie chases the band called ¨Manada Salvaje¨ ; as the solitary , self-reliant Siringo tracks down Solomon . It will be a long and dangerous pursuit with continuous escapes and double-crosses . The relentless chase is set against strong environment, risked mountains and hazardous trails .This is the second part from Sergio Sollima trilogy , starred by Tomas Milian as the roguish ¨Cuchillo¨ and formed by ¨La Resa Dei Conti¨, or ¨The big Gundown¨ or ¨ The hawk and the prey¨ with Lee Van Cleef and ¨Run Cuchillo run ¨ with Donald O'Brien and this one , all of them belong among the best Spaghetti . It deals with Solomon , splendidly performed by Tomas Milian , he is fine as the hero/villain of the story . Tomas Milian is very nice , he ravages the screen, he jumps, bounds and leaps, hit and run , besides receives violent punches, kicks and wounds . His performance is astonishing , above average to level of these films . The story is wrapped in an aura of sadness , a tragic event on the metamorphosis of Fletcher , a good man turned into a crazed psychopath , being magnificently interpreted by Gian Maria Volonte . Worthwhile watching for a demonstration of the strange relationship between Tomas Milian and Gian Maria Volonte with some looks that say it all . William Berger is the tough but upright law-man and although he doesn't reaches the level of Milian , is also quite restrained . Charlie Siringo was an actual personage who really existed and did what the character in the film does , as he worked as an agent for Pinkerton , being well played by William Berger . This Western is superior than subsequent entry because it packs stirring adventures , shootouts, riding pursuits , treason and is pretty amusing . It's an exciting SW with breathtaking showdown between the protagonists Tomas Milian , Gian Maria Volonte , William Berger and the hoodlums enemies as Rick Boyd , Goffredo Unger , Ivan Scratuglia , Alfonso Rojas , Aldo Sambrell , among others . Aldo Sambrell plays a cruelly baddie role as a traitor killer is terrific , subsequently the would play similar role in other Spaghettis . Furthermore, there appears usual secondaries of Italian/Spanish Western as Italian actors as the femme fatal Jolanda Modio as Maria , Gianni Rizzo as Williams , Rick Boyd as nasty Sheriff , Nello Pazzafini ; as well as Spanish players : Angel Del Pozo as Maximiliam , Jose Torres as Aaron , Antonio Casas , Lorenzo Robledo , Francisco Sanz , Alfonso Rojas and of course Frank Braña in his ordinary role as a bandit . The film blends violence, blood, tension, high body-count and it's fast moving and quite entertaining . There is plenty of action in the movie , guaranteeing shootouts or stunts every few minutes . There are many fine technicians and nice assistant direction and excellent production design by Carlo Simi , Sergio Leone's usual , he creates a magnificent scenario with barren outdoors, dirty landscapes under a glimmer sun and a fine set on the final scenes . Being spectacularly filmed on location in Almería, Andalucía, Spain ,Alto de la Morcuera, Madrid, Colmenar Viejo, Madrid, Hoyo de Manzanares, La Cabrera, Madrid, La Pedriza, Manzanares el Real, Madrid, Spain and interiors in Elios Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy(studio). As always , the musician Ennio Morricone, supported by Bruno Nicolai , compose a nice Spaghetti soundtrack and well conducted ; it's full of guttural sounds and emotive score . Sergio Sollima's direction is well crafted, here he's less cynical and humorous and more inclined toward violence and too much action. Colorful and evocative cinematography by Emilio Foriscot and Rafael Pacheco , reflecting marvelously the habitual Almeria outdoors . Director Sergio Sollima achieved in "Face to face" possibly one of his bests works of a modest career , with some memorable scenes and good camera movement such as the bank hold-up and the ending duels ; all of them make only can say that this movie seemed to be a true surprise . The picture was well directed by Sollima and following directing successes as Pirate films such as ¨ Sandokan ¨ and ¨ Black Corsario ¨ . Rating : Better than average Western . Essential and indispensable watching .

Witchfinder General 666 It is quite a coincidence that the three major directors of the Italian Western were all named Sergio. Sergio Leone is the undisputed king of the genre, of course. Sergio Corbucci presented an even dirtier, more uncompromising version of the West with films such as the cult-gem DJANGO (1966) and the violent masterpiece IL GRANDE SILENZIO (aka. THE GREAT SILENCE, 1968). The third great Sergio of the Italian Western, Sergio Sollima, is known for his trilogy starring the great Tomas Milian. Actually, it is not necessarily a real trilogy, as Milian's character in FACCIA A FACCIA aka. FACE TO FACE of 1967 is not the same likable Mexian crook Cuchillo Sanchez whom he played in the masterpiece LA RESA DEI CONTI (THE BIG GUNDOWN, 1966) and its more humorous sequel CORRI UOMO CORRI (RUN MAN RUN, 1968). Sergio Sollima's Westerns are very political films, with a stylistic elegance almost on a par with Leone. FACCIA A FACCIA is doubtlessly the most intellectual and pessimistic of the three films. Once again, it is stylistically flawless and accompanied by a mesmerizing score by the one and only Ennio Morricone.FACCIA A FACCIA tells the story of two men, whose meeting each other changes both of them. The New England history professor Brett Fletcher (Gian Maria Volonté) comes to Texas because the air in the South is supposedly better for his asthmatic condition. He gets kidnapped by the ruthless bandit Beauregard Bennett (Tomas Milian), and subsequently befriends his kidnapper. The pairing of the intellectual Fletcher and the wild criminal Bennet leads to a change of habits in both men: While Bennett, impressed by his Fletcher's intelligence and humanity, becomes less ruthless, the latter is fascinated with the life of crime; the pairing of his intelligence and fascination for crime and violence slowly turns Fletcher into a man more ruthless and violent than Bennett...The cast of FACCIA A FACCIA unites three greats in Italian genre cinema. The great Tomas Milian has enriched a variety of genres in Italian cult-cinema with his versatile and great performances. He was one of the most notable Spaghetti western antiheroes in the 60s, most memorably in Sollima's trilogy and in Giulio Questi's bizarre gem SE SEI VIVO SPARA (DJANGO KILL... IF YOU LIVE, SHOOT!, 1967). In the early 70s he was, among other films the star of one of the most brilliant Gialli, Lucio Fulci's NON SI SEVIZIA UN PAPERINO (DON'T TORTURE A DUCKLING, 1972). Also in the 70s, he became the most outstanding star of the popular Poliziotteschi genre, most notably starring as a villain in Umberto Lenzi's films, in particular in the brutal masterpiece MILANO ODIA: LA POLIZIA NON PUÒ SPARARE (ALMOST HUMAN, 1974). Milian is fantastic here. While the role of Beauregard Bennett is not quite as likable and not nearly as humorous as that of Cuchillo Sanchez in the other two Sollima Westerns, it nonetheless epitomizes all that is so great about the antiheroes in Italian Westerns. The brilliant character actor Gian Maria Volonté is equally impressive in his role. Volonté had previously played the villains in Leone's first two Westerns, PER UN PUGNO DI DOLLARI and PER QUALCHE DOLLARO IN PIU. His role in FACCIA A FACCIA is very different. While he is not a villain, the turn from the intellectual weakling to a ruthless killer makes him very sinister. The third lead is played by the Austrian William Berger, who once again epitomizes coolness in the role of the Pinkerton Detective Charlie Siringo. The rest of the cast is filled with good Spaghetti Western regulars, such as Aldo Sambrell and Nello Pazzafini.The score by Morricone is once again fantastic, Morricone's fellow Italian film composing great Bruno Nicolai conducted the orchestra. As mentioned above, the film is stylistically flawless, as are Sollima's other two Westerns. This is clearly the most intellectual and pessimistic of the three. While, personally, I regard LA RESA DEI CONTI as Sollima's most outstanding masterpiece, there is no denying that FACCIA A FACCIA is one of the great Spaghetti Westerns. A true must-see for every lover of Westerns of Cult-Cinema in general.

MARIO GAUCI As indicated by the title, Sollima and star Tomas Milian's follow-up to THE BIG GUNDOWN (1966) is another confrontation/collaboration between two disparate characters: Milian here plays a more mature version of his "Cuchillo" Sanchez characterization from the earlier film - Solomon "Beauregard" Bennett, the leader of an outlaw gang - and alongside him, this time we have Gian Maria Volonte' tackling his most interesting and complex role within the genre (this was his fourth and last Spaghetti Western). Obviously, Volonte' (later a prominent figure in politically-oriented Italian films) is a stronger actor than Lee Van Cleef and, therefore, the film's tone differs considerably from that of THE BIG GUNDOWN; while it may not have the earlier film's scope and isn't as elaborately plotted, it's certainly a more ambitious undertaking with extra care given to individual characterization (and not merely that of the two leads).Volonte' is a meek, tubercular American college professor sent out West by his doctor for health reasons; he meets convicted Milian, whom he unwittingly helps escape and is consequently taken by the latter as hostage. He tags along with Milian, saves his life on a number of occasions and eventually joins his re-assembled gang; like the Lou Castel of KILL AND PRAY (1967), Volonte' too takes easily to gunplay and a life of crime - but his transition is much more convincing here! Another interesting character who turns up - ably played by Euro-Cult stalwart William Berger - is one Charlie Siringo (meaning hypodermic!), a Pinkerton detective (it appears that he really existed!) who manages to infiltrate Milian's gang and eventually betray them.Like THE BIG GUNDOWN, it's filled to the brim with colorful characters, including Angel Del Pozo - the spineless aristocrat and true child-murderer/rapist of GUNDOWN - is a gang member who has taken time out during the Civil War by acting as his true self, a foppish landowner; Aldo Sambrell as Milian's right-hand man and who is eventually 'bought' by the authorities into leading a posse to decimate the harmless community of old-style Westerners (overtaken by the ongoing progress) who have taken to the mountains, and among whom Milian's gang occasionally finds refuge (a plot element which anticipates THE WILD BUNCH - also, incidentally, the name of Milian's gang - by two years!); Carole Andre' as Milian's rather annoying tomboyish girlfriend, etc. While the massacre in itself isn't shown, the unrelenting mob still pursues the survivors trekking through the desert and mows down a group which have been left behind after being forced to abandon one of their wagons; it's not hard to discern here parallels with Vietnam and, indeed, the entire film is redolent of the general political awareness which came to the fore during the 1960s.Still, the film's most impressive element - one might call it its raison d'etre - is the way that the characters of Volonte' and Milian are gradually inverted (inspired, perhaps, by Joseph Losey's THE SERVANT [1963]?): from a bookish and peace-loving man, an obviously intelligent Volonte' evolves into a genuine criminal mastermind (his 'moment of truth', as it were, is brilliantly achieved by having him 'take' the woman he desires in the absence of her man, whom he later confronts and kills!); Milian, on the other hand, seeing his role as leader of the gang being disputed and also by observing The Professor's increasing megalomania, eventually develops a conscience! The climax is, once again, magnificent: Berger - who has seen the error of his ways and had earlier turned down the chance to lead the posse himself (as had the captured Milian) - faces off with Sambrell, with the former emerging triumphant; the by-now deranged Volonte' comes forward to finish Berger off but Milian intervenes and shoots Volonte' instead (who expires regretting not being able to accomplish the many heists he had been devising!); Milian is all ready to give himself up to Berger, but the latter lets him go because, as he tells Milian, "the old Beauregard is no more". Besides, Ennio Morricone contributes yet another wonderful - and gloriously dissonant - score.