Return of Sabata
Encyclopedia
Return of Sabata is a 1971 Spaghetti Western
film directed by Gianfranco Parolini
. The third film in The Sabata Trilogy
, it features the return of Lee Van Cleef
as the title character, which he had played in the first film, Sabata
, but was replaced by Yul Brynner
in the second film, Adiós, Sabata
, due to a scheduling conflict.
army officer and steely eyed, quick-drawing impossibly accurate gunman with a trick gun is working for a travelling circus as a stunt marksman. The circus comes to a small Texas
town, where a former subordinate officer, a lieutenant from the army is running a crooked casino. The man owes Sabata $5,000 from sometime ago. Then the circus manager runs off with the circus funds, so Sabata decides to stay in town and try to collect on the debt from his friend. Sabata then runs into conflict with the town's land baron, McIntock, who imposes high taxes on gambling, drinking and prostitution with the supposed idea of building the town up, using the money. Sabata who is after the money himself finds out that the townspeople's money in McIntock's safe is counterfeit and that he and the priest have hidden it elsewhere, in the form of gold coins. After a few attempts on his life and lots of badmen dying under his guns, Sabata and the lieutenant are apparently killed so McIntock goes for the money only to find them both still alive. Sabata is helped throughout by his friends; the acrobat, his partner and a fat, pompous man who is anything but what he seems.
Spaghetti Western
Spaghetti Western, also known as Italo-Western, is a nickname for a broad sub-genre of Western films that emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's unique and much copied film-making style and international box-office success, so named by American critics because most were produced and...
film directed by Gianfranco Parolini
Gianfranco Parolini
Gianfranco Parolini is an Italian film director. He is often credited as Frank Kramer. Among his films are The Sabata Trilogy, several sword and sandal films, most of the Kommissar X films and a number of Spaghetti Westerns.He claimed to have written over 100 thriller novels before becoming an...
. The third film in The Sabata Trilogy
The Sabata Trilogy
The Sabata Trilogy is a series of Spaghetti Western films released in 1969 and 1971, directed by Gianfranco Parolini, and starring Lee Van Cleef in the first, Sabata, Yul Brynner in the second, Adiós, Sabata, and Van Cleef returning for the third, Return of Sabata.-Sabata:Lee Van Cleef stars as a...
, it features the return of Lee Van Cleef
Lee Van Cleef
Lee Van Cleef was an American film actor who appeared mostly in Western and action pictures. His sharp features and piercing eyes led to his being cast as a villain in scores of films such as High Noon, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and The Good The Bad and the Ugly.-Early life:Van Cleef was...
as the title character, which he had played in the first film, Sabata
Sabata (film)
Sabata , is a 1969 Italian Spaghetti Western directed by Gianfranco Parolini. It is the first film in The Sabata Trilogy by Parolini, and stars Lee Van Cleef as the title character...
, but was replaced by Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner was a Russian-born actor of stage and film. He was best known for his portrayal of Mongkut, king of Siam, in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor for the film version; he also played the role more than 4,500 times on...
in the second film, Adiós, Sabata
Adiós, Sabata
Adiós Sabata is a 1971 Spaghetti Western film directed by Gianfranco Parolini. It is the second film in The Sabata Trilogy by Parolini...
, due to a scheduling conflict.
Plot
Sabata, a former ConfederateConfederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
army officer and steely eyed, quick-drawing impossibly accurate gunman with a trick gun is working for a travelling circus as a stunt marksman. The circus comes to a small Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
town, where a former subordinate officer, a lieutenant from the army is running a crooked casino. The man owes Sabata $5,000 from sometime ago. Then the circus manager runs off with the circus funds, so Sabata decides to stay in town and try to collect on the debt from his friend. Sabata then runs into conflict with the town's land baron, McIntock, who imposes high taxes on gambling, drinking and prostitution with the supposed idea of building the town up, using the money. Sabata who is after the money himself finds out that the townspeople's money in McIntock's safe is counterfeit and that he and the priest have hidden it elsewhere, in the form of gold coins. After a few attempts on his life and lots of badmen dying under his guns, Sabata and the lieutenant are apparently killed so McIntock goes for the money only to find them both still alive. Sabata is helped throughout by his friends; the acrobat, his partner and a fat, pompous man who is anything but what he seems.
Cast
- Lee Van CleefLee Van CleefLee Van Cleef was an American film actor who appeared mostly in Western and action pictures. His sharp features and piercing eyes led to his being cast as a villain in scores of films such as High Noon, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and The Good The Bad and the Ugly.-Early life:Van Cleef was...
as Sabata - Reiner Schöne as Clyde
- Giampiero Albertini as Joe McIntock
- Ignazio Spallat as Bronco
- Annabella Incontrera as Maggie
- Jacqueline Alexandre as Jackie McIntock