Country: Italy
Genre: Action/ Satire
Director: Giovanni Fago
Year: 1970
Rating: 
TRASH CINEMA RECOMMENDED MOVIE
O’Cangaceiro isn’t quite a spaghetti western — for one thing, it takes place in Brazil — but it has a lot in common with the politically satiric westerns coming out of Italy in the late 60s and early 70s.
When a colonel in Brazil massacres the inhabitants of a village for sheltering bandits, he ends up accidentally creating the most powerful bandit of them all, The Redeemer (Tomas Milian), who believes that he has been sent by the Archangel Michael to avenge the villagers and take from the rich and give to the poor.
When oil is discovered in the region, Vincenzo (Ugo Pagliai), a canny European working as a consultant for the oil company, has the bright idea of buying off The Redeemer, so the government can regain control of the region and make the rich even more wealthy in the process.
This setup has potential, of course, but what puts it over the top is the comic spin. Tomas Milian is his reliably amusing self as a messianic bandit who is capable of remarkable moral flexibility when it suits him. Eduardo Fajardo scores as the brutal governor who would rather kill the bandits than negotiate with them, and cheats The Redeemer, not so much out of necessity, but rather out of the principle born of entitlement. Fajardo seems to sneer even when his face barely creases.
Writer/director Giovanni Fago also does a fine job of teasing out the comic possibilities of the scenario, especially in a scene in which the government gives a party for The Redeemer in order to court his cooperation. Fago also utilizes a Brazilian samba score for maximum comic effect.
It almost doesn’t matter that the action scenes are underwhelming. For example, a knife fight that takes place in the middle of the film is set up in a visually compelling manner, but the choreography is rudimentary. When people are shot, they simply fall down in an unconvincing manner.
Fortunately, the satiric content of O’Cangaceiro is quite rich, making the lackluster action forgivable. And at a little over 90 minutes, O’Cangaceiro doesn’t wear out it’s welcome.
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