Dark, moody, angry, filty, windy, dusty, bloody Spaghetti Western that highlights the plight of the Confederate army following the end of the Civil War. Why would that be dark?

Guiliano Gemma is one such soldier. Just like the rest of them he's miles from home with no money and no job and one cigarette that he can only take one draw of a day. Gemma doesn't want anything to do with anyone, but ends up travelling with a young guy called Willy, who earned himself a medal for valour during the war and is now looking forward to heading home to his family.

It's not easy when everyone hates you. They also keep crossing paths with a bunch of ruthless bounty hunters who kill everyone they are tracking down (led by giant German Raimond Harmstorf, who is most famous for crushing a raw potato in his hand on television). A random fight with some relatives of a Yankee soldier lead to a sudden death and Gemma trying to find redemption.

The only light that shines through the darkness is when Gemma and Willy try to catch frogs for dinner, because after that it's short tempered gunfights and trekking across the land, hostage situations and the spectre of the war hanging over everyone. The stupidest thing about all this is that despite me watching The Master Touch, I was still taken aback by the ferocity of the fight between Romano Puppo and Gemma - they guys must have loved using each other's bodies to destroy things.

It's a shame that the Spaghetti Western died a death, because these late-era films are amongst the best. It's like directors like Fulci (Silver Saddle),Martino (Mannaja) and Lupo decided to pull out the stops give the best they could. Pity they couldn't save the genre. If you look at the films produced around this time that were more popular, sex comedies were top of the list.

Maybe they should have put some boobs in there.

In the days following the Civil War, defeated Confederate Giuliano Gemma and a young traveling companion encounter various killers, low-lives and unsympathetic citizens. When his friend is killed, Gemma stays with the boy's family and protects them from a vicious gang of bounty hunter turned outlaws.

As usual, Gemma's good. However, he's defeated by an unrelentingly depressing story, an atmosphere of doom and gloom and a grating, almost non-stop soundtrack. One interesting thing though, are the sights of the crumbling, once great spaghetti western sets of the previous decade.

One thing I didn't quite get is that early in the movie, the boy makes a big deal of how he comes from Georgia and his family lives in Georgia and how he's headed back to Georgia. When Gemma gets to the family farm, it's in the middle of the desert! What happened to Georgia?

Watch The Outlaw Josey Wales instead.

The American Civil War often serves as a back-drop for 'Spaghetti' Westerns, 'The Good, The Bad & The Ugly' being the ultimate example. And while this movie never reaches the heady heights of that masterpiece, this is one of the best 'Spaghetti Westerns' I've seen to date. The first half of the movie, in particular, is outstanding. Beginning as the war ends, we find ourselves amongst Confederate prisoners looking downbeat and dejected amidst some striking rain-lashed cinematography. The bleak, muddy landscape is a perfect setting for the sad, broken figures that begin the process of returning to The South to begin the Reconstruction. Amongst them is 'California' played by Guiliano Gemma, a former Captain, who befriends enthusiastic young private Willy Preston. But their return South is hampered by renegade Union soldiers and Northern vigilantes. When Willy is killed in a barbaric fashion, California decides to take vengeance on behalf of Willy's family.

The cinematography and acting are top-notch, and the very mournful score is outstanding. It's a pity there doesn't seem to be proper DVD release for this, but keep an eye out for it on TV, or at Movie Fairs. It's well worth it.

A small classic.