The Return of Ringo

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Logan M A more serious and brooding film than its lighthearted predecessor, but still just as good if not better. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 04/07/23 Full Review matthew d A neat Western retelling of Homer's Odyssey. Director Duccio Tessari's Spaghetti Western The Return of Ringo (1965) is a lot darker and more serious than the first movie A Pistol for Ringo. Rather than linger on the old Ringo's story continuing, Tessari adapts Homer Greek epic The Odyssey into a Spaghetti Western. There's plenty of slick shots of colorful filters, wind blowing straw for atmosphere, gunshots fired from great distances, and an explosive dynamite filled finale. Duccio Tessari's direction is very stylish like the best of the 1960's Italian directors of Spaghetti Westerns. His use of dark shadows, moody lighting, gusts of wind, and creative visuals for a very unique aesthetic. The final shootout in town and the manor invasion for The Return of Ringo are amazing. Writers Fernando Di Leo and Duccio Tessari reimagine The Odyssey with fierce shootouts, piercing gazes, crafty infiltration, and questions about fidelity. It's very dark with fun humorous lines for some pleasant comedy relief. The Return of Ringo features a cold vengeance from returning Civil War veteran Ringo with a fearsome wrath that is cool to watch. Editor Licia Quaglia cuts to striking imagery in sharp close-ups with an eye for unique angles and perspectives. Cinematographer Francisco Marín captures the most stunning close-up shots of furious or shocked eyes. I love the smooth panning shots following characters to sudden medium shots of gunmen poised to aim for a lethal shot. It's impressive how much story is here in a brief 95 minute movie. Italian actor Giuliano Gemma is excellent as Civil War veteran Captain Montgomery "Ringo" Brown. His days as a gunfighter named Ringo are over and he returns to his town to seek vengeance and save his love. He's cool, angry, and tender with a real pleasant way about him. I love his gunplay and trick shots. Spanish actor Fernando Sancho is a riot as the jerk bandit Esteban Fuentes. Italian actress Lorella De Luca is a real vision of beauty as the lovely Hally Fitzgerald Brown. You really feel for her. Spanish actress Nieves Navarro is a scream as the flirty card reader Rosita. She's really sultry. Her Spanish sung song performance is quite nice. Antonio Casas is funny as the alcoholic Sheriff Carson, who bravely opens fire when it counts. George Martin is really sleazy and evil as the villain Don Fernando Paco Fuentes. Pajarito is hilarious as the odd florist Morning Glory. Tunet Vila's friendly Apache medicine man Mimbreno and Juan Torres' informative Mimbres bartender are steadfast friends. I like that they return to help Ringo for the finale. Juan Alberto Soler's art direction is very pretty with piercing Sunlight casting down shadows to the constant straw blowing in the wind throughout town. Composer Ennio Morricone's film score for The Return of Ringo is very melancholic with a passionate forlorn main melody. I love the theme song that repeats for the notable plot reveals. Morricone's love of harps, violins, and light guitar playing sounds lovely like a music box chime. The romance theme is as memorable as the horror one for a shocking reveal about Ringo's wife. Sound designer Alberto Bartolomei has ringing gunshot noises to a powerful mix for Morricone's score to reverberate with an aching melancholy. Costume designer Rafael Borqué creates cool, colorful suits and vivid dresses with lace embroidery. His 60's Italian style works for these Mexican style clothing choices. Franco Di Girolamo's make-up gives Giuliano Gemma a disguise as a Mexican to darken his skin tone besides all the neat hairstyle choices. In all, The Return of Ringo is a strong and serious sequel that give Ringo more to ponder before unleashing his fiery wrath. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member " I'll explain afterwards..." Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Audience Member Much more serious in tone than the original, and Morricone's music is haunting. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member 170418: I'm struggling for something to say. Rosita (Nieves Navarro) is the highlight. Nothing otherwise really stands out or comes to mind. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Not exactly a sequel to A pistol for Ringo, from the same director and featuring the same cast, the only thing this has in common with director Ducio Tessari's first 'Ringo' film was Italian actor Giuliano Gemma playing a character nicknamed Ringo. In this one, Gemma has returned from serving in the Civil War only to find a gang of banditos has taken over the town and has the townsfolk (including the sheriff) living in fear. Worst of all, the bandits killed Ringo's father, have taken over his family home, and one of the two outlaw leaders wants to force Ringo's wife to marry him. If it sounds familiar, it is. The plot is from Homer's Odyssey and Ringo disguises himself as a peon to determine what is going on and what action he should take. Tessari, like Sergio Corbucci, felt that an Italian Duster (Spaghetti Western) could be successful without an American actor in the cast. Filmed in the Almeria region of Spain, this film has a cast of Italian and Spanish actors, many (like Fernando Sancho) made frequent appearances in Italian Westerns. I'd give this film four stars except my DVD copy looks kind of washed out and the dubbing is terrible (I'd rather watch it in Italian with subtitles, oh well). One of Quentin Tarantino's favorite Spaghetti Westerns. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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