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Shoot First… Ask Questions Later (1975)

A very funny Western about some roguish adventurers who attempt to rob a fortune of a rescue . Italian-Spanish co-production full of action , exaggerated characters, shootouts and lots of humor . This Spaghetti Western concerns about robbing a valuable Japanese pony from a train crossing American West and the Japan Ambassador had for gift to US . The thieves result to be some rebel Indians . Then a Japanese named Sakura (Tomas Milian), ¨the Yellow¨ along with a rogue thief Swiss(Giuliano Gemma) ¨the White¨ , and a sheriff (Eli Wallach) ¨the Black¨ team up as three unlikely heroes . This is a surprisingly low-key Spaghetti Western in which three diverse characters joining forces to find the sacred horse and rob a rescue .

This amusing picture contains an entertaining plot , action Western , shootouts and bits of campy and refreshing humor . It’s an improbable blending of standard Western, tongue-in-cheek and Chop-Socky . A bemusing premise , gunslingers against samurais , and interesting casting full of usual Spaghetti make this oater well worth the watching . Delightful Western satire in which the grifter Giuliano Gemma using his wits , breaking all the rules and kicking virtually every cliché in the pants , as he relentlessly deceives, plunders and robs . Amiable but sometimes lumbering Western satire goes on and on about the same premise , as a lot of minutes are superfluous ,it has half hour of excess , as it packs overblown jokes and antics and some moments turns out to be dull and tiring . Tomas Milian steals the show as Sakura, he is very fine, he ravages the screen, he jumps, bounds and leaps, hit and run , besides receives violent punches, kicks and is ultimately buried . Furthermore, appears ordinary secondaries of Spaghetti/Paella Western as Chris Huerta , Tito Garcia, Victor Israel ,Dan Van Husen, Rafael Albaicin, Lorenzo Robledo, and many others . The film mingles slapdash, pursuits, high body-count and it’s fast moving and quite entertaining. There is plenty of action in the movie , guaranteeing shootouts, fights or stunts every few minutes . The musicians Guido and Mauricio De Angelis, compose a jolly soundtrack with catching leitmotif and well conducted ; it’s full of guttural sounds and commercial songs. Striking cinematography by Luis Cuadrado in Eastmancolor with negative well processed . Interior filmed at Paolis Studios , Rome ,and Ballesteros studios ,Madrid and outdoor sequences filmed , of course , at Almeria, Spain. The film follows in the wake of ¨ Hallelujah trail (65) ¨ by John Sturges ¨ Support your local sheriff ¨ and ¨ Support your local gunfighter ¨ by Burt Kennedy and of course ¨ Blazing saddles (74) ¨ by Mel Brooks , all of them are engaging Western satire and very fun . The picture takes part of a sub-genre in which during the period of the 70s combined Spaghetti Western and art martial with original influence of ¨David Carradine’s Kung Fu ¨ series , for example ¨ Karate law in the west ¨(Tonino Ricci), ¨ My name is Shangai Joe¨(Mario Caiano) and ¨ Return of Shangai Joe ( Bitto Albertini)¨, in addition ¨ Red sun (Terence Young )¨ that bears remarkable resemblance to this one .

Sergio Corbucci’s direction is well crafted, here he’s more cynical and humorous and less inclined toward violence and packs too much action , but especially this slapstick Western contains broad comedy . The other Sergio made several Spaghetti classics as ¨ Django¨, ¨The great silence¨, ¨Hellbenders¨, ¨The specialist¨ , and Zapata Western as ¨The Mercenary¨, ¨The Compañeros¨ and ¨What am I doing in middle of the revolution¨ . In addition Sergio directed other inferior S.W. as ¨Far West story¨ ,¨Johnny Oro¨, ¨The white the yellow an the black¨ and ¨Minnesota Clay¨. It’s an offbeat , muddle and uneven Western but will appeal to Corbucci aficionados . Rating : 5,5 , riotous Western spoof in which there’s too much silly comedy and enough excitement