Blindman (1972)

Paid to deliver fifty mail-order brides for fifty miners, blind mercenary Tony Anthony finds himself double-crossed by his partner, who takes the women to Mexico and sells them to a grungy slaver and his lovesick brother Ringo Starr(!), leading to a dangerous back-and-forth between the blindman and the bandits.Fast, amusing, and with some genuinely funny moments, this is like a live action comic book. Despite the subject matter and flippant tone, this avoids becoming (too) silly, like a few of director Fernando Baldi's other over-the-top spaghetti westerns.Writer, producer, star Tony Anthony delivers an eccentric, low-key performance that matches the subdued one by second-billed, top-draw Ringo Starr, who let their manic co-stars do all the heavy lifting, energy-wise.Violent, politically incorrect, and surprisingly sexist, this may not be fine art or, "...more popular than Jesus Christ." (hee-hee), though it's a minor cult classic thanks to it's similarities to the Japanese Zatoichi series and the presence of Starr, still looking as he did on the covers of the last few Beatles records. We love you yeah, yeah, yeah, yeaaaah!

The most noticeable thing about Ferdinando Baldi's "Blindman" is that Ringo Starr plays a supporting role in it. Yes, the annular member of the Beatles appears in a spaghetti western...with his voice dubbed! It's more than a little jarring to hear the man who sang "Yellow Submarine" and "Octopus's Garden" have a neutral accent.But anyway, it's an OK movie, not great. Tony Anthony plays a man hired to deliver fifty brides to the miners, but the brides get kidnapped and so he has to take charge. It's got a lot of the things that we can expect in a spaghetti western, along with a few things that wouldn't have been acceptable just a few years earlier. It's a fairly interesting flick, partly to see the most famous drummer in the world play a bandit, but mostly just to see this lesser known entry in the genre. Good times.PS: Producer Saul Swimmer also co-produced the documentary "Let It Be" and directed the documentary about George Harrison's Concert for Bangladesh. In other words, this is one spaghetti western that's all about the Fab Four.

How's this for a nifty and novel premise: A shrew, tough, and lethal blind gunslinger (a fine and credible performance by Tony Anthony, who also co-wrote the script) is hired to escort fifty mail order brides to a bunch of miners in Texas. When said brides are abducted by a loathsome group of nasty Mexican bandits lead by the vicious Domingo (well played to the sneering hateful hilt by Lloyd Battista), it's up to the blind man to rescue the gals from their vile clutches. Ably directed with real flair by Fernando Baldi, with a constant snappy pace, a gritty, lurid tone, expansive widescreen cinematography by Riccardo Pallottini, desolate desert locations, a pleasing smattering of tasty female nudity, a twangy, rousing, and spirited Morriconeesque score by Stelvio Cipriani, several amazing scenes with our sightless protagonist blowing away the bad guys with stunning ease and agility, a wickedly funny sense of sarcastic humor, and a lively and exciting climax set in a dusty windswept cemetery, this film sizes up as a whole lot of scuzzy fun. The cool central gimmick is well realized by such inspired touches as a braille map and the blind man's extremely loyal seeing eye horse (!). Best of all, none other than ex-Beatle Ringo Starr has a sizable supporting role as Domingo's slimy brother Candy. There are also neat supporting turns by Agneta Eckemyr as the sweet Pilar, Magda Knopka as Domingo's venomous sister Sweet Mama, Raf Baldassarre as a lecherous Mexican general, and Janine Reynaud as a ravishing prostitute. Well worth seeing.

The Europeans produced some of the most outlandish westerns and BLINDMAN exemplifies the greatest departure from the norm. Indeed, our gunslinging hero cannot see anything and relies on his horse and the generosity of strangers. A good movie always put the hero in the most perilous predicaments and "Blindman" is no exception. Not only does our hero have to compensate for his lack of vision, but he also must contend with an evil bandit (Lloyd Battista) and his army of bloodthirsty killers. Like the typical Spaghetti western, "Blindman" bristles with twists and turns galore right up to its surprise ending. Of course, as you might expect from a Continental western, the story contains savage shoot-outs and nothing but contempt for human life. Unlike most Spaghetti western protagonists, the eponymous hero--as played by Tony Anthony of "A Stranger in Town" and "The Stranger Returns"--has feet of clay and never is a step ahead of the opposition. In fact, the villains often capture him but they make the fatal mistake of not taking him seriously. This explosive western takes place on the American frontier initially as our hero searches for the hombre who double-crossed him.Basically, his partner and he had a contract with some miners in Lost Creek, Texas, to deliver 50 mail-order brides. Since his partner double-crossed him, the villain has sold the women to another outlaw who resides in a massive fortress in Mexico. Our hero blows up his ex-partner and has a goat herder point his horse in the direction of Mexico and off he gallops to get the girls. "Blindman" is an unforgettable western, and director Ferdinando Baldi does not squander a second in this trim 83-minute saga. Interestingly, former Beatle Ringo Starr plays the villain's brother. The comeuppance that the villain gets is something to see!