Run, Man, Run!

Sergio Sollima's final Western is a sequel to The Big Gundown (1966). Tomas Milian's Cuchilio returns in Run, Man, Run! (1968), more lighthearted than its predecessor but no less entertaining.

Cuchilio (Tomas Milian) rescues revolutionary poet Ramirez (Jose Torres) from a Mexican jail. After bandits murder Ramirez, Cuchilio is entrusted to recover a Juarista gold stash in a Texas border town. A complicated race for the gold ensues, with government agents, Mexican bandits and a Salvation Army worker (Linda Veras) all vying for the money. To thwart his opponents, Cuchilio forms an alliance with Cassidy (Donald O'Brien), an American bounty hunter with his own agenda.

Run, Man, Run! loosely recalls The Good, the Bad and the Ugly with its convoluted treasure hunt and double-crossing anti-heroes. Sollima exchanges Gundown's politically-freighted seriousness for broad comedy. Cuchilio is both the progenitor and butt of jokes, whether pulling knives from his hair or having dynamite stuffed in his mouth. The subplot with Cuchilio's nagging fiancee (Chelo Alonso) proves more tiresome. Sollima's revolutionary setting mostly provides a colorful backdrop, akin to Sergio Corbucchi's A Professional Gun and Companeros.

But Run, Man, Run! never descends to They Call Me Trinity levels of silliness. The plot functions in time-honored Spaghetti fashion, each character forming alliances only to renege when convenient. Sollima stages handsome action scenes, from a horse chase in the mountains to the climactic nighttime showdown. With its lean narrative and surfeit of shootouts, Run, Man Run! is extremely entertaining.

Tomas Milian makes a much different Cuchilio here. No longer the crafty fugitive, he's now a lovable scamp with a heart. Stoic Donald O'Brien provides serviceable contrast. Linda Veras is amusingly prudish but Chelo Alonso's sultry whining proves annoying. Among the rogue's gallery of villains: Marco Gugliemi and Licnao Rossi as French mercenaries, Nello Pazafini as a bellowing bandit chief and Gianni Rizzo as Veras's slimy father. John Ireland puts in a brief cameo.

Run, Man, Run! may lack the complexity of Sollima's usual work but it's a fun ride all the same. Sometimes Western need only be light entertainment, and this Spaghetti hits the spot.