A bounty hunter is recruited by some revolutionaries to stage a raid on a gold reserve, which is heavily guarded by the Mexican forces of General Maximillian. Second in the Sabata series, preceeded by Sabata (original Italian title: Ehi amico... c'è Sabata, hai chiuso!, 1970) and followed by Return of Sabata (original Italian title: È tornato Sabata... hai chiuso un'altra volta, 1971), Adios, Sabata (1971) features Yul Brynner in the title role, filling in for Lee Van Cleef, the original star of the series. It would be the only 'spaghetti Western' Brynner would make and it clearly quotes from his previous role as gunslinger Chris Adams in The Magnificent Seven (1960), right down to his all-black outfit. However, the fringe decorated bell-bottom pants are a new, somewhat anachronistic addition.

Originally conceived by director Gianfranco Parolini (credited as Frank Kramer) as a Western adventure tale featuring a character named "Indio Black," the film's title was changed to the English Adios, Sabata after the first film became an international box office success. Part of the film's curiosity value comes from its unusual cast. Nieves Navarro (aka Susan Scott) had already made her mark in 'spaghetti Westerns' starting with A Pistol for Ringo (1965) and would go on to become a popular Italian exploitation star in such films as Trap Them and Kill Them (1977) and Voodoo Baby (1980).

Even more interesting is Dean Reed who plays Sabata's sidekick. Dean was an early Sixties pop singer from the U.S. who defected to Russia in 1969 in protest over America's involvement in the Vietnam War. The singer previously had a successful singing career in South America but was deported from Argentina in 1966 and ended up in Rome where he made several Spaghetti Westerns. According to Thomas Weisser in his book, Spaghetti Westerns - the Good, the Bad, and the Violent, "in a 1985 Entertainment Tonight interview, he (Reed) boasted of 'acting in 18 movies and making 13 record albums for the Communist Bloc nations,' but expressed a desire to return to the United States, saying, 'I fear of growing old in a country that's not mine.' Six months later, Dean Reed was found dead 'under mysterious circumstances' in a lake on his East German estate.

Producer: Alberto Grimaldi
Director: Gianfranco Parolini (as Frank Kramer)
Screenplay: Renato Izzo, Gianfranco Parolini
Production Design: Claudio De Santis
Cinematography: Sandro Mancori
Costume Design: Claudio De Santis
Film Editing: Gianfranco Parolini (uncredited)
Original Music: Bruno Nicolai
Cast: Yul Brynner (Sabata), Dean Reed (Ballantine), Ignazio Spalla (Escudo, as Pedro Sanchez), Gérard Herter (Skimmel), Sal Borgese (September).
C-104m. Letterboxed.

by Richard Steiner