Half-breed Keoma returns to his border hometown after service in the Civil War and finds it under the control of Caldwell, an ex-Confederate raider, and his vicious gang of thugs. To make matters worse, Keoma's three half-brothers have joined forces with Caldwell, and make it painfully clear that his return is an unwelcome one. Determined to break Caldwell and his brothers' grip on the town, Keoma partners with his father's former ranch hand to exact violent revenge.
Direction
Castellari's zoom-heavy style births operatic carnage.
Score
Golan and Sanguinetti's haunting ballad never shuts up—and shouldn't.
Cinematography
Every frame looks like it survived a sandstorm.
Director
Enzo G. Castellari
Franco Nero
Keoma
William Berger
William John Shannon
Olga Karlatos
Liza Farrow
Orso Maria Guerrini
Butch Shannon
Gabriella Giacobbe
The Witch
Antonio Marsina
Lenny Shannon
Joshua Sinclair
Sam Shannon
Donald O'Brien
Caldwell
Leonardo Scavino
Doctor
Wolfango Soldati
Wolf
Victoria Zinny
Saloon Hooker
Alfio Caltabiano
Clay
Woody Strode
George
Roberto Dell'Acqua
Jeff (uncredited)
Riccardo Pizzuti
Slade (uncredited)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The film was shot in just eight weeks with a skeleton crew, and Nero performed most of his own stunts while recovering from a leg injury.
Keoma arrived at spaghetti western's funeral in 1976, deliberately aping Peckinpah's slow-motion brutality while adding Italian baroque excess.
IT
