So-so Paella Western about confrontation between the stagecoach passengers and Indians led by the famous Apache chief Geronimo . This thrilling Tortilla Western packs zooms , thrills , shootouts , go riding , noisy action , chases and Indian attacks . A group of stagecoach passengers (the stiff judge Jesús Puente , his fiancée Nuria Torray , Pastor Serrador, Julio Pérez Tabernero) are attacked by Indians and all of them take refuge at a rest stop . The stagecoach arrives in a wagon station that has come under Indian attack , it is an old , puny fort in ruins , they find out it has been attacked by natives and, subsequently, there are several casualties all around due to the Apache assaults . The judge (Jesús Puente) meets the station master (Frank Latimore) who results to be the man once judged and condemned , and the latter seeks revenge . The wagon is also carrying a large sum of money, and some crooks (Mariano Vidal Molina) use their shrewdness in order to take the cash . All the while the Indians have a very strong reason for wanting one of the passengers, he mistakenly murdered a chief of some friendly Indians. The Indians led by Geronimo attack on and on the wagon train station that is used as a sanctuary by a stagecoach while taking refuge at a scrawny fort .
A routine Gazpacho Western with assaults , treason , go riding , shootouts and drags at times , balancing in ups and downs . The plot summary is plain and simple : a stagecoach is attacked by Apache Indians and then they take shelter at a station , being besieged by the known leader Geronimo . It's a low budget film with ordinary actors , technicians, passable production values and middling results . This moving Tortilla Western blends decent action scenes , shootouts , stirring Indian charges , evocative cinematography and many other things ; all meld together under Jose Maria Elorrieta's mediocre direction . Although the story has been told before , ordinary filmmaking and so-so acting win out , but it results in an acceptable Western adventure flick . It is a combination of overwhelming crossfires and full of villainy , romance , fights and heroism . This is one of the few Chorizo Westerns in which appear Indians , including Apache Chief Geronimo , using Spanish people as extras and stunts . Fair Gazpacho Western with a professional Spanish filmmaker , B-actors , a lot of Spanish secondaries and expert technicians . All in all , this film is predominantly a Spanish film rather than an Italian one . It's a utterly Spanish Western , though by that time to be ordinary Spanish/Italian co-productions in which were clearly dominated by the Italian contingent and the traditional leanings of the Spanish producers of the time have their stamp on the entire proceedings . The Spanish westerns of this era were far more likely to try and emulate their American source material than cultivate a distinctive style of their own the way the Italians were doing but their product , if you like traditional westerns remains watchable . Customary Western that doesn't follows the Sergio Leone wake , but it is proceeded in American models . It's an exciting western with overwhelming shootouts and facing off between the really sieged people and violent Indians . This picture bears remarkable resemblance to ¨Fuerte Perdido¨or ¨Massacre at Fort Grant" or "Doomed Fort" or "Massacre at Fort Perdition" shot at the same time in 1964 with similar director , actors and scenarios . Passable acting by the American Frank Latimore who starred some Westerns , as Spanish as Italian ones , such as ; ¨Charge of Canadian Mounted Police¨, ¨Los Cuatreros¨, ¨Zorro¨ and ¨Vendetta of Zorro¨ by Joaquin Roméro Marchent . Furthermore , Jorge Martin who played a lot of Paella/Chorizo or Tortilla Western filmed in Spain and Jesús Puente , a regular and notorious secondary player . Producer and director took advantage of the atmospheric exteriors from Seseña , Toledo , Colmenar Viejo and Manzanares Del Real , Aranjuez , Madrid and shooting a hastily assembled passable picture . In the movie appears usual support actors of the sixties such as : Mariano Vidal Molina , Aldo Sambrell , Julio Perez Tabernero , Guillermo Méndez , José Sancho , Rafael Albaicín , Frank Braña , Pastor Serrador , Alfonso De La Vega ; all of them performed a great number of Spaghetti/Paella Western .
This is a good-natured Eastmancolor romp with atmospheric cinematography from Alfonso Nieva , though a perfect remastering being necessary because of the film copy is washed-out ; in addition an evocative musical score by Fernando Garcia Morcillo . This "El Hombre de la Diligencia" was middlingly directed by José Maria Elorrieta , a hard-working craftsman who had already filmed other Westerns and adventures . He was a writer and director , especially known for Rosa De Lima (1961), Muchachas En Vacaciones (1958) , and made many other films until his early death at 53 . Spanish writer/filmmaker Jose Maria Elorrieta so consistently mixed the good with the mediocre that it became quite impossible to know what to expect from him next . As Elorrieta had prolific career , working from the 40s to 70s he directed all kind of genres such as Terror : ¨Escalofrío Diabólico¨, ¨La LLamada Del Vampiro¨, ¨El Espectro del Terror¨, ¨Las Amantes Del Diablo¨; Western : ¨Los Siete De Pancho Villa¨, "If You Shoot... You Live!", ¨Hombre De La Diligencia¨ , and adventures as ¨La Muchacha Del Nilo¨, ¨Conquistadores Del Pacifico¨, El Tesoro De Makuba¨, ¨La Esclava Del Paraíso¨ and ¨Hawk of Castile¨. Rating : 5 , mediocre Western movie , entertaining stuff that provides audience amusement . Enjoyable but ordinary production packs enough breathtaking fights , tempestuous romance and exciting situations for a good time . It will appeal to Eurotrash fans and Western movies aficionados .
