"If You Want to Live... Shoot!" is a low-budgeted movie middlingly made by Sergio Garrone . A young cowboy , Johnny , is playing in a rigged poker game and when he is accused as trickster he is forced to shoot one of the other deceitful players . The cowboy takes quick leave , as he is framed of murder and subsequently killed by the two-fisted Stark (Giovanni Cianfriglia or Ken Wood) . A bit later on , there shows up Django (Ivan Rassimov) who is also accused as tricky cardsharp , and he kills contenders and a reward for his capture is posted . Django is pursued , chased and wounded , being healed by the McGowan family , and especially by the young daughter Sally (Isabella Savona) who falls for him . But the powerful baron land Marlowe (Tom Felleghy) wants to take the McGowan's farm to build the railway and orders to General Alvarez (Peter White) to carry out a punishment against them . Django , then , seeks revenge , at the same time being relentlessly pursued by Stark . Django is helped by the shrewd as well as mysterious bounty hunter Donovan (as Rick Garret : Riccardo Garrone) . Valiant Django and earnest , experienced gunslinger Donovan join forces to rescue the poor family from the group's vile clutches . Both of whom arrive to establish law and order against the ruthless Marlowe . As astute Django and Donovan unite to terminate a reign of terror carried out by a brutal band of criminals .
This below-average Ravioli Western packs thrills , go riding , action , brawls , crossfire and drags at times , balancing in ups and downs . The plot summary is plain and simple : a small town is besieged by a brutal band of bandits led by a villain as well as ruthless owner called Marlowe/Tom Felleghy who takes on the famous Pistolero named Django/Ivan Rassimov helped by an elegant bounty hunter , Donovan/Riccardo Garrone , and along the way they free an abducted beautiful girl . As stubborn and cunning Django along with saintly roving gunslinger Donovan take on Marlowe . The movie has the customary Spaghetti characters , as the violent facing , greedy antiheroes , bloody and spectacular showdowns , quick zooms , extreme baddies but being wretchedly directed in some scenes . It packs an enjoyable and attractive musical score by Mancuso and Vasco directed by L. Gori in Morricone/spaghetti style . And an atmospheric cinematography in Eastmancolor by Sergio Mancori , though a perfect remastering is necessary , being shot in Elios studios and El Lazio Rome .
This lowbrow motion picture "If You Want to Live... Shoot!" was regularly filmed by Sergio Garrone and with lots of zooms . Sergio's direction is badly crafted , here he is more inclined toward violence and packs some thrills and action , but especially this exciting Western contains moving shoot'em ups and some gloomy scenes when a family is massacred . Sergio serves as a classic example of a journeyman Italian exploitation filmmaker and freelance screenwriter . As Garrone penned a great number of screenplays and lack-luster films , working from the 60s in all kind of genres and B movies . He directed this embarrassing western , genre in which he would not only excel but one where he would spent much of the rest of his career . Sergio went on to helm several other spaghetti Westerns , many of them Spanish co-productions, that include Tre Croci Per Non Morire (1968) , Quel Maledetto Giorno Della Resa Dei Conti (1971) , Deguello (1966) also starred by Jack Stuart , Huracan Sobre Mexico (1967) and his greatest notoriety was the peculiar outing : Django il Bastardo (1969) . In 1974 Garrone directed the horror features as Le Amanti del Mostro (1974) and La mano Che Nutre la Morte (1974) , both of which performed Klaus Kinski . He made and wrote for everything from inferior sex comedies as La Clinica Dell'Amore (1976) , El Periscopio (1979) by José Ramón Larraz , to even Giallo , mystery thrillers such as : L'ultimo harem , La Pagella , Blonde Köder Kür den Mörder (1969) or Killer's Gold . Later on , Sergio Garrone directed nasty Naziexploitation or Porno-Nazis as Lager SSadis Kastrat Kommandantur (1976) and SS Lager 5: L'inferno Delle Donne (1977). And after writing the violent/erotic WIPs (women-in-prison) : Hell Behind the Bars (1984) and Detenute Violente (1984)
After successful original ¨Django¨ by Sergio Corbucci with Franco Nero , it was followed by several imitations , rip offs and cheesy copies , such as : ¨Pochi dollar per Django¨ or ¨Alambradas De Violencia¨ (1966) by Leon Klimowsky starred by Anthony Steffen , Gloria Osuna , Frank Wolff ; ¨El Mio Nome e Django¨ (1969) by Ferdinando Baldi with Terence Hill , Horst Frank , George Eastman ; ¨Django Le Bastard¨(1969) by Sergio Garrone with Anthony Steffen , Paolo Gozlino ; ¨¨Django defies Sartana¨(1969) by Pasquale Squitieri with George Ardisson and Tony Kendall ; ¨Ein Pressen Fur Django¨ or ¨Barro en Ojos¨(1971) by Edoardo Mulargia with Anthony Steffen ; and the official sequel titled ¨Il Grande Ritorno¨(1987) by Nello Rossati with Franco Nero , Christopher Connolly and Donald Pleasence .
