"Si può fare... amigo" or "Der Dicke in Mexiko" or "It Can Be Done Amigo" is a co-production between Italy, France and Spain from 1972, so this film is really close to its 50th anniversary now and unless you show up in the coming weeks and months here, perhaps it happened already. Even if there are other production countries involved, the inclusion of lead actor Bud Spencer shows you here that this is a film in the Italian language in the original. The director is Maurizio Lucidi and he is not a name you usually associate with Bud Spencer, but then again Spencer is not really too known anymore today for his western movies, even if the comedic tough here is also undeniable. Lucidi was pretty prolific nonetheless, also in other areas than direction. Here and there, for example he also wrote screenplays, but not this time. Instead they gut Ernesto Gastaldi and Rafael Azcona. Gastaldi is still alive today apparently and getting closer to 90 and he wrote way over 100 screenplays in his career. Azcona also managed to get past this crucial mark. So I am sure that film buffs in Italy will still recognize the names of this trio maybe. As for the cast, I already mentioned Spencer. And you can see from the poster how popular he was back then already, even if it was before his breakthrough next to Terence Hill. Also you can see from the German title that they promoted the film heavily with Spencer. He's the man. Alwys has been, always will be. May he rest in peace.
Anyway, the Italian title also has these ... and this is something they did with several Spencer films in the original title, not sure if with many other Italian films as well. The English-language title sounds a bit clumsy though and the only thing really telling there is the Hispanic background from the word "Amigo". The film is set in Mexico of course, but you can see that America is not exactly what they were focusing on, even if there were so many other English titles for this one here and also the one I mentioned is not the only one for Germany. Another one would be "Halleluja... Amigo" and there's more in German. As for the cast, Jack Palance also deserves a mention here for sure. At that point, he was already an Oscar nominee, but not yet a winner. This happened twenty years later, roughly also the same time span as between 1972 and his first nominations. It's a bit difficult to put into perspective, but maybe knowing that this film happened less than three decades after the end of WWII is something that gives you an ounce of how old this film already is. The western genre was also slowly dying back then. Anyway, this film here is of course in color, which was not a given for 1972, but still very often the case. I cannot really elaborate a lot on the rest of the cast here. Maybe some Italians with a soft spot for old films can, but Sal Borgese is of course an actor who is always easy to identify because he has been in several Spencer films. And Pizzuti is also on board once again. May these two, both in their 80s now, still live on for a few years hopefully. I like them, no point in denying.
As for the film itself, I already stated that I felt it got worse in the second half. maybe without Spencer on board I would not have given it three stars out of five, so perhaps people who like the man less than I do, will have a more difficult time to appreciate this film. But for me he is always fun. Although, even if this is a western, they did all they could to keep it as family-friendly as possible. The scene in which we have one character die after he sends Spencer's character Coburn on a mission was maybe the funniest of the entire film with how the dying kept opening his eyes after Coburn closed them already. That was almost dark comedy and I loved it. So yeah, this was one of the most serious moments of the film, but they treated it really lightly. Same applies to all the gun action in here. Yes, bullets are fired, but nobody is really shot and killed. Most of the time they fire shots to open belts and have pants fall down or to strike other guns with the bullet and make dangerous situations go away. So it is a film that also younger audiences can check iut if they want, especially because one of the key characters is a little boy. Nothing new for Spencer. He was with little Asian and African boys as Rizzo and even with an alien kid on two other occasions, but the one he has here is very human looks like a slightly rougher version of Little Lord Fauntleroy you could say. And with kids, Spencer's character always has a good conenction. Like here he even says on one occasion that he will not take it if somebody abuses children or so.
Jack Palance I also have to mention. I like Buddy, but Palance was almost a scene stealer in here. His performance here made me curious about other movies that has has appeared in. May he rest in peace too and it is a bit unusual that a character is at least slightly on par with Spencer's character in films like this. Hill did it and here Palance as well. he cannot just be a thug. Too big of an actor for that. He even saves Coburn's life on at least one occasion because he needs him alive to marry his sister that he assumes was romantic involved with Coburn. And the latter is also ready to get shot by Palance's character after the wedding. But then a smart move from the kids gets in the way and saves the man's life. Oh and one thing pretty unusual for this film here was also that Spencer was wearing glasses on several occasions. The explanation why he did was also interesting from a fight tactics perspective and something you do not really hear in his other movies. They are more about knocking out the bad guys, but here we get a little bit of insight in terms of why he does what he does. Interesting. One scene I also found funny here, or just a quick moment, was when we find out how the protagonist is struggling when it comes to dancing because of his big feet. Kinda cute. I feel you. The camera work I also liked with this film. It is not an all-time great western or anything, for that the overall plot was simply too weak, but I think they still did a lot right this time, such as the sceneries, the costumes, the sets, the make-up etc. Another reason why this movie deserves a thumbs-up, even if it is not an utterly enthusiastic one. Oh and horse lovers will also have a nice time here. Some really beautiful and stunning studs and mares to see here. I mean okay, this is a western, so you won't be surprised, but still it can be said and should not be taken as a given.
At 85 minutes, this is definitely among the shortest Bud Spencer films out there and still he has a bit of a romance story here, okay he keeps running from it, but still. Otherwise, these stories usually belong to Terence Hill's characters, but, as I stated earlier, that one is not yet here, so Spencer's character has to deal with these unwanted affections this time and he sure does not seem to be in the mood, completely aside from the fact that they could cost him his life. But of course he is not killed here. I mean it's a Bud Spencer film. Of course he survives in the end and I am not even surprised when he and Palance are in the end almost buddies with some hate-love relationship. Okay, "love" is too much, but still, they respect each other at least and know what they are capable of. I mean look at the scene when Palance's character ends up in the dirt and seeing his injury there and how it gets treated may be a bit on the harsh side for sure. Some nice and interesting characters in here for sure and the only one with more than one scene of screen time that did not really do anything for me was the old fella with the wild hair and beard. He caould have been omitted for all I care, but it's okay. No need to stay beyond 80 minutes as well, even if I would not have minded. This is enough now I think. I give "Si può fare... amigo" a positive recommendation, although it is certainly not the best choice if you haven't seen any other Spencer films yet. It's not one of his trademark films, so go for the others first unless western is your favorte genre and/or you really like Jack Palance. I wouldn't blame you. I am still surprised how many reviews we have for this one compared to the number of ratings. It must be because of Palance or because it is a western movie.
Anyway, the Italian title also has these ... and this is something they did with several Spencer films in the original title, not sure if with many other Italian films as well. The English-language title sounds a bit clumsy though and the only thing really telling there is the Hispanic background from the word "Amigo". The film is set in Mexico of course, but you can see that America is not exactly what they were focusing on, even if there were so many other English titles for this one here and also the one I mentioned is not the only one for Germany. Another one would be "Halleluja... Amigo" and there's more in German. As for the cast, Jack Palance also deserves a mention here for sure. At that point, he was already an Oscar nominee, but not yet a winner. This happened twenty years later, roughly also the same time span as between 1972 and his first nominations. It's a bit difficult to put into perspective, but maybe knowing that this film happened less than three decades after the end of WWII is something that gives you an ounce of how old this film already is. The western genre was also slowly dying back then. Anyway, this film here is of course in color, which was not a given for 1972, but still very often the case. I cannot really elaborate a lot on the rest of the cast here. Maybe some Italians with a soft spot for old films can, but Sal Borgese is of course an actor who is always easy to identify because he has been in several Spencer films. And Pizzuti is also on board once again. May these two, both in their 80s now, still live on for a few years hopefully. I like them, no point in denying.
As for the film itself, I already stated that I felt it got worse in the second half. maybe without Spencer on board I would not have given it three stars out of five, so perhaps people who like the man less than I do, will have a more difficult time to appreciate this film. But for me he is always fun. Although, even if this is a western, they did all they could to keep it as family-friendly as possible. The scene in which we have one character die after he sends Spencer's character Coburn on a mission was maybe the funniest of the entire film with how the dying kept opening his eyes after Coburn closed them already. That was almost dark comedy and I loved it. So yeah, this was one of the most serious moments of the film, but they treated it really lightly. Same applies to all the gun action in here. Yes, bullets are fired, but nobody is really shot and killed. Most of the time they fire shots to open belts and have pants fall down or to strike other guns with the bullet and make dangerous situations go away. So it is a film that also younger audiences can check iut if they want, especially because one of the key characters is a little boy. Nothing new for Spencer. He was with little Asian and African boys as Rizzo and even with an alien kid on two other occasions, but the one he has here is very human looks like a slightly rougher version of Little Lord Fauntleroy you could say. And with kids, Spencer's character always has a good conenction. Like here he even says on one occasion that he will not take it if somebody abuses children or so.
Jack Palance I also have to mention. I like Buddy, but Palance was almost a scene stealer in here. His performance here made me curious about other movies that has has appeared in. May he rest in peace too and it is a bit unusual that a character is at least slightly on par with Spencer's character in films like this. Hill did it and here Palance as well. he cannot just be a thug. Too big of an actor for that. He even saves Coburn's life on at least one occasion because he needs him alive to marry his sister that he assumes was romantic involved with Coburn. And the latter is also ready to get shot by Palance's character after the wedding. But then a smart move from the kids gets in the way and saves the man's life. Oh and one thing pretty unusual for this film here was also that Spencer was wearing glasses on several occasions. The explanation why he did was also interesting from a fight tactics perspective and something you do not really hear in his other movies. They are more about knocking out the bad guys, but here we get a little bit of insight in terms of why he does what he does. Interesting. One scene I also found funny here, or just a quick moment, was when we find out how the protagonist is struggling when it comes to dancing because of his big feet. Kinda cute. I feel you. The camera work I also liked with this film. It is not an all-time great western or anything, for that the overall plot was simply too weak, but I think they still did a lot right this time, such as the sceneries, the costumes, the sets, the make-up etc. Another reason why this movie deserves a thumbs-up, even if it is not an utterly enthusiastic one. Oh and horse lovers will also have a nice time here. Some really beautiful and stunning studs and mares to see here. I mean okay, this is a western, so you won't be surprised, but still it can be said and should not be taken as a given.
At 85 minutes, this is definitely among the shortest Bud Spencer films out there and still he has a bit of a romance story here, okay he keeps running from it, but still. Otherwise, these stories usually belong to Terence Hill's characters, but, as I stated earlier, that one is not yet here, so Spencer's character has to deal with these unwanted affections this time and he sure does not seem to be in the mood, completely aside from the fact that they could cost him his life. But of course he is not killed here. I mean it's a Bud Spencer film. Of course he survives in the end and I am not even surprised when he and Palance are in the end almost buddies with some hate-love relationship. Okay, "love" is too much, but still, they respect each other at least and know what they are capable of. I mean look at the scene when Palance's character ends up in the dirt and seeing his injury there and how it gets treated may be a bit on the harsh side for sure. Some nice and interesting characters in here for sure and the only one with more than one scene of screen time that did not really do anything for me was the old fella with the wild hair and beard. He caould have been omitted for all I care, but it's okay. No need to stay beyond 80 minutes as well, even if I would not have minded. This is enough now I think. I give "Si può fare... amigo" a positive recommendation, although it is certainly not the best choice if you haven't seen any other Spencer films yet. It's not one of his trademark films, so go for the others first unless western is your favorte genre and/or you really like Jack Palance. I wouldn't blame you. I am still surprised how many reviews we have for this one compared to the number of ratings. It must be because of Palance or because it is a western movie.