‘Heads or Tails?’ Review: Delightfully Madcap Euro-Western Serves Up Spaghetti With a Lot of Sauce

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In a refreshingly strange take on the classic western genre, “Heads or Tails?” presents a lawless and senseless landscape of the Continental plains and sierras that seems tame in comparison to the Wild West. This unique European western, directed by the Italian duo Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppis, follows a rogue cowboy outlaw, a brave widow with a penchant for pistols, and none other than Buffalo Bill Cody himself, all causing chaos in a dusty region of Italy. Despite the familiar cast of characters that may remind you of traditional westerns or even spaghetti westerns from the Leone era, this exceptional film quickly veers into the eccentric and eventually into surrealism.

At this year’s Cannes Film Festival, the title “Heads or Tails?” – which debuted in the Un Certain Regard section – is known for its unconventional and whimsical nature. This new work is even more playful compared to De Righi and Zoppis’ 2021 festival hit, “The Tale of King Crab,” which was already quite lively. The previous film, an elegantly rustic fable, utilized their documentary background by gathering regional folklore and transforming it into a fantastical cinematic narrative. Their latest work maintains this fascination with the unpredictable nature of folktales, incorporating a storytelling device where events on screen are portrayed as narrated by Cody to a tenacious personal secretary. John C. Reilly, who plays Cody, brings brashness and bluster to his performance – an excellent casting choice that should attract distributors for this bilingual Italo-American production. The character of the historic showman is depicted in this film as an unreliable narrator.

At the turn of the 20th century, an American legend ventured beyond his frontier homeland, taking his renowned traveling rodeo show across Europe. This was a departure from the typical spaghetti-western setting, instead portraying landscapes other than the American desert. The narrative is ignited by a true event, where Cody’s team faced a challenge from a group of Italian cattle herders known as butteri. In a duel of sorts, the Italians proved victorious, with their leader, Augusto Imperioli, gaining local fame and recognition.

In the movie’s narrative, Imperioli transforms into Santino (played by Alessandro Borghi from “The Eight Mountains”), a self-assured and seemingly brainless cowhand who emerges victorious in the competition, securing a substantial winnings for the gambling Italian aristocrat Rupè (Mirko Artuso), who had bet on the home team. Simultaneously, Santino captures the longing gaze of Rupè’s young wife Rosa (Nadia Tereszkiewicz, an up-and-coming French actress), who is yearning for escape from her abusive trophy marriage. Before long, a single gunshot rings out, claiming Rupè’s life while Rosa and Santino vanish into the wilderness, with a significant bounty on Santino’s head. Not one to miss an opportunity, Cody switches allegiances, becoming a bounty hunter in hot pursuit of his former ally.

In this setting, the movie explores the theme of creating legends through its narrative, as Santino takes on his unexpected role as an outlaw and a class revolutionary, despite not genuinely being responsible for the crime. A lively musical segment where he brags about his false reputation is one of many instances where music is skillfully integrated into the storytelling fabric, enhanced by Vittorio Giampietro’s raw and innocent guitar melodies. Reilly, never shy to demonstrate his musical talents, even adds original songs to the mix. Through this collision of overinflated male egos mythologizing themselves, it’s Rosa who displays the most courage, although she receives little recognition. As usual, this has been the case.

In the movie, Reilly humorously portrays Cody as an exaggeratedly poetic braggart, but it’s Tereszkiewicz and Borghi who take on the main roles, playing runaway lovers who are mostly tied together by a fleeting, fateful impulse. They both fit perfectly into their character types – Borghi, with his piercing sky-blue glare and sandy beard, seems destined to star in at least one Italian western in his career. However, their performances challenge the stereotypes of their roles. Borghi’s cowboy is more about bluster and faltering resolve, while Tereszkiewicz portrays Rosa as neither a feisty woman nor a damsel in distress. Instead, she’s tense and reserved, even when she shoots a man’s testicles with chilling accuracy.

Rosa’s calm composure sets her apart from other characters, making her well-suited for an unexpectedly chaotic climax that transforms the story from a simple folk tale to a mature fairy tale. In this new version, standard rules of life, death, and logic no longer hold true. This journey into more fantastical realms leaves behind the usual human interactions found in western narratives, which might provoke varying reactions among viewers.

However, “Heads or Tails?” impresses by maintaining a consistent, sun-scorched atmosphere throughout its narrative. Cinematographer Simone D’Arcangelo skillfully captures the raw beauty of the film’s actual locations and the rugged severity reminiscent of Sergio Leone’s landscapes that inspired directors de Righi and Zoppis. The cinematography also evokes the rosy, vibrant sunsets typical of classic Hollywood westerns, without portraying any traditional heroes to gallop into them.

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2025-06-04 12:16