Kill the Wicked! is a goth Spaghetti Western is a low budget film with a cast of mostly unknowns. It starts of rather slow but is worth the wait as it builds to a tense and violent ending. The Gothic set design of its ghost town is akin to something Mario Bava or Roger Corman would’ve put in a horror film in the 60s. The eerie score by Angelo Francesco Lavagnino is also adds a very unique element that differs from the usual Ennio Morricone-style scores of the genre.
The story begins as the outlaw Braddock is to be hanged in the town for his crimes, but his comrades rescue him from execution. The gang hides out at an abandoned fort to rendezvous with Braddock’s girlfriend Shelley. Randall is injured during a heist and left for dead. Lester, Braddock, and Shelley then hole up in a ghost town with their treasure.
A drifter Ben comes upon a stranded woman, Judy, and lends her a hand. Meanwhile, Braddock discovers a mysterious old woman Molly living in the ghost town just as Ben and Judy arrive. Not believing their backstories, the gang interrogates the pair.
While everyone else goes off to confirm the truth of Judy’s story about a crashed wagon, Lester stays behind to torture Ben. Ben manages to turn the tables and escape Lester’s captivity. The posse returns from their investigation to see Lester tied up. A shootout ensues, leaving the sand much bloodier than it had been.
The original Italian title “Dio Non Paga il Sabato” (God does not pay on Saturday) is an Italian saying, referring to the old custom of paying wages on Saturday night. The idea behind it is that God is not committed to any earthly habit, but will sooner or later pass his judgment on all mortal souls. The Ghost town in the movie can interpreted as the catholic limbo, the flames of the final scene representing hellfire.
