When someone mentions Italian westerns what usually springs to mind are the classic “spaghetti” westerns of the 20th century, typified by the likes of Sergio Leone, Clint Eastwood, and a whistling Morricone soundtrack. Heads or Tails? is a new Italian western from directors Alessio Rigo De Righi and Matteo Zoppis. It eschews the traditional setting of the genre in favour of fin de siècle Italy, swapping out dust and deserts for mud and swamps. It juggles with multiple genres and influences within its western framework. At its core it plays in the gaps between fact and fiction. John Ford’s seminal The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) famously claimed that ‘when the legend becomes fact, print the legend’. Head or Tails? plays beautifully in the liminal space between the two.

A case in point: there is a factual accuracy to the film’s basic set-up, in which former soldier and showman William “Buffalo Bill” Cody tours his famous “Wild West” performing show to Italy, regaling the locals with exaggerated stories of buffalo hunting, conflicts with Native Americans, and the American frontier. Cody genuinely toured Italy in 1890 and 1906 – including Rome, Milan, and Venice – and this historical foundation is used to spin out a fictional story.

Here Cody (an ebullient John C. Reilly) has been hired to perform for the aristocrat Ercole Rupè (Mirko Artuso), a cruel man who is particularly so with his young wife Rosa (Nadia Tereszkiewicz). Rupè challenges Cody to a bet – whose cowhands are more adept at breaking horses – but secretly puts his money on the Americans to win, and orders his chief cowhand Santino (Alessandro Borghi) to throw the contest. Santino refuses, Rupè threatens to kill him, and Rosa unexpectedly shoots Rupè herself. Santino and Rosa escape into the Italian wilderness, while Rupè’s father (spaghetti western icon Gianni Garko) pays Cody to bring them back to justice.

It is worth noting John C. Reilly is the draw here, not the focus. Anybody expecting him to dominate the action will come away sorely disappointed. While he is absolutely a highlight, this is Rosa and Santino’s – and ultimately Rosa’s story. Key to how their journey develops is the fact that, despite Rosa killing her husband, it is Santino who has been blamed for it. He becomes a wanted criminal with a bounty on his head, and even a figurehead for a working class revolt, but in truth this peaceful cowhand never killed anyone. The shift from truth to legend dominates the film, and is personified throughout by the famously fictionalised Bill Cody.

It is ultimately Rosa’s story, and French actor Nadia Tereszkiewicz is fantastic in the role. She is presented with a growing resolve and inner strength, and transitions believably from being a victim, to a partner-in-crime, to a hero.

Heads or Tails? has a wonderfully loose relationship with genre. It is clearly attached to the western, but it is tied with a loose rope; scene reflect romance, drama, and even magical realism as the story goes on. It is presented through a beautifully mottled light, made realistic through a coating of mud and sweat. The rural setting – shot mostly in Tuscany – is strikingly different to what western fans typically expect. It still references the spaghetti western quite generously, in both the manner in which it has been shot, and the way that Vittorio Giampietro’s musical score riffs on decidedly Morricone-esque themes.

Heads or Tails? was released in Italy in 2025, and has just made its debut in American cinemas this weekend. Check your local theatres for availability.