After the success of the two previous Winnetou movies, completing the trilogy was inevitable and a commercial must, but part 3 was facing a difficult task nonetheless: the audience knew from the novels that Winnetou would die - could that mean the end of the Karl May series or would the screenplay change the story so radically as to let the hero survive? The makers came to the perfect solution: let him die, but regardlessly continue the series afterwards, anyway. It was the least they could do for the novel which was hardly used because obviously it was not very film-able, considering that after Winnetou's death, it continues for another 126 pages with Old Shatterhand's further adventures. I don't think the movie is remembered for much else than the death sequence, though, because the story is too simple: Winnetou and Old Shatterhand ask the governor for help to keep peace, while a villain tries to start war with the Indians. It is an excellent piece of craftsmanship under director Reinl, who really managed to create a style that was distinguishable from all other westerns. But "Silver Lake" and "Winnetou 1" were not exceeded by "Winnetou 3" anymore.
Review of Winnetou: The Last Shot
