El Chuncho

'A Bullet For The General' is my favourite non-Sergio Leone spaghetti western. It actually has some connection with Leone as it was directed by Damiano Damiani, who Leone later co-directed 'A Genius, Two Friends and an Idiot' with, and stars Gian Maria Volonte who fans will recognize from 'A Fistful Of Dollars' and 'For A Few Dollars More'. On top of that the legendary Klaus Kinski, who was also in 'For A Few Dollars more' (as well as many other spaghetti westerns) plays Volonte's brother. One thing I should point out is that despite Kinski getting second billing, and having his photo alone splashed all over the cover of the video I watched, he's not in the movie all that much, so be warned. Volonte's REAL co-star is Lou Castel, best known to me from his work in 'Orgasmo' and 'Killer Nun'. Castel plays "Gringo" a mysterious American who ingratiates himself into a gang of bandits led by El Chuncho (Volonte) after a train robbery. El Chuncho takes an immediate liking to Gringo and they joins forces, selling weapons to Mexican revolutionaries. Volonte and Castel make a terrific duo, as good as Eastwood and Wallach in 'The Good, The Bad and The Ugly'. Klaus Kinski as I say has little screen time, but is always a pleasure to watch, and plays an unusual role for him, the saintly El Santo. Added to that is the presence of the stunning Martine Beswicke ('One Million Years BC', 'Dr Jekyll And Sister Hyde'), one of the most beautiful actresses of all time. Boy, do I never get tired of looking at her! 'A Bullet For The General' works as exciting entertainment, but the relationship between the two main characters is interesting, and the atmospheric background of the Mexican Revolution (this is two years before 'The Wild Bunch' remember) makes this recommended viewing. Finally, the ending is a killer, and El Chuncho's parting lines are unforgettable. If you've seen Leone's best westerns and 'The Wild Bunch' put 'A Bullet For The General' right at the top of your "to see" list. You won't regret it.

The movie centers a Yankee (Lou Castel) who joins forces with an outlaw band (whose leader is Chuncho well played by Gian Mª Volonte and his hoodlum performed by Klaus Kinski) during the Mexican revolutionary war by time of the President of Mexico Velustiano Carranza , following the overthrow of the Victoriano Huerta's dictatorial regime in the summer of 1914 . The gang allows him to join them to sell weapons to Mexican revolutionaries ignoring he is double-crossing the band , as he is a traitor working for dark forces .

It's a magnificent western film with dazzling shootouts between the protagonists and the contenders . The spotlights of the movie result to be the confrontation on the train and the final duel . There is a special remembrance to Sergio Leone's western , because appearing : Volonte , Kinski and Aldo Sambrell who often played the master's Spaghetti films . This picture belongs to a numerous group in which is set during Mexican revolution , called ¨Zapata Western¨ , such as the Italian films : ¨Compañeros¨ , ¨The mercenary¨ , ¨Tetepa¨ and the American movies : ¨The wild bunch¨ and ¨The professionals¨ . The picture blends crossfire , violence , blood , western action and it's fast movement and that's why it is entertaining enough ; besides , there is a thoughtful dialog with a clever writing in leftist trending by Franco Solinas , screenwriter of a notorious film : ¨The battle of Algiers¨ . Colorful cinematography by Antonio Secchi , shot on location in Almeria (Spain) , as usual , and Cortijo De Frailes, Cabo De Gata , San Jose , and Guadix , Granada, Andalucía . Enjoyable musical score in Spaghetti style by Luis Enrique Bacalov , author of ¨The Postino and Pablo Neruda¨ which won an Oscar for the soundtrack and he composed lots of Spaghetti Western scores .

The motion picture was well directed by Damiano Damiani . Damiani's nice direction is well crafted , here he's mostly cynical and inclined towards violence and too much action especially on its ending part . Damiano is an expert on all kinds of genres as Drama such as ¨Arthur's island¨ , ¨The Most Beautiful Wife" , ¨The witch¨ , ¨Empty canvas¨ based on the Alberto Moravia novel ; Terror as ¨Amytiville 2 : the possession¨ and Historical as ¨The Inquiry¨ . Damiani was specialized on crime-thriller-Subgenre or Italian cop thriller as ¨Confessions of a Police captain¨ , ¨How to kill a judge¨ and ¨The case is closed , forget it¨, and Spaghetti Western as ¨Trinity is back again¨ with Terence Hill and this prestigious ¨A bullet for the General¨ . Rating : Good . Well worth seeing .

I have to admit I'm not the biggest fan of the political spaghettis revolving around the Mexican revolution that came out during the late 60's. It was a trend that coincided with the general left-ist sentiment that prevailed in Italy at that time and gave directors like Sollima and Damiani in this case a perfect opportunity to speak their views. However I'm a sucker for a good spaghetti western.

A Bullet for the General starts out fantastic with a train hold up by the Mexican bandit El Chucho (Gian Maria Volonte). The whole setting and the moral dilemma the captain of the train faces is just right on the money. For the next hour though the movie takes a sudden downturn in quality. There's plenty of shooting action, but it's uninteresting for the most part. We watch El Chucho's gang as they attack different posts to steal arms for a revolutionary general called Elias. There's a running sociopolitical commentary throughout the movie, but what really takes it down a notch is the heavy handed dialogue. The English dubbing is absolutely awful and the translations probably don't do justice to the original material. Some of them are so cringe-worthy that the ideas they're supposed to convey become caricatures.

The good thing is that the second hour is better as it focuses more on character drama and conflict. The last 20 minutes in particular elevate the movie from just OK and are worth the price of admission. The cinematography by Damiani is excellent, the desolate terrain becoming another character in the movie. The performances are solid for the most part, with Volonte stealing every scene he's in as the greasy Mexican bandito with a heart of gold. His change of heart during the end is a joy to behold.

Overall if it weren't for the atrocious dubbing and occasionally silly dialogue, this would be a classic. As far as political spaghettis go, Sollima's Faccia a Faccia is still the undisputed king. In the Mexican revolution-era adventure department, it doesn't top Corbucci's Companeros. However it's still very good as it is, combining bits and pieces from both worlds into an entertaining story. Recommended viewing for fans of the genre.

I first read about this film in a great book about Spaghetti Westerns wherein every Italian western was presented in complete detail. It was a scholarly approach to the genre and has made me a fan for years. Known in the U.S. as A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL, it has a darker mood than Sergio Leone's DOLLAR trilogy and his masterpiece, DUCK, YOU SUCKER! (a.k.a. FISTFUL OF DYNAMITE), more angst ridden than Sergio Corbucci's A PROFESSIONAL GUN (a.k.a. THE MERCENARY) and more bleak than Corbucci's masterpiece, DJANGO (which spawned countless sequels that had nothing to do with the original and the only one worth mentioning is: DJANGO KILL!) which is difficult since the western was awash in a sea of mud that was the stage where the characters ruthlessly slaughtered each other.

I love the Italian approach to westerns because they create an atmosphere where John Wayne is not welcome. If the Duke were to enter their world, he would be shot in the back by some crazed revolutionary/bandit who wouldn't wait for a showdown in the street. Plus the Duke probably wouldn't be fast enough on the draw. A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL has plenty of mood, crazed revolutionaries/bandits, double-crossings, contempt for "gringos" (which makes me wonder about how the Italians think of us--are these films suppose to be "political statements" too?), gun fights and endless desolate landscapes that would make Sam Peckinpah drool with delight. There is no happiness to be found in this film and every fan of Spaghetti westerns would revel in it's excess.

A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL is great on this level and should have multiple viewings (check out Klaus Kinski as the bible thumping revolutionary who spouts credo with gunfire and Lou Castel as the cold-hearted gringo who doesn't drink, smoke, look at women but LOVES money). The only Spaghetti Western regulars missing from this one are: Franco Nero and Lee Van Cleef. Director Damiano Daminani has made a Spaghetti western cult classic in his own right. I want to see his other westerns. See it and you won't be sorry.

In revolutionary Mexico American John Tate hooks up with a band of outlaws lead by Chuncho. They are "collecting" guns for the revolution. Tate, called Nino by his new friends, tags along as they get guns, free the poor and attempt to get paid for their efforts.

Thats wildly simplified and doesn't do the complexity of this film justice. What is going on in the film is often not apparent until you get to the very end of the movie. No one is who they seem to be and everyone has some sort of other motive for what they are doing. Its a complex film that you have to stay with since you can never be certain what is going on.

For a long stretch of the film I wasn't certain what I thought of it. As I said, this is a story that is ever changing and evolving as it goes, and which you can't say whether you like or not until you get to the very end. It seems like an enjoyable mean but slightly confused western for most of its running time. Our nominal hero, Nino, rapidly evolves into something else. He is always up to something and rarely is it any good. He's hard to root for, or even to like. You instead you have to root for Chuncho, which is a bit odd at first since he's a "bandit" and the "bad guy". By the end you're rooting for Chuncho, while you're still not sure about Nino. In the end though it all comes together, and it reveals itself to be a quite special movie.

This is a movie to see if you like westerns, or even good movies for that matter. Its a film that engages you and moves you and your emotions. Its nice that an entertaining film such as this can also have other things on its mind yet not get lost on those other things or lose the enjoyment factor (there's a good deal of political satire woven into the story).

Definitely recommended.