Wuchak RELEASED IN 1967 (but not till 1968 in the USA) and directed by Damiano Damiani, "A Bullet for the General" (aka "El Chuncho") takes place during the Mexican Revolution in the 1910s and involves a gang of gunrunners led by El Chuncho (Gian Maria Volontè) and enlisted by a revolutionary general (Jaime Fernández). They allow a taciturn American gringo into their band (Lou Castel), oblivious to his objectives. Klaus Kinski plays the semi-crazy priest of the bandits (I mean revolutionaries) while Martine Beswick is on hand as the babe of the bunch.This is a decent Spaghetti Western focusing on Mexican bandits. The tone is serious and the cast, costumes, dirt and sweat lend to the gritty realism. The opening sequence where a munitions train is forced to stop due to a crucified army captain blocking the tracks is notable. The script respects the intelligence of the viewer and doesn't spell everything else, even while everything is obvious if you read between the lines. Volontè, who plays the filthy, but amicable Mexican protagonist, is best known for his roles with Clint Eastwood in "A Fistful of Dollars" (1964) and "For a Few Dollars More" (1965). The score by Luis Bacalov is quite good and was supervised by the inimitable Ennio Morricone. THE FILM RUNS 115 minutes and was shot in Almería & Guadix, Spain, with indoor sequences done in Rome. WRITERS: Salvatore Laurani and Franco Solinas. GRADE: C+/B-

scottmwade-1 Don't waste your time on this one. Basically there really isn't much of a plot at all so it's just a big bunch of shooting and killing for no readily apparent reason. This film just meanders around and not much of a plot is evident at all, although there is a train robbery at the beginning with the bandits robbing the train to raise funds for a political movement. At the end the main character is killed but it doesn't really matter because this film is so horrible you don't even care and probably won't make it that far anyway. Do not recommend this one at all unless you have insomnia and can't fall asleep...

zardoz-13 Damiano Damiani's 1966 epic "Quien Sabe?" isn't the usual Spaghetti western blood bath set against the scenic Spanish mountains masquerading as turn of the century Mexico. Mind you, despite his association with Sergio Leone, Damiani has made a serious adventure film that lacks the charisma of either a Sergio Leone or Sergio Corbucci shoot'em up. Damiani packs quite a message in this beautifully lensed hybrid that contains many iconic set-pieces, particularly the opening scene on the railroad in the desert. Italian communist scenarist Franco Solinas, who penned classics like "The Battle of Algiers" and later "Quiemada!," wrote this off-beat oater that broke ground for westerns of this sort. The problems occurring in Mexican in the early 1900s were not far removed from the problems that afflicted other third world countries in the Western Hemisphere. Indeed, these westerns are sometimes referred to as Marxist in content. Not long after the arrival of the Spaghetti westerns with plots set on the border came Spaghetti westerns that occurred primarily below the border and shared the same period setting as Sam Peckinpah's "The Wild Bunch." These 'Zapata' westerns as some critics have described them take advantage of modern technology, such as machine guns, bi-planes, and artillery, which escalated the body count, and they usually featured a grimy Mexican peasant teaming up with a foreigner of questionable allegiance. These Spaghetti westerns lack charismatic heroes and villains and they are often messy. Meaning, the endings are happily-ever-after and the characters constitute anything for role models.In "Quien Sabe," ferocious Mexican desperado 'El Chucho' Munoz (Gian Maria Volonté of "A Fistful of Dollars") meets a baby-faced American, Bill Tate (Colombian actor Lou Castel of "The Cassandra Crossing") after an assault on a government train and lets him join his band of murderous revolutionaries. Actually, this little boy who dresses like a city slicker has one thing on his mind. He wants to use 'El Chucho' to lead him to revolutionary General Elías (Jaime Fernández of "Guns for San Sebastian")so he can kill him with a golden bullet. Of course, 'El Chucho' has no clue that he is being cleverly played by Bill. Bill has been riding trains back and forth across Mexico for the opportunity to catching 'El Chucho.' 'El Chucho' has chained a Mexican military captain to a cross and has him kneeling between the rails of the railway tracks so that the train must either run over him or halt. During the confrontation, Bill manages to scramble into the locomotive cab and stop the train so that 'El Chucho' can kill the rest of the government troops and take their firearms. Essentially, 'El Chucho' wants to sell the firearms to make money, unlike his so-called brother El Santo (German actor Klaus Kinski of "For A Few Dollars More") who wears a crucifix at his throat and believes in the rights of the peasants. Meantime, 'El Chucho' grows quite fond of Bill and they become friends. 'El Chucho' shows no qualms about killing his own to protect Bill, and Bill repays him the favor near the end when El Santo has orders to execute his brother.If you consider yourself a fan of Spaghetti westerns, "Quien Sabe?" is worth watching. There is really no humor in this western. The characters are problematic. 'El Chucho' is a complex character that you can admire and hate, while Bill Tate is thoroughly loathsome, which makes the casting of Lou Castel so significant. Indeed, several surprises occur through out this oater. If you are searching for films with greater charisma in the genre, check out Corbucci's "The Mercenary" and "Companeros."

chaos-rampant 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.