Giù la testa (1971)

Réalisateur:

Sergio Leone

Scénaristes:

Sergio Leone (story) and
Sergio Donati (story) ...

Date de sortie:

29 octobre 1971 (Italy)

Genre:

Action | Aventure | Drame | Guerre | Western

Accroche:

Rod Steiger and James Coburn will blow you apart in "A Fistful of Dynamite" ("Duck You Sucker") by the master of adventure Sergio Leone

Intrigue:

An IRA explosives expert on the run in Mexico meets an amoral Mexican bandit; together they get drawn into the Mexican revolution.

Plot Keywords:

Explosive | Mexico | Mexican | Revolutionary | Mexican Revolution

Récompenses:

1 win

Avis des utilisateurs:

Probably the best unknown movie ever made.

Ensemble

Rod Steiger	...	Juan Miranda
James Coburn	...	John H. Mallory
Romolo Valli	...	Dr. Villega
Maria Monti	...	Adelita, woman in stagecoach
Rik Battaglia	...	Santerna (as Rick Battaglia)
Franco Graziosi	...	Governor Jaime
Antoine Saint-John	...	Gutierez / Col. Günther Reza (as Domingo Antoine)
Giulio Battiferri	...	Miguel
Poldo Bendandi	...	Executed Revolutionary
Omar Bonaro
Roy Bosier	...	Landowner
John Frederick	...	American
Amato Garbini
Michael Harvey	...	Yankee
Biagio La Rocca	...	Benito

Autre(s) titre(s):

A Fistful of Dynamite (UK) (USA) (alternative title)
C'era una volta la rivoluzione (Italy)
Duck, You Sucker (USA)
Once Upon a Time... the Revolution

Durée:

157 min | USA:120 min (initial US release) | USA:138 min | USA:154 min (Laserdisc version)

Pays:

Italy

Langue:

Italien | Espagnol

Couleur:

Couleur (Eastmancolor)

Rapport de forme:

2,35 : 1

Son:

Mono

Classification:

Iceland:16 | Singapore:PG | Spain:18 | Brazil:14 | West Germany:16 (nf) (re-rating) | West Germany:18 (nf) (original rating) | South Korea:15 | Italy:T | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Ireland:15 (cut) | Norway:18 (1972) | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (1988) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:PG (original rating) | USA:R (laserdisc rating) (1996)

Lieux de tournage:

Almería Railway Station, Almería, Andalucía, Spain

Société:

Rafran Cinematografica

Anecdotes:

Juan and Seán both mean "John" in Spanish and Irish respectively. When John Mallory is asked his name by Juan Miranda, he says "Seán", but retracts it, and says "John", possibly thinking the name would confuse people. (It is not uncommon for Irish nationalists and republicans to use both the English and Gaelic forms of their names.) It has also been speculated that "Seán" was the name of his friend from Ireland whom we see in the flashback sequences, who is otherwise not mentioned by name in the film and only referred to as "Nolan" in the screenplay.

Goofs:

Révélant des erreurs: When Juan's youngest son is shown lying dead, the actor can be seen breathing.

Guillemet:

John H. Mallory: Where there's revolotion there's confusion and when there's confusion a man who knows what he wants stands a good chance of getting it.

Connexions De Film:

Références Viva Villa! (1934)

Probably the best unknown movie ever made.

Here is a tragedy -- a great film doomed by a terrible title.

I saw this movie as "Duck, You Sucker" in the theater in 1972 or '73. I still have images and haunting music burned in my brain from it. It has, for one thing, one of the biggest real explosions ever filmed, an absolutely awesome blast using real high explosives that makes today's fiery spectacles pale. I think the whole production company was stunned by it, certainly Sergio Leone was, because he gives it the full treatment: multiple cameras and angles, wide shots, lots of screen time giving us lots of looks. And it's worth it. If you're not a war veteran, you've never seen anything like this.

But this film is much more than its fx. It's a deep, moving story told on the grand scale, with Oscar-class cinematography. It is both a major outdoor adventure and a small, intimate story. It has some of the quirkiest scenes, blackest humor and darkest betrayals, too.

Don't look for it on TV, unless Turner Classic Movies shows it "uncut." It was horribly mutilated in editing for television, and therefore unpopular and rarely shown. Get the original theatrical version, and watch it undisturbed. A party atmosphere would ruin it for you.

It's on my top-20 all time list!