Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

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-

JasparLamarCrabb As rich a spaghetti western as you're likely to find. During the Mexican Revolution, American Lou Castel gets caught up with arms dealer Gian Maria Volonté and his band of thieving misfits. They're stealing guns to sell to rebel General Jaime Fernández. Their long journey to find Fernández is peppered with a lot of bloodshed and even some soapy drama (Castel runs afoul of hot-headed Guy Heron & his strong willed girlfriend Martine Beswick). Volonté is outstanding, at first expanding upon his ruthless role in FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE. He turns out to be one of the most conscientiousness bandits in movie western history. Director Damiano Damiani infuses the film with quite a few political statements about guilt & innocence and haves and have nots. He's abetted greatly by Franco Solinas, who adapted Salvatore Laurani's story. The excellent music score is by Luis Bacalov. Klaus Kinski, second billed as Volonté's holy rolling brother, has a relatively small role.

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."

thisissubtitledmovies Set during the Mexican Revolution of the early 20th century, a group of Mexican bandits led by El Chuncho (Gian Maria Volonté) rob a train carrying weapons for the Mexican army. They are assisted by an American passenger, Bill Tate (Lou Castel), who stops the train in exchange for him being allowed to join the group. Whilst A Bullet For The General is not as fun as say Django, it could be argued that it is a superior film - wonderful central performances under quietly confident direction attest to that. A spaghetti western that's not afraid to get its hands dirty with a dose of social commentary – highlighting the morally dubious nature that the sub-genre and its characters consistently revel in – A Bullet For The General, whilst not perfect, is a solid entry nonetheless with enough compelling characterisation (certainly more compelling than Django, save for that film's titular antihero), drama and action to tick most boxes.