'''A Fistful of Dynamite''' is a
1971 film by
Sergio Leone (original
Italian title: '''Giù la testa'''; also known as '''Duck, You Sucker''' and '''Once Upon a Time … The Revolution'''). Its plot is centered on two individuals, a poor Mexican bandit (played by
Rod Steiger) and an ex-
Irish Republican Army revolutionary (
James Coburn), who meet during the turbulent
Mexican Revolution.
Plot summary
In
Mexico at the time of the Revolution, Juan, the leader of a bandit family, meets John (Sean) Mallory, an IRA
explosives expert on the run from the British. Seeing John's skill with explosives, Juan decides to persuade him to join the bandits in a raid on the great bank of Mesa Verde. John in the meantime has made contact with the revolutionaries, and intends to use his
dynamite in their service.
Production
The movie was written by
Luciano Vincenzoni,
Sergio Donati and
Sergio Leone. Leone was deeply involved with the project from the beginning, but did not originally intend to direct the picture himself.
Peter Bogdanovich, his original choice for director, soon abandoned the film due to perceived lack of control. Leone then recruited his regular
assistant director Giancarlo Santi to direct. However, Coburn (who had turned down the lead in ''
A Fistful of Dollars'' just seven years previously) and Steiger refused to play their roles unless Leone himself directed. He agreed, and Santi was relegated to
second unit work. Because of these changes, some fans of the film contend that ''A Fistful of Dynamite'' is actually two films in one (the first, more humorous part dealing with Mesa Verde whereas the second, more serious part deals with the revolution).
Reception
Compared to Leone's previous film, ''
Once Upon a Time in the West'', ''A Fistful of Dynamite'' didn't gain much popularity. One reason for this could be Leone's insistence on using the ''Duck, You Sucker'' title, which gave potential movie-goers the impression that the film was a comic western (''Duck, You Sucker'' is a fairly direct translation of the repeated phrase of the film, "Giù la testa, !" in the Italian version). Evidentally, Leone was convinced that the phrase "Duck, you sucker" was a popular American phrase, contrary to the insistence of his American stars Rod Stieger and James Coburn that they'd never heard that exact phrase. When the film was trimmed down for a re-release in 1972, it was re-titled ''A Fistful of Dynamite'' by the studio, seeing potential in linking this film to Leone's first hit, ''
A Fistful of Dollars''.
Although the film is often overlooked in Leone's Å“uvre, many critics have acclaimed its
cinematography, the quirky score by
Ennio Morricone, and Leone's focus on
character development.
Analysis
Coburn and Steiger in a scene of the film.
Arguably, ''A Fistful of Dynamite'' contains more social commentary than any other Leone film. The film opens with a quote from
Mao Zedong about the nature of
revolutions and class struggle.
[1] Throughout the course of the film Leone delves deep into the class differences that shaped Mexico during its bloody revolution. The main villain, Gunter Ruiz (
Antoine Saint-John), is presented as a
Nazi-like tank commander, complete with an armored car. Throughout the movie there are numerous scenes of execution of revolutionaries by Mexican
Federales. These touches were intended by Leone - who grew up in
Benito Mussolini's Italy during
World War II - to represent a parallel with
fascism. The movie was also, despite Leone's left-wing sympathies, meant as a sort of criticism of other left-wing "revolutionary" film makers such as
Jean-Luc Godard and the recent spate of so-called "
Zapata Westerns" which had hijacked the Spaghetti Western genre. For this, the film suffered a great many edits and cuts. To date, many versions of the film have been released, each one offering previously unseen material.
Historical Errors
The film contains several
anachronisms.
- When Juan is inspecting Sean's belongings he unfurls a flag with "I.R.A." embossed on the background. The IRA were not formed until 1919, during the
Irish War of Independence, after the
Mexican revolution. The abbreviation should have read "I.R.B." (
Irish Republican Brotherhood).
- One of the
machine guns used is a German
MG 42, which was introduced in WWII.
- Governor/general Huerta was shot with a
Browning HP pistol, which was introduced in 1935.
- John's motorcycle is a 1928 model.
Cast
The restoration
In 2003, following the restoration of Leone's far more popular ''
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'', MGM re-released ''A Fistful of Dynamite'', in newer, higher-resolution picture, with an enhanced soundtrack for the complete 158 minute cut. Also, Leone's preferred option out of the many alternate titles, ''Duck, You Sucker'' was also reinstated. Like its predecessor, it had a brief arthouse theatrical run in the U.S. and was given a 2-disc DVD special edition package. However, unlike ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'', this DVD was not released in the U.S., mostly because of Sony's purchase of MGM and the ensuing change in priorities. The timespan between The Good, the Bad and the Ugly's theatrical and DVD re-release was only a six months (Dec. '03 to June '04), whereas it's over three and a half years between the theatrical and DVD releases for ''Duck, You Sucker'' (Nov. '03 to June '07). The two-disc DVD collector's edition was released on June 5th, 2007.
Names of the film
Here is a list of the various titles for this film:
★ ''Giù la testa'' (primary Italian title, the equivalent of "Duck You, Sucker"; literal English translation is "Down the Head")
★ ''Duck, You Sucker'' (initial, aborted title from 1971; brought back for the 2003 restoration)
★ ''A Fistful of Dynamite'' (main English language title; in place from 1972-2003)
★ ''C'era una volta la rivoluzione'' (original proposed title)
★ ''Il était une fois la Révolution'' (official French Title)
★ ''Once Upon a Time... The Revolution''(English translation of the above two; never used officially)
★ ''Todesmelodie'' (German title, translating to "Melody of Death")
★ ''Quando Explode a Vingança'' (Portuguese title for Brazil meaning "When Revenge Explodes")
★ ''С динамитом в кулаке'' (official Russian title, translating "With dynamite in the fist")
References
1. Mao Zedong (March 1927), "Report on an investigation of the peasant movement in Hunan". ''Selected Works of Mao Tse-tung'', vol. I, pp. 23–29. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 3rd printing, 1975. The quoted passage is: "[A] revolution is not a dinner party, or writing an essay, or painting a picture, or doing embroidery; it cannot be so refined, so leisurely and gentle, so temperate, kind, courteous, restrained and magnanimous. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another."
External links
★
★
Article on the many versions of ''A Fistful of Dynamite''
★
Sergio Leone messageboard
★
www.spaghetti-western.net The Spaghetti Western Database
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