Sergio Leone Web Board
Films of Sergio Leone => Other Films => Topic started by: Marco Leone on April 05, 2005, 06:03:48 AM
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Watched this one on my "sick bed" this morning! And, as always, have joyyed down my comments on http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/spaghettiwesterns :
"This is one of those films that nearly loses you, but in the end rewards you for sitting through it. It makes for a very good view, despite its leisurely pace at times.
In summary Anthony Quinn stars as a outlaw that is saved by Father John, whom he escorts to the village of San Sebastian. The village is deserted, with its cowardly residents hiding in the hills from indians, who pillage their crops and burn their buildings. When Father John is murdered, the outlaw is mistaken as the man of god by the villagers, and assists them in regaining their confidence and defending themselves.
Quinn is superb in his role, complimented by Charles Bronson, who plays the bad guy "half breed" Teclo. Sam Jaffe's Father Joseph character is also very likable.
Whilst the movie is quite slow in places, this only helps to plot out the story. Although casting the indians as the "bad guys", it does explain that the massacre of the villagers is no different than what the white man has done to their own race "in the name of god".
The soundtrack is again provided by Ennio Morricone and, whilst not his best work, does help provide the suitable atmosphere, borrowing heavily from some of his other compositions.
Definitely worth a view".
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Saw it a few months ago myself it was very watchable.
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Its one of only 3 Spag Westerns that regularly get shown on UK TCM - the others being Rigo & his Golden Pistol, and Son of a Gunfighter.
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I've always liked the ending to San Sebastian with Quinn riding off into the distance with kinita and morricone's score playing.
There is a pretty impressive battle sequence toward the end of the movie too for all those who haven't seen it. How about a widescreen dvd of this?
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Almost manic neck-break opening sequence with Quinn riding into town on the run.
Never seen a horse do a hand-break turn before. ;D Love the Morricone music that depicts Quinns hard journey to the small village of San Sabastian. Same temperment as the GBU desert theme.
..a great sunday afternoon movie. This was made actually in Mexico with French money not to sure its a Spagetti Western in essense, same goes for Viva Maria filmed the year before.
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Yeah, I guess we can loosely call it a "Euro-western" rather than a "Spaghetti" one. But it is a great flick. I videoed it about 9 months ago, and hadn't got around to watching it as (for some unknown reason) I didn't think it was going to be very good. I was very wrong!
I sat and watched it whilst lying on my sick bed (which was far better than me just lying and whinging, which I had been doing for the previous few days). It didn't cure me, but it made me feel a bit happier for a while at least.
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Yeah, I guess we can loosely call it a "Euro-western" rather than a "Spaghetti" one. But it is a great flick.
Well its 'counting sticks' on my part. They all came from the same 1960's spark of European interest in the Americas. Its set in 1750 roughly. Thats 100 years' and some, before most of the general settings of the westerns we normally talk about here. lol
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It's a hoot! Love the arrow in the statue. Sam Jaffe superb.
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Got hold of a copy of Deaf Smith and Johnny Ears, which also stars Quinn (as well as Nero). Sounds like a good cast - but yet to see the film.
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Got hold of a copy of Deaf Smith and Johnny Ears, which also stars Quinn (as well as Nero). Sounds like a good cast - but yet to see the film.
I thought DEAF SMITH was disappointing, on the other hand GUNS FOR SAN SEBASTIAN has always been very watchable.
I think this is one of Morricone's best non- Leone scores. the themes and the vocal work by Edda Dell'orso(from GBU OUATITW) and Gianna Spagnulo(form Navajo Joe-probably misspelled her name) any how, their voices are used to great effect here.
It's worth watching just as a "Morricone music video :)
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I thought DEAF SMITH was disappointing
Hmmm, maybe I'll move it back further down my list of films I've yet to watch then!!! ;D
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Copied this from Encore Westerns the other day and watched 3/4's of it this morning. Quite good story-character based western. I was a bit surprised to see Charles Bronson as a bad guy.
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I thought DEAF SMITH was disappointing
This.
But the final gunfight is a very good one.
Nero plays around with his Django image by not being able to handle a gatling gun.
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The Morricone score is fantastic.
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Just saw this (TCM played it in the summer, I DVR'd it and just watched it now!)
I liked it. 7.5/10
Brief TCM article: http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/64099%7C0/Guns-for-San-Sebastian.html
Quinn is great.
This does not seem to be Sam Jaffe's real voice; he speaks here without his usual German accent?
This is very spaghetti-influenced. The sacreligious Catholicism. The violence. The dirt. This is what the townspeople in THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN should have looked like! And changing the title from the book's "A Wall for San Sebastian" to "Guns for San Sebastian" is a very spaghetti thing to do ;D
I guess this would be a pre-Western; it's set in the 1740's, more than 100 years before the typical Western-movie period!
The TCM print is pretty bad.
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This is very spaghetti-influenced. The sacreligious Catholicism. The violence. The dirt. This is what the townspeople in THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN should have looked like! And changing the title from the book's "A Wall for San Sebastian" to "Guns for San Sebastian" is a very spaghetti thing to do ;D
I think this one is not influenced by Spags. There's nothing in it which is specific for SWs.
It's also a film of minor interest. It's Quinn's show, and Verneuil has not much to offer to counterbalance his acting. 4/10
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This does not seem to be Sam Jaffe's real voice; he speaks here without his usual German accent?
. He did have some kind of association with Yiddish theater, but he was born in NYC, so I think his accents, when he used them, were put on. Not sure.
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My contribution >
The Dam Busters.
Guns for San Sebastian is directed by Henri Verneuil and adapted to screenplay by James R. Webb from the novel "A Wall for San Sebastian" written by William Barby Faherty. It stars Anthony Quinn, Charles Bronson, Anjanette Comer, Sam Jaffe and Silvia Pinal. Music is by Ennio Morricone and cinematography by Armand Thirard.
An outlaw on the run is mistaken for a priest by peasant villagers who are at the mercy of bandits and Yaqui Indians.
Something of a multi euro Western, Guns for San Sebastian latches onto the Spaghetti Western coat tails whilst attempting to put something new in the wardrobe. Undeniably the critics who said it's pedestrian in pace are absolutely right, the first two thirds of the piece asks for a great deal of your patience, whilst simultaneously demanding you buy into the various themes trundling away.
With a surreal sub-plot at play, a jokey romance and some atrocious dubbing, it's not hard to dismiss it as purely fun cannon fodder. Yet there's some strengths in the piece, literary wise and from a thrilling stand point as the last third brings the thunderous siege - cum battle stations. Quinn throws in a good turn, the Durango locale is superbly photographed, and Morricone offers up one of his tonally astute scores.
It's all very Magnificent 7 et al, but nothing wrong with that, that is on proviso you can get through the labours of the first hour or so. 7/10
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Just a heads up that this I is now on bluray.
Beautiful print and, best of all its in STEREO!
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Just a heads up that this I is now on bluray.
Beautiful print and, best of all its in STEREO!
Thanks
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I remember enjoying this one. Great Morricone soundtrack too.
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I remember enjoying this one. Great Morricone soundtrack too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG4R7Nn9aaE
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Yes its good