IMDb > A Bullet for the General (1966)
El chuncho, quien sabe?
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotes
Overview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany credits
Awards & Reviews
user reviewsexternal reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guidemessage board
Plot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsmemorable quotes
Did You Know?
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQ
Other Info
box office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specsliterature listingsNewsDesk
Promotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo gallery
External Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clips

A Bullet for the General (1966) More at IMDbPro »El chuncho, quien sabe? (original title)

Photos (See all 7 | slideshow) Videos
A Bullet for the General -- A Spaghetti Western on a par with best of Sergio Leone's work, A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL (aka Quien Sabe?) is a radical and politically committed film directed by Damiano Damiani (A Genius, Two Partners And A Dupe; Amityville II: The Possession) from a brilliantly powerful screenplay by Oscar nominee Franco Solinas (co-writer of the award-winning The Battle Of Algiers). Less a western and more an allegory on South American politics, A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL initiated a whole sub-genre of pro-revolutionary westerns, including Sergio Leone's own "A Fistful Of Dynamite". Scriptwriter Solinas, himself, describes the film as a more accessible version of his screenplay for "The Battle Of Algiers". Violent, stylish and with a refreshingly leftist point of view, the film wears its "Yankee go home!" message proudly on its sleeve. Now fully restored from the original Italian negative materials this forthcoming DVD release from Argent Films is the longest and most complete version of A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL available.

Overview

User Rating:
7.0/10   1,834 votes »
Your Rating:
Saving vote...
Deleting vote...
/10   (delete | history)
Sorry, there was a problem
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 29% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Damiano Damiani
Writers:
Salvatore Laurani (story)
Franco Solinas (adaptation)
Contact:
View company contact information for A Bullet for the General on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
September 1968 (USA) See more »
Genre:
Western See more »
Tagline:
Like the Bandit... Like the Gringo... A bullet doesn't care who it kills! See more »
Plot:
El Chuncho's bandits rob arms from a train, intending to sell the weapons to Elias' revolutionaries... See more » | Add synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
See more »
NewsDesk:
(11 articles)
Damiano Damiani obituary
 (From The Guardian - Film News. 11 March 2013, 5:06 PM, PDT)
Damiano Damiani obituary
 (From The Guardian - TV News. 11 March 2013, 5:06 PM, PDT)
You've been Djangoed! Ten Spaghetti Cowboys that shaped the genre
 (From Shadowlocked. 21 January 2013, 12:45 AM, PST)
User Reviews:
Well regarded spaghetti western lives up to its reputation See more (24 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order) (complete, awaiting verification)

Gian Maria Volonté ... Chuncho Munos / 'El Chuncho'

Klaus Kinski ... El Santo

Martine Beswick ... Adelita

Lou Castel ... Bill 'Niño' Tate
Jaime Fernández ... Gen. Elías
Andrea Checchi ... Don Feliciano
Spartaco Conversi ... Cirillo
Joaquín Parra ... Picaro

Aldo Sambrell ... Lt. Alvaro Ferreira
José Manuel Martín ... Raimundo
Santiago Santos ... Guapo
Valentino Macchi ... Pedrito - Durango train engineer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Salvatore Borghese ... Bandit
Carla Gravina ... Rosario
Guy Heron ... Pedrito
Richard McNamara ... English narration
Vicente Roca ... Hotelier (uncredited)
Antoñito Ruiz ... Chico - Young Mexican at Train Station (uncredited)
Create a character page for: ?

Directed by
Damiano Damiani 
 
Writing credits
Salvatore Laurani (story and screenplay)

Franco Solinas (adaptation and dialogue)

Produced by
Bianco Manini .... producer
 
Original Music by
Luis Bacalov 
Ennio Morricone 
 
Cinematography by
Antonio Secchi (director of photography) (as Tony Secchi)
 
Film Editing by
Renato Cinquini 
 
Production Design by
Sergio Canevari 
 
Costume Design by
Marilù Carteny 
 
Production Management
Ferruccio De Martino .... production manager
Ofelia Minaldi .... assistant production manager
 
Music Department
Ennio Morricone .... music supervisor
Bruno Nicolai .... conductor
 
Other crew
William Berger .... English dubbing voice: Lou Castel
 

Production CompaniesDistributors
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
"El chuncho, quien sabe?" - Italy (original title)
See more »
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
135 min | UK:77 min | Spain:107 min | Argentina:120 min
Country:
Italy
Language:
Italian
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
Mono
Certification:
Finland:K-18 | Sweden:15 | USA:M | Germany:18 | Spain:18 | UK:15 (DVD rating) | UK:18 (re-rating) (1986) | UK:X (original rating) | Singapore:PG | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Argentina:13 | West Germany:18 | Canada:G (Quebec)
Filming Locations:
Almería, Andalucía, SpainSee more »
Company:
M. C. M.See more »

Did You Know?

Quotes:
[last lines]
El Chuncho:[to a beggar he gave money to earlier] Don't buy bread with that money, hombre! Buy dynamite! Dynamite!
See more »
Movie Connections:
Featured in Denn sie kennen kein Erbarmen - Der Italowestern (2006) (TV)See more »

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Reviews

   (Review this title)
5 out of 8 people found the following review useful.
Well regarded spaghetti western lives up to its reputation, 12 November 2005
Author: dbborroughs from Glen Cove, New York

In revolutionary Mexico American John Tate hooks up with a band of outlaws lead by Chuncho. They are "collecting" guns for the revolution. Tate, called Nino by his new friends, tags along as they get guns, free the poor and attempt to get paid for their efforts.

Thats wildly simplified and doesn't do the complexity of this film justice. What is going on in the film is often not apparent until you get to the very end of the movie. No one is who they seem to be and everyone has some sort of other motive for what they are doing. Its a complex film that you have to stay with since you can never be certain what is going on.

For a long stretch of the film I wasn't certain what I thought of it. As I said, this is a story that is ever changing and evolving as it goes, and which you can't say whether you like or not until you get to the very end. It seems like an enjoyable mean but slightly confused western for most of its running time. Our nominal hero, Nino, rapidly evolves into something else. He is always up to something and rarely is it any good. He's hard to root for, or even to like. You instead you have to root for Chuncho, which is a bit odd at first since he's a "bandit" and the "bad guy". By the end you're rooting for Chuncho, while you're still not sure about Nino. In the end though it all comes together, and it reveals itself to be a quite special movie.

This is a movie to see if you like westerns, or even good movies for that matter. Its a film that engages you and moves you and your emotions. Its nice that an entertaining film such as this can also have other things on its mind yet not get lost on those other things or lose the enjoyment factor (there's a good deal of political satire woven into the story).

Definitely recommended.

Was the above review useful to you?
See more (24 total) »

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for A Bullet for the General (1966)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
On tonight (UK viewers)... feiner159
Wich version is better? Italian or English dubbed? evileyee
See more »

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
A Professional Gun Duck, You Sucker The Professionals Tepepa Bad Man's River
IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb Western section IMDb Italy section

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Edit page' button will take you through a step-by-step process.