A Bullet for Sandoval (1969)
"Los desesperados" (original title)

A soldier deserts his outfit the night before a major battle, after receiving an urgent message. He heads across the border to Mexico to marry his pregnant girlfriend before she gives birth... See full summary »

Director:

Julio Buchs

Writers:

Julio Buchs (screenplay), Julio Buchs (story),

Stars:

Ernest Borgnine, George Hilton, Annabella Incontrera

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ernest Borgnine	...	Don Pedro Sandoval
George Hilton	...	John Warner
Annabella Incontrera	...	Rosa
Alberto de Mendoza	...	Lucky
Leo Anchóriz	...	Monk
Gustavo Rojo	...	Guadalupano
Manuel de Blas
Manuel Miranda	...	Francisco
José Manuel Martín	...	Cross-Eyed Guy
Antonio Pica	...	Sam
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Andrea Aureli	...	Morton
Luis Barboo
Charly Bravo
José Guardiola
Andrés Mejuto

Storyline

A soldier deserts his outfit the night before a major battle, after receiving an urgent message. He heads across the border to Mexico to marry his pregnant girlfriend before she gives birth. Her father had forbidden their marriage, but the soldier is determined. Circumstances turn the soldier into an outlaw who vows vengeance on everyone involved.

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Plot Keywords:

spaghetti western | deserter | mexican border | hired killer | bullring | 

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Taglines:

A gritty story of seething hatred and thrilling adventure.

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Genres:

Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for western violence

Details

Country:

Spain Italy

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

May 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

Those Desperate Men Who Smell of Dirt and Death

Filming Locations:

Lucainena de Las Torres, Andalucia, Spain

Box Office

Gross:

ESP 35,610,393 (Spain)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Atlántida Films, Daiano Film, Leone Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min 89 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sometimes it is falsely claimed the movie was co-directed by Lucio Fulci, but this is not true. Actor George Hilton has stated so in many interviews.

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Connections

References The Wild Bunch (1969)

User Reviews

Bullet for Sandoval

Bullet for Sandoval, A (1969)

*** (out of 4)

Interesting Spaghetti Western takes place during the Civil War when a soldier (George Hilton) gets word that his pregnant girlfriend is dying. By the time he reaches the house she has died and her jealous father (Ernest Borgnine) makes him leave with their newborn son. Without the resources to take care of the child, it dies and soon the soldier sets out for revenge. This film has a great revenge story going for it but by the time it ended I was pretty mad at the movie because it could have been so much better. The film has several subplots and none of them are as interesting as the revenge story so these subplots get in the way and in the end they really pull the film back some. The film's main story is still good enough to make this worth watching as it features some great action sequences as well as two good performances by the leads. Hilton is very good in his mainly silent role and Borgnine delivers a maniac style performance. The ending is very strange and bizarre but it works well with the film even though the revenge takes a few different turns.