Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Sam Peckinpah

Writers:

Frank Kowalski (story) and
Sam Peckinpah (story) ...

Release Date:

August 1974 (Austria)

Genre:

Adventure | Crime | Drama | Thriller | Western

Tagline:

It's got guts!

Plot:

An American bartender and his prostitute girlfriend go on a road trip through the Mexican underworld to collect a $1 million bounty on the head of a dead gigolo.

Plot Keywords:

Piano Player | Mexican | Prostitute | Violence | Bounty Hunter

Cast

Warren Oates	...	Bennie
Isela Vega	...	Elita
Robert Webber	...	Sappensly
Gig Young	...	Quill
Helmut Dantine	...	Max
Emilio Fernández	...	El Jefe (as Emilio Fernandez)
Kris Kristofferson	...	Biker
Chano Urueta	...	Manchot, the bartender
Donnie Fritts	...	John (as Donny Fritts)
Jorge Russek	...	Cueto
Chalo González	...	Chalo (as Chalo Gonzalez)
Don Levy	...	Frank
Enrique Lucero	...	Esteban
Janine Maldonado	...	Theresa
Tamara Garina	...	Grandmother Moreno

Also Known As:

Tráiganme la cabeza de Alfredo García (Mexico)

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA | Mexico

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Germany:16 (re-rating) (2005) | West Germany:18 (original rating) | Singapore:M18 | New Zealand:R16 | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Italy:VM14 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Chalco, México D.F., Mexico

Company:

Estudios Churubusco Azteca S.A.

Trivia:

One of the films included in "The Fifty Worst Films of All Time (and how they got that way)" by Harry Medved and Randy Lowell.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: At a little after 1:33 in the movie, as Bennie crosses inside his apartment, alone and talking to Alfredo's head ("A friend of ours used to take a shower in there...You know that? You know that!"), a crewman in black clothing can be glimpsed ducking behind an adjacent transom. A second later, his arm reappears as Bennie reaches for a bottle in the pantry.

Quotes:

El Jefe: Please, drink with me. I am a very happy man.
Bennie: Nah, I've got nothing to celebrate.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Fletch (1985)

Soundtrack:

A Donde Ir

This HEAD has got guts!

BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA is another great hard-boiled action masterpiece from Sam Peckinpah(THE WILD BUNCH). Like most of his films, this one has cult status while it ought to be hailed as the classic it is. It features generous helpings of Peckinpah's famous slow motion gun fights and has great lines like "you guys are definitely on my sh*t list!" I don't know how that sounds to you, but for me it was irresistible.

Warren Oats(BADLANDS) stars as the piano player hired to retrieve the head (of Alfredo Garcia), unaware that he'll have competition. He knows he's working for the bad guys, but doesn't care because he needs the money. He sets out with his girlfriend and things don't exactly go as planned.

The film also features a cameo by Kris Kristofferson(A STAR IS BORN) is a biker. It is one of the many great scenes in this movie. Another has Oats transporting Garcia's not-so-fresh head, talking to it as he goes.

Many think the movie is over the top or just plain bad, but they're wrong. This movie has guts and emotional intensity. There's a good amount of both action and drama, and they both work.

If you like Peckinpah, action, or movies centering on severed head, BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA is for you!