Men with Guns (II) (1997)

Humberto Fuentes is a wealthy doctor whose wife has recently died. In spite of the advice of his children, he takes a trip to visit his former students who now work in impoverished villages... See full summary »

Director:

John Sayles

Writer:

John Sayles

Stars:

Federico Luppi, Damián Delgado, Dan Rivera González

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 4 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Federico Luppi	...	Dr. Fuentes
Damián Delgado	...	Domingo, the Soldier
Dan Rivera González	...	Conejo, the Boy
Tania Cruz	...	Graciela, the Mute Girl
Damián Alcázar	...	Padre Portillo, the Priest
Mandy Patinkin	...	Andrew
Kathryn Grody	...	Harriet
Iguandili López	...	Mother
Nandi Luna Ramírez	...	Daughter
Rafael de Quevedo	...	General
Carmen Madrid	...	Angela, Dr. Fuentes' Daughter
Esteban Soberanes	...	Raúl, Angela's Fiancé
Alejandro Springall	...	Carlos, Dr. Fuentes' Son
Maricruz Nájera	...	Rich Lady
Roberto Sosa	...	Bravo

Storyline

Humberto Fuentes is a wealthy doctor whose wife has recently died. In spite of the advice of his children, he takes a trip to visit his former students who now work in impoverished villages. His trip soon becomes a quest, politically awakening him when he finds out that one of his students was killed by the army.

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Plot Keywords:

doctor | gun | army | village | orphan | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violent images

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Classics

Country:

USA

Language:

Spanish Italian English Nahuatl Maya Tzotzil Kuna

Release Date:

27 March 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hombres armados

Filming Locations:

Mexico

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$22,132 (USA) (6 March 1998)

Gross:

$742,032 (USA) (24 April 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Anarchist's Convention Films, Clear Blue Sky Productions, Independent Film Channel (IFC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Sayles wrote his first draft in Spanish, the second in English and then polished it back into Spanish for his third draft.

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Quotes

Barber's Client: Nobody refuses the men with guns.

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Connections

Featured in The 56th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1999)

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Soundtracks

"Mi Cumbia"
Written by Lucho Bermudez
Performed by Ramón Ropain
Courtesy of Discos Fuentes
By Arrangement with Vedisco Records

User Reviews

Sad, Warm, and Beautiful

I just fell upon this movie while watching the IFC channel and I hadn't been back from Guatemala for long. After living there amongst the natives I was able to get to know them better and understand their culture more. Seeing this film brought back a lot of those memories and reminded me of the many stories I heard of the army's genocidal tendencies towards the indigenous people of Guatemala. The cinematography for this film is simple, but it shows the beautiful landscapes and run down third world towns in a way to almost show us the same details that we would see if we were really there. We have to remember that the characters portrayed in this movie are very real, they may not have the same names, but they do exist. Even the war vets who have gone to levels so low we cannot even imagine. If you would like to understand what went on in Southern Mexico and Guatemala during the 80's, I would strongly recommend this film. It left a very strong impression on me.