A greedy Polish mercenary aids a mine worker and peasant girl as they lead a revolution against the oppressive Mexican Government, and are pursued by an American rival.
Richard Madden shares why this was the role for him, and what he swiped from the "Game of Thrones" set.
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Title: The Mercenary (1968)
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Edit
Cast
| Complete credited cast: | |||
| Franco Nero | ... | Sergei Kowalski - the Polish | |
| Tony Musante | ... | Paco Roman | |
 |
Franco Giacobini | ... | Pepote |
| Eduardo Fajardo | ... | Alfonso García | |
| Franco Ressel | ... | Studs | |
| Álvaro de Luna | ... | Ramón (as Alvaro De Luna) | |
|
|
Raf Baldassarre | ... | Mateo |
|
|
Joe Kamel | ... | Sebastian |
|
|
Ugo Adinolfi | ||
| Jack Palance | ... | Ricciolo - 'Curly' | |
| Giovanna Ralli | ... | Columba | |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
See All (21) »
Storyline
While a Mexican revolutionary lies low as a U.S. rodeo clown, the cynical Polish mercenary who tutored the idealistic peasant tells how he and a dedicated female radical fought for the soul of the guerrilla general Paco, as Mexicans threw off repressive government and all-powerful landowners in the 1910s. Tracked by the vengeful Curly, Paco liberates villages, but is tempted by social banditry's treasures, which Kowalski revels in. Written by David Stevens
Plot Keywords:
spaghetti western | machine gun | day of the dead | mexican | mercenary |Taglines:
He sells death to the highest bidder! Buy or die! See more »Parents Guide:
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Details
Release Date:
22 April 1969 (West Germany) See more »Also Known As:
A Professional Gun See more »Company Credits
Production Co:
Produzioni Europee Associate (PEA),Produzioni Associate Delphos,Profilms 21 See more »
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IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1
Edit
Kowalski aka the Pole: [narrating] So, Paco Roman is a clown. Well, better a live clown than a dead hero. As I, Sergei Kowalski, Polish emigrate to the New World, always realised...
[fade-in to flashback of Paco working in a mine]
Kowalski aka the Pole: When our story began, Paco was only a peon. But one... with a difference.
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Franco Nero appeared in this film as part of a two-picture deal with producer Alberto Grimaldi, the other being Un tranquillo posto di campagna (1968). See more »Goofs
A plane is used to bomb Paco's fort. However planes did not begin to drop bombs until the late stages of WWI, in which they were dropped by hand. See more »Quotes
[first lines]Kowalski aka the Pole: [narrating] So, Paco Roman is a clown. Well, better a live clown than a dead hero. As I, Sergei Kowalski, Polish emigrate to the New World, always realised...
[fade-in to flashback of Paco working in a mine]
Kowalski aka the Pole: When our story began, Paco was only a peon. But one... with a difference.
See more »
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The second collaboration of Sergio Corbucci, the Italian Western's most important director besides Sergio Leone, and Franco Nero, one of the genre's greatest actors, after the ingenious "Django" from 1966, "Il Mercenario", a movie set in the time of the Mexican revolution, and therefore late for a Western, is a must-see for every fan of the genre.
Sergei Kowalski (Franco Nero) gets hired by short-tempered revolutionary Paco Roman (Tony Musante), in order to help his squad of unexperienced rebels with their campaign for a free Mexico. While Paco is a crook, but also an idealist, becoming more and more idealistic after his troop is joined by beautiful and idealistic Columba, a woman whose father was a revolutionary , the Polish is a typical anti-hero, witty and cool and somehow sympathetic, but mainly concerned on his own benefit.
The acting is great, specially Franco Nero as the Polish, and Jack Palance's performance as one of the villains. Another villain is played by Eduardo Fajardo, who played the villainous Major Jackson in Django. The score of this movie, composed by Ennio Morricone, is just brilliant (how couldn't it), the cinematography is great as well as the locations. My favorite film by Corbucci is still the incomparably brilliant "Il Grande Silenzio" ("aka. "The Great Silence") of 1968, "Django" of 1966 being my second-favorite due to its immense entertainment- and cult-value. Maybe not quite as brilliant as "Il Grande Silenzio" and not quite as influential as "Django", "Il Mercenario" is nonetheless an exceptional Spaghetti Western with a great sense of humor that I would recommend to everybody, not only genre fans. 9 out of 10!