Duck, You Sucker (9/10): Sergio Leone's overlooked but brilliant film

“Where there's revolution there's confusion, and when there's confusion, a man who knows what he wants stands a good chance of getting it.”

With every new opportunity I get to watch a Sergio Leone film, the more I fall in love with his direction and style of film making. He is becoming one of my favorite directors of all time, and so far every film of his that I’ve seen is either a masterpiece or very close to being one. Duck, You Sucker (also known as A Fistful of Dynamite or Once Upon a Time… the Revolution), is a glorious and epic film that unfortunately has been overlooked by many. I got to experience the two and a half hour restored version of the film and all I can say is that it is incredibly entertaining. This is the second film in Leone’s Once Upon a Time trilogy although this one takes place in Mexico during the Revolution of 1913 and it is his most forgotten work probably because its squeezed in the middle of his most revered films. This was Leone’s final spaghetti western, and I only wish he had made more films like this because they are completely captivating. His classic trademarks are all included in this film beginning with his fascination for extreme close-ups contrasted with his wide angle shots, his collaboration with Ennio Morricone, whose score is always influential in the story, and his unique introduction of main characters who we don’t know for sure if they’ll be the hero or the villain. The introduction of the two main characters in this film is memorable and the chemistry both Rod Steiger and James Coburn shared together was a plus. There is very little I can criticize about this film because Leone once again had me guessing where the story was heading and what motivated each character. His spaghetti westerns always broke genre conventions and he did so once again with Steiger’s character who is an outlaw we eventually end up rooting for. Leone loves to mix things up and during some flashback scenes it becomes evident how much he has influenced modern filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino.

We are introduced to Juan Miranda (Rod Steiger) in the very opening scene as he is begging a traveler who is passing by to take him into town. He is mocked due to his poor man appearance but eventually is allowed into the comfortable and elegant stagecoach where some wealthy passengers are heading to America. He is treated with disdain and has to listen to all kinds of hateful and racial remarks when all of a sudden a group of bandits hold up the stagecoach. We discover that they are Juan’s bandit family, and it was all part of a well planned robbery. The victim ended up being the leader of the band and he leaves the disrespectful passengers naked in the middle of the road taking all their belongings with him. As they are celebrating their conquest, a series of explosions go off near the road and a man in a motorcycle passes by them. Juan shoots at the tire and the man suddenly stops revealing himself as John Mallory (James Coburn). Not too pleased with what the bandits did to his motorcycle he sets off an explosive in the stagecoach and threatens them. John is an Irish Republican who is wanted by the British army, but due to his expertise with explosives Juan wants to recruit him for a bank robbery and tries to convince him to stay with his family. What Juan doesn’t know is that John is really in Mexico trying to help the revolutionaries led by Doctor Villega (Romolo Valli) and isn’t interested in money. Juan unwillingly becomes a part of the revolution by trying to stick with John and that gets him into trouble with army Colonel Gunther Reza (Antonie Saint-John) and the tyrant Governor Don Jaime (Franco Graziosi). What ensues is a series of epic and confusing adventures for Juan and John. 

Duck, You Sucker is a wonderful epic film that perfectly balances the comedic moments with the action. Steiger and Coburn are excellent together and it was fun to see how they each kept on facing each other when Juan was trying to force John to do things his way. At first I didn’t really care much for Steiger’s character, but over time he grew on me. The true hero however was Coburn’s John. His entrance is as splendid as any of Leone’s introductions and he literally shows up on screen with a bang. The visuals might not have been as groundbreaking as they were in Once Upon a Time in the West, but the performances and the score truly enriched the story. What’s fun about Leone’s style is that his narratives are never straightforward and that always makes for an entertaining adventure. It is missing the usual western duels but it focuses more on building the friendship between the two leads so you can take it as a western buddy comedy of sorts more than anything else. It also has some very emotional scenes as well so Leone once again manages to squeeze different genres into this powerful film. It may not be a masterpiece, but I had a blast with Duck, You Sucker.    

My Review: On the Waterfront (10/10)

¨You don't understand. I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it. It was you, Charley. ¨

If you aren`t moved by this quote then perhaps it`s because you haven`t seen 1954`s On the Waterfront. I know the phrase isn`t all that memorable if you read it on its own, but if you have seen this scene before then you probably get goose bumps just from reading it. Marlon Brando delivers this line to perfection in one of his best performances in a 5 minute scene with Rod Steiger in the back of a cab. It is considered by many as one of the best American scenes in film and in my opinion it is one of my favorites. I didn`t care that the taxi had Venetian blinds in the back window or that the set wasn`t great, all I really cared about were the two characters and the way they delivered each line. It is not only one of the most touching and memorable scenes of the movie, it stands on its own. If the film sucked for 100 minutes but still had this great cab scene in it I`d give this movie 10 stars anyways because it`s just worth it. However the other 95 minutes don`t suck, they are great as well so On the Waterfront ranks among the best films in history. Elia Kazan did a terrific job with the direction getting the best out of every actor on the set, the black and white cinematography by Boris Kaufman gave the film the realistic mood it needed, the screenplay written by Budd Schulberg and adapted from Johnson`s news articles about the mobs that ruled the docks was inspiring, and the original music by Leonard Bernstein made this a perfect film. The film has aged very well even now 55 years later, and one can still appreciate the eight Oscars it won. The film truly captures the essence of the fifties and the social injustice that was going on in the waterfront.

Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) is a former boxer who had a lot of potential but wasn`t able to ever get a chance to fight for the title. He has been working at the docks ever since following orders from his corrupt boss Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb) and his partner Charley (Rod Steiger) who is Terry`s older brother as well. Terry is uneducated and Johnny is like family for him, so he always is willing to do favors for him and his brother. One day they ask him to turn in one of his friends so they can convince him not to speak out against them in court. Malloy follows orders although little did he expect that they were going to murder his friend. He has mixed feeling about what happened but he lives under the ¨D and D¨ code, which means being deaf and dumb so he is not willing to tell anyone what has happened. The victim`s sister, Edie (Eva Marie Saint), is an innocent catholic educated girl that is trying to find out what has happened. She meets the priest, Father Barry (Karl Malden), and begs him to try to find out who killed her brother. It´s not long before Terry falls for Edie and she sees past his apparent tough guy attitude. There is some sweetness and kindness in Malloy who enjoys spending time in the rooftops tending to his pigeons. Terry struggles between remaining faithful to his boss and brother and speaking out against the injustice going on in the waterfront. Meanwhile Father Barry tries to stir some courage out of the workers who are being exploited by the mob.

 On the Waterfront is considered a masterpiece because Kazan was able to capture the injustices that were going on in the docks during the era in a very realistic and powerful way. He was against remaining silent and thought people should always speak out against evil. The worst thing one could do was to remain silent like the workers in the waterfront did because that just allows more evil to take place. Some think Kazan used this movie as an explanation as to why he whistle blew against some of his partners during McCarthy`s communist witch hunt. I think the film is much more than that however. The priest figure in the film serves as a symbol as to how sometimes the church remains silent against the abuse of the powerful over the poor. The Church should always take an interest towards the weak and defend them, and that is sort of what Father Barry does in some very memorable speeches. Terry`s character is also a key element of the film as we all can identify with what he was going through. He had a conflict of interest, but had to do what he thought was the right thing. The way he let himself be cheated out of being a contender for the boxing title, in a way represents all those wrong decisions we regret from our past that could have changed our lives in the future so we can easily identify with his character. Marlon Brando is such a great actor and he truly gives one of the best performances I have seen in a film. This film is required viewing for everyone. 

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