Sergio Leone's Duck You Sucker (A Fistful Of Dynamite) (1971)

Got the UK DVD a few moons ago.

Very underrated film.

I love the opening scene with the upper class people discussion blacks and Leone using super close up on everyone's mouth while they are stuffing their faces.

I think I remember TCM saying something about this being Leone's last great big budget western. I certainly wish he did more movies like this. It is very epic in scale and only feels like a small film for about 5 minutes total.

Also, I think I got our resident old man a copy for one of the Chewer Christmas exchange.

I'm still mad at myself for waiting so long to see this one. Originally Leone was set to produce only, but he and Bogdonavich couldn't get along.

This is on Comcast on Demand right now, under the Free Movies banner.

It's probably not in widescreen. If it is cool, if not, it's almost not worth it.

It's definitely not in widescreen. But it's free.

I believe it's still 6.99 at Target. The two disc edition. You know, if you want to just buy it since it's not that much.

However, I believe it's in the Sergio Leone Collection as well.

I liked it, though it was mainly the score that stuck with me. And how many times Coburn says, "duck, you sucker." That always cracked me up.

According to the commentary Leone swore up and down that "Duck You Sucker" was a common phrase in the States, despite the fact that everyone told him it wasn't. It's actually worth buying the two-disc set for the widescreen alone, but the commentary and documentary are huge pluses.

Don't get me wrong, I own the DVD and prefer it in widescreen, I was just recommending it to maybe somebody who has never seen it and might be persuaded to watch it for free. Then I demand that they go and purchase the DVD and see it in all its Leone widescreen glory.

Just go buy the DVD if you want to watch this movie. Don't watch it on TV because I don't think they ever showed it in the original aspect.

I love this movie. Its one of the best stories about friendship I have ever seen. I think its highly underrated and amazing.

I keep seeing this for sale and I always mean to blind buy it but never do. After this thread I think I will. Leone is one of my heroes (Once Upon a Time in the West is slowly creeping up my list of favorite movies of all time) and I need to get my hands on everything he's done.

I love this movie, though I've only gotten to see it once, when it played at the English language rep. theatre.

I'd love to get it on DVD, both to watch myself and to show other people, but last I heard none of the discs available was the complete original cut, which is the only version I've seen to date. Has this changed, then? I'm terrible at keeping up with releases.

The two disc version put out in 2006 to go along with the release of the Sergio Leone Anthology has the restored cut. At least, that's what it's advertising.

Have the chance to see it fullscreen. Should I just skip it and wait for it in its proper aspect ratio?

The UK DVD has the complete original cut, not sure about the US release.

I like Leone a lot, but the amount of stupid in this movie has prevented me form ever wanting to rewatch it.

Which is a pity, I remember liking the ending a lot even if I had to get through numerous CHOM CHOM CHOMs to get there.


Edit - And good god, the flashback sequences!

I actually have the Sean theme (it's Sean Sean Sean, by the way) on my iPod.

I find it surprising that someone with Alex Cox for an avatar didn't enjoy Leone's last look at the American West. Nothing wrong with it, of course.

Edit: That sounded snotty, it wasn't meant to. Sorry.

Also, the US DVD is the uncut version for all those wondering.

I too, fail to find anything stupid in this film. The balance of comedy, action and drama is about as perfect as they come. It's one of those films that works as a whole, and then you go and pick it apart in it's separate elements (story, dialogue, acting, music etc) and find that each of those is top notch on its own. Hard to pick a Leone favourite, but this is definitely the one I've re-watched most.

No worries, I realise this movie got under my skin more than it should, but I really amn't considering giving it another go in the near future.

And thanks for the actual name of the words. Sean Sean Sean!


But is it your favorite? I can begin to try to understand you if you say you've rewatched this one more often, but not if you say you find it to be a better movie than Once Upon a Time in the West or For a Few Dollars More.

The flashbacks are what makes the film. The slow reveal of "John's" past along with his current adventure really tell a compelling story.

No, not a better movie... more favorite yes (there seems to be a discussion on this exact distinction in another thread). Probably because the other ones (don't forget tGtB&tU) are such seminal works in the history of spaghetti, that in later genre movies, you're bound to come across a lot of elements Leone first came up with. Seeing a lot of those (ranging from pretty great to pretty awful) may have tempered my need to revisit most Leone flicks. But coming across DYS (it was a blind buy looking at the cover, when I was in the mood for some pulp spaghetti) it turned out such a great surprise, with many scenes that stuck with me (!!MILD SPOILER SWIPE the motorbike entrance of Sean, the shootout on the hill, the mass execution) so it ended up a few times more in my player.

It also has the 'Lebowski factor' going for me.. i.e. characters that you think are so great that, from time to time, you just want to hang out with 'em once more.

Yeah, that's a good argument, the fact that it's got more "unique" traits than the others. Usually I just don't make that distinction at all, as long as I can establish to a certain degree that it's the author's originality.

But, like someone once said (ironically enough, I think it was a big historical figure): "Those who think they have original ideas have no sense of history"

This one feels pretty uneven compared to the other Leone westerns. Granted, there are a ton of unbelievably fantastic moments throughout this film. Its just the drawn-out pacing, which Leone almost always nails, feels a bit slack here. It could be the film doesn't really kick into gear until halfway through, where you begin to understand the world the characters are living in. There isn't a ton of context for the first 1:20. Once the revolution opens up though, the film gets much better.

And yeah, those flashbacks seem really tacked on. But, man, Steiger rocks this shit. Coburn's accent is a bit funny, but he's usually the coolest dude in the room so its okay. Steiger just has that presence that makes him less likable than Tucco, but still something of a force to deal with.

Revisited the Man With No Name Trilogy and ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST recently, so I figured it was finally time to see this one. Interesting character study. I liked the fact that both "Johns" had an arc, as did their relationship.

 

I found it interesting to compare the "bridge blowing up" scene here with the one in THE GB&U, and the theater/morality/motivation/character development behind the two.

 

Also, I'm convinced that John shotgunned his friend not because of any betrayal, but because the dude kept trying to force a threesome.

 

EDIT: Read that the original script title was "ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE REVOLUTION", which makes sense, considering it was part 2 of Sergio's 2nd trilogy.

Edited by DARKMITE8 - 6/7/11 at 10:14am

On Netflix Instant right now in the proper aspect ratio. 

Yeah what was that last montage all about? I figured John was dying and his mind went off into some kind of "Happy Land" where he frolicked about with his lover and best friend. It plays like it some kind of MAJOR REVELATION a la Harmonica's memory in Once Upon a Time in the West.

 

But this is a must own for me after renting the DVD from netflix recently...