Duck, You Sucker!
In the year 1913 in Mexico at the time of the Revolution where several factions were fighting each other for power, Juan Miranda (Rod Steiger), a Mexican outlaw leading a bandit family, flags down a l…
Duck, You Sucker!
In the year 1913 in Mexico at the time of the Revolution where several factions were fighting each other for power, Juan Miranda (Rod Steiger), a Mexican outlaw leading a bandit family, flags down a large stagecoach wanting a ride. He forces the coach to stop where his family, consisting of his many sons and accomplices, rob the stagecoach. Juan chases down and rapes a woman from the coach who had insulted him upon his arrival as a "peon". Juan and his group strip the men of their clothing and leave them tumbling down a hill. Afterwords, Juan and his group hear explosions in the distance. Venturing to the source of the sounds, the Mexican bandit family meets John 'Sean' Mallory (James Coburn), an Irish Republican explosives expert on the run from the British, who is working as a silver prospector. Noting his skill with explosives to mine for silver, Juan relentlessly tries to make him join them a raid on the Mesa Verde national bank. After John initially refuses, Juan frames him for the murder of his employer and several soldiers, making him a wanted criminal and offering to "protect" him in exchange for his help. John reluctantly agrees to help Juan rob the bank, but escapes on the way to Mesa Verde by climbing aboard a moving train. Arriving in the city before Juan, John makes contact with Mexican revolutionaries led by physician Dr. Villega (Romolo Valli) and agrees to use his explosives in their service. When Juan and his family arrive by train, John inducts him into the revolutionaries' ranks. The bank is hit as part of an orchestrated attack on the Mexican army. Juan, interested only in the bank's money, is shocked to find that it has no funds and is instead being used by the army as a political prison. John, Juan and his family end up freeing hundreds of prisoners, inadvertently (and against his wishes) causing Juan to become a "great, grand, glorious hero of the revolution." The revolutionaries are chased into the hills by a Mexican army detachment led by Colonel Günther Reza (Antoine Saint-John), a German-born Mexican officer. John and Juan volunteer to stay behind with two machine guns and dynamite. Much of the army's detachment is destroyed while crossing a bridge which is machine gunned by them and blown to bits by John. Col. Reza who commands an armored car, survives. After the battle, John and Juan find most of their comrades, including Juan's family and children, have been killed by the army in a cave hideout. Engulfed with grief and rage, Juan goes out to fight the army single handed and is captured. John sneaks into camp where he witnesses executions of many of his fellow revolutionaries by firing squad. They had been informed on by Dr. Villega, who has been tortured by Col. Reza and his men. This evokes in John memories of a similar betrayal by Nolan (David Warbeck), his best friend, whom John kills for informing. Juan faces a firing squad of his own, but John arrives and blows up the squad and the wall with dynamite just in time. They escape on a motorcycle John is driving. John and Juan hide in the animal coach of a train. It stops to pick up the tyrannical Governor Don Jaime (Franco Graziosi), who is fleeing (with a small fortune) from the revolutionary forces belonging to Pancho Villa of the North and Emiliano Zapata of the South. As the train is ambushed by Mexican rebels, John, as a test of Juan's loyalty, lets him choose between shooting the Governor and accepting a bribe from him. Juan kills Jaime, and also steals the Governor's spoils. As the doors to the coach open, Juan is greeted by a large crowd and again unexpectedly hailed as a great hero of the revolution. He throws the money back into the coach to John. On a train with commanders of the revolution, John and Juan are joined by Dr. Villega, who has escaped. John alone knows of Villega's betrayal. They learn that Pancho Villa's forces will be delayed by 24 hours and that an army train carrying 1,000 soldiers and heavy weapons, led by Col. Reza, will be arriving in just three hours after dark, which will surely overpower the rebel position. John suggests they rig a locomotive with dynamite and send it head on. He requires one other man, but instead of picking Juan, who volunteers, he chooses Dr. Villega. It becomes clear to Villega that he knows of the betrayal. John nonetheless pleads with him to jump off the locomotive before it hits the army's train, but Villega feels guilty and stays on board. John jumps in time and the two trains collide, killing Villega and a number of soldiers. The revolutionaries' ambush is successful, but as John approaches to meet Juan, he is shot in the back by Col. Reza. An enraged Juan riddles the Colonel's body with a machine gun. As John lies dying, he continues to have memories of his best friend, Nolan, and a young woman both apparently loved. John recalls killing Nolan after being betrayed by him to the law. Juan kneels by his side to ask about Dr. Villega. John keeps the doctor's secret and tells Juan that he died a hero of the revolution. As Juan goes to seek help, John has a flashback to his time in Ireland with Nolan and a girl whom they both were in love with; knowing his end is near, sets off a second charge he secretly laid in case the battle went bad. The film ends with Juan staring at the burning remains, asking forlornly: "What about me?"
Duck, You Sucker!
Drama,War,Western
Film Details
In the year 1913 in Mexico at the time of the Revolution where several factions were fighting each other for power, Juan Miranda (Rod Steiger), a Mexican outlaw leading a bandit family, flags down a large stagecoach wanting a ride. He forces the coach to stop where his family, consisting of his many sons and accomplices, rob the stagecoach. Juan chases down and rapes a woman from the coach who had insulted him upon his arrival as a "peon".
Juan and his group strip the men of their clothing and leave them tumbling down a hill. Afterwords, Juan and his group hear explosions in the distance. Venturing to the source of the sounds, the Mexican bandit family meets John 'Sean' Mallory (James Coburn), an Irish Republican explosives expert on the run from the British, who is working as a silver prospector.
Noting his skill with explosives to mine for silver, Juan relentlessly tries to make him join them a raid on the Mesa Verde national bank. After John initially refuses, Juan frames him for the murder of his employer and several soldiers, making him a wanted criminal and offering to "protect" him in exchange for his help. John reluctantly agrees to help Juan rob the bank, but escapes on the way to Mesa Verde by climbing aboard a moving train.
Arriving in the city before Juan, John makes contact with Mexican revolutionaries led by physician Dr. Villega (Romolo Valli) and agrees to use his explosives in their service. When Juan and his family arrive by train, John inducts him into the revolutionaries' ranks.
The bank is hit as part of an orchestrated attack on the Mexican army. Juan, interested only in the bank's money, is shocked to find that it has no funds and is instead being used by the army as a political prison. John, Juan and his family end up freeing hundreds of prisoners, inadvertently (and against his wishes) causing Juan to become a "great, grand, glorious hero of the revolution." The revolutionaries are chased into the hills by a Mexican army detachment led by Colonel Günther Reza (Antoine Saint-John), a German-born Mexican officer.
John and Juan volunteer to stay behind with two machine guns and dynamite. Much of the army's detachment is destroyed while crossing a bridge which is machine gunned by them and blown to bits by John. Col.
Reza who commands an armored car, survives. After the battle, John and Juan find most of their comrades, including Juan's family and children, have been killed by the army in a cave hideout. Engulfed with grief and rage, Juan goes out to fight the army single handed and is captured.
John sneaks into camp where he witnesses executions of many of his fellow revolutionaries by firing squad. They had been informed on by Dr. Villega, who has been tortured by Col.
Reza and his men. This evokes in John memories of a similar betrayal by Nolan (David Warbeck), his best friend, whom John kills for informing. Juan faces a firing squad of his own, but John arrives and blows up the squad and the wall with dynamite just in time.
They escape on a motorcycle John is driving. John and Juan hide in the animal coach of a train. It stops to pick up the tyrannical Governor Don Jaime (Franco Graziosi), who is fleeing (with a small fortune) from the revolutionary forces belonging to Pancho Villa of the North and Emiliano Zapata of the South.
As the train is ambushed by Mexican rebels, John, as a test of Juan's loyalty, lets him choose between shooting the Governor and accepting a bribe from him. Juan kills Jaime, and also steals the Governor's spoils. As the doors to the coach open, Juan is greeted by a large crowd and again unexpectedly hailed as a great hero of the revolution.
He throws the money back into the coach to John. On a train with commanders of the revolution, John and Juan are joined by Dr. Villega, who has escaped.
John alone knows of Villega's betrayal. They learn that Pancho Villa's forces will be delayed by 24 hours and that an army train carrying 1,000 soldiers and heavy weapons, led by Col. Reza, will be arriving in just three hours after dark, which will surely overpower the rebel position.
John suggests they rig a locomotive with dynamite and send it head on. He requires one other man, but instead of picking Juan, who volunteers, he chooses Dr. Villega.
It becomes clear to Villega that he knows of the betrayal. John nonetheless pleads with him to jump off the locomotive before it hits the army's train, but Villega feels guilty and stays on board. John jumps in time and the two trains collide, killing Villega and a number of soldiers.
The revolutionaries' ambush is successful, but as John approaches to meet Juan, he is shot in the back by Col. Reza. An enraged Juan riddles the Colonel's body with a machine gun.
As John lies dying, he continues to have memories of his best friend, Nolan, and a young woman both apparently loved. John recalls killing Nolan after being betrayed by him to the law. Juan kneels by his side to ask about Dr.
Villega. John keeps the doctor's secret and tells Juan that he died a hero of the revolution. As Juan goes to seek help, John has a flashback to his time in Ireland with Nolan and a girl whom they both were in love with; knowing his end is near, sets off a second charge he secretly laid in case the battle went bad.
The film ends with Juan staring at the burning remains, asking forlornly: "What about me?".