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A Bullet for the General (1966) / El chuncho, quien sabe?

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 142 ratings
IMDb7.0/10.0
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A Bullet For the General $3.99 $14.99

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  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00AS3L0BM
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 142 ratings

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
142 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

V. Risoli-Black
5.0 out of 5 stars Unique Western That Defies Genres
Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2014
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Damiano Damiani had one of his exceptional successes with 1966's "A Bullet for the General" (AKA: "El Chucho, Quien Sabe?"). The director of "The Empty Canvas" had just directed "The Witch in Love," another film that could not be categorized as a horror film, although Sinister Cinema has a copy of the film out also as simply "The Witch" which is misleading. Both titles of this Blue Underground release on (DVD and) Blu-ray are valid and are included in the first disc of the two disc collector's edition as the U.S. release and the slightly longer international version. There are trailers and an interview with director Damiani, who is very much politically motivated when telling a story and it is clearly evident with "A Bullet for the General" as he says he didn't want to make a traditional western by an Italian but like Leone before him (the film's star Gian Maria Volonte as "El Chucho" (quite a memorable character for this chameleon-like actor was actually a leading actor in Sergio Leone's first spaghetti western "A Fistful of Dollars" although that film was not the actual "first" of that genre but brought it into popularity) was more interested in satirizing the American western and as is always the case with a Damiano Damiani film, he revolutionizes the genres he is working in to make something unique. Even his pre-quel in the "Amityville" franchise becomes a totally unique "sequel" that tests boundaries throughout. (See: "Amityville 2: The Possession"). There is a lot of humor in the film but it is not a standard "spaghetti western" and has a lot to say about the way of the peasants and working class which seems to become its major treatise. The second disc is DVD documentary about actor "Gian Maria Volonte: Un Attore Contro" which is often presenting blurry excerpts from the actor's films until his death rather recently. Although it is interesting, it is a bit disappointing as the package of a two disc set makes you think there are loads of extras about "A Bullet for the General" and the interview with Damiani is only a few minutes long on Disc One, the Blu-ray, but actually I am glad to know much more about Volonte as he always seems different in each film as he is at playing each character differently and hearing how he worked with other actors, writers, producers and directors. Top-billed opposite Volonte on the cover packaging is Klaus Kinski as "El Chucho's" half-brother who has less to do than Lou Castel as the villainous "gringo" and Martine Beswick is on hand with a tad too much dark make-up as a Mexican revolutionary female. Castel's make-up at times is a bit too heavy. The film is great, but not for the western or "Spaghetti Western" genre but for a film set in the American West that has clashes with people getting rich on the poor and their treatment like in Mexico or across the Atlantic and the Mediterranean in Italy and Sicily. Divergent and effective. Story and screenplay by Salvatore Laurani with adaptation by Franco Solinas and music by Luis E. Bacalov which was supervised by Ennio Morricone. Much thanks to Blue Underground for treating it so well.
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Paul Scott
5.0 out of 5 stars TOP BLURAY TITLE
Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2012
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Blue Underground's disc contains both the US and the 3-minute longer International versions of the film A Bullet for the General. These are separate 1080P transfers and NOT seamlessly branched - sharing the same Blu-ray disc. There may be some very slight differences in the image quality between the two versions but it won't be a lot - if any at all. I've made a couple of comparison captures below. The transfer seems a little inconsistent with some sequences showing that nice sheen of grain we often see with Blue Underground but there are a few spots that look waxy - as if DNR were the culprit. This wasn't at all egregious and I'd say that overall the visuals are extremely impressive with great detail in close-ups and depth being displayed. Colors are bright with true skin tones. The 2.35:1 widescreen is used in a slick fashion and the the video comes across pleasing throughout most of the presentation.The US version offers a healthy DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel at 1906 kbps that is comparable to the DUB on the International version that also has the option of lossless Italian at equally as robust a transfer. Gunshots are piercing and the aggressive pats of the soundtrack seems easily handled by the uncompressed audio. The flatness is expected. We have an original score by Luis Bacalov and the iconic Ennio Morricone that supports the 'Spaghetti' aspects very well. There are optional subtitles - both English (SDH) and English - for the Italian version - as well as French and Spanish. Region Free too.

Extras :

There isn't much more on the Blu-ray disc which is fairly filled with the two films but we still get a A Bullet for the Director - Interview with Director Damiano Damiani running 50 minutes in Italian with English subtitles, plus some trailers and a stills and poster gallery. What is a significant supplement is a bonus DVD - Gian Maria Volonte: Un Attore Contro running just shy of a whopping 2 hours. It has plenty of the actor/writer and fans of the genre will definitely want to indulge. This is a very nice documentary addition - in Italian with English subtitles.
Review By Gary Tooze of DVD Beaver, Thanks Gary.
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Ricardo Garcia Cruz
5.0 out of 5 stars Todo excelente
Reviewed in Mexico on July 19, 2023
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Tiene las dos versiones solo la versión de América tiene subtítulos en español. Excelente imagen y sonido llegó en tiempo y forma
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Cliente Amazon
5.0 out of 5 stars Recomendable
Reviewed in Spain on August 4, 2020
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Recomendable
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Kim Deville
5.0 out of 5 stars Comedy at its best .😃😄😅😆
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 29, 2018
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Ha Ha a comedy spaghetti western...so bad it's funny ..😂😃😄😅😆 reading other peoples reviews I thought it would be like a Clint Eastwood film only better indeed I recognised two actors from his films ....Ramone ...remember the heart Ramone ..and the hunchback who had a match struck his hunch lol ..by Lee Vancleef. .didn't know they did comedy ...ha ha ha very funny if you like comedy you'll ha ha love it 😃😄😅😆
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Antineo
5.0 out of 5 stars quien sabe?
Reviewed in Italy on June 6, 2014
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uno dei titoli,a mio avviso imprescindibile,per chi ama leone e il western-italy.film socio-politico di damiani con interpreti minori andrea checchi e carla gravina e un ipnotico e geniale gianmaria volontè.Compratelo con fiducia, video buono, solo qualche scena sottotono.
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Terence Tan Co
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best Spaghetti westerns ever made
Reviewed in Canada on September 24, 2008
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One of the best Spaghetti westerns made, great acting by all sides(especially by the lead guy) excellent plot and a commentary on doing a revolution too....
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