Read on Wikipedia where this film lost its funding three fourths of the way through and had to be financially saved by its star. Surpised, actually. One would have thought that the diet soft drink industry would have rushed to the rescue of this paean to the evils of Big Sugar. Anyway, it's a fairly effective anti capitalist rant, mostly because its director, Gilo Pontecorvo, is able, via his political passion, to plunge us into the chaotic, brutal and tragic world of failed upheavals against exploitation. That it falls short of being an effective cinematic story, as well as polemical propaganda piece, is due mostly to its shying away from its most interesting element, the love/hate relationship between cynical imperialist William Walker, well played by Marlon Brando despite his rent a Brit accent, and unsuccessful revolutionary Jose Dolores, also well played by Evaristo Marquez albeit with an English accent that is very difficult to understand. In its place we are given way too many repetitive scenes of Portugese and English genocide and Brando's character on his soapbox. B minus.
PS...Wonderful, stirring Ennio Morricone title music that sounds like Ray Manzarek meets Africa/Carribean.
PS...Wonderful, stirring Ennio Morricone title music that sounds like Ray Manzarek meets Africa/Carribean.