tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post506920522680533999..comments2024-03-23T16:19:36.154+05:30Comments on A Potpourri of Vestiges: Duck, You Sucker! (1971): Italian maestro Sergio Leone's treatise on greed, cowardice, heroism and friendshipMurtaza Ali Khanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09747183316188241022noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-5935024133820646682014-06-12T04:59:33.519+05:302014-06-12T04:59:33.519+05:30ps: Duck you Sucker has a wonderful sense of humor...ps: Duck you Sucker has a wonderful sense of humor at times, whereas Platoon, not much at all. I think Morricone's score is a masterpiece itself. What a genius he was..............Bobby Martinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-88935148809331683962014-06-12T04:49:39.815+05:302014-06-12T04:49:39.815+05:30Murtaza, I have read your review several times now...Murtaza, I have read your review several times now. It is superb and knowledgeable. Simply excellent. Most respectfully, I would disagree with only this comment: "Leone essentially presents a tale of two men: one naïve and one intellectual wherein the naïve one teaches the intellectual a lesson convincing him to throw away Bakunin’s book which was the very symbol of his belief in the endless promises made to him by his fellow intellectual men." My thoughts are a little different: I think if there is any hope that comes from the film it is about the possibility of change. Juan is more than naive, he is a rapist and an ugly person, in his own way co- conspiring with the corruption all around him, albeit with a few redeeming qualities such as loyalty to his family. This is as we find him at the beginning. In the end he is much different, and this is due to John who is burned out and done with life and loses his own through the virtue of sacrifice, and who shows the ugly bandit at least the possibility of hope in spite of chaos and unending waste. Juan has indeed show a capacity himself to learn and to change, no small things. But this possibility is only a possibility, the world is thoroughly corrupt. Duck you Sucker reminds me of another profoundly intellectual and very sad film, expressing magnificently the same themes, and not just because of the "same sounding," haunting soundtrack: Platoon. High praise indeed.Bobby Martinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-55284561327752604362014-06-11T09:01:54.200+05:302014-06-11T09:01:54.200+05:30Thanks for sharing your thoughts. It's indeed ...Thanks for sharing your thoughts. It's indeed a masterpiece... it's also Leone's most introspective film... the movie features a heart-wrenching performance from the great Rod Steiger.Murtaza Alihttp://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-65598829509164368372014-06-11T08:41:38.545+05:302014-06-11T08:41:38.545+05:30my favorite leone film. a masterpiece. sad, deep,...my favorite leone film. a masterpiece. sad, deep, an intellectual film. awesome.Bobby Martinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-18554682815535333792014-04-09T01:22:35.255+05:302014-04-09T01:22:35.255+05:30Glad you liked it... would love to hear more about...Glad you liked it... would love to hear more about Spaghetti Western Tuesday!!! :-)Murtaza Alihttp://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-18054982160463902662014-04-08T20:41:27.200+05:302014-04-08T20:41:27.200+05:30Great review!
We're linking to your article ...Great review!<br /><br /><br />We're linking to your article for Spaghetti Western Tuesday at SeminalCinemaOutfit.com<br /><br /><br />Keep up the good work!Dengelkenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-81825414365489297472013-02-18T19:36:16.136+05:302013-02-18T19:36:16.136+05:30I am glad you do. Like all true auteurs, Sergio Le...I am glad you do. Like all true auteurs, Sergio Leone was a difficult person to work with. The fact that he couldn't speak English must have made the matters worse (especially with highly accomplished actors like Steiger who could speak neither Italian nor French).Murtaza Alihttp://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-4034703163184210942013-02-18T19:26:28.691+05:302013-02-18T19:26:28.691+05:30Of course, Ali. I agree with your viewpoint one hu...Of course, Ali. I agree with your viewpoint one hundred percent. Rod played his part very-well indeed. Better than expected, considering that he didn't like Sergio's personality all that much. As they disagreed a lot on the set.<br /><br /><br />It's just nice to know the origin of Rod's 'Tuco', huh? Makes for a nice zing.comicbookandmoviereviewshttp://www.comicbookandmoviereviews.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-30065096180244543042013-02-18T19:09:26.147+05:302013-02-18T19:09:26.147+05:30Thanks a lot for those kind words. Duck, You Sucke...Thanks a lot for those kind words. Duck, You Sucker is indeed a classic.... a masterpiece to to be precise. The producers made an interesting choice by opting for Steiger. While Wallach too would have done justice to the part, it would have more or less appeared like an encore of his memorable performance in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Steiger surely brought in something extra. The commercial success of Dollars Trilogy meant that the studios were willing to spend much bigger sums (The budget for the opening scene of Once Upon a Time in the West alone was almost as large as the budget sanctioned for the entire filming of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly). And obviously they wanted to have a better control over critical commercial parameters like casting. Wallach wasn't as big a name as Steiger at the time and so Wallach's ouster wasn't a big surprise.Murtaza Alihttp://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6279678409089205149.post-29274597173078642202013-02-18T18:56:45.526+05:302013-02-18T18:56:45.526+05:30This is a classic film. And you have written a gre...This is a classic film. And you have written a great review. <br /><br /><br />I like the fact that Eli Wallach as supposed to play the Rod Steiger role, but was stopped from doing so because of the producers, because he was a lesser name.comicbookandmoviereviewshttp://www.comicbookandmoviereviews.comnoreply@blogger.com