La bataille de San Sebastian (1968)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Henri Verneuil

Writers:

William Barby Faherty (novel)
Serge Gance (writer) ...

Release Date:

1968 (UK)

Genre:

Western

Tagline:

The epic of a town that became an army [UK]

Plot:

Leon Alastray is an outlaw who has been given sanctuary by Father John, whom he then escorts to the village of San Sebastian...

Plot Keywords:

Spaghetti Western | Based On Novel

Cast

Anthony Quinn	...	Leon Alastray
Anjanette Comer	...	Kinita
Charles Bronson	...	Teclo
Sam Jaffe	...	Father Joseph
Silvia Pinal	...	Felicia
Jorge Martínez de Hoyos	...	Felipe Cayetano
Jaime Fernández	...	'Golden Lance'
Rosa Furman	...	Agueda
Leon Askin	...	Vicar General
José Chávez	...	Antonito
Ivan Desny	...	Col. Calleja
Fernand Gravey	...	Governor
Pedro Armendáriz Jr.	...	Father Lucas
Jorge Russek	...	Pedro
Aurora Clavel	...	Magdalena

Also Known As:

Guns for San Sebastian (USA)
I cannoni di San Sebastian (Italy)
Los cañones de San Sebastián (Mexico)
The Guns of San Sebastian (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

USA:111 min | Germany:115 min (theatrical version) | Germany:105 min (cut)

Country:

France | Italy | Mexico

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | 70 mm 6-Track (Australia)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Durango, Mexico

Company:

Compagnie Internationale de Productions Cinématographiques (CIPRA)

Quotes:

Leon Alastray: [startled by a bell, Leon runs into the church] What the hell are you doing?
Father Joseph: Christians always respond to the sound of a bell.
Leon Alastray: What Christians? Rocks? Lizards, snakes?
Father Joseph: Perhaps someone's still alive. Please - you ring the bell. I am too weak.
Leon Alastray: Here, hold this.
[hands the wine bag to Father Joseph, who stuffs it into the statue of San Sebastian]
Leon Alastray: I feel stupid.
[pulls rope a few times]
Leon Alastray: Oh, that's enough!
[walks to church door]
[...]

Movie Connections:

Followed by Krodhi (1981)

Anthony Quinn A Priest ?

Over the years I seemed to have missed this great picture with Anthony Quinn, Charles Bronson, Sam Jaffe and Anjanette Comer. At first I was not sure if I was going to like this picture because Sam Jaffe,(Father Joseph),"The Dunwich Horror",'70, gave the impression it was going to be a long boring film about the struggles of a poor priest in the desert. I was soon fooled as Anthony Quinn,(Leon Alastray),"The Shoes of the Fisherman",'68 is befriended by Father Joseph and at one point takes over the church and rings the bell of the church to summon the local people who are hiding in the hills. Leon Alastray meets up with Anajanette Comer,(Kinita),"The Baby",'73, who has very deep romantic feels for Leon and wants to make love, however, Leon is overwhelmed with a strong religious feeling and is unable to cooperate. There is lots of action battles and even a cannon gets into the action along with plenty of arrows flying through the air. It is a very entertaining film and Anthony Quinn had me laughing in quite a few parts of the film.