And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself
Short description
Set in 1914, the film follows the Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa as he looks for a way to pay for weapons and ammunition. His solution is unusual: he offers an American film crew the chance to capture his army in action, hoping both the money and the publicity will help his cause. The Mutual Film Corporation takes up the idea, and the young filmmaker Frank Thayer is sent to Mexico to negotiate and then to shoot the fighting itself. What begins as a business arrangement turns dangerous, as the crew finds itself caught between the two sides and Villa's own plans.
Antonio Banderas plays Villa, with Eion Bailey as Thayer. Alan Arkin, Jim Broadbent, Matt Day and Michael McKean appear in supporting roles. The screenplay is by Larry Gelbart, and Bruce Beresford directed. It is the fifteenth of the twenty films Beresford has directed, coming after Evelyn in 2002 and before The Contract in 2006. The production was made for television by HBO Films and Green Moon Productions and runs 112 minutes.
On IMDb the film holds a rating of 6.5 from roughly 3,900 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.7 from about 100 votes, suggesting a modest but consistent response from viewers.
What's left behind the scenes
- During the filming of the battle between Pancho Villa’s men (1878-1923) and federal government troops near Ojinaga, the silent film “Life of Villa” (Christy Cabanne, 1912) cinematographer Charles Rosher (1885-1974) was captured by the federals and brought before the general. Rosher, not without reason, feared he would be mistaken for a spy and shot, but the general of the Mexican government troops noticed a Masonic pin on his lapel, identifying Rosher as a Freemason. Fortunately, the general himself belonged to the lodge, so Rosher was received as a welcome guest. He was subsequently released when the governments of Mexico and the United States reached an agreement allowing Mexican troops to cross the border to flank and attack Villa’s insurgents from the rear.
- The original silent film “Life of General Villa” (Christy Cabanne, 1914), the second film by Mutual Film Company about Pancho Villa, is lost. Only some unedited reels of film remain, depicting the battle between Villa’s troops and government forces for Ojinaga in January 1914. Some photographs and frames used for promotional purposes from the lost original have also survived to this day.
- The original contract for the filming of the battle for Ojinaga, which Pancho Villa signed on January 5, 1914, with producer Frank N. Taylor and Mutual Film Company, has survived to this day. It can be seen in one of the museums in Mexico City.
- At the time of its release, this was the most expensive two-hour film, with a budget exceeding $30 million.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
