Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia

A typical film from the workshop of Sam Peckinpah created based on the scheme of a traditional western drama - a lonely man entrusted with a MISSION and facing danger, adversity, and the superior forces of enemies. Peckinpah's typical fascination with violence and machismo is characteristic, where women are reduced to mere sexual objects and playthings in the hands of strong men. Similarly to the famous Straw Dogs, the main character is an initially underestimated outsider, his motivation purely materialistic, but throughout the story, an extraordinary determination and stubbornness are revealed, and the motive of revenge is added. There are practically no positive characters in the film, and only those who shoot faster or have better luck survive. Overall impression: 70%. (30/03/2009)

This Peckinpah film has only one minus - it drags strangely slowly, which may put some people off. But those who endure will get a fair portion of a bloody-raw story in which you won't find a positive character, and which takes place in a world where the sun burns all the time and blood flows almost as strongly as tequila. I liked how the film gradually picked up momentum - Bloody Sam did a first class job in this regard again. But what absolutely blew me away was the opening five to ten minutes. You think you're watching a western before the guys in modern-looking clothes appear on the scene (inconspicuously) and before the cars pull out of the gate and a jet starts roaring on the runway at the airport. Great. Add to that the chilling "rape" scene, the beautifully romantic shower, the whole section in the cemetery, and the final slow-motion shootout (without a machine gun, but with submachine guns), and that makes get four pure stars. And after another viewing, perhaps the impression I wrote about at the beginning will disappear. Let's see.__P.S. I bet now I know where Frank Miller got the idea of "a man driving in a car and talking to someone's severed head", which he used in Sin City.__P.P.S. I'm sure the Coens have been watching Alfred Garcia - I couldn't help comparing this film to No Country for Old Men. (29/07/2010)

I wish I lived in blissful ignorance and naively thought that some incompetent director was trying to emulate the genius Peckinpah's The Getaway. Only without added value in the form of his talent, style, or sixth sense for choosing charismatic actors — just terribly dragged-out footage, in which even the slow motion shots seem like an unintentional parody of themselves. Perhaps only the finale is the "good old Sam". But he screwed this up on his own, so... Well, let me put it this way: I now like The Osterman Weekend a little better. (06/03/2009)

Incredible how Sam Peckinpah knew how to push things to the limit and how he managed to maintain pressure not only on the main character but also on the viewer themselves. It may be said that bringing such a head is quite simple, but it is not easy at all. Warren Oates was perfect for this role, and you, just like him, won't breathe until the end. (09/10/2015)