A truly great film

Rating: 10/10 (11 September 2001)

One of Sergio Leone's least-known films, Duck You Sucker is also one of his best. A deep operatic meditation on the nature of friendship, commitment, and the meaning of revolution, it features powerful performances from James Coburn and Rod Steiger, impressive cinematography, and a fine Ennio Morricone music score. The script is both dramatic and subtle, and all of the characters are multi-dimensional, rare in movies of this genre. The more complete versions (such as the laser disc) offer even more depths and meanings in this story of an IRA outlaw (Coburn) on the run in Mexico, where he meets and gradually converts a bandit (Steiger) into a revolutionary against a corrupt and brutal regime. It rewards repeated viewings, as not all of the meanings are apparent on the surface.