SunnyHello Nice effects though.

Dorathen Better Late Then Never

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

MartinHafer I watched this movie for two reasons--Robert Mitchum and Zachary Scott. Now for anyone who loves classic Hollywood films, there's really no reason to explain in depth my reason to watch a Mitchum film--after all, he's Robert freakin' Mitchum--a wonderful actor who made everything (even crap) quite watchable. As for Zachary Scott, while he's far from a household name, I loved how slimy he could be--and when I read he was playing a guy who's selling guns to get rich during the Mexican Civil War of the 1910s, it sounded like a role PERFECTLY suited for him. Sadly, however, both actors were pretty limp here--particularly Scott. And, on top of that, the writing really was pretty sad.The film starts with Scott making a deal with the Federales (troops of the Mexican government). His wife (Ursula Thiess) obviously doesn't like him very much and seems to be biding her time with him. Robert Mitchum, another American, wanders in--apparently to scout out the situation. Soon, he leaves and walks right into a nearby battle between the Federales and the Revolutionaries. Now this part of the movie is really, really dumb. Seeing Mitchum casually strolling about the town with thousands of whizzing bullets flying about was really silly. How could he avoid the bullets?! I guess Mitchum must have been wearing bullet-repellent underwear. In a fit of boredom (or perhaps it was because the bullets broke his bottle of booze), Mitchum decides to stop merely watching the fighting from his balcony and tosses out a few grenades--endearing him to the Revolutionary leader (Gilbert Roland).A bit later, Mitchum and Roland hit on a scheme to kidnap Scott and his sultry little Wiener Schnitzel (Thiess). At this point, you'd think the film was going to improve following the dopey scene where Mitchum is taking a stroll through a war zone, but it actually will eventually lead to the film completely falling apart for me. Mitchum is supposed to be a self-centered mercenary....yet he throws it all away to spare Scott's wife from being killed. This made no sense at all, nor did Roland's decision NOT to shoot Mitchum in the face for doing this (in direct opposition to his orders). And the last portion of the film was pretty much all action and by then I was ready for the next film! By the way, while Miss Thiess is NOT a household name and only made a few American films, this German actress caught Robert Taylor's eye and they married--and remained married until his death in the late 1960s.

bkoganbing Robert Mitchum had a hand in producing Bandido, an independent production released by United Artists in 1956. It was supposed to be more of an existential type story about a mercenary during the Mexican Civil Wars of the teen years. What finally emerged was your run of the mill action adventure story with Mitchum mixing business with pleasure during the revolution. The business was arms, but the pleasure was Ursula Thiess.Thiess is married to Zachary Scott who finds money far more beautiful than Thiess if that's possible. He's looking to sell a large cache of arms to the government which certainly has the cash on hand. Mitchum however while he says he's detached from the politics does harbor a certain sympathy for the rebels who locally are headed by Gilbert Roland. The film was shot on location in Mexico and the two best things it has going for it are the beautiful location photography in Mexico and the performance of Gilbert Roland. Roland's a bit more intense in his role as the revolutionary chief than he normally is, but he still has that incredible charm working overtime for him. There are so many films where I find him the best thing in them.According to the Mitchum biography by Lee Server, he got himself in a bit of woman trouble while down there. Nothing new for Mitchum except for the fact it was his stand in who abused a young woman who thought it was Bob himself. When you have that kind of a reputation, trouble will seek you out even when you're completely innocent. It all worked out for Mitchum however.Ursula Thiess pretty much ended her career as actress with this film, she had married Robert Taylor a couple of years earlier and was now going to be a mother again. She had two children by her first marriage to German producer George Thiess, but now she was going to devote full time to the raising of Taylor's children.Bandido is your run of the mill action adventure story. One wonders though what Mitchum had in mind for the original plot.

gstevens-2 This is a fun Robert Mitchum movie, with a little taste of the "Magnificent Seven". Mitchum plays an American adventurer who runs afoul of American gunrunner Zacary Scott. While attempting to steal the shipment of guns from Scott he becomes involved with Scotts wife as well as the noble cause of the revolution. He ultimately sees that the rebels get the guns. This movie is very enjoyable, with the always good performance of Gilbert Roland (as the rebel general) and several other recognizible Hispanic actors such as Rudy Hoyos. I haven't seen this movie shown on TV even on cable for years. I would definitely like to see it released on VHS. The movie has some pretty good action scenes so if you get a chance to see it, DO!

againsam You can usually count on Richard Fleisher to deliver the goods, and here he does not disappoint. Robert Mitchum as an American soldier-0f-fortune gives a good performance. However, the always reliable Zachary Scott virtually steals the movie in the heavy role. The film was shot on location and that certainly adds to the fun. I recommend this film.