Villa Rides
Encyclopedia
Villa Rides is a 1968 film starring Yul Brynner
in toupee in the title role and Robert Mitchum
as an American adventurer and pilot of fortune. The supporting cast includes Charles Bronson
as Fierro
, Herbert Lom
as Huerta
, and Alexander Knox
as Madero. Sam Peckinpah
wrote the original script and was set to direct but Brynner didn't like his depiction of Villa as cruel and had Robert Towne
rewrite the script and sought another director. The screenplay is based on the biography by William Douglas Lansford
.
Mitchum's character may have derived his first name from actor Lee Tracy
, who had been cast in the primary supporting role for Viva Villa in 1934 but lost the role and derailed his career for decades by drunkenly urinating off a balcony into a crowd of Mexicans below.
In the original posters for the film, Brynner's name is billed first but Mitchum's image is somewhat larger.
Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner was a Russian-born actor of stage and film. He was best known for his portrayal of Mongkut, king of Siam, in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor for the film version; he also played the role more than 4,500 times on...
in toupee in the title role and Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
as an American adventurer and pilot of fortune. The supporting cast includes Charles Bronson
Charles Bronson
Charles Bronson , born Charles Dennis Buchinsky was an American actor, best-known for such films as Once Upon a Time in the West, The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, The Great Escape, Rider on the Rain, The Mechanic, and the popular Death Wish series...
as Fierro
Rodolfo Fierro
Rodolfo Fierro was a railway worker, railway superintendent, federal soldier and lieutenant in the army of Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution in the . Fierro and his counter part and fellow lieutenant, Tomas Urbina, have been cited as the two halves of Pancho Villa, Fierro representing his...
, Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom
Herbert Lom is a Czech film actor, best known for his role as former Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series.-Life and career:...
as Huerta
Victoriano Huerta
José Victoriano Huerta Márquez was a Mexican military officer and president of Mexico. Huerta's supporters were known as Huertistas during the Mexican Revolution...
, and Alexander Knox
Alexander Knox
Alexander Knox was a Canadian actor and author of adventure novels set in the Great Lakes area during the 19th century.-Biography:...
as Madero. Sam Peckinpah
Sam Peckinpah
David Samuel "Sam" Peckinpah was an American filmmaker and screenwriter who achieved prominence following the release of the Western epic The Wild Bunch...
wrote the original script and was set to direct but Brynner didn't like his depiction of Villa as cruel and had Robert Towne
Robert Towne
Robert Towne is an American screenwriter and director. His most notable work may be his Academy Award-winning original screenplay for Roman Polanski's Chinatown .-Film:...
rewrite the script and sought another director. The screenplay is based on the biography by William Douglas Lansford
William Douglas Lansford
William Douglas Lansford born July 13, 1922 in Los Angeles is an author, screenwriter, and film producer.-Biography:Born to a Scots Irish and English father and a Mexican mother, Lansford was raised in a Mexican neighbourhood in East Los Angeles. He had virtually no contact with his father until...
.
Mitchum's character may have derived his first name from actor Lee Tracy
Lee Tracy
William Lee Tracy was an American actor.- Early life :Tracy was born in Atlanta, Georgia.After graduating from Western Military Academy in 1918 he studied electrical engineering at Union College, and then served as a 2nd lieutenant in World War I. In the early 1920s he decided to work as an actor...
, who had been cast in the primary supporting role for Viva Villa in 1934 but lost the role and derailed his career for decades by drunkenly urinating off a balcony into a crowd of Mexicans below.
In the original posters for the film, Brynner's name is billed first but Mitchum's image is somewhat larger.
Cast
- Yul BrynnerYul BrynnerYul Brynner was a Russian-born actor of stage and film. He was best known for his portrayal of Mongkut, king of Siam, in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor for the film version; he also played the role more than 4,500 times on...
as Pancho VillaPancho VillaJosé Doroteo Arango Arámbula – better known by his pseudonym Francisco Villa or its hypocorism Pancho Villa – was one of the most prominent Mexican Revolutionary generals.... - Robert MitchumRobert MitchumRobert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
as Lee Arnold - Maria Grazia BuccellaMaria Grazia BuccellaMaria Grazia Buccella, is a former Italian glamour model, Miss Italy contestant and film actress.Buccella screentested for the role of Domino Derval 1965 James Bond film Thunderball. The role eventually went to French actress, Claudine Auger...
as Fina (billed as Grazia Buccella) - Charles BronsonCharles BronsonCharles Bronson , born Charles Dennis Buchinsky was an American actor, best-known for such films as Once Upon a Time in the West, The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, The Great Escape, Rider on the Rain, The Mechanic, and the popular Death Wish series...
as Rodolfo FierroRodolfo FierroRodolfo Fierro was a railway worker, railway superintendent, federal soldier and lieutenant in the army of Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution in the . Fierro and his counter part and fellow lieutenant, Tomas Urbina, have been cited as the two halves of Pancho Villa, Fierro representing his... - Herbert LomHerbert LomHerbert Lom is a Czech film actor, best known for his role as former Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series.-Life and career:...
as Gen. Victoriano HuertaVictoriano HuertaJosé Victoriano Huerta Márquez was a Mexican military officer and president of Mexico. Huerta's supporters were known as Huertistas during the Mexican Revolution... - Robert Viharo as UrbinaTomás UrbinaTomás Urbina was a general during the Mexican Revolution who allied with Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata.-References:...
- Frank Wolff as Ramirez
- Alexander KnoxAlexander KnoxAlexander Knox was a Canadian actor and author of adventure novels set in the Great Lakes area during the 19th century.-Biography:...
as President Francisco Madero - Diana Lorys as Emilita
- Bob Carricart as Don Luis
- Fernando ReyFernando ReyFernando Casado Arambillet , best known as Fernando Rey, was a Spanish film, theatre, and TV actor, who worked in both Europe and the United States...
as Fuentes - José María Prada as Major
- Antoñito Ruiz as Juan
- Jill IrelandJill IrelandJill Dorothy Ireland was an English actress, best known for her many films with her second husband, Charles Bronson.-Life and career:Born in London, England, Ireland was the daughter of a wine importer...
as Girl in restaurant - Regina de Julián as Lupita
External links
- Villa Rides in the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- William Douglas Lansford (writer of the film's story)