Viva Zapata! (1952)

There are 2 replies in this Thread which has previously been viewed 2,292 times. The latest Post () was by lasbugas.

Participate now!

Don’t have an account yet? Register yourself now and be a part of our community!

  • VIVA ZAPATA


    DIRECTED BY ELIA KAZAN
    PRODUCED BY DARRYL. F. ZANUCK
    TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION



    INFORMATION FROM IMDb


    Plot Summary
    In 1909, Emiliano Zapata, a well-born but penniless Mexican Mestizo
    from the southern state of Morelos, comes to Mexico City to complain
    that their arable land has been enclosed, leaving them only in the barren hills.
    His expressed dissatisfaction with the response of the President Diaz
    puts him in danger, and when he rashly rescues a prisoner from
    the local militia he becomes an outlaw.
    Urged on by a strolling intellectual, Fernando, he supports the exiled
    Don Francisco Madero against Diaz, and becomes the leader of his forces
    in the South as Francisco 'Pancho' Villa is in the North.
    Diaz flees, and Madero takes his place; but he is a puppet president,
    in the hands of the leader of the army, Huerta, who has him assassinated
    when he tries to express solidarity for the men who fought for him.
    Zapata and Villa return to arms, and, successful in victory,
    seek to find a leader for the country.
    Unwillingly, Zapata takes the job, but, a while later,
    he responds to some petitioners from his ...
    Written by alfiehitchie


    Cast
    Marlon Brando ... Zapata
    Jean Peters ... Josefa
    Anthony Quinn ... Eufemio
    Joseph Wiseman ... Fernando
    Arnold Moss ... Don Nacio
    Alan Reed ... Pancho Villa
    Margo ... Soldadera
    Harold Gordon ... Madero
    Lou Gilbert ... Pablo
    Frank Silvera ... Huerta
    Florenz Ames ... Senor Espejo
    Richard Garrick ... Old General
    Fay Roope ... Diaz
    Mildred Dunnock ... Senora Espejo
    and many more...


    Directed
    Elia Kazan

    Writing Credits
    John Steinbeck
    Edgecumb Pinchon ... (uncredited)


    Produced
    Darryl F. Zanuck ... producer


    Music
    Alex North


    Cinematography
    Joseph MacDonald ... (as Joe MacDonald)


    Trivia
    Anthony Quinn was very disappointed when Marlon Brando was cast as Emiliano Zapata
    - he thought that with his Latin appearance, he would have been a better choice.
    To solve the argument, both actors competed to see which of them could urinate
    furthest into the Rio Grande. Quinn lost the bet, but he won an Oscar
    for the best supporting actor as Zapata's brother.


    Marlon Brando was reportedly involved in a string of stunts during filming.
    On location in Texas, he shot off a string of firecrackers in a hotel lobby,
    serenaded Jean Peters from a treetop at three in the morning,
    horrified cast and crew by playing dead for several minutes following
    the hail of gunfire that ends Zapata's life, and told visiting reporters
    that he once ate grasshoppers and gazelle eyes.


    Anthony Quinn won his Oscar for this film on the same night that his father-in-law
    Cecil B. DeMille won the award for Best Picture for The Greatest Show on Earth (1952).


    Marilyn Monroe tried and failed to obtain a part in this picture,
    presumably due to Darryl F. Zanuck's lack of faith in her ability,
    both as an actress and as a box office draw.


    Anthony Quinn had played Stanley Kowalski in the road tour of Tennessee Williams' play
    "A Streetcar Named Desire", and some critics thought he was better than Marlon Brando,
    who had originated the part.
    None of this was lost on Elia Kazan, who liked to foster competition
    between his actors if it was appropriate.
    On set, the competitive Quinn and Brando, who both liked and respected each other,
    bonded like the brothers they played.
    Ironically, Kazan had initially proposed Jack Palance, whom he had introduced
    in his earlier Panic in the Streets (1950), for the role of Zapata.
    Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck countered by offering Palance the role of Zapara's brother
    . The unhappy Palance then negotiated himself out of his Fox contract.
    Ironically, Palance had understudied Quinn in the road company version of "Streetcar,"
    and when he was nominated for an Oscar for his role in Sudden Fear (1952),
    he was beaten by Quinn in "Zapata."


    According to Elia Kazan's autobiography "A Life" (1988), John Steinbeck would whittle
    while they sat in the wood shop of Steinbeck's New York townhouse writing the script.
    The two developed a deep and enduring friendship during the project.


    The cast includes the original voice of Fred Flintstone, Alan Reed, and his successor, Henry Corden.
    Though they share no scenes, this is nonetheless the only feature film in which both appear.


    Both Anthony Quinn and Marlon Brando had played Stanley Kowalski
    in "A Streetcar Named desire" shortly before they were teamed here.


    Film debut of Henry Silva.


    Film debut of Frank DeKova.


    Tyrone Power was the studio's original choice to play Emiliano Zapata.


    Before Jean Peters landed the role, Julie Harris was set to play Josefa Zapata.


    Richard Conte campaigned for the lead in 1949, when the picture was then titled "Beloved Tiger".


    "Lux Radio Theater" broadcast a 60 minute radio adaptation of the movie on November 3, 1952
    with Jean Peters reprising her film role.


    Marlon Brando was tested for the lead role in early 1949.


    Senator John McCain's favorite movie


    Goofs
    Anachronisms
    Marlon Brando, among other actors, appears in brown-face.


    Character error
    When Zapata rides away across the plaza after a confrontation,
    his pistol falls out of his holster without his noticing.


    Miscellaneous
    When Emeliano is thrown on the slab in the middle of town
    so all could see what happens to revolutionaries at the end
    of the movie Brando's stomach could be seen heavily breathing even though he is supposed to be dead.


    Revealing mistakes
    Emiliano Zapata's 'dead body' is heavily breathing and changes positions between different shots.


    Memorable Quotes


    Filming Locations
    Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad, Durango, Colorado, USA
    Roma, Texas, USA
    Stage 6, 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA
    Mexico
    Rio Grande City, Texas, USA
    New Mexico, USA

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England

  • Viva Zapata! is a 1952 biographical film starring
    Marlon Brando and directed by Elia Kazan.
    The screenplay was written by John Steinbeck,
    using as a guide Edgcomb Pinchon's book, Zapata the Unconquerable.
    The cast includes Jean Peters and, in an Academy Award-winning performance, Anthony Quinn.


    The movie is a fictionalized account of the life of Mexican Revolutionary Emiliano Zapata
    from his peasant upbringing, through his rise to power in the early 1900s, to his death.


    To give the film as authentic a feel as possible, Kazan and producer Darryl F. Zanuck
    studied the numerous photographs that were taken during the revolutionary years,
    the period between 1909 and 1919 when Zapata led the fight to restore land taken
    from the people during the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz.


    Kazan was especially impressed with the Agustin Casasola collection of photographs
    and he attempted to duplicate their visual style in the film.
    Kazan also acknowledged the influence of Roberto Rossellini's Paisan.



    User Review


    Pure Hollywood
    7/10
    Author: johno-21 from United States
    13 March 2006

    This is a pretty good 1950's action/drama considering Elia Kazan had never before or never would again direct an action movie. It's almost like a Western except the setting is the second decade of the 20th century between the years of 1910-1919. Marlon Brando is Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata in a role that earned him an Academy Award nomination.


    Brando is paired once again with Kazan who directed him the year before in A Streetcar Named Desire and would pair with him a couple of years later in Brando's Oscar winning performance in On the Waterfront. This film is well photographed by Mexican born cinematographer Joe Macdonald who should have been nominated for an Oscar but wasn't. In a rare role for Mexican born Anthony Quinn to be actually playing a Mexican as Eufernio Zapata for which he won the Academy Award for Best supporting Actor for 1952. Quinn's first nomination of four in his career and his first win of two. The film received three other nominations for Art Direction, Music and for it's John Steinbeck written Screenplay. This film is pure Hollywood however and is largely a fictional portrayal of actual events in it's romanticizing tale of one of Mexico's most beloved heroes Zapata. Despite the story by Steinbeck the dialog is weak. It's a good movie but Kazan is out of his element here, Brando is miscast and Steinbeck is lazy. I would give it a 7.5 out of 10

    Best Wishes
    Keith
    London- England