Viva Max is a 1969 satirical comedy starring among others Peter Ustinov and John Astin and directed by Jerry Paris. Brigadier General Maximilian Rodrigues De Santos (Peter Ustinov) is the commander of the 87 man Nuevo Laredo garrison of the Mexican army. Due to a series of insults by his mistress and his vast ego, he decided to recapture the Alamo to prove his military genius. De Santos is in actuality an incompetent fool that commands absolutely no respect from his men. It is only through the actions of Sergeant Valdez (John Astin) that the unit has stayed together as long as it has.