Walker is a 1987 American-Mexican historical, hybrid/weird western film directed by Alex Cox and starring: Ed Harris, Richard Masur, René Auberjonois, Peter Boyle, Miguel Sandoval and Marlee Matlin. The film is based on the life story of William Walker, the American filibuster who invaded and made himself president of Nicaragua. It was written by Rudy Wurlitzer and scored by Joe Strummer, who has a small role as a member of Walker's army.

Plot

In 1853, soldier-of-fortune William Walker flees Mexico, after a failed attempt to incite an armed insurrection. He is placed on trial by US officials, but wins acquittal on breaking the Neutrality Act. Walker is a firm believer in Manifest Destiny and has plans to marry and start a newspaper until his fiancée Ellen Martin dies of cholera. Financed by American multimillionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt, Walker and 60 mercenaries embark on a mission to bring stability to Nicaragua by assisting the Democratic Party in its civil war against the Legitimists. Doing so would secure Vanderbilt's rights over an overland shipping route between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.