The plaintive wail of an harmonica echoes across a dusty landscape flattened by a merciless sun. Soon, the savage, ringing chords of an electric guitar answer in explosive dissonance. In front of this aural disruption a weatherbeaten humanity scrambles in and out of buildings and across walkways hacked from trees and thrown together too roughly. A fearsome lust to own the land draws the righteous and the corrupt alike. There is greed aplenty. Murder is no stranger. And vengeance hangs in the air.
Sergio Leone's undying love for the Western reached its zenith in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST. The film is a sprawling tapestry come to life, teeming with energy, highly stylized in its look and tempo. Like SHANE before it, Leone's unqualified masterpiece has influenced every Western in its wake. The film is complemented greatly by the magnificence of Ennio Morricone's music and Tonino Delli Colli's breathtaking widescreen photography. The performances are seminal works. Though Henry Fonda had played it hard and mean before (see John Ford's FORT APACHE and MY DARLING CLEMENTINE), he knocked the audience for a loop with his grizzled bad guy. Robards gives his world-weary rogue irresistible charm. Bronson is galvanizing as the man on a mission (he's SHANE gone slightly maniacal). And the graceful determinism of Cardinale adds a much needed civility to the surrounding upheaval. This is Leone's greatest film and ONCE is absolutely essential viewing. Other Westerns worth viewing: RED RIVER (1948); HIGH NOON (1952); SHANE (1953); FORT APACHE (1948); MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946)
Sergio Leone's undying love for the Western reached its zenith in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST. The film is a sprawling tapestry come to life, teeming with energy, highly stylized in its look and tempo. Like SHANE before it, Leone's unqualified masterpiece has influenced every Western in its wake. The film is complemented greatly by the magnificence of Ennio Morricone's music and Tonino Delli Colli's breathtaking widescreen photography. The performances are seminal works. Though Henry Fonda had played it hard and mean before (see John Ford's FORT APACHE and MY DARLING CLEMENTINE), he knocked the audience for a loop with his grizzled bad guy. Robards gives his world-weary rogue irresistible charm. Bronson is galvanizing as the man on a mission (he's SHANE gone slightly maniacal). And the graceful determinism of Cardinale adds a much needed civility to the surrounding upheaval. This is Leone's greatest film and ONCE is absolutely essential viewing. Other Westerns worth viewing: RED RIVER (1948); HIGH NOON (1952); SHANE (1953); FORT APACHE (1948); MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946)