A Fistful of Dollars

By 1964, the spaghetti western genre -- westerns typically made in Italy and Spain with Italian backing -- was alive and well, but not quite what people think of now. The genre was still in its infancy, light, even family-oriented westerns that were cheap knockoffs of American westerns. That changed in 1964, one movie kicking in the door and changing the genre and westerns as a whole in a huge way. The movie? 1964's A Fistful of Dollars.

In the small, south of the border town of San Miguel, a nameless gunfighter (Clint Eastwood) rides into town and promptly catches the attention of three gunfighters. He callously shoots them down in the street and heads to the saloon. There he meets the saloon owner, Silvanito (Jose Calvo), who fills him in on the town and its background. Things are run by two warring families, the Rojos, three brothers led by the maniacal, Ramon (Gian Maria Volonte), and the Baxters, led by the town sheriff, John (Wolfgang Lukschy). The two families are always going at it, and the mysterious gunfighter sits directly in the middle. Seeing a chance to make some serious money, the gunman pits the two families against each other, his job made that much easier when a troop of Mexican cavalry rides into San Miguel transporting a gold shipment headed for the U.S.

Wow, what a movie from director Sergio Leone as he kicks off his Dollars trilogy. A director with a handful of films to his name -- some credited, some not -- Leone put his name on the map with this western. This is unlike just about any western that came before it. Leave it to an Italian director working in Spain with an international cast and crew to rewrite the most American of genres. Tweaking Akira Kurosaw's Yojimbo, this is dark, dirty, brutally sadistic and cynical from the characters to the story and everything in between. There aren't so much good guys and bad guys, just less bad guys. No one is safe. The violence is aggressive, stylish and in your face. 'Fistful' helped propel the western into a new age, Leone's For a Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly hitting theaters in the two years following. It all started here, and it starts in a big way.

A recognizable face from TV's Rawhide, Clint Eastwood was far from a star in 1964. He was a definite TV star and had some supporting parts in films, but in 1964, he signed on to star in this Euro-western with a director he knew little about. What a wise decision it was, Eastwood propelling to international stardom thanks in great part to the Leone westerns. This is the definition of a western anti-hero. He isn't typically interested in what's right or living up to his word. He's looking to survive, make some money and move on. He earned the nickname the Man with No Name -- he's called Joe here, Manco and Blondie in the other Dollars movies -- for these movies, a gunfighter and drifter who moves from job to job. For the most part, he's a man of few words, typically letting his six-shooter do his talking. He squints and stares, sometimes revealing that "I'm up to something" smirk.

Much of the character is in the visual. Eastwood's Man with No Name wears a hat pulled down tight on his head, a long poncho over his frame, a calfskin vest and denim shirt, tight blue jeans, and plain boots with his gunbelt worn low on his hip. His face is covered in a short beard, almost a five-o'clock shadow. Talk about doing a 180 from the typical white hat-wearing western hero. That's a big part of the spaghettis appeal, credit going to Leone in general. The west was hot, dirty and sweaty, and it reflects in the look of the movie. The Almeria locations, the wardrobes, the town sets, all these little things add up to the success of the movie. Oh, and there's that composer, Ennio Morricone, turning in a memorable score that he would top with the next two movies. A good score, but he would set the bar high with each passing movie. Listen to an extended sample HERE. It's all those little things that add up from the look to the style to soundtrack to the stylish opening credits, and they all add up here nicely.

Working again with Leone a year later as the villain in For a Few Dollars More, Volonte became one of the all-time great western villains as the psychotic, pot-smoking Indio. It took that crazy performance to keep this performance in the background. Volonte delivers a gem of a part as Ramon Rojo, the fiery leader of the Rojo family. He's a brutal, calculating killer who's a dead-shot with a rifle. In Eastwood's Joe, he sees an expert gunman who can cause problems. Snake-like, sinister and creepy, a great lead performance. His brothers include Sieghardt Rupp and Antonio Prieto Puerto, his gang including spaghetti regulars Benito Stefanelli, Aldo Sambrell and Mario Brega. Along with Lukschy as the Baxter patriarch, look for Margarita Lozano as his wife and Bruno Carotenuto as their oldest son, Antonio.

In a lot of ways, 'Fistful' feels like a dry run for what's to come. The cynicism, the style, the characters, the shootouts, Leone would improve on it all over the next two movies. The gunfights are quick and harsh, and the finale as Joe stands down Ramon, his brothers and their gang shows that style that would become iconic in 'FAFDM' and 'GBU.' The close-ups, sometimes extreme close-ups of faces and eyes, the violent fanning of the gun for rapid fire effect. It's all there. Is it a great movie? No, but it's really good. A modern comparison is easy, Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy. Batman Begins is a really good movie, but the next two movies are simply better. That said, the first one had to lay out the groundwork for what was to come. An excellent movie, a huge turning point for where westerns would go in the mid to late 1960s.

A Fistful of Dollars (1964): ***/****

My Name is Nobody

The truth of the wild west was that it was a particularly nasty place. Of all the sheriffs, marshals, cowboys, bandits, gunfighters and hired guns that gained infamy -- good or bad -- in the years following the Civil War, I feel safe saying very few got to choose their ending. Many died bloody in horrifically violent fashion. It's a simple theme of countless westerns; choosing how you go out, how you die when your time is up. Among other things, it's a theme that makes up the best parts of 1973's My Name is Nobody.

A famous gunfighter who's gained notoriety wherever he goes, Jack Beauregard (Henry Fonda) has decided to leave his infamous reputation behind him. It's 1899, and the west that he knew is becoming a thing of the past. His plan is simple; buy a ticket on a ship in New Orleans and sail away to Europe where no one knows him or his own past. That's his plan at least. On the trail, he keeps meeting a younger gunfighter known simply as Nobody (Terence Hill) who has his own plans for Beauregard. He's followed Beauregard's busy and checkered past and finding out that he intends to retire, wants him to do otherwise in glorious, bloody fashion. Nobody wants Jack to face off against the infamous Wild Bunch, a gang of 150 killers and gunmen, stamping his name in the history books.

From director Tonino Valerii, 'Nobody' is one weird revisionist-comedy-spaghetti western. It is based on a story idea from spaghetti western directing legend Sergio Leone, and there are rumors/reports that he even directed some scenes here. It is both equal parts goofy, slapstick comedy and some really poignant scenes about the closing days of the wild west. Often times, it plays almost like a tribute to the western genre, both American and spaghetti westerns. On the other hand, it creates its own identity while still paying tribute. Composer Ennio Morricone's score borrows liberally from his previous scores -- most notably Fonda's Frank Theme in Once Upon a Time in the West -- and even uses samples of Wagner's Valkyrie score (listen HERE) for the Wild Bunch theme. Give the main theme a try HERE, a little lighter in theme and tone. The locations, the music, the obvious love of the genre, it's all there.

Using a familiar western pairing of the experienced, veteran gunfighter and the young up-start looking to make a name for himself, 'Nobody' again takes something familiar and makes it different while still working. Fonda is the veteran gunfighter, his Jack Beauregard having simply outlived the era that made him a known name. He just wants to retire, leave the name behind, and more importantly the target painted squarely on his back. Hill's mysterious Nobody isn't going to allow it, wanting his hero to go out in a blaze of glory. He may not want to allow it, but he never forces Jack to do anything, just keeps on talking and talking, trying to convince him to follow the path he should take. They have a great dynamic; Fonda amused at first by Nobody, Hill with an ever-present smile on his face. Nothing is ever spelled out, but there's almost a protecting angel aura hanging over him. However it's interpreted, it's two good parts.

Either Fonda or Hill is in almost every scene, but 'Nobody' has an interesting, even surprising supporting cast. Jean Martin plays Sullivan, a mine owner in business with the Wild Bunch to distribute his stolen gold (an odd, unnecessary storyline). Familiar American faces R.G. Armstrong, Geoffrey Lewis, Steve Kanaly and Leo Gordon make quick appearances as various gunfighters gunning with and gunning for Jack. Among several familiar spaghetti western faces look for Mario Brega and Benito Stefanelli among others.

The biggest thing preventing this tribute western is a self-indulgent streak right up its back. I like Hill a lot as an actor, but I've never been a huge fan of his overly comedic parts. His Trinity westerns are infamous for a slapstick comedy that typically divides fans into the love/hate department. The first 80 minutes here give Hill plenty of chances -- far too many -- to show off that physical ability. One scene has Nobody in a bar seeing if he can chug booze/beer, throw the glass over his shoulder and shoot it before it hits the ground. Watch it HERE. While interesting in itself, it just goes on too long. Then there's the sped-up fight scenes, Hill slapping opponents over and over again before they can draw a gun on him. These are all things that could be funny/worthwhile in small doses, but it just goes on too long here.

The saving grace here is the final 30 minutes, a pretty perfect finale that helps the movie end on quite the high note. Nobody finally gets Jack to believe in his Wild Bunch shootout, an artsy, well-done sequence that pits Jack against the small army of gunmen on an open prairie. The follow-up is even better and offers a solid twist as Jack and Nobody end up in New Orleans. No spoilers here, but it works well. The highlight though is Jack's letter to Nobody about the changing times, what to look out for, and how the world and wild west has changed. It's a simple, eloquent ending that manages to wrap up on quite the freeze frame. The movie in its entirety is a mixed bag, but I loved it when it works.

My Name is Nobody (1973): ***/****  

Death Rides a Horse

The middle film in Sergio Leone's famous Dollars trilogy, 1965's For a Few Dollars More, is considered one of the best spaghetti westerns ever made and is also my personal favorite of the genre. Two years later, 1967's Death Rides a Horse hit theaters, and hhmm, something sure seems familiar. Borrowing liberally from Leone's earlier western, it uses the same basic storyline with some almost identical scenes. Thankfully it does enough to stand on its own.

At an isolated ranch where $100,000 is being guarded one rainy night, a gang of bandits and killers descend on the ranch, taking the money as they kill the guards and family. All except one that is...a young boy. Some 15 years later, the boy has grown up, and Bill (John Phillip Law), is looking for the men responsible for his family's murder. A dead-shot with pistol or rifle, Bill is still inexperienced, but he has specific memories that will help him identify the killers without having seen their faces. As he travels though, he meets up with Ryan (Lee Van Cleef), an older gunman fresh out of prison. Their plans seem the same as both men are gunning for the same bandits. Will they work together or as foes?

Sounds like For a Few Dollars More, doesn't it? The young gunslinger teaming with the older, more experienced gun-hand isn't unique to just FAFDM, but it is an example of a movie that handles it really well. But in the wave of movies that were released after the Leone westerns, some similar stories popped up, and director Giulio Petroni uses that story as a jumping off point. Similar elements are there -- the dynamic between characters, the blood-tinted flashbacks -- but this is a movie that stands on its own. There's a reason it is remembered as one of the best spaghetti westerns around. And wouldn't you know it? This Lee Van Cleef guy is a big reason why.

By 1967, Van Cleef was a star thanks to the spaghetti western. He'd already starred in FAFDM, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and The Big Gundown, and with 'Death' adds another classic to his name. His Ryan is a slightly different version of Col. Mortimer, albeit a little more down on his luck. Even when his characters are in the right though, Van Cleef gave them a mean streak right up their back. He's an anti-hero, but one you're never sure of his intentions. Cool as gunfire starts, he knows what he wants and plans on getting it. Playing Colonel Mortimer for Leone is probably his most iconic role, but this is one of my favorites of his. Unfortunately John Phillip Law just can't match Clint Eastwood's part, but he does a respectable job as the revenge-seeking Bill. It's hard to tell if it's his acting or a bad dubbing, but wooden aptly describes the character. There is a chemistry with Van Cleef's Ryan though and that goes a long way in saving the story.

So who should our revenge-seeking gunmen go after? 'Death' fills out a cast will plenty of recognizable faces, all just waiting to be picked off. Law's Bill as a child saw little things he could remember about the killers; a tattoo, an earring, a scar, and now he's looking for those clues. The killers include Luigi Pistilli as Walcott, now a respectable banker (saw him clearly), American actor Anthony Dawson as Cavanaugh (chest tattoo of four aces), a saloon owner and town boss, with two bandit brothers, including Jose Torres as Pedro (scar over his left eye) and Angelo Susani as Paco (an earring from his right ear that dangles). Also look for Mario Brega as one of Walcott's henchmen, an actor continuing his trend of dying horrifically in spaghetti westerns, and Bruno Corazzari as another hapless henchmen. Don't forget about him in the finale. Where is he hiding?

All the touches of a successful spaghetti western are here from the anti-heroes and the despicable villains to the dusty border towns and extreme close-ups. For a movie that's 114 minutes though, it is not action-packed. The story builds up the tension as Bill and Ryan hunt down their revenge, but it's rarely dull. Just don't think you're seeing two hours of shootouts and gunfights. The ending though is one of the more memorable finales of the genre; Bill and Ryan in an isolated Mexican mountain village shooting it out with Walcott's men. A wind storm whips across the mountains, enveloping the town as sand, dirt and wind swirl around. If you were looking for action, this is the best place to find. Also worth mentioning, a twist that probably shouldn't come as a surprise, but it works nonetheless in terms of the two characters involved. Great finale, great ending.

Now in a spaghetti western, you'd be safe guessing that composer Ennio Morricone did the musical score, and here, you would be 100% correct. It never ceases to amaze me this man's talents. Some scores had touches of familiarity, but his 'Death' score is unlike any other he did and in general, one of his most underrated scores from a long and distinguished career. Listen to the main theme HERE for an idea. Another sample comes late in the movie -- dubbed Mystic and Severe -- which you can listen to HERE and watch in context HERE. Quentin Tarantino is a huge fan of the score, using both those music cues in his movies Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Inglourious Basterds. A great score though to keep things moving in a great spaghetti western. Van Cleef was rarely better in bad-ass mode, and you'll be hard-pressed to come up with too many that are better than this movie. You can watch the entire movie HERE at Youtube, but the quality isn't great.

Death Rides a Horse <---trailer (1967): *** 1/2 /****

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

With 1964's A Fistful of Dollars, director Sergio Leone put the spaghetti western on an international stage and in the process made star Clint Eastwood a hugely popular actor worldwide. Leone followed it up the next year with For a Few Dollars More, what some (including this guy) consider to be the best spaghetti western ever. It was all practice though for 1966's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, a movie that is bigger than just a spaghetti western or even a western in general. It's one of the best movies ever made.

It's 1863/1864 in the American southwest, and the Civil War is raging as Union forces battle with fleeing Confederate troops. Amidst all the fighting, a Confederate payroll has been stolen and ultimately hidden, buried away in a grave in a cemetery with thousands of near identical graves. The payroll of $200,000 in gold coins seems destined to waste away for all time, but three men know about it and are dead-set on acquiring it. Running a bounty scam, a drifting gunfighter, Blondie (Eastwood) and a Mexican bandit, Tuco (Eli Wallach) stumble across the information, one knowing the cemetery, the other knowing the name on the grave. A third man, a hired killer, Angel Eyes (Lee Van Cleef), is also on the prowl and never far behind. Who can get there first? Can they even make it alive?

I try not to throw this term around loosely, but The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is one of those rare perfect movies. Everything fits together like a jigsaw puzzle, all the little things working together seamlessly, impressive considering the scale of this movie. With the Civil War as its backdrop, it is a big, big western, the epitome of an epic. The scale Leone shoots his movie would be jaw-dropping in itself, but it's handled well. The Almerian locations in Spain become an additional character, using the land like so many other spaghetti westerns attempted but failed to do. It is an incredible visual experience. If not beautiful, it is powerful in its image. More details on all of this later, but Ennio Morricone's score is among the most instantly recognizable scores ever, the acting is perfect, the set pieces leaving a lasting impression, and a movie overall that won't easily be forgotten.

Like so many of the best directors, Leone had a knack for casting, and with Eastwood, Wallach and Van Cleef, the Italian director hits three home runs. Eastwood reprises his role from the first two Dollars movies, the man of few words gunslinger, Blondie (instead of Joe and/or Manco), who usually lets his gun do his talking. There's even an introduction of his infamous poncho. He is the prototypical anti-hero, the silent gunfighter looking for treasure. Van Cleef as Angel Eyes (Sentenza -- means Death Sentence -- in the Italian dubbing) is an all-time sinister villain, the hired killer who always seems to show up when least desired. Sinister, brutal, maniacal, all apply to this gunhand. The scene-stealer though is Wallach as Tuco, a well-traveled Mexican bandit. He's going 100 mph at all times, the fast-talking, quick-draw who is always crossing himself over his victims. These are all characters capable of carrying a movie on their own, but instead they work together to form one of the great lead ensembles ever assembled for a movie.

A couple smaller performances also deliver, regardless of how little screentime they have. Aldo Giuffre plays a Union captain who Blondie and Tuco come across in the midst of a battle. An alcoholic, he questions the lunacy of his orders but continues on because an officer must do his duty. Spaghetti regular Luigi Pistilli plays Father Ramirez, Tuco's brother who looks down upon what his brother has become, a lowly bandit. Spaghetti baddie Mario Brega plays Cpl. Wallace, a sadistic Union soldier looking over Tuco. Al Mulock plays a gunfighter gunning for Tuco after a past encounter. Fans of the genre should also look out for Benito Stefanelli, Aldo Sambrell, and Lorenzo Robledo as members of Angel Eyes' gang.

What ends up being another character is Morricone's score, as key an ingredient to the movie's success as any score/movie relationship I can think of. The main theme -- listen HERE -- is instantly recognizable, and basically everyone around the world has heard at it some point whether they knew it or not. The unique sound, the whistling, the tune, it all sets the stage for a score that goes from epic and huge to personal and moving with the snap of a finger. Used several times in the movie, Carriage of the Spirits is an ethereal, other-worldly beautiful sample of music that still sends chills up and down my back upon hearing it. That's what Morricone does, he makes his music effective and powerful no matter what the scene or setting. The best though of all -- even better than the GBU main theme -- is a track entitled Ecstasy of Gold, a hauntingly beautiful piece of music. Why's it so good? More on that later (sorry, I will get to it). All in all, an incredible score that serves an integral role in making this movie a classic. One of the all-time great film scores.

A handful of set pieces dominate the film -- several abandoned western towns, a shootout in a bombed out town, a huge, bloody battle between Union and Confederate forces -- but it all pales to the ending, the film's last 30 minutes or so as Blondie, Tuco and Angel Eyes all near the gold. The extended sequence starts with Tuco finding the cemetery, racing through rows and rows of graves trying to find the name Blondie has told him. Set to Morricone's Ecstasy of Gold, the sequence defies words. It's dizzying and unsettling, Leone's camera breathlessly following Wallach as he runs, finally finding the wanted grave. Watch it HERE. Then it's the showdown, one of the most respected, iconic (drinking game? How many times have I used that?) gunfights ever. Leone's trick though is the build-up. It's almost 5 minutes of positioning and mind games, the camera bouncing back and forth in close-ups and extreme close-ups, a blur of eyes, hands, and guns, all three men daring the other to draw. Watch it HERE, the single, greatest standoff in the history of movies.

Watching this recently on a big screen -- thank you, Doc Films -- I realized something odd and unique about the movie. It took an Italian director in Leone to make the best Civil War movie around. I think that gets lost sometimes with the scale and epicness of the movie. Wrapped up in it all is an anti-war message, and an effective one. All the soldiers we meet are cripples, drunks, corrupt, and dying. We see bodies littered on trails and in streets like discarded garbage. A thief is callously shot down by a firing squad. A Confederate spy's body is lashed to a cow-catcher on a train as a warning to others. Without beating us over the head with his message, Leone effectively shows the horror of war but also the lunacy and stupidity of it all. As Eastwood's Blondie states while overlooking a battle, "I've never seen so many men wasted so badly."

There it is, an epically long and rambling review for an epically great movie. Dark and cynical, it is oddly funny -- Tuco's 'When you have to shoot, shoot, don't talk' and the running 'There are 2 types of people in this world' line providing some good laughs -- and shows off an underrated script with a story that spans months and hundreds of miles. It is that perfect movie. A buddy-journey story set in the American Civil War with perfect performances, an immensely giant scale, a great musical score, and choreographed action which has been attempted over and over ever since. The definition of what a movie should be. It doesn't get better than this.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly <---trailer (1966): ****/****

A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die

What flies in one market doesn't necessarily do the same in a separate market.  Take 1968's A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die, a popular spaghetti western released in Europe with an almost 2-hour running time. On a separate note, if that title isn't one of the coolest ever, I don't know what is.  Anyhow, MGM gets their hands on it for a U.S. release, cuts about 20 minutes, and hacks away the ending so American audiences can leave with a happy conclusion.  What's left? A good but not great spaghetti western that will always have the question of 'What if?' floating around it.

Released at the height of the spaghetti western craze, 'Minute' has been left in the dust by more popular spaghettis from directors like Sergio Leone and Sergio Corbucci among others and other movies with bigger stars.  This is a western with all sorts of genre regulars from the gothic sounding soundtrack -- not Ennio Morricone -- to the anti-hero to the supporting cast full of recognizable faces to the familiar locations.  A classic it is not, but it still remains an interesting watch for spaghetti western fans.

Infamous outlaw Clay McCord (Alex Cord) has ridden the outlaw trail for years, but the law seems to be closing in.  He hides out in the desert, bandit town of Escondido, run by a thuggish gunhand, Kraut (Leone regular Mario Brega), who would like nothing more than to put a bullet between McCord's eyes. While hiding, McCord hears of an offer made by the new territorial governor (Robert Ryan) giving amnesty to any outlaws who will sign a document and surrender their guns. The outlaw is skeptical, but a recurring problem that he believes is epilepsy continues to plague him, paralyzing his gunhand whenever it is put under stress.  Sooner or later, it will happen at the least opportune moment.  As he prepares to ride in to sign the amnesty though, McCord not only has to deal with Kraut, but the local sheriff (Arthur Kennedy) who is suspicious of McCord's motives.

This is not your typical spaghetti western in a lot of ways, and in others, it's a good example of how strong the genre could be.  Not a big star, Cord plays McCord as a sympathetic character forced into a life of working as a gunhand.  Some eerie flashbacks show some of Clay's motivation as he watched his father succumb to epilepsy.  It's an appropriate addition to a genre that has had heroes who are blind, deaf, tortured, mutilated and generally disabled.  Ryan gives the movie credibility just by showing up as governor Lem Carter, and Kennedy looks to be enjoying himself in the midst of his European movies.  Also look for Italian beauty Nicoletta Machiavelli as Laurinda, a woman who helps Clay.  For the rest of the cast, if you're a Leone fan you'll recognize countless faces in supporting roles.

Not as action packed as some reviews would make it out to be *cough Roger Ebert cough * this western gives a little more character development to its anti-hero in Clay McCord.  There are gunfights, including the exciting finale in one of the movie's more noteworthy filming locations.  Not just shooting in the sparse deserts, director Franco Giraldi moves his story all around from desert to river areas to forests and never stays in one place too long filming in Italy and Spain for the American west.  Composer Carlo Rustichelli turns in a score with two main themes, one quiet tune for the hero, the other that drives the action. All the little elements that help up and add to the quality of the movie.

Unfortunately, the DVD feels the need to taunt its buyers with a claim of a 118-minute running time, the original length upon being released in the late 60s.  In fact, the DVD runs about 98 minutes and does have a disjointed feel at times with some awkward cuts.  The worst cut comes at the end though.  SPOILERS As is, McCord signs the amnesty and rides off to a new life.  The original version has McCord sign the amnesty and then be shot down a few miles outside of town by bounty hunters unaware of what he's done.  Talk about a shocker ending, I've never found anyone who's actually even seen the ending.  The DVD ending does work, but the cut ending just seems like it would work better, especially for the McCord character arc.

Not as well known as many spaghetti westerns, this is a hidden gem in the genre.  It's floated around in anonymity thanks to its lack of big names, but all the better for catching up with it now.  It is available to watch through Youtube, but it is in Spanish and isn't of the best quality.  If you can find the MGM DVD, it does offer a cleaned-up widescreen presentation.  Hopefully somewhere out there is a 2-hour version with the original ending, but for now, this will have to do.

A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die (1968): ***/****