fcm434

What can be said about a film that already has over 694 reviews (both professional and personal) on this site alone? Should I talk about the unbelievable set-pieces; the great cast; the criminally-ignored Oscar- worthy performances from all 3 leads (Eastwood, Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef); the 3-dimensional characterizations; the great performances from the supporting cast (those with and without dialog); the multi-layered storytelling; Leone's satire on paint-by-numbers Westerns; the breath- taking cinematography; the tight script; the brilliant direction; the classic music; the eternal thought-provoking themes of war, violence, compassion, and humanity; the intense action; the quiet atmospheric moments; the great action scenes; the violence; the timeless humor; the legendary climax; the behind-the-scenes moments? What can be said about a film now widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time? What about when it was first released?

When Sergio Leone's "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly" first premiered to US audiences in 1967 (1966 in Italy) it was a time when many critics looked down on the Spaghetti Western genre as a whole. The Western genre itself was starting to wear off its appeal for many critics and said audience viewed the Spaghetti Western as an excuse to depict senseless violence which is exactly what they criticized about Leone's film. Critics at TIME, Variety, The New York Times, and the L.A. Times are a few examples of the major US publications that gave negative reviews to Leone's film. I write all this neither to mock the critics' opinions nor their reviews of the film at the time because from a historian's perspective these reviews provide insight into the US' critical movie culture towards a genre deemed then as violent trash. Yet history has shown a different opinion since its release.

Upon the film's release it became a hit (both national and international) and more importantly was influential beyond film becoming iconic in countless forms of art. The film breathed new life into the Western; the main theme topped 1968 charts for a year and now is one of the most recognized movie themes ever; "A Fistful of Dollars" introduced Eastwood's "Man With No Name" character but this film cemented him as an icon in the public mind. Many filmmakers, musicians, writers, painters, designers (clothing, video games, etc) point this film out as influential in their careers. Again I will not spoil anything and anyone curious about the film should definitely check it out. Personally speaking I can't say enough about the film and I always notice something new every time I watch it whether in the background or a character's mannerisms. I have watched it countless times and have yet to tire of it. Not only is "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly" one of the all-time greatest films ever made it's my all-time favorite film. Shalom.