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Once Upon a Time in the West
Sergio Leone, 1969
It's true, Sergio Leone is the greatest movie director that has ever lived. He outdoes Francis Ford Coppola, Stanley Kubrick, and Martin Scorsese by a mile, because their films don't feature an unforgettable score, extended emotions, or cinematic excellence in its greatest form. It is one of the greatest films existing, and has been preserved by many movie institutes for future generations as an example of a good movie.
Once Upon a Time in the West is the tragic and unforgettable story of the average McBain family during the western era who are murdered and gun-downed in cold blood. We never fully understand exactly why this takes place until later on in the film, when we are introduced to a lone gunman known simply as 'The Man' or 'Harmonica' as some fans of the movie call him. He is on a trek to kill an evil assassin-like character named Frank (Henry Fonda) who carries out dirty work for a railroad owner, played by Gabriele Ferzetti. We are shown that Frank and his gang killed the McBain family for their land so that the railroad could go through their property. The murdered man's wife (Claudia Cardinale) discovers that her husband was planning to create an entire town with the property, however Frank is hunting her down to kill her, so he can gain the property. Meanwhile, The Man (Charles Bronson) is on the trail of Frank and discovers the woman, and makes it his mission to protect her and finish the job he started: Killing Frank. But, for what reason does The Man want to kill Frank so bad? We are revealed this during the epic final shootout between The Man and Frank, one of the greatest scenes in movie history. In the film we also get many side stories, like the journey of a runaway bandit named Cheyenne (Jason Robards), as well as the emotional and personal life of the railroad owner (Gabriele Ferzetti).
The score to this film is incredible. It's haunting, surprising, and catchy. It was conducted by none other than Ennio Morricone, one of the greatest film composers in history, and in this film he stood next to John Williams, which is quite an achievement. This film did not get nominated or win any Oscars, which has always surprised me. This is an epic and dangerous film, it's an antique and needs to be treated as such.
Sergio Leone's films are magnificent, they never fail to surprise the audience. He was the greatest film director of all time, and he deserves that title for being so faithful to the western genre. One of the most memorable things involving his directing, is the fact that he is realistic. When he makes a scene of two people walking towards each other, they don't stare at each others' eyes, one person usually does while the other one will now and then look to his right and look back. He's realistic, and I honor that, it's just something that sticks out if you pay close attention to those type of scenes. Another reason I love Leone so much is he can make a thirteen minute scene of three guys sitting in a room one of the greatest scenes in history. The room's quiet, they look at each other, close-ups of their faces, as they stare into each others' eyes. It's just so cinematic.
If you haven't seen Once Upon a Time in the West, I recommend you watch it right away. You will have the classic Morricone score stuck in your head all week. It's truly an epic masterpiece.
Sergio Leone, 1969
It's true, Sergio Leone is the greatest movie director that has ever lived. He outdoes Francis Ford Coppola, Stanley Kubrick, and Martin Scorsese by a mile, because their films don't feature an unforgettable score, extended emotions, or cinematic excellence in its greatest form. It is one of the greatest films existing, and has been preserved by many movie institutes for future generations as an example of a good movie.
Once Upon a Time in the West is the tragic and unforgettable story of the average McBain family during the western era who are murdered and gun-downed in cold blood. We never fully understand exactly why this takes place until later on in the film, when we are introduced to a lone gunman known simply as 'The Man' or 'Harmonica' as some fans of the movie call him. He is on a trek to kill an evil assassin-like character named Frank (Henry Fonda) who carries out dirty work for a railroad owner, played by Gabriele Ferzetti. We are shown that Frank and his gang killed the McBain family for their land so that the railroad could go through their property. The murdered man's wife (Claudia Cardinale) discovers that her husband was planning to create an entire town with the property, however Frank is hunting her down to kill her, so he can gain the property. Meanwhile, The Man (Charles Bronson) is on the trail of Frank and discovers the woman, and makes it his mission to protect her and finish the job he started: Killing Frank. But, for what reason does The Man want to kill Frank so bad? We are revealed this during the epic final shootout between The Man and Frank, one of the greatest scenes in movie history. In the film we also get many side stories, like the journey of a runaway bandit named Cheyenne (Jason Robards), as well as the emotional and personal life of the railroad owner (Gabriele Ferzetti).
The score to this film is incredible. It's haunting, surprising, and catchy. It was conducted by none other than Ennio Morricone, one of the greatest film composers in history, and in this film he stood next to John Williams, which is quite an achievement. This film did not get nominated or win any Oscars, which has always surprised me. This is an epic and dangerous film, it's an antique and needs to be treated as such.
Sergio Leone's films are magnificent, they never fail to surprise the audience. He was the greatest film director of all time, and he deserves that title for being so faithful to the western genre. One of the most memorable things involving his directing, is the fact that he is realistic. When he makes a scene of two people walking towards each other, they don't stare at each others' eyes, one person usually does while the other one will now and then look to his right and look back. He's realistic, and I honor that, it's just something that sticks out if you pay close attention to those type of scenes. Another reason I love Leone so much is he can make a thirteen minute scene of three guys sitting in a room one of the greatest scenes in history. The room's quiet, they look at each other, close-ups of their faces, as they stare into each others' eyes. It's just so cinematic.
If you haven't seen Once Upon a Time in the West, I recommend you watch it right away. You will have the classic Morricone score stuck in your head all week. It's truly an epic masterpiece.