Il Buono Il Brutto Il Cattivo/The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) which portrayed as a sequel is actually a prequel. One indication that this is a prequel is the fact that Man with no Name begins to wear trademark outfit here. Also, story takes place right before events depicted in For a Few Dollars More(1965). Finally, film sets Blondie up as a mythical antihero in the making. Only film in Dollar trilogy where Clint Eastwood does not get beaten up. Surperbly crafted Western with hardly any flaws or boring moments.
American Civil War and its grim aspects are important to plot of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly(1966). Portrays participates of Civil War as money hungry, glory seeking, absurdly idealized people. Examplified by a North and South army's fight for control of a bridge. The battle scene that follows shows Civil War in unromantic viewpoint. Cynical film about realities of American Civil War in same way that Giu La Testa/A Fistful of Dynamite(1972) was on Mexican Revolution. Civil War is shown in a harsh and realistic manner akin to that of an Ambrose Bierce Civil War short story.
Blondie is an opportunistic bounty hunter with both heroic and villainous tendencies. His introduction to story is both suspenseful and tense. Clint Eastwood gives his most satisfying performance here among three films he did for Sergio Leone. Blondie is also a mythical person who has a good understanding of human nature. Although his main concern is money, Blondie still has some honorable qualities within him as expressed in his interaction with a dying soldier. A cool character who in story turns disadvantage into advantage.
Angel Eyes as played by Lee Van Cleef is a purely evil and vicious gunslinger. Angel Eyes introduction is memorable as he takes out rivals who hired him to kill the other. Lee Van Cleef as Angel Eyes is second to Henry Fonda's performance in Once Upon a Time in the West(1968) as Leone's best villain. A pinnicle role in the career of Lee Van Cleef. Angel Eyes is the mirror image of Blondie with his skills with the gun and hunger for money. Makes Villains in contemporary Hollywood films look like wimps.
Tuco is the most complex and sympathetic of the trio. Has an outlaw persona with traits of humanity that does not make him an entirely bad person. The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) is Eli Wallach's film in same way For a Few Dollars More(1965) was Lee Van Cleef's film. Eli Wallach turns Tuco into a comical and daring character who is always trying to better himself. In a sense, Tuco is alike to Vasco of Sergio Corbucci's Companeros(1970). A well written and three dimensional character due to fine work by Eli Wallach and Sergio Leone.
Sergio Leone shows Wild West life and scenery in stylistic realism. Sergio Leone by the time, The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) came out had mastered his skills as a filmmaker which shows in direction and screenplay. Sergio Corbucci did his own take on this film a couple of years later with !Vamos a Matar, Companeros!(1970). In Companeros(1970) there is also an uneasy partnership as well as a good(Franco Nero), a bad(Jack Palance), and an ugly(Tomas Milian). Plot of The Good, the Bad, and the ugly is characterized by switching partnerships and double crosses. Each person teams up with one or the other to make it easiler to get the hidden treasure.
Il Buono Il Brutto Il Cattivo is explicitly known for its flamboyant Ennio Morricone score. Its title song became a part of American popular culture. One of the ten best film scores by Ennio Morricone. What makes Morricone my favorite film composer is his ability to create music that is eccentric and grandeur. This film definitely has a big love for music which shows in the partnership of Ennio Morricone and Sergio Leone. Like in other Italian Westerns, each main person has his own theme song.
Violent nature and sadistic behaviors contrasts it with romantic portrayal of American Frontier in Classic American Westerns. I think of it as a Western Noir because of the involvement of greed. Also, main characters are not clear cut good or bad guys but people with both characterizations. Humor is around the viciousness of story especially in the hanging sequences. The moment when Blondie shoots Tuco off the rope and hats off everyone else's head is the funniest sequence. Mario Brega is imposingly memorable as the sadistic henceman of Angel Eyes, Corporal Wallace.
A dangerous moment was the blowing up of the bridge which is brilliantly set up with some excellent editing moments. Trip around the cemetery in search of hidden treasure contains fast paced editing, relentless cinematography, and tight framing. Sam Peckinpah was inspired by bridge explosion moment for his own bridge explosion scene in The Wild Bunch(1969). Cinemtography is flawless especially in composition, movement, and scenery. My favorite line is from Tuco who tells a bounty hunter he kills from a tub, "When you have to shoot, shoot, don't talk." Both Mario Bava and Sergio Leone had a love for the European arts, music, and painting.
Highlight is three way duel between Blondie, Angel Eyes, and Tuco. Morricone composed a fabulous score which builds and builds until tension is big enough to explode. Excellent set up, crisp editing, and beautiful camera work makes scene an instant classic. Never lets down in sustaining a suspenseful mood. Coolest and most imaginative duel in a Sergio Leone western. One of many great moments from Il Buono Il Brutto Il Cattivo/The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) which makes it unforgettable.
American Civil War and its grim aspects are important to plot of The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly(1966). Portrays participates of Civil War as money hungry, glory seeking, absurdly idealized people. Examplified by a North and South army's fight for control of a bridge. The battle scene that follows shows Civil War in unromantic viewpoint. Cynical film about realities of American Civil War in same way that Giu La Testa/A Fistful of Dynamite(1972) was on Mexican Revolution. Civil War is shown in a harsh and realistic manner akin to that of an Ambrose Bierce Civil War short story.
Blondie is an opportunistic bounty hunter with both heroic and villainous tendencies. His introduction to story is both suspenseful and tense. Clint Eastwood gives his most satisfying performance here among three films he did for Sergio Leone. Blondie is also a mythical person who has a good understanding of human nature. Although his main concern is money, Blondie still has some honorable qualities within him as expressed in his interaction with a dying soldier. A cool character who in story turns disadvantage into advantage.
Angel Eyes as played by Lee Van Cleef is a purely evil and vicious gunslinger. Angel Eyes introduction is memorable as he takes out rivals who hired him to kill the other. Lee Van Cleef as Angel Eyes is second to Henry Fonda's performance in Once Upon a Time in the West(1968) as Leone's best villain. A pinnicle role in the career of Lee Van Cleef. Angel Eyes is the mirror image of Blondie with his skills with the gun and hunger for money. Makes Villains in contemporary Hollywood films look like wimps.
Tuco is the most complex and sympathetic of the trio. Has an outlaw persona with traits of humanity that does not make him an entirely bad person. The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) is Eli Wallach's film in same way For a Few Dollars More(1965) was Lee Van Cleef's film. Eli Wallach turns Tuco into a comical and daring character who is always trying to better himself. In a sense, Tuco is alike to Vasco of Sergio Corbucci's Companeros(1970). A well written and three dimensional character due to fine work by Eli Wallach and Sergio Leone.
Sergio Leone shows Wild West life and scenery in stylistic realism. Sergio Leone by the time, The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) came out had mastered his skills as a filmmaker which shows in direction and screenplay. Sergio Corbucci did his own take on this film a couple of years later with !Vamos a Matar, Companeros!(1970). In Companeros(1970) there is also an uneasy partnership as well as a good(Franco Nero), a bad(Jack Palance), and an ugly(Tomas Milian). Plot of The Good, the Bad, and the ugly is characterized by switching partnerships and double crosses. Each person teams up with one or the other to make it easiler to get the hidden treasure.
Il Buono Il Brutto Il Cattivo is explicitly known for its flamboyant Ennio Morricone score. Its title song became a part of American popular culture. One of the ten best film scores by Ennio Morricone. What makes Morricone my favorite film composer is his ability to create music that is eccentric and grandeur. This film definitely has a big love for music which shows in the partnership of Ennio Morricone and Sergio Leone. Like in other Italian Westerns, each main person has his own theme song.
Violent nature and sadistic behaviors contrasts it with romantic portrayal of American Frontier in Classic American Westerns. I think of it as a Western Noir because of the involvement of greed. Also, main characters are not clear cut good or bad guys but people with both characterizations. Humor is around the viciousness of story especially in the hanging sequences. The moment when Blondie shoots Tuco off the rope and hats off everyone else's head is the funniest sequence. Mario Brega is imposingly memorable as the sadistic henceman of Angel Eyes, Corporal Wallace.
A dangerous moment was the blowing up of the bridge which is brilliantly set up with some excellent editing moments. Trip around the cemetery in search of hidden treasure contains fast paced editing, relentless cinematography, and tight framing. Sam Peckinpah was inspired by bridge explosion moment for his own bridge explosion scene in The Wild Bunch(1969). Cinemtography is flawless especially in composition, movement, and scenery. My favorite line is from Tuco who tells a bounty hunter he kills from a tub, "When you have to shoot, shoot, don't talk." Both Mario Bava and Sergio Leone had a love for the European arts, music, and painting.
Highlight is three way duel between Blondie, Angel Eyes, and Tuco. Morricone composed a fabulous score which builds and builds until tension is big enough to explode. Excellent set up, crisp editing, and beautiful camera work makes scene an instant classic. Never lets down in sustaining a suspenseful mood. Coolest and most imaginative duel in a Sergio Leone western. One of many great moments from Il Buono Il Brutto Il Cattivo/The Good The Bad & The Ugly(1966) which makes it unforgettable.