Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
“How can you trust a man who wears both a belt and suspenders? The man can't even trust his own pants.” – Frank
Once Upon a Time in the West was Sergio Leone’s most expensive Western yet, and his most ambitious. With grand ambition comes the inherent flaws of a production that reaches for impossible goals; but with grand ambition also comes a movie that is undeniably extraordinary. Its scope, its characters, and its landscape convey unforgettable images of the greatest of American genre traditions. All this came from an Italian filmmaker who started his career making low-budget Peplums and Spaghetti Westerns.
Once Upon a Time in the West is not really a Spaghetti Western in the same way that The Man With No Name Trilogy is. Sure Leone’s style is consistent - extreme close-ups, attention to fine detail, and shoot-outs with at least fifteen minutes of anticipation – but Once Upon a Time in the West delivers a much more serious tone and a much more inhabited world. His previous films were limited by budget, but Paramount offered Leone endless resources for Once Upon a Time in the West. It shows. The towns and outposts are packed with detail and extras. A train station is so overwhelmed by passengers that we cannot even see the desert in the distance. Where Spaghetti Westerns took a much more tongue-and-cheek approach to the genre, Once Upon a Time in the West conveys a concerted historical feel.
This scale is felt most clearly during one of the film’s great shootouts. Jason Robards is having a bath in the town’s hotel when he comes under attack. A tightly orchestrated gun fight follows from the balconies, rooftops, and sidewalks of this bustling town. The background action does not call attention to itself, but it is hard to ignore the town’s continued existence outside of the fight, especially when we are so used to shootouts in emptied towns.
The film is most famous for its opening scene, and without this seven minute sequence I doubt I would have added Once Upon a Time in the West to this list. The entire sequence builds to a three second shootout, one of the best I have ever seen. Leone manifests tension and suspense by exploiting the most mundane of annoyances that occupy three impatient assassins. Water slowly drips on one man’s hat, a fly buzzes around another’s ear, and a third is distracted by the uneasy screech of an un-oiled wind fan. The sequence works by distracting these men from their impending duty, while delaying the inevitable confrontation with the oncoming train. It’s the kind of suspense where you find yourself saying, “Come on, already,” but you are nevertheless amused while you wait.
The casting of Henry Fonda as the evil villain was certainly against type for an actor who made a career out of playing the good-natured everyman. Leone’s choice instantly pays off when Fonda’s penetrating turquoise stare looks us down right before he slaughters an entire family. His good guy background and sweet blue eyes make this moment deeply unsettling, and we are convinced of Fonda’s evil without hesitation. His character, however, becomes increasingly interesting as we learn more about his past. We never sympathize with him, but are given a three-dimensional understanding of his personality. Although, considering that the film clocks in at almost three hours, most characters are given the exposition they deserve.
Claudia Cardinale also does a fine job in this film. She looks gorgeous, and clearly asserts herself as an independent woman who can manage her own affairs without the assistance of the three men vying for her attention.
Once Upon a Time in the West was Sergio Leone’s most expensive Western yet, and his most ambitious. With grand ambition comes the inherent flaws of a production that reaches for impossible goals; but with grand ambition also comes a movie that is undeniably extraordinary. Its scope, its characters, and its landscape convey unforgettable images of the greatest of American genre traditions. All this came from an Italian filmmaker who started his career making low-budget Peplums and Spaghetti Westerns.
Once Upon a Time in the West is not really a Spaghetti Western in the same way that The Man With No Name Trilogy is. Sure Leone’s style is consistent - extreme close-ups, attention to fine detail, and shoot-outs with at least fifteen minutes of anticipation – but Once Upon a Time in the West delivers a much more serious tone and a much more inhabited world. His previous films were limited by budget, but Paramount offered Leone endless resources for Once Upon a Time in the West. It shows. The towns and outposts are packed with detail and extras. A train station is so overwhelmed by passengers that we cannot even see the desert in the distance. Where Spaghetti Westerns took a much more tongue-and-cheek approach to the genre, Once Upon a Time in the West conveys a concerted historical feel.
This scale is felt most clearly during one of the film’s great shootouts. Jason Robards is having a bath in the town’s hotel when he comes under attack. A tightly orchestrated gun fight follows from the balconies, rooftops, and sidewalks of this bustling town. The background action does not call attention to itself, but it is hard to ignore the town’s continued existence outside of the fight, especially when we are so used to shootouts in emptied towns.
The film is most famous for its opening scene, and without this seven minute sequence I doubt I would have added Once Upon a Time in the West to this list. The entire sequence builds to a three second shootout, one of the best I have ever seen. Leone manifests tension and suspense by exploiting the most mundane of annoyances that occupy three impatient assassins. Water slowly drips on one man’s hat, a fly buzzes around another’s ear, and a third is distracted by the uneasy screech of an un-oiled wind fan. The sequence works by distracting these men from their impending duty, while delaying the inevitable confrontation with the oncoming train. It’s the kind of suspense where you find yourself saying, “Come on, already,” but you are nevertheless amused while you wait.
The casting of Henry Fonda as the evil villain was certainly against type for an actor who made a career out of playing the good-natured everyman. Leone’s choice instantly pays off when Fonda’s penetrating turquoise stare looks us down right before he slaughters an entire family. His good guy background and sweet blue eyes make this moment deeply unsettling, and we are convinced of Fonda’s evil without hesitation. His character, however, becomes increasingly interesting as we learn more about his past. We never sympathize with him, but are given a three-dimensional understanding of his personality. Although, considering that the film clocks in at almost three hours, most characters are given the exposition they deserve.
Claudia Cardinale also does a fine job in this film. She looks gorgeous, and clearly asserts herself as an independent woman who can manage her own affairs without the assistance of the three men vying for her attention.
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