Director: Sergio Leone
Writers: Luciano Vincenzoni (story), Sergio Leone (story),
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, Lee Van Cleef
Storyline
Blondie (The Good) is a professional gunslinger who is out trying to
earn a few dollars. Angel Eyes (The Bad) is a hit man who always commits
to a task and sees it through, as long as he is paid to do so. And Tuco
(The Ugly) is a wanted outlaw trying to take care of his own hide. Tuco
and Blondie share a partnership together making money off Tuco's
bounty, but when Blondie unties the partnership, Tuco tries to hunt down
Blondie. When Blondie and Tuco come across a horse carriage loaded with
dead bodies, they soon learn from the only survivor (Bill Carson) that
he and a few other men have buried a stash of gold in a cemetery.
Unfortunately Carson dies and Tuco only finds out the name of the
cemetery, while Blondie finds out the name on the grave. Now the two
must keep each other alive in order to find the gold. Angel Eyes (who
had been looking for Bill Carson) discovers that Tuco and Blondie meet
with Carson and knows they know the location of the gold. All he needs
is for the two to ... Written by
Jeremy Thomson
And to think, I missed all that the first time through...
User Reviews
The King of Cool
On a partial first
viewing, I didn't like "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." I thought it
was a slow, tedious story about a bunch of unpleasant jerk characters
involved in a bog-standard conflict over money. It all seemed very macho
and self-consciously cool, and it had obviously inspired all the
overrated macho directors I don't like in my own generation - Tarantino,
for example, and Robert Rodriguez. In short, I was unimpressed.
Years later, I gave the film a second shot, watching it all the way through this time. I loved it. What had changed?
For one thing, I took more notice of the technical side of the film. I paid attention to Leone's famous use of close-ups, his selection of memorable character actors, and his wonderful scene-setting. I admired the detailed sets and the sweeping landscapes, the props and the costumes and all those weird, wonderful faces that Leone clearly loved to photograph.
I also got hooked by some of the quieter moments that I had skipped over in my first viewing. One of the most effective scenes involves Eli Wallach's character, Tuco, quarreling with his brother when they meet after they've been apart for years. Their argument is great, emotionally charged stuff, made all the more effective by the suggestion that they really do love and care about each other. It's the kind of sensitive, human scene you never get to see in a Tarantino or Rodriguez movie.
Before I get too fuzzy-wuzzy, I should also like to point out that, on my second viewing, I LOVED all the action, too. Every gunfight is great, in its own way, and they're all a bit different. The greatest of them all is, of course, the final confrontation between the trio, which is accompanied by some of the most rousing music I've ever heard in a film. And hey, there's even a huge Civil War battle to provide a change of pace from all the small-scale action.
Ultimately, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" is probably just a potboiler of a film, without too much to say about, for example, the human condition. But what a potboiler! It doesn't have to try to be cool - it simply IS cool. In fact, it probably defined heroic coolness for an entire generation. Eli Wallach's performance, Leone's direction and Morricone's music alone are enough to elevate it to classic status
Years later, I gave the film a second shot, watching it all the way through this time. I loved it. What had changed?
For one thing, I took more notice of the technical side of the film. I paid attention to Leone's famous use of close-ups, his selection of memorable character actors, and his wonderful scene-setting. I admired the detailed sets and the sweeping landscapes, the props and the costumes and all those weird, wonderful faces that Leone clearly loved to photograph.
I also got hooked by some of the quieter moments that I had skipped over in my first viewing. One of the most effective scenes involves Eli Wallach's character, Tuco, quarreling with his brother when they meet after they've been apart for years. Their argument is great, emotionally charged stuff, made all the more effective by the suggestion that they really do love and care about each other. It's the kind of sensitive, human scene you never get to see in a Tarantino or Rodriguez movie.
Before I get too fuzzy-wuzzy, I should also like to point out that, on my second viewing, I LOVED all the action, too. Every gunfight is great, in its own way, and they're all a bit different. The greatest of them all is, of course, the final confrontation between the trio, which is accompanied by some of the most rousing music I've ever heard in a film. And hey, there's even a huge Civil War battle to provide a change of pace from all the small-scale action.
Ultimately, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" is probably just a potboiler of a film, without too much to say about, for example, the human condition. But what a potboiler! It doesn't have to try to be cool - it simply IS cool. In fact, it probably defined heroic coolness for an entire generation. Eli Wallach's performance, Leone's direction and Morricone's music alone are enough to elevate it to classic status
- and the fact that everything else in the movie is great, too, helps
And to think, I missed all that the first time through...
