THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD (2008, KOREA)

The Great American Western (Though sometimes they make 'em in Korea) (Post 12 of 12)

The Good, the Bad, the Weird

 

Today's movie questionnaire...

Are you a fan of Sergio Leone films? (Check)

Do you think an updated homage (even including the three man final shootout) might be something to your liking? (Check)

Do you appreciate more recent Asian action films to American ones? (Check)

Well, that's three for three. The Good, the Bad, the Weird is well on its way to getting a thumbs up from me.

And a general thumbs up to most of the Western genre films that I've watched this month.

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DEAD MAN (1994)

The Great American Western (Post 11 of 12)

Dead Man

"My Name is Nobody"

Shot in glorious black and white and punctuated by Neil Young guitar riffs, this Jim Jarmusch indy Western takes the old story of the meek easterner, an accountant named William Blake (Johnny Depp), who through a series of strange events becomes a wanted outlaw and turns into a most dangerous man.

There's a lot of laughs here, too. Many provided by Gary Farmer as the Indian who thinks Blake is actually the poet of the same name.

And you got to like any movie that has both Iggy Pop and Robert Mitchum in it.

"Every night and every morn, some to misery are born. Every morn and every night, some are born to sweet delight. Some are born to sweet delight; some are born to endless night."

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THE WILD BUNCH (1969)

The Great American Western (Post 10 of 12)

 

The Wild Bunch

 

Sam Peckinpah's finest and most famous hour. The Wild Bunch is the story of a group of outlaws past their prime and looking for a big final score. A setup causes their heist to go awry and they spend most of the movie getting tracked by a group of largely incompetent bounty hunters.

They later get caught up in the Mexican revolution where they participate in one of the most memorable (and violent) final shootouts ever filmed.

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BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969)

The Great American Western (Post 9 of 12)

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

 

 

"Who are those guys?"

"Think you used enough dynamite, there Butch?"

"Boy, I got vision, and the rest of the world wears bifocals."

"He'll feel a lot better after he's robbed a couple of banks."

Lines from William Goldman's script from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid


After I watched this film for the first time in years, I listened to the commentary track by the outspoken screenwriter, William Goldman. It was almost as entertaining as the movie. You can give credit for this movie's success to the stars, the directors or whoever, but it ultimately comes back to Golman's script (punctuated by his years of research on the subject) that truly carries the day here.

"You just keep thinkin', Butch. That's what you're good at."

"If he'd just pay me what he's spending to make me stop robbing him, I'd stop robbing him."

"You should have let yourself get killed a long time ago when you had the chance. See, you may be the biggest thing that ever hit this area, but you're still two-bit outlaws. I never met a soul more affable than you, Butch, or faster than the Kid, but you're still nothing but two-bit outlaws on the dodge. It's over, don't you get that? Your times is over and you're gonna die bloody, and all you can do is choose where."

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THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY (1967, ITALY)

The Great American Western (Though sometimes they make 'em in Italy) (Post 8 of 12)

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

When I was growing up, it seemed the term "spaghetti western" was used rather derisively. The three movies in the Sergio Leone/Clint Eastwood dollars trilogy (Which is probably what most of us think of when we think of the term spaghetti western) were all hits in Europe when they were first released and later were hits in the United States. They weren't, however, an initial hit with critics. New York Times reviewer Renata Adler famously said about this film that...

Anyone who would voluntarily remain in the theater to see this movie in its entirety is not someone I should want to meet in any capacity ever!

But time has certainly been kind to the reputation of this film. Check out RottenTomatoes.com and you'll see how the critical opinion has gone from "love it or hate it" in the 60's to mostly "love it."

Well, I'm a certainly a Leone fan, but let me just see if I can pick out...

Ten memorable moments from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

10. Lee Van Cleef as Angel Eyes quietly sits down and has a meal with a family that he is about to gun down.

9. For some reason I love the scene where the soldier with no legs gives Angel Eyes information, Angel Eyes eyes gives him some coin and the "half soldier" happily goes into a bar and orders a whiskey.

8. Any time Clint Eastwood (as Blondie) shoots someone's hat off,

7. Eli Wallach (as Tuco) takes Blondie out into the desert to slowly kill him.

6. Tuco's verbal confrontation with his religious brother tells us all we really need to know about Tuco's background.

5. When Tuco and Blondie blow up the bridge dividing the battling armies it's pretty cool as well as an important plot device.

4. Tuco's in the gun store is funny, and despite his brashness you somehow root for him.

3. Blondie offering a dying soldier a smoke and a wrap is an unusually poignant moment.

2. So is the band in the prison camp playing while Angel Eyes has Tuco beaten up.

and the number one moment from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the three way gun duel at then end...and the part right before...and the part after. I could almost do a top ten list of memorable moments from the final duel scene alone, but the whole final scene is a helluva finale to one great horse opera.

So that's the good. So what's the bad?

Well, it really does tend to stretch the imagination that these three characters seem to keep running into each other throughout the film, even if they are trying to get to the same place. But I'm willing to overlook it. Poetic license if you will.

And the ugly...
There are basically no women in this movie! The only woman I can think of with any lines here is Bill Carson's girlfriend, who mostly gets slapped around by Angel Eyes in her one scene. However, one of the end credits could read that Sergio Leone will compensate for his lack of women in this movie with the appearance of Claudia Cardinale in Once Upon a Time in the West!

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HOMBRE (1967)

The Great American Western (Post 7 of 12)

Hombre

 

Long before Little Big Man or Dances With Wolves, Hombre depcited a white man who was raised by Indians and took to their ways over the ways of the white man. It's interesting to note that Newman's stoic performance in Hombre is completely the opposite of his later personable Butch Cassidy character, but equally effective.

It's also interesting that the film's villain isn't really the gunman played by Richard Boone seeking to rob the stagecoach. The real bad guy is the intellectual financier played by Frederic March who swindled the Apaches with a pen, not a gun.

The supporting cast also includes Martin Balsam, who was also in Little Big Man. No reason was given why Kevin Costner didn't want to cast him in Dances With Wolves to complete the trilogy.

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RIO BRAVO (1959)

The Great American Western (Post 6 of 12)

 

Rio Bravo

 

I saw an interview with Quentin Tarantino where he rated Howard Hawks'Rio Bravo as one of his three favorite movies (Along with Blow-Out and Taxi Driver). This persuaded me decide to go ahead and give it a look since I'd never seen it.

The plot is basically local sheriff (John Wayne) and his often drunk deputy (Dean Martin) try to thwart a villain (the bad guy who is always out of town but coming in soon to settle some old scores) with the help of the limping sidekick (Walter Brennan, of course) and a teen heartthrob (Ricky Nelson).

What's interesting is that although the plot is not epic in nature, the movie clocks in at a healthy two hours and twenty-one minutes. That's twice the time of many Westerns of the time (Ride Lonesome for example). It does have action, especially towards the end, but what is really has a lot of and what makes the movie stand out is the character development. The writing (Jules Fuhrman and Leigh Brackett) has to be good to hold the viewers interest for that long and the small but well-cast ensemble work well together. I'm guessing the dialogue might be one of the main reasons that it is on Tarantino's "best of" list.

We even get a song or two from Martin & Nelson accompanied by the harmonica stylings of Mr. Brennan. Thankfully, John Wayne doesn't join in the chorus.

Oh, I almost forgot. Angie Dickinson is Wayne's (much younger) love interest. Her presence adds further depth to the story and she looks great in her undergarments.

Note to self: Watch De Palma's Blow-Up and to Dressed to Kill real soon.

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