So I’ve finally reached a movie on the list that I hadn’t previously watched before. I’m a huge fan of Sergio Leone’s Once Upon A Time In America, so I was excited to dive into this one. I’m not sure if they’re actually supposed to be connected, but it certainly wouldn’t surprise me since the tonal similarities are hard to ignore. This movie isn’t like the previous ones where Leone mythologizes the west. This one feels more like a eulogy for the genre.
The first ten minutes have little, if any, dialogue. It’s mostly environmental sounds that we hear. Leone lets the landscape speak for itself. He forces you to sit in the heat with the characters.
Stylistically, Sergio Leone gets even more creative with his shots in this movie. The first one that comes to mind is when Jill is first introduced. As she steps off the train, the camera sweeps across the dusty frontier town, immersing the audience in a world that feels both mythical and realistic. Then, Ennio Morricone’s score elevates the whole shot into kino territory. There’s also the second reveal of the character Harmonica, when he meets Cheyenne and Jill in a bar. You hear the harmonica play, then Cheyenne throws a lamp into the dark and we get a dramatically illuminated Harmonica being revealed from the dark. He looks almost like a living shadow or a ghost. It’s cinematic perfection. The whole thing almost looks like it’s ripped straight out of an award winning graphic novel.
The reluctant alliance between Harmonica and Cheyenne is the beating heart of the story. Their uneasy partnership is forged by necessity and they come to develop a grudging respect. Harmonica and Cheyenne are both, much like Frank, soon-to-be obsolete in a society that is rapidly industrializing. Morton says it himself when he mentions that the almighty dollar is the only thing stronger than a gun.
This movie feels a lot less upbeat than Leone’s previous Westerns. Not that they were jolly movies, but they had a quicker pace to them. This one feels down to earth and almost dreadful. This isn’t a bad thing, in fact it’s what I like the most about it. Like Once Upon a Time in America, this isn’t a story about triumph. It’s about what’s left behind when the myth fades. There are no winners in this movie, just survivors.
Once Upon a Time in the West is my favorite movie on the watch list so far and I don’t know if it will be beaten, at least in terms of style.
“You brought two too many”