Kevin Lazzari | Special to the Fitzhugh
In 1968, two guys wrote a script for a film that is considered one of the top spaghetti westerns ever made.
Sergio Donati and Sergio Leone teamed up to make an Italian western that attracted stars that are still honoured to this day for their achievement to western pictures. Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, and Claudia Cardinale shine in this macaroni western. The characters’ development is done at a pace that the audience can follow and the viewer is begging for the story to unfold.
I consider Sergio Leone to be one the best directors in the business when it comes to making a fine western. He knows how to set up a scene to the point I feel like I have been transported in time to the wild west.
Leone's profound use of a music score throughout his pictures gets me every time. He always has a focal point in his score that will be carried all the way to the ending of the movie. In this picture it is the use of the harmonica played by Charles Bronson. The building of the scene with each musical note is poetry and Leone is the director that perfected the technique. Tarantino loves to copy the concept but he never has achieved the same artistic merit that Leone was capable of.
If you are a fan of the movie, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly you know there is no one better than Leone for pairing music to a horse opera. If you want to watch a film that leaves you literally quenching for thirst this is the one.
Kevin Lazzari, owner of Video Stop, is reviewing movies for the Fitzhugh.
Once Upon A Time In The West (1968) is available on DVD, Blu-ray and for digital download.
