The first time I watched this,the ending nearly made me jump out of my chair.The second time I watched it,I thought…Okay,I can kinda’understand why she did that.
Saw the supper scene on Youtube and thought I would like this movie. If a scene so simple can capture my attention so, I think I will love this movie. Can’t wait to get it.
It’s funny but i’ve been thinking of this film quite a bit recently. I remeber after watching it my only comment was that the jury was still out. To be honest, the lack of dialogue and the long “meaningful” stares bugged me a bit, and i have to admit the bit with the music box/jack in the box just puzzled me. Overall i found that i had no sympathy whatsoever for any of the characters save for the daughter of the main villain. In fact i ended up kind of siding with the villains as they seemed less reprehensible than the “heroes”. Quite often i do find myself liking the villains in SW’s but the ones here were pretty dull by and large. Robert Hossein’s character just seemed to me to be a bit of a fool, doing things he obviously had no stomach for, for the sake of someone he presumably had a thing with at some point. The rape scene really bothered me, and admittedly it was more powerful for the fact that it wasn’t shown and that the shots of Hossein showed that he found it all very wrong. I suppose it comes from being female that a rape instigated by another woman really disturbed me (ok it was certainly a good way of punsihing the father but the girl was innocent and a woman would have to be pretty sick to want this kind of thing done). I was not surprised that Hossein’s character offered himself up to be killed by the girl at the end although the fact that she actually did, surprised me a little. It was a fitting end though. Overall, if the film was meant to show how the thirst for vengeance can destroy all those involved then it did that admirably. But at the end of the day it left me a little cold and detatched, and with the sense that Hossien was just an idiot for getting tangled up in it all. Very nicely made though, and with a good score…
I find it very interesting that the only bad things one can say about this film (except Silver’s opinion) is that it was not there cup of tea. Then there are films that interest me (Wanted Johnny Texas) where the best thing one can say about it is that it was mediocre.
That bit will most certainly press the sw button for me. I love this film. Top 3.
Well, i have to admit, the overall theme was very well done and the point made explicitly. I don’t know…i couldn’t get involved in it. Like i said…maybe a female thing. Might give it another viewing at some point though, because i admit when i sat down to watch it, i knew nothing about it and was really looking forward to it.
My favorite all time Spaghetti!
I don’t expect everybody to like it though. To each his own.
I do think the rape scene is horrific but I was glad it was not graphic. I find the cat & mouse rape scenes harder to watch though. Like, for instance, the one at the beginning of I Want Him Dead.
I like C W/O C because of its weirdness and, of course, because (almost) everone dies.
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[quote=“Romaine Fielding, post:87, topic:403”]My favorite all time Spaghetti!
I don’t expect everybody to like it though. To each his own.
I do think the rape scene is horrific but I was glad it was not graphic. I find the cat & mouse rape scenes harder to watch though. Like, for instance, the one at the beginning of I Want Him Dead.
I like C W/O C because of its weirdness and, of course, because (almost) everone dies.[/quote]
Yeah, it’s a funny thing. I actually am not bothered by the kind of rape scenes you descibed. To me, it’s just the kind of thing the twisted villains in these films get up to. The CWC one struck me because of the involvenent of another woman… I don’t know…maybe in some way that coloured my view of the film overall. It certainly killed any shred of sympathy i might have felt for the widow though.
Then she can be decribed as an anti heroine. Haven’t seen this film but but I have declared a jihad on anything that gets in my way of obtaining this very interesting sounding film. It sounds to me like this one does apretty good job of smearing the lines of black and white. Sounds mostly grey to me.
Mostly grey sounds about right! Anti heroine…not sure. Surely even an anti heroine does at least something partly honourable. Not so here.
Maybe becuase Hossein plays the anti hero and friends of the anti hero are usually on the “good” side. After all, her husband was killed from what I read.
Suppose…rather grudgingly ;D
Haaaahaaa. No it’s ALL BLACK.
Finaly got to see this one thanksto Romaine. Was very pleased with it. Didn’t even notice the slow pace and was never bored. Loved the shades of grey and I keep trying to figure out why Manuel goes on this quest. I have an idea but can’t bring it to words. Also found some possible french influence at the dinner scene where the family crosses itself. You usually don’t see crossing in spaghettis except from Mexicans. Brings a strange good quality to the film. I also noticed that Manuel doesn’t cross himself. Thought that was very cool. Shows his lack of interest in religion probably becuase of his life of violence. It seems that he wonts to go do all this for Maria because he wonts to make her happy. He still loves her but her hate for the Roger’s blinds her to his love and his extremely saddened face during the rape scene shows his disgust at her disregard for innocent life. The end shows his regret for ever going on this mission. Everything he has lived for is dead and gone and he now has nothing to live with except regret and depression. I was a little confued by the relationship between the twqo brothers and Maria. She regards them as cowards but ask them to stay with her for a while to keep her company. Also a tad bit confused as to why Manuel and Maria kill Lee Burton. I love that scene though.
Liked this one but need to re view it to identify further meaning in some scenes. Will also try and write an article on anti heroes including Manuel.
I gave this one another viewing last night, and I liked it a bit better than the first time. For me it has a bit of a soap-opera type feel and perhaps that’s what turns me off it a bit.
Still an above average film in my opinion but I wouldn’t give it a 4/5 just yet.
4/5 that’s pretty good for a spaghetti 
You know, of the majority I’ve seen I would put them in the 3/5 category…the standouts for me get a 4/5 or 5/5 but they are few.
yeah there’s only about 10 5/5ers, give or take
Hey all, this is one of my all time favorite spaghettis.
However I have a nagging question. Frayling, in his bio of Leone (pp.267-8; 509), explicitly rejects suggestions that anyone but a heavily disguised Leone played the hotel clerk. Furthermore Frayling even includes a non-referenced quote from Sergio Leone regarding his performance and a referenced quote from Carla Leone saying that Sergio played no part in the actual making (i.e directing) of the film.
Yet both these observations seem incorrect. Firstly the hotel clerk does not look like Leone at all - I checked the database here where it is suggested that Cris Huerta played the role and this is confirmed by imdb. Secondly, as Hossein points out on the interview on the German DVD, Leone did direct the dinner sequence - a photo of Leone directing is shown, and simply watching the scene shows it to be classic Leone at its purest; the scene is very reminiscent of the eating scenes on the stage coach at the beginning of “Duck You Sucker”.
I guess Frayling just got this really wrong?
[quote=“Novecento, post:99, topic:403”]Hey all, this is one of my all time favorite spaghettis.
However I have a nagging question. Frayling, in his bio of Leone (pp.267-8; 509), explicitly rejects suggestions that anyone but a heavily disguised Leone played the hotel clerk. Furthermore Frayling even includes a non-referenced quote from Sergio Leone regarding his performance and a referenced quote from Carla Leone saying that Sergio played no part in the actual making (i.e directing) of the film.
Yet both these observations seem incorrect. Firstly the hotel clerk does not look like Leone at all - I checked the database here where it is suggested that Cris Huerta played the role and this is confirmed by imdb. Secondly, as Hossein points out on the interview on the German DVD, Leone did direct the dinner sequence - a photo of Leone directing is shown, and simply watching the scene shows it to be classic Leone at its purest; the scene is very reminiscent of the eating scenes on the stage coach at the beginning of “Duck You Sucker”.
I guess Frayling just got this really wrong? [/quote]
I came across the same quote you site in Fraylings book a couple of months ago and was quite taken aback. In Western All’Italiana (Vol 2) the authors mention that Chris Huerta is the clerk in question and despite contrary claims it is NOT Leone.
I was quite put off by Fraying because this to me was a big mistake in his book. I Googled about it and forund some stuff (can’t remember where exactly) and found that Frayling somewhere admitted that he was wrong and attributed it to having viewed a very poor copy of the film. (I don’t know if Frayling really said that).
As you noted the quote in Frayling, attributed to Leone, is unsourced. That makes it impossible to understand what Leone could have possibley been thinking (if, indeed, he DID say it).
Also, as you note, Carla Leone claims to Frayling that it was Sergio. Quite odd.
When the preiminent director of the genre makes his only (supposed) acting appearance in the genre, you would think his biographer would be hyper aware of the circumstance involved.
I’ve never seen an adequate explanation for Fraylings mistake. (Which he documents with unsourced quotes!)
But anybody who watched it now can see it is cleary Huerta.