Any suggestions as to why the character of Colonel Douglas Mortimer(Lee van Cleef) seemed to outshine the lead character? In the movie, For a Few Dollars More.
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Same could be asked about The Good the Bad and the Ugly since Tuco (Eli Wallach) kinda steals the show from Blondie (Clint Eastwood.) 
And maybe even with Cheyenne (Jason Robards) and Harmonica (Charles Bronson) in Once Upon a Time in the West.
For me he doesn’t.
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Because that was an important aspect of his role in the movie. He teaches the younger bounty hunter that supreme confidence can make you reckless, and to survive as long as the seasoned professional, a more methodical approach is required. Of course Van Cleef’s charismatic embodiment of that character makes him super cool.
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I always thought Van Cleef and Eastwood had the exact same amount of presence in the film. For me, Col. Douglas Mortimer has the more personal gain in the hunt throughout the film. Gian Maria Volonte’s El Indio has a deep connection to the Colonel’s past, and both on a psychological and maybe even spiritual level know one day their paths will cross. For Mortimer, it’s a cathardic release to years of pain and searching, to be free of what the desire of revenge has led him to the life he leads. Even for El Indio there will be release, a release of a memory that for whatever reason has stuck around and haunted him, leading to a dependence on Marijuana Joints just to get through most days. Maybe hints of a conscious and soul were still there under all that wickedness.
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