In the tradition of the genre, if you were to say this in a taberna full of bloodthirsty banditos, you would have about 20 guns pointed at you, amigo!
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I think it all comes down to personal taste. The international version works fine for me because it was the first I ever watched on TV. I do think that some of the Civil War stuff goes on a bit because it serves as a backdrop to the main story, which is about three rogues looking for gold, and Leone does appear to shift the focus away from the plot. But it is what it is, itās part of the experience.
I wouldnāt want to see a version without Brother Ramirez (love that scene!) but if Iām being a bit nit-picky, I can probably do without some of stuff with the Union officer at the bridge. The problem is of course is that weāll all have different views about what should stay and what should go.
When I was a kid, I thought this was the greatest spaghetti western Iād ever seen but as Iāve aged, I realise that For a Few Dollars More is the superior film in the trilogy and that is largely due to the fact that it doesnāt get sidetracked with multiple subplots. Funny since FAFDM bored me as a kid. I loved this one and Fistful and only tolerated FAFDM. Our minds really do change!
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FAFDM is the weakest of the Dollars films, a bit childish sometimes really. Some stuff is really good but other stuff makes me cringe. FOD makes a stronger impact as a whole even though the story is borrowed from Yojimbo.
Iām not going to cut the Ramirez scene of course. But GBU is nearly 3 hours long, that is a lot for a motion picture. You can get rid of a few minutes and it will make the film flow better Iām sure.
Man with no Name:
I saw the 148m version twice in the cinema in the 1980s a few years apart. It was the same print since the same part of Clintās opening gunfight was missing due to wear and tear at each screening. Iām guessing there was only one print left for exhibitors at that point. Unless the BFI hold a copy I doubt if one exists now since the long version has been available for exhibitors for about 10-15 years and gets screened occasionally by rep cinemas. The 148m version was never shown on UKTV. The version the BBC showed originally ran 157m and was the International Print minus 3-4m of original BBFC cuts. The 161m full international print replaced that in the 1980s after the video release as Warner got it through the censors uncut for video.
Alex Cox claims there was a 121m UK reissue version in the 1970s but Iāve not seen that and donāt know anyone who has other than him and he is not always a reliable source.
I donāt think putting the 148m version out on DVD with its 3m censor cuts and extra 10m distributor cuts would add anything.
I donāt mind the 175m Italian version but I donāt like the extra grotto sequence they added back and I think that should have remained as a deleted scene extra. I can see why Leone cut it and it wasnāt his decision to add it back in.
The Italian language version has quite an interesting soundtrack in Italian - the emphasis on background noises is quite different in several scenes. Play the scene between Angel Eyes and Stevens and compare the Italian to the English versions. Of course, it needs to be watched in English because the 3 main characters are dubbing their own voices.
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Completely disagree.
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FAFDM has too much comedy, the wrong kind of comedy.
I also donāt like the introduction of Clint as some kind of Terminator.
And I donāt like the scene with Clint and Van Cleef in the hotel room, where they suck on their tobacco lollipops and Clint says heās dreaming of buying a small place and settling down.
Itās so dumb. 
His character is basically the same in every film though. Not sure what you mean by āTerminatorā exactly. Heās a killer, yes. Wasnāt he always and isnāt that the point? Heās a mythical gunfighter/bounty hunter.
Not sure why any of the content is ādumb.ā He needs a motive for wanting the bounty money in the first place and it doesnāt need to be deep because Mortimer is the one seeking revenge. Thereās humour in all three films, as well (maybe less in FFOD).
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Itās a little over the top with Clint in the saloon shooting down some guys and they fall like bowling pins through the door, and so on.
The comedy in FAFDM is completely unfunny, the inclusion of a Tuco character in GBU worked much better.
This was Leones second SW and itās a bit immature, but thatās understandable I guess. The scenes with Volonte as Indio saves the film. Great performance a long way away from the professor in FTF.
Just watched this classic againā¦ absolute perfection! I still prefer FAFDM but I canāt fault this one. I watched the shorter US theatrical version and I believe itās the way to go. The extended cut just feels unnecessarily longer. Kino did a fantastic job with the restoration.
The scene where Angel Eyes visits the Confederate outpost is a good scene which is not in the international cut though. One could insert this and remove some other stuff in a fan-edit.
Some might think itās sacrilegious to alter a film in this way, but since there already have been different official versions, it doesnāt matter if you make some small changes so that it becomes the way you want to see it.
And think of the extended version with the grotto scene, and the modernized sound on top of that, awful version.
The 1966 Italian theatrical version 174 minutes would be the best.
With english mono audio.
3 hours?
No, double that, 6 hours. then weāre talking.
GBU would then be twice as ābestā as the 174 minutes short movie.
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It is a nice scene but watching the US theatrical cut again, I realise that it isnāt essential and actually spoils some of the rhythm.
A bit longer, donāt remember exactly, either 178 or 180 min in the original Italian release version. With the full torture scene, with the short scene of Eastwood mounting his horse (which is in the long English version) and a few other missing snippets, without the grotto scene.
So far no disc was released of that version.
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At least the film works perfectly in that version.
The scene maybe goes on to long, but unlike the grotto scene it fits well with the filmās rhythm.
Yeah, and I think without that scene Angel Eyes is just gone for too long.
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Hi,
I was wondering, itās a long film.
Which version and length do you normally watch?
If I were you, Iād go for the theatrical cut and watch the extended cut later.
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Both are theatrical cuts ā¦ 
No - the 178m is not a theatrical cut as the grotto scene was removed from the Italian theatrical release and only reinstated for a later slightly abridged release in 1969.