C'era una volta il West (1968)

Nutzer-Bewertung:

8.8/10   

Regisseur:

Sergio Leone

Drehbuchautoren:

Dario Argento (story) &
Bernardo Bertolucci (story) ...
(mehr)

Premierendatum:

21. Dezember 1968 (Italy)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Western

Werbezeile:

There were three men in her life. One to take her... one to love her... and one to kill her.

Plot:

Epic story of a mysterious stranger with a harmonica who joins forces with a notorious desperado to protect a beautiful widow from a ruthless assassin working for the railroad.

Plot Keywords:

Good Versus Evil | Dead Children | Assassin | Railroad Mogul | Prostitute

Auszeichnungen:

4 wins & 1 nomination

Nutzerkommentare:

"Something To Do With Death"

Besetzung

Henry Fonda	...	Frank
Claudia Cardinale	...	Jill McBain
Jason Robards	...	Cheyenne
Charles Bronson	...	Harmonica
Gabriele Ferzetti	...	Morton (railroad baron)
Paolo Stoppa	...	Sam
Woody Strode	...	Stony (member of Frank's gang)
Jack Elam	...	Snaky (member of Frank's gang)
Keenan Wynn	...	Sheriff (auctioneer)
Frank Wolff	...	Brett McBain
Lionel Stander	...	Barman
übrige Besetzung in alphabetischer Reihenfolge:
Livio Andronico	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Salvatore Basile	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Aldo Berti	...	Member of Frank's gang playing poker (uncredited)
Frank Braña	...	Mamber of Frank's gang smoking pipe at auction (uncredited)
Saturno Cerra	...	Hired Gun on Train (uncredited)
Luigi Ciavarro	...	Older sheriff's deputy (uncredited)
Spartaco Conversi	...	Member of Frank's gang shot through boot (uncredited)
Bruno Corazzari	...	(uncredited)
Paolo Figlia	...	(uncredited)
John Frederick	...	Jim (member of Frank's gang) (uncredited)
Don Galloway	...	Member of Frank's Gang in flashback (uncredited)
Michael Harvey	...	Frank's lieutenant (uncredited)
Stefano Imparato	...	(uncredited)
Frank Leslie	...	(uncredited)
Luigi Magnani	...	(uncredited)
Claudio Mancini	...	Harmonica's brother (uncredited)
Umberto Marsella	...	(uncredited)
Dino Mele	...	Harmonica, as a boy (uncredited)
Antonio Molino Rojo	...	Member of Frank's gang at auction (uncredited)
Enrico Morsella	...	(uncredited)
Al Mulock	...	Knuckles (uncredited)
Tullio Palmieri	...	Flagstone carpenter (uncredited)
Renato Pinciroli	...	First bidder at auction (uncredited)
Lorenzo Robledo	...	2nd Member of Cheyenne's Gang (uncredited)
Sandra Salvatori	...	(uncredited)
Aldo Sambrell	...	Cheyenne's lieutenant (uncredited)
Conrado San Martín	...	Gangmember on Train (uncredited)
Enzo Santaniello	...	Timmy McBain (uncredited)
Simonetta Santaniello	...	Maureen McBain (uncredited)
Claudio Scarchilli	...	(uncredited)
Giovanni Ivan Scratuglia	...	(uncredited)
Robert Spafford	...	Construction yard owner (uncredited)
Benito Stefanelli	...	Frank's lieutenant (uncredited)
Luana Strode	...	Indian woman (uncredited)
Fabio Testi	...	Member of Frank's gang with black hat at auction (uncredited)
Dino Zamboni	...	(uncredited)
Marco Zuanelli	...	Wobbles (uncredited)

Regie
Sergio Leone

Buch
Dario Argento		(story) &
Bernardo Bertolucci		(story) &
Sergio Leone		(story)
Sergio Leone		(screenplay) &
Sergio Donati		(screenplay)
Mickey Knox		(dialogue: English version)

Produktion
Bino Cicogna	....	executive producer
Fulvio Morsella	....	producer

Originalmusik
Ennio Morricone

Kamera
Tonino Delli Colli

Schnitt
Nino Baragli

Szenenbild
Carlo Simi

Bühnenbildner/Ausstatter (set decorators)
Rafael Ferri
Carlo Leva		(uncredited)

Kostüme
Antonella Pompei
Carlo Simi

Maske/Frisuren
Alberto De Rossi	....	makeup artist
Giannetto De Rossi	....	makeup artist
Grazia De Rossi	....	hair stylist

Produktionsleiter (production managers)
Claudio Mancini	....	production manager
Camillo Teti	....	production supervisor
Ugo Tucci	....	production supervisor

Regieassistenten
Salvatore Basile	....	assistant director (as Salvo Basile)
Giancarlo Santi	....	first assistant director
Adolfo Aristarain	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Ausstattung (Stab)
Antonio Palombi	....	assistant production designer
Enrico Simi	....	assistant set decorator

Ton Stab
Fausto Ancillai	....	sound engineer
Luciano Anzellotti	....	sound effects (as Luciano Anzillotti)
Roberto Arcangeli	....	sound effects
Italo Cameracanna	....	sound effects
Claudio Maielli	....	sound engineer
Elio Pacella	....	sound engineer

Spezialeffekte
Eros Bacciucchi	....	special effects (as Bacciucchi)

Stunts
John Landis	....	stunt performer (uncredited)

Kamera und Elektrik (Stab)
Franco Di Giacomo	....	camera operator
Giuseppe Lanci	....	assistant camera
Roberto Forges Davanzati	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Kostüm und Garderobe (Stab)
Marilù Carteny	....	assistant costume designer

Schnitt (Stab)
Andreina Casini	....	assistant editor
Carlo Reali	....	assistant editor

Musik (Stab)
Ennio Morricone	....	conductor
Alessandro Alessandroni	....	musician: whistle (uncredited)
Cantori Moderni	....	music performers (uncredited)
Franco De Gemini	....	musician: harmonica solo (uncredited)

Restlicher Stab
Serena Canevari	....	script supervisor
Benito Stefanelli	....	master of arms
Glauco Teti	....	production secretary
Manuel Amigo	....	second production supervisor (uncredited)
Rita Savagnone	....	voice dubbing: Claudia Cardinale (Italian version) (uncredited)

Produktionsfirmen

• Finanzia San Marco (as A Rafran-San Marco Production)
• Rafran Cinematografica (as A Rafran-San Marco Production)
• Paramount Pictures (co-production)

Verleihfirmen

• Paramount Pictures (1969) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Paramount Home Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Paramount Filmes do Brasil (2003) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Adams Filmi (1970) (Finland) (theatrical)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1971) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• CIC Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• CIC-Taft Home Video (Australia) (VHS)
• Paramount (1968) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (West Germany)

Weitere Firmen

• Lowry Digital Images  digital restoration (2003 re-release)
• RCA  music recording facility

Alternativ:

Once Upon a Time in the West (UK) (USA)
There Was Once the West (USA) (literal English title)
Spiel mir das Lied vom Tod (Österreich) (Bundesrepublik Deutschland) [de]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for western violence and brief sensuality. (re-rated; rated M/PG in 1969)

Länge:

Finland:137 Min (1970) | 165 Min (international version) | Italy:175 Min

Land:

Italy | USA

Sprache:

Italienisch

Farbe:

Farbe (Technicolor)

Seitenverhältnis:

2.35 : 1

Tonverfahren:

Mono

Altersfreigabe:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) (original rating) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) (re-rating) (2004) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Finland:K-16 (cut) (re-rating) (1977) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1970) | Brazil:14 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Netherlands:12 | Norway:16 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (re-rating) (2000) | UK:15 (video rating) (1989) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:M (original rating) | USA:PG-13 (re-rating) (2003) | USA:PG (re-rating) (1969) | West Germany:16 (w)

Drehorte:

Arizona, USA

Firma:

Finanzia San Marco

Dies und das:

John Landis was one of the stunt men on this film.

Pannen:

Abfolgefehler: During The Man's flashback which explains how he came to possess the harmonica, the harmonica changes from undamaged to damaged and back.

Dialogzitate:

[first lines]
Station agent: Hey - hey hey hey hey, if you want any tickets, you'll have to go around to, eh, to, eh, the front of the, eh... oooh, well, I s'pose it'll be all right.

Querbezüge:

Bezug enthalten in Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)

"Something To Do With Death"

Sergio goes Hollywood for this big-name, big-budget Spaghetti Western. Fonda, Bronson, Robards and Cardinale queue up and take Leone's choreographic direction in an epic tale of blood and revenge.

Frank is a bad guy who has killed a lot of people. He now works for a railroad entrepreneur whose ruthless sterile tracks are spreading ever westward. The time has come for the real Americans to confront both the railroad and Frank.

Leone sat down with film intellectuals Bernardo Bertolucci and Dario Argento and watched dozens of Hollywood westerns. From this saturation-viewing emerged a 300-page treatment which was eventually distilled into the script, penned by Leone and Sergio Donati. There are conscious echoes of "Shane" and "High Noon" in the meticulously-plotted screenplay. Ennio Morricone apparently sat in on the planning stage and had composed the score in toto before shooting began, the reverese of the usual process of fitting music to existing footage. The result is a tight matching of soundtrack and visuals. Robards, Bronson and Cardinale each have musical 'signatures' which play whenever their characters are onscreen. Bronson's is an eerily-wailing harmonica, Robards has the plonking banjo and Cardinale the lush strings. So intricately was everything structured that the themes were available to be played on set, so that the actors could co-ordinate every nuance of gesture to fit with the score.

The film is a grandiose lament to the death of the Wild West. Decay is everywhere to be seen. Streets, bars, buildings and people all have a beat-up, grungy look. When Cheyenne (Robards) pauses beside a rough-hewn wooden post, there is little difference in texture between his face and the post. Morton the cripple is killing the romantic West of open spaces with his "snail trail" of railroad tracks, leaving the fine adventurous men (Cheyenne and Harmonica) nowhere to go.

There can be few opening scenes with the visual and aural brilliance of this one. Three bad guys stake out Flagstone's railroad depot in a High Noon pastiche. Jack Elam (who was actually in "High Noon") leads the villains. The only spoken words throughout this long (but totally gripping) scene are uttered by the old station clerk. Haunting rhythms raise the tension to an unbearable pitch ... the squeaking windmill, the chattering tickertape, the creaking bench. This wonderful crescendo climaxes with the appearance of Bronson, a sequence as stylised and choreographed as a Shinto ceremony, all the more effective for the absence of spontaneity.

Equal to and counterbalancing this scene is the very next one, the introduction of Frank. This time it is "Shane" that gets the treatment as the McBain boy spots five men in yellow duster topcoats. A growing sense of unease on the McBain homestead is beautifully conveyed (was the stopping of a cicada chirp ever so effective?) A cinematic multiple orgasm ensues, with the musical theme crashing in as the boy sees the devastation, and the camera swoops round to reveal the baddie to be none other than Henry Fonda as Morricone's trademark solitary tubular bell peals out.

Cheyenne's entrance is also a piece of impressive cinema. Inside Lionel Stander's strange labyrinthine tavern, quite unlike any saloon ever filmed before, the violence which hovers around Cheyenne like a dustcloud is heard but not seen, preparing us for his appearance in person. The sliding of the lamp towards Bronson works brilliantly, the film's two good men sharing the light of humour, the symbolic forging of a meaningful friendship.

By a slow accretion, the plot reveals itself. The leviathan of the railroad must be stopped, and there must be a reckoning with Frank. Gradually the fates of the main characters converge, and swim into sharp focus for the shoot-out.

It is not the story, excellent though that is, which lingers in the memory, but rather a hundred individual flashes of brilliance: Claudia Cardinale (are those eyes for real?) filmed on the bed, viewed vertically downward, through a lace canopy: Cheyenne's surprise method of concealing himself on the train: Morton ("when you're not on that train, you're like a turtle out of its shell") imprisoned by the armature that helps him walk: the 'heartbeat' of the train's engine during the cardgame: the tension of the ambush preparations against Frank: the eruption of guitar music as Bronson enters the frame: Bronson's stillness and self-possession, the emblem of his righteousness: Fonda's eyes flickering rapidly in his motionless head, denoting the waning of his self-confidence: the amazing super-close-ups of Bronson: and the weird brick arch, the only man-made intrusion into the entire terrain, and the focus of human depravity.