ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST: 50th Anniversary Blu-ray (Paramount, 1968) Paramount Home Video
Serendipity has
always played a big part in life as well as the movies, perhaps nowhere more transparently
than in Sergio Leone's seminal spaghetti western, Once Upon A Time in The
West (1968). After 1966’s The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Leone, a
man of few words - potently placed (often with glib satire) elsewhere in the
genre, publicly announced his retirement. Offers came and went. But Leone
remained staunch and determined in his refusal to return to the genre until
Paramount offered a substantial budget and access to Henry Fonda, Leone's
all-time favorite star whom he had never worked with before. At Leone's request
Bernardo Bertolucci and Dario Argento were brought in to develop the property
in 1966, spending almost a year watching, then deconstructing the classic
Hollywood western for their inspiration. Conscious that his glacial approach to
story-telling was being severely paired down for general release in America,
Leone commissioned Sergio Donati to help refine and edit their screenplay. For Once
Upon A Time in the West, Leone broke many of his own traditions, including
allowing his characters to evolve on screen. His motif of the railroad (aka
civilization and culture) come to disrupt the mythical properties of an
unspoiled west, Leone’s characters are left standing after the gun-fighting -
representatives of this transformation. Running parallel in theme is Leone's
last stand for the western’s mythical heroes, villains and legends. With his
curious preservation of their legacies, part glowing tribute/part revisionist
deconstruction, Once Upon A Time in the West would stand firmly at a
crossroads within the genre, bridging that ancient Hollywood tradition for
gallant heroes with a much more contemporary strain, de-crypting the anti-heroic
disruption of mankind, being foisted upon this natural landscape.
Always more
interested in the rituals preceding violence than the act of violence itself,
Donati and Leone's screenplay for Once Upon A Time in the West features
some of the sparsest dialogue and even lengthier sequences of introspection
building up to the brief eruptions of action. The narrative centers primarily
on two epic conflicts taking place in the fictional town of Flagstone (actually
an amalgam of location work shot in Spain and Utah); the first, the deed of a
cold-blooded murder, the second a transgression that leads to bitter revenge.
The impetus for all the carnage is a parcel of land known as Sweetwater, bought
by Brett McBain (Frank Wolff); a lonely settler who foresaw a way to capitalize
on the coming railroad. Desiring Sweetwater for himself, the railroad's
crippled baron, Morton (Gabriele Ferzetti) sends his hired gun, Frank (Henry
Fonda) and his men to intimidate McBain and lay claim to the property. Instead,
Frank takes considerable pleasure in murdering the entire McBain family (father,
and three young children) while planting evidence to suggest that a bandit,
Cheyenne (Richard Robards) is responsible for their slaughter. Earlier, Frank
also sent three of his best men to the station to meet Harmonica (Charles
Bronson); a mystery man, and, the only gun who could challenge him. Dispatching
Frank's men in short order, Harmonica meets up with Cheyenne in a cantina and
informs him that he is being set up by Frank. Meanwhile, McBain's new bride,
Jill (Claudia Cardinale) arrives too late in Flagstone and is met by the town's
folk already preparing the family’s funerals.
Harmonica and
Cheyenne become smitten with Jill. Harmonica explains to Cheyenne that unless
the station is built by the time the tracks reach the McBain property she will
lose Sweetwater. Cheyenne puts his men to work to build Jill her station.
Outraged at Frank for having defied him, Morton offers Jill a deal on her
property. This betrayal turns mate against master with the die cast for a
brutal showdown. Frank rapes Jill and then forces her to sell the property in
an auction, believing he will be its only bidder. Instead, Harmonica holds
Cheyenne at gunpoint to make his own bid for Sweetwater, using money acquired
for turning Cheyenne in to pay for the land himself. Harmonica then sells
Sweetwater back to Jill. Paid by Morton, Frank's men attempt to kill him. But
Harmonica now comes to Frank's defense so he may have the privilege of killing
Frank himself. During their final showdown, Frank demands Harmonica identify
himself. In a flashback it is revealed Frank killed Harmonica's older brother
by tying a noose around his neck and forcing Harmonica - then a mere boy - to
support him on his shoulders, knowing the child would be unable to do this
indefinitely. Harmonica shoots Frank dead and places a harmonica in his mouth
to make his own revenge complete. Her arch nemesis gone; Jill supervises
construction of the depot near her property as the train comes through.
Cheyenne reveals to Harmonica that during his earlier confrontation with
Morton's men he has been mortally wounded. He collapses and dies in Harmonica's
arms and is carried off into the sunset by Harmonica as the railroad – that
perennial symbol of progress - looms large in the foreground.
From a purely
narrative perspective, Once Upon A Time in the West is an imperfect
film. Having the bandit Cheyenne become our heroic figure is problematic. If he
is a bandit, Leone never reveals him at his most ruthless. If anything, Cheyenne
is an over-the-hill nobleman sheathed in the aura of his own pretend. It is
also rather unlikely, having seen the cold-blooded-ness of Frank firsthand,
that his men would suddenly forget themselves for a few pieces of gold for
Morton or anyone else. But there is so much style and superb characterizations
to be had throughout the tale, we can easily forget such shortcomings and still
have a relatively coherent viewing experience. Casting the picture proved a
minor challenge. Initially, Henry Fonda turned down Leone, presumably because
he did not want to play against type as the heavy. This decision Fonda
regretted, then reconsidered when friend and spaghetti western veteran, Eli
Wallach advised him to do the film. Charles Bronson came to the part of
Harmonica thrice removed, only after Leone’s ‘good luck’ charm, Clint Eastwood
refused to partake and James Coburn, Leone’s second choice, demanded too much
money. Robert Ryan backed out of playing the Sheriff for a bigger part in Sam
Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch.
Two tragedies
marred the production. The first involved actor, Al Mulock who played a
supporting role as Knuckles in the film's opening confrontation between
Harmonica and Frank's men. The actor committed suicide in full costume shortly
after his scenes had been shot in Spain by leaping from his hotel room. Two
years later Frank Wolff (McBain) followed Mulock's lead by jumping from his
hotel suite in Rome. As Leone suspected, his 165-minute international cut was
ruthlessly butchered for the American release. As a result, Once Upon a Time
in the West did poorly at the box office. Viewed today in its restored
version one cannot help but admire the brilliant touches in Leone's sustained
pacing. Performances throughout are powerful, haunting and peerless. For a film
so generous in its scope and size, Once Upon A Time in the West seems a
remarkably intimate affair in retrospect as it effortlessly unfolds with
ever-compelling detail about its conflicted characters. Claudia Cardinale –
Leone’s token estrogen in this male-dominated and inhospitable panorama of blood
and dust – strikes an indelible chord as the defiant firebrand, bloodied but
unbowed, and, arguably, the only one able to see the promised future to its suitable
and necessary conclusion. Leone’s passion for the destructive nature of
progress itself is given to drawn-out and contemplative respites that allow the
audience to ‘live’ alongside these characters. It is the richness evolved from
Leone’s even-keeled pacing that ultimately satisfies. Arguable, Leone’s westerns
are less about plot than experience; more focused on being present in the daily
struggles of life, than in creating traditional forward-moving trajectories
that move characters about the proscenium as carefully staged chess pieces. In
the end, we come away from Leone’s western fantasia with a sense of sobering
loss for a way of life – hell-bound and lawless – yet destined to give rise to
the more rigidly structured gentility of the early 20th century.
Paramount Home
Video's 50th anniversary Blu-ray reissue appears to be derived from
the same source as its earlier North American Blu-ray. This one is being
released in the U.K. only, but as a ‘region free’ offering, sourced from the
aforementioned ‘restored elements’ that comprised the original North American
debut some seven-and-a-half years ago. The
1080p image exhibits exceptional fine detail throughout. Colors seem to lack bold
richness and warmth exhibited on the long-defunct DVD release. As with the
aforementioned Blu-ray from a while back, this 50th Anniversary
edition favors a blue/brown schematic. Contrast is superb. Blacks are deep,
velvety and smooth. Whites are pristine. Sonically, this appears to be the same
5.1 DTS soundtrack as before. Ennio
Morricone's magnificent score is the real benefactor here. Alas, dialogue
continues to sound manufactured and strident. Extras have been ported over from
the aforementioned DVD release, and include the audio commentary culled from
introspective interviews from directors, John Carpenter, John Milius and Alex
Cox, plus film historians, Sir Christopher Frayling and Dr. Sheldon Hall, and,
various cast and crew. We also get several
featurettes that, culled together, represent a comprehensive documentary on the
making of the movie: ‘An Opera Of Violence’, ‘The Wages Of Sin’, ‘Something
To Do With Death’, ‘Railroad: Revolutionizing The West’ and finally, ‘Locations:
Then and Now’ – plus, a stills gallery and theatrical trailer. Bottom line: nothing new here – just a 50th
anniversary sticker slapped onto some repackaged artwork. If you already own
the previous Blu, then pass, and be glad that you did.
FILM RATING (out
of 5 - 5 being the best)
5+
VIDEO/AUDIO
4
EXTRAS
3.5
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