Leone was very conscious of the length of Once Upon a Time in the West during filming, and subsequently commissioned Sergio Donati, who had worked on several of Leone's other films, to help him refine the screenplay, largely to curb the length of the film toward the end of production. Once upon a Time in the West. In 2009, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". When Paramount offered Leone a generous budget along with access to Henry Fonda—his favorite actor, and one with whom he had wanted to work for virtually all of his career—Leone accepted the offer. In this video Amira is accompanied by the Dutch Metropole Orchestra and the Inspirational Community Gospel Choir. The film opens with a mysterious harmonica-playing gunman, whom Cheyenne later dubs "Harmonica", shooting three men sent by Frank to kill him. Cheyenne has a piano and banjo tune that is used for comedic effect, where as Jill has a romantic harpsichord to show her beauty and hope in the West. Learn Film/TV score for Flute Solo by Ennio Morricone in minutes. The Italian director Sergio Leone's 1968 film "Once Upon A Time In The West" borrows themes from many earlier westerns, including "Johnny Guitar" (1954) a film involving a former prostitute who owns property needed by an oncoming railroad, while making an unmistakable contribution to the genre of its own. Once upon a Time in the West is as much a reflection of cinema past as it is of the historical frontier. [9], In 2009, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[10][11]. Stagecoach to Tombstone: The Filmgoers' Guide to the Great Westerns. Exclusive Prime pricing. I.B. [37][38] Download Ennio Morricone Once Upon A Time In The West (Theme) sheet music and printable PDF music notes. According to film critic and historian Christopher Frayling, the film quotes from as many as 30 classic American Westerns. They are not quite as defined, and unusual for Leone characters up to this point, they begin to change (or at least attempt to) over the course of the story. ( Log Out /  Leone felt that Fonda's blue eyes best reflected the cold, icy nature of the killer. However, the rest of the cast had to be dubbed by other actors – including Ferzetti, who was dubbed by actor Bernard Grant, Claudia Cardinale, who was voiced by Grant's wife, Joyce Gordon, and Jack Elam.[18]. This paid homage to previous Western films. The First Tavern 6. The film has a very simple plot. Once Upon a Time … The film score sold about 10 million copies worldwide. There are many more examples in the film, but all of these examples can be viewed in many different ways. and Once Upon a Time in America, though the films do not share any characters in common. The movie's structure is loose and episodic; its themes--the seduction of greed, the stupidity of war--are not particularly novel. Back in the present, Harmonica draws first and shoots Frank. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. Basically structuralist films take on the Signifier+Signified=Sign whereas Post-Structuralist take on the same formula more than once. The cowboys: Frank, Harmonica and Cheyenne, all represent a new type for the Western genre. Once Upon a Time in the West - Trailer (Starring: Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Claudia Cardinale) Once Upon a Time in the West. Leone's distinctive style, which is very different from, but very much influenced by, Akira Kurosawa's Sanshiro Sugata (1943), is still present, but has been modified for the beginning of Leone's second trilogy, the so-called Once Upon a Time trilogy. [7], In the US, Paramount edited the film to about 145 minutes for the wide release, but the film underperformed at the box office, earning $2.1M in rentals in North America.[39]. The film realizes heavily on symbolism and themes, which can be interpreted in many different ways. As in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, the haunting music contributes to the film's grandeur, and like the music for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, is considered one of Morricone's greatest compositions. Except for about a minute of the "Judgment" motif, before Harmonica kills the three outlaws, no soundtrack music is played until the end of the second scene, when Fonda makes his first entry. This theme was so effective that it led to many declaring the end of the Western as a movie genre. One other final symbolic aspect the film uses is the location of the film. Sergio Leone’s 1968 Spaghetti Western film “Once Upon a Time in the West” is a strong example of a post-structuralism film. ( Log Out /  The film uses leitmotifs, which are a short, recurring musical phrase. Following the opening duel (where all four gunmen fire and fall), Charles Bronson's character stands up again, showing that he had only been shot in the arm. The sprawling railways are reaching the far-west, and somewhere along its way, in a small border town, the paths of four characters are going to cross and clash: a young woman looking for a fresh start, an outlaw on the run for a crime he (this time) didn't commit, a ruthless killer on the payroll of a railroad tycoon, and a mysterious man with no name who plays a couple of sad chords on a harmonica and a few cadences on his revolver. The scene in which Morton and Frank discuss what to do with Jill at the Navajo Cliffs. Frank on the other hand dresses a little better than Harmonica and Cheyenne, but is still facially worn from his misdeeds. The film realizes on two main themes in the film, the nature of the West and the vengeance story. Harmonica man, Leone originally wanted Clint Eastwood, who turned it down. For the US release on 28 May 1969, Once Upon a Time in the West was edited down to 145 minutes by Paramount and was a financial flop. Jill’s theme falls into two sections according to the melodic material: an introduction and a main theme, the latter divided into a scheme of ABAA. Post-structuralism comes from the theory of structuralism, which studies the meaning of a film through the codes it conveys. [14] ( Log Out /  The codes are usually in … The complex relationships between these disparate individuals all become tied together in an intricate tale of lust, greed, and revenge. As a Judgement 3. Dulce Pontes – Your Love (Once Upon A Time In The West) Lyrics. Cheyenne arrives at Sweetwater soon after, and both men seem attracted to Mrs. McBain. Bad Orchestra 9. Check out The Man With the Harmonica (Theme from "Once Upon a Time in the West" - The Music of Ennio Morricone) by Giampaolo Pasquile, Double Zero Orchestra on Amazon Music. This film has been labeled “the greatest film every made” and rightfully so because of its use of semiology, which is the study of symbols. Also the rugged clothing of the cowboys shows the death of the genre of the old-cowboy films, and the introduction of the Western films into a modern era. This film is an excellent one to watch and re-watch over and over again in order to discover new meanings. Soundtrack Credits . This signals the start of the second phase of Leone's style, which was further developed in Duck, You Sucker! This is my own interpretation of the signs in the film and their meaning, but the overall points of the death of the West is what Leone intended for the film. Stream ad-free or purchase CD's and MP3s now on Amazon.com. It was added again for the U.S. market, because the American distributors feared American viewers would not understand the story otherwise, especially since Harmonica's arm wound is originally shown for the first time in the scene at the trading post, which was cut for the shorter U.S. version. Once Upon a Time in the West offers somewhat of a balance between the lead male 25 characters and Jill. You touched me and calmed my fear, Turned darkness into light. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) Soundtracks. The characters in this film are also beginning to change markedly over their predecessors in the Dollars trilogy. Overall the film transitions the Western genre into a modern era, by showing the death of the traditional West. "[13], Interiors for the film were shot in Cinecittà studios, Rome. This is because the railroad or American expansion finally comes to the town. The land was bought by Brett McBain, who foresaw that the railroad would have to pass through that area, to provide water for the steam locomotives. Charles Bronson was cast instead. Harmonica helps Frank kill them, though, by directing his attention to their whereabouts from the room where Mrs. McBain is taking a bath. Death Rattle 12. Claudia Cardinale in Once upon a Time in the West (1968), directed by Sergio Leone. Tauris & Co. 'An Opera of Violence', documentary on the DVD, Once Upon a Time in the West (disambiguation), Learn how and when to remove this template message, Once Upon a Time in the West (soundtrack), "Top 25 Greatest Villains - Henry Fonda as Frank", "The film with three names – in praise of Sergio Leone's neglected spaghetti western", "25 new titles added to National Film Registry", "Complete National Film Registry Listing | Film Registry | National Film Preservation Board | Programs at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress", "An Exclusive Interview With Mickey Knox", "La Calahorra, una estación de cine para los 'western' españoles", "Estados Unidos en Granada. Cheyenne (Robards) was not introduced in the American release until his arrival at the McBain ranch later in the film. Man With the Harmonica 7. Jill gets the help of the Harmonica man and his friend Cheyenne (Jason Robards) who is also seeking revenge on Frank. He recruited Bertolucci and Argento to devise the plot of the film in 1966, researching other Western films in the process. Once Upon A Time In The West Theme (Ennio Morricone) - YouTube Morricone immediately reveals his penchant for unusual scorings as he sets the first statement for harpsichord and vibraphone accompanied by the cello. Change ). Leone, though, was offered only Westerns by the Hollywood st… A younger Frank forces a boy to support his older brother on his shoulders, while his brother's neck is in a noose strung from an arch. The introduction comprises a two-phrase melody stated twice. Helpful. The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists: The movie was a massive hit in France,[6] and was easily the most successful film released there in 1969, with 14.8 million admissions, ranking seventh of all time. For the English dub, the voices of many of the American cast, including Fonda, Bronson, Robards, Wynn, Wolff, and Lionel Stander, were used. On Frank's return to Morton's train, he finds that Morton and his remaining men have been killed in a battle with Cheyenne's gang. After making his American Civil War epic The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Leone had intended to make no more Westerns, believing he had said all he wanted to say. The second disc has special features, including three recent documentaries on several aspects of the film: The film was released on Blu-ray on 31 May 2011. It was one of the first times in a Western film where the villain was played by the lead actor. Claudia Cardinale et Jane Fonda : quand deux icônes montent les marches du Festival de Cannes. Harmonica disrupts Frank's plan to keep the price down when he arrives, holding Cheyenne at gunpoint, and makes a much higher bid with the reward money for the wanted Cheyenne, but as Cheyenne is placed on a train bound for the Yuma prison, two members of his gang purchase one-way tickets for the train, intending to help him escape. When he accepted the role, Fonda came to the set with brown contact lenses and facial hair. Symbolically this made things more shocking to audiences when he is revealed as the villain. The men spent much of the following year watching and discussing numerous classic Westerns, such as High Noon, The Iron Horse, The Comancheros, and The Searchers at Leone's house, and constructed a story made up almost entirely of "references" to American Westerns. When crippled railroad tycoon Morton learns of this, he sends his hired gun Frank to intimidate McBain to move off the land, but Frank instead kills McBain and his three children, planting evidence to frame the bandit Cheyenne (Robards). In this film the cowboys are rugged and worn, symbolizing their difficulties in the West. Ebert complained, however, of the film's length and convoluted plot, which he said only becomes clear by the second hour. This added a fresh and interesting perspective to America, which was under harsh criticism because the film came out during the Vietnam War. After years of public requests, Paramount released a two-disc "Special Collector's Edition" of Once Upon a Time in the West on 18 November 2003, with a running time of 165 minutes (158 minutes in some regions). High and low-angles are also used, to describe this status gap even further. Frank is also trying to take the land that the widowed Jill McBain (Claudia Cardinale). Cheyenne's death scene was completely excised. Whereas the "Dollars" films were quirky and up-tempo, a celebratory yet tongue-in-cheek parody of the icons of the Wild West, this film is much slower in pace and somber in theme. 12:38. Most of the infrastructure in the film is run down or falling apart, and the town almost feel like ghost towns. The character of Jill on the other hand is new to the West and is a fresh face amongst the characters. Once Upon a Time in the West was reviewed in 1969 in the Chicago Sun-Times by Roger Ebert, who gave it two-and-a-half out of four stars. This version was shown in European cinemas, and was a box-office success. Sparkmesh's page for the title Theme from "Once Upon a Time in the West". Italian Claudia Cardinale, also enforced the fact an Italian director was making a film about the American West. The same movie over and over again for two years! The 7-minute regional variation in DVD running time is due to the 4% speed difference between the 24 fps NTSC and 25 fps PAL video formats. As the two prepare for a gun duel, Harmonica's motive is revealed in a flashback. The film resolves as Harmonica's motive for revenge becomes clear and as the steam engine chugs into the new town. During production, Leone recruited Donati to rewrite the script due to concerns over time limitations. It sparked a brief fashion trend for duster coats, which took such proportions that Parisian department stores such as Au Printemps had to affix signs on escalators warning patrons to keep their "maxis", as they were called, clear from the edges of moving steps to prevent jamming. Ennio Morricone's score for ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST has always been haunting and melancholic for me since I first it saw many years ago on its release. His tune is often intertwined with Frank’s electric guitar beat, to give Harmonica man a presence on the camera even when he is not. These are a few examples of semiotics used in the film and what they convey. The film also mostly takes place in an arid, dry and isolated area. Harmonica explains that according to the contract of sale, she will lose Sweetwater unless the station is built by the time the track's construction crews reach that point, so Cheyenne puts his men to work building it. Monument Valley itself is used extensively for the route Jill travels towards her new family in Sweetwater. There are so many ways of thinking about the American West and trying to interpret it through film. [24], Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 95% approval rating based on 63 reviews, with a weighted average of 9.16/10. These codes or symbols make up the semiotics of the film. A restored 4K version has been published by Cineteca Bologna in 2018, with improved colors and image quality.[40]. Farewell to Cheyenne 4. Some of the symbolism is seen in the setting, costume and most especially the music. Closer. SKU 104726. Stander remained in the credits, though he did not appear in this version at all. This includes the fact Frank killed Harmonica’s father, and he has been seeking revenge. Howard Hughes (2007). This is showing the ideas associated with the West were dying. The entire scene at Lionel Stander's trading post. Films do this through uses of mise en scene (costumes, lighting, location), angles, etc. Many of the film's most memorable lines of dialogue came from Donati, or from the film's English dialogue adapter, expatriate American actor Mickey Knox.[12]. Franks electric guitar beat also reinforces that the outdated vision of a romantic cowboy, who would use an acoustic guitar. 1:04. As the two men ride off, Cheyenne falls, admitting that he was mortally wounded by Morton during the fight with Frank's gang. Cardinale fiercely and defiantly embodies her role, rolling around in the dirt rather than swanning around in pristine gowns, and there’s something to be said for it. A Dimly Lit Room 8. [41] The most obvious example of this is the casting of veteran film good guy Henry Fonda as the villainous Frank, but many other, more subtle reversals occur throughout the film. The music especially in this film uses a lot of semiotic coding. The tone of the film is consistent with the arid semidesert in which the story unfolds, and imbues it with a feeling of realism that contrasts with the elaborately choreographed gunplay. The brick arch, where Bronson's character flashes back to his youth and the original lynching incident, was built near a small airport 15 miles north of Monument Valley, in Utah, and two miles from U.S. Route 163 (which links Gouldings Lodge and Mexican Hat). It has also appeared on prominent all-time critics lists, including Time's 100 greatest films of the 20th century and Empire's 500 greatest movies of all time, where it was the list's highest-ranking Western at number 14. The Trasgression 5. For other uses, see. Leone had Morricone compose the score before shooting started, and played the music in the background for the actors on set.[19]. Once Upon a Time in the West (Theme) Bill Frisell. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Leone claimed the projectionist told him, "I kill you! He found it to be "good fun" and "a painstaking distillation" of Leone's famous style, with intriguing performances by actors cast against their type and a richness of detail projecting "a sense of life of the West" made possible by Paramount's bigger budget for this Leone film. Each of the characters has a diegetic and non-diegetic score that further describes their persona. The film portrays two conflicts that take place around Flagstone, a fictional town in the American Old West - a land battle related to the construction of a railroad, and a mission of vengeance against a cold-blooded killer. Morton now pays Frank's men to turn against him. Shooting for the scenes in the middle of the railway were filmed along the Guadix–Hernán-Valle [es] railway line. In structuralist films one thing conveys one meaning. [nb 1] This release is the color 2.35:1 aspect ratio version in anamorphic widescreen, closed captioned, and Dolby. and Once Upon a Time in America. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. They filmed at the famous Monument Valley, in Utah that was immortalized as a symbol of the West by director John Ford. The contrast in clothing separates the characters in terms of status. The soundtrack features leitmotifs that relate to each of the main characters of the film, as well as to the spirit of the American West. It is not until the end of the film when the town livens up and we see more people. While Harmonica rides away with Cheyenne's dead body, the work train arrives and Mrs. McBain carries water to the rail workers. She dresses very properly and is visually very stunning, and the dusty atmosphere hasn’t gotten to her. Some scholars argue with the gender balancing aspect of the Western. [22] Popular culture scholar Christopher Frayling regarded it as "one of the greatest films ever made". Once upon a Time in the West (opening theme) 2. It stars Henry Fonda, cast against type, as the villain,[8] Charles Bronson as his nemesis, Jason Robards as a bandit, and Claudia Cardinale as a newly widowed homesteader. Cowboys before this, especially seen in John Wayne films, were romanticized and explorers. Finale 4 people found this helpful. This time, Harmonica says he will reveal who he is "only at the point of dying". This is counterbalanced by Jill's America and Cheyenne's theme. The theme music for the Claudia Cardinale character has … Leitmotifs are especially used with the Harmonica man’s solo tune, which is a haunting intense tone that makes the listener afraid of what will happen next. The film is the first installment in Leone's Once Upon a Time trilogy, followed by Duck, You Sucker! Sergio Leone’s 1968 Spaghetti Western film “Once Upon a Time in the West” is a strong example of a post-structuralism film. Leone's intent was to take the stock conventions of the American Westerns of John Ford, Howard Hawks, and others, and rework them in an ironic fashion, essentially reversing their intended meaning in their original sources to create a darker connotation. This page was last edited on 24 February 2021, at 22:25. The Man 10. The English-language version was restored to around 165 minutes for a re-release in 1984, and for its video release the following year. The film “Once Upon a Time in the West” is two hours and 45 minutes, and the script itself had only 15 pages of dialogue. As the boy struggles to hold his brother's weight, Frank stuffs a harmonica into the panting boy's mouth. Basically the film follows a man who plays a harmonica (Charles Bronson) who is seeking revenge on Frank (Henry Fonda). Danny Boy (1913) (uncredited) Written by by Frederick Edward Weatherly Hummed and sung a cappella a bit by Simonetta Santaniello. [citation needed], Beginning with The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, which originally ran for three hours, Leone's films had usually been cut (often quite considerably) for box-office release. United Artists (which had produced the Dollars Trilogy) offered him the opportunity to make a film starring Charlton Heston, Kirk Douglas, and Rock Hudson, but Leone refused. This director's cut was available on home video until the early 2000s, and still airs on TV, but more recent home-video releases have used the international cut. In a roadhouse on the way to Sweetwater, where he also encounters Mrs. McBain, Harmonica informs Cheyenne that the three gunfighters appeared to be posing as Cheyenne's men. Blake Lucas recognizes the need for change in the Western genre in his essay called Saloon Girls and Rancher's daughters: The Woman in Western. He had come across the novel The Hoods by the pseudonymous "Harry Grey", an autobiographical book based on the author's own experiences as a Jewish hood during Prohibition, and planned to adapt it into a film (17 years later, it would become his final film, Once Upon a Time in America). The music was written by composer Ennio Morricone, Leone's regular collaborator, who wrote the score under Leone's direction before filming began. La Calahorra: escenario de WEsterns", "Location Filming for Once Upon A Time in the West", "My Shame List: Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)", "Breaking Bad Series Creator Vince Gilligan Answers Viewer Questions", "Time Magazine's All-Time 100 Movies | The Moving Arts Film Journal", "TSPDT - 1,000 Greatest Films (Full List)", "Empire Magazine's 500 Greatest Movies of All Time", "Empire's 500 Greatest Movies Of All Time", "The 25 best action and war films of all time: the full list", "AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains Nominees", "AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores Nominees", Box office information for 1969 in France, "Top250 Tous Les Temps En France (reprises incluses)", Pearls – Amii Stewart Sings Ennio Morricone, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Once_Upon_a_Time_in_the_West&oldid=1008757588, United States National Film Registry films, Articles with incomplete citations from November 2012, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles containing Italian-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2020, Articles needing additional references from October 2014, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia articles with WorldCat-VIAF identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Claudio Mancini as brother of "Harmonica".