The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo) is a 1966 "Spaghetti Western" film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood (the Good), Lee van Cleef (the Bad), and Eli Wallach (the Ugly). The film is set at the end of the American Civil War and tells of three men seeking a fortune in buried gold. It is particularly known for its spare but haunting soundtrack, created by Ennio Morricone, and for the climactic showdown in a graveyard between the three principal characters.The film contains many of Leone trademarks, such as the sparse dialogue, long scenes that slowly build to a climax and contrasts between sweeping long camera shots and extremely tight closeups on eyes and fingers. The first ten minutes of the film has no speech.
The film is part of a loose trilogy with Leone's earlier films A Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More'\' Eastwood stars in all three, with the same clothing and mannerisms, so the role is popularly dubbed "The Man with No Name". (In fact, the character is addressed three times as "Joe" in the first, is called "Manco" once in the second, and is adressed regularly as "Blondie" in the third". Perhaps his name is Joe Manco.) The Good, the Bad, and the Ugl plays as a prequel to the earlier two--Eastwood's character gradually acquires the clothing that he wore throughout the others--though it is far more epic in scope. Leone's later Once Upon a Time in the West'' has Charles Bronson in a role very similar to Eastwood's and is sometimes considered the final film of the series. Eastwood's own "High Plains Drifter," which brings back something like his Man With No Name, is also sometimes included in this cycle.
The film was mostly filmed in Spain using local militia members as extras. It was released on December 23, 1966 in Italy and in the USA on December 29, 1967.
Since the film's release the good, the bad and the ugly has become a common line.
External links:
- IMDB page for Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo