Following in the tradition of great What Culture arguments for films such as
Jurassic Park,
Star Wars and
Jaws, it’s now time for
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly to step forward and shoot all contenders down for the prestigious title of greatest film of all time. No other film is as iconic, as epic or as purely cinematic as Sergio Leone’s 1966 spaghetti western, which combines everything that’s remarkable about about the work of the late Italian director into one astonishing piece of filmmaking.
Here’s 50 reasons why The Good, the Bad and the Ugly might just be the greatest film of all time.
1. Clint Eastwood as Blondie (Aka: The Man With No Name/The Good)
Where better to start than Clint Eastwood’s effortlessly cool return as The Man With No Name, or as he is actually named here, Blondie. A man of few words, Eastwood’s persona has become the template for the classic cinema anti-hero – often switching between being a savior one minute to a sardonic and mean-spirited hardass the next. Leone also made sure never to reveal the background of the character, smartly leaving the origins and motive of him up to the audience and adding to the overall mystery surrounding the character.
The character would define and inspire many of Clint’s later roles such as the similarly tough Harry Callaghan in ‘Dirty Harry’, while he would also inspire other characters outside of Eastwood’s films, such as Snake Plissken in ‘Escape From New York’ – which comes complete with an appearance by Lee Van Cleef.
2. It’s A Good Threequel
Third entries in beloved series of films often have a reputation of being the worst – notable examples include ‘The Godfather III’, ‘Spider-Man 3′ and ‘Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines’. It’s the complete opposite with Leone’s ‘Dollars Trilogy’, with each entry in the series being bigger, better and even more grandiose than the one that came before it.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly isn’t just the best film of the entire trilogy, but one of the best threequels ever made.
3. Quote -Tuco on Blondie
“I’m looking for the owner of that horse. He’s tall, blonde, he smokes a cigar, and he’s a pig!” – Tuco
4. Sergio Leone
Known primarily for his spaghetti westerns, Leone breathed life into the tired genre with his wildly cinematic and iconic films, only to then again redefine the western with the magnificent ‘Once Upon A Time In The West’. Beginning with ‘A Fistful of Dollars’ in 1964, his ‘Dollars Trilogy’ is comprised of three of the greatest westerns ever made – all of which are full of his operatic and stylish directorial flourishes.
Like many of the best directors, his style of film-making is still incredibly unique and distinctive to this day. Many of his trademarks, such as mixing extreme close-ups with sweeping long shots, or his love for staging epic sequences which make strong use of sound and music as well as incredible visual imagery have become hugely influential to modern filmmakers. Directors like Martin Scorsese, John Carpenter and Robert Rodriquez have all cited Leone’s style as a huge influence on their own films.
5. Scene – The Hanging
Tuco and Blondie’s elaborate scheme to cheat several towns out of reward money for the capture of Tuco gives The Good, the Bad and the Ugly some of its funniest moments. Their dysfunctional partnership sees Tuco handing himself in to the law (the list of committed crimes is never ending) with Blondie shooting the rope just as Tuco is set to hang, in order for the pair to split the reward.
Tuco’s abusive tirade to Blondie is classic (“You’re the son of a thousand fathers!”) as is Blondie’s shooting gallery trick on the hats of the town folk – the cocky scamp.
6. Eli Wallach as Tuco (The Ugly)
Eli Wallach was happy to take on the role as ‘The Ugly’, portraying Tuco Ramírez – a sniveling, vicious and self serving bandit. As well as providing the film with much of its comic relief, Tuco isn’t a character to take for granted. Despite his frequent bouts of stupidity, he’s also often able to double-cross and trick those foolish enough to work by his side as well as having no qualms with committing acts of violence and sin.
It’d be easy for Tuco to become a mere stooge, but Leone gives him a fascinating back-story as well as giving Eli Wallach the room to make the character both despicable and amusingly dumb. Wallach also
put his life on the line in several occasions during the making of the film, for the filming of many dangerous sequences which Leone forced the actor to do multiple times.
Tom Cruise might think that he’s tough jumping from mountains and skyscrapers on a safety harness, but he hasn’t nearly been decapitated by a moving train.
7. Quote – Advice To Live Your Life By
“If you have to shoot, shoot…. Don’t talk” – Tuco
8. Ennio Morricone
Ennio Morricone’s score for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is a vital part of why the film is so majestic and epic, and it’s easily one of the all time greatest scores in the history of film. Over the course of his expansive career in scoring film, he has composed music for over 500 movies and TV shows, including films as diverse as Brian De Palma’s ‘The Untouchables’ and John Carpenter’s ‘The Thing’.
9. Music : Il Buono, Il Cattivo, Il Brutto (Main Theme)
What’s left to say about the main theme for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ?
It’s one of the most distinctive pieces of music ever composed for a film and even spent weeks on the music charts as a hit single.
If that wasn’t enough, the theme music has become a synonymous calling card for the entire Western genre, only challenged by Elmer Bernstein’s majestic theme for
‘The Magnificent Seven’.
10. The Extreme Close-ups
One of Leone’s trademark directorial flourishes can be seen in its full glory in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
Scenes are frequently punctuated by extreme close-ups of eyes and faces, or even simply a hand slowly reaching towards a holstered gun. These distinctive shots help build tension and suspense by allowing us to really savor the performances and character reactions in close-up as well as giving Leone the freedom to construct sequences that are as astonishingly cinematic as the final showdown.
11. Red Dead Redemption
One of the greatest films of all time has a distinct influence on one of the greatest games of all time, Rockstar’s ‘Red Dead Redemption’.
To be honest, the game is full of references to many films which have inspired its Western theme, but Leone’s masterpiece is certainly at the forefront. Lead character John Marsden bares more than a passing resemblance to The Man With No Name, complete with unlockable outfits similar to those seen in the film, such as the distinctive poncho and Blondie’s duster.
The missions themselves are also full of references to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, with players able to shoot noose ropes to free hanging prisoners, while another mission has you blowing up a bridge in a similar scenario to the classic Civil War sequence in the film.
If it weren’t for Leone’s ‘Dollars Trilogy’, it’s unlikely that Red Dead Redemption would be nearly as cool and seeped in style as Rockstar’s gaming masterpiece is.
12. Lee Van Cleef as Angel Eyes (The Bad)
Lee Van Cleef’s distinctive chiseled features and sharp impenetrable glare made him a perfect fit for the Western genre, especially the two films for which he worked with Leone – ‘For A Few Dollars More’ and ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly’. His role of Angel Eyes (The Bad) is a distinct counterpart to his role as Colonel Mortimer in ‘For A Few Dollars More’, in which he would eventually become an ally to Eastwood’s Man With No Name – this time acting as the films true villain throughout the story.
13. Scene – The Ghost Town
After being bombarded by artillery fire, Tuco and Blondie find themselves in the wreckage of a deserted and seemingly lifeless town.
All is not as it seems however, with the pair being hunted by Angel Eyes’ ruthless gang of killers. What follows is a fantastic sequence with the pair walking through the shell of the town and gunning down men from all angles – complete with the obligatory stuntman falling off rooftop gag.
14. Music: L’Estasi Dell’oro (The Ecstasy Of Gold)
One of my favourite pieces of music, Ecstasy Of Gold is an amazingly epic and grand piece of Ennio Morricone’s score and one of his finest compositions.
While it’s not as well recognized as the main theme, Ecstasy Of Gold has become a classic piece of music and has since been covered by
Metallica, and featured in everything from
adverts to the opening sequence of a popular comedy film series (we’ll come to that later).
15. It’s The Quintessential Spaghetti Western
If you mention the term Spaghetti Western to anyone, chances are they’ll immediately think of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly as it has become the definitive and quintessential Spaghetti Western – combining everything that’s unique and definable to the genre into one classic movie.
16. Quote – The Switcheroo
“Look, one son of a bitch goes in, and another son of a bitch comes out!” – Tuco
17. The Character Introductions
Leone introduces each of the three characters through an audacious prologue which lasts for 30 minutes, has no dialogue for 10 of them, and even subtitles each character in brilliant freeze-frame captions.
Tuco is seen jumping out of a window (clutching a hunk of meat) to escape bounty hunters, Angel Eyes is shown brutally murdering a man and his son as part of a job for someone who he then double crosses, while Blondie is given an iconic introduction with a showdown which has him gunning down three bandits before any of them even fire a single shot.
Openings to films are rarely as cool, stylish or unique as that of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
18. Scene – The Gun Shop
The gun shop scene – in which Tuco holds a gun store owner hostage while he finds himself a suitable gun to hunt down Blondie – is one of my favorite scenes in the movie, thanks to Eli Wallach’s amazing improvised performance, where he toys around with the parts of each gun as if searching for the perfect killing weapon.
“Leone said, ‘Well, go in and put the gun together,’ and I didn’t know how. But he left the camera on and let me toy with it and imagine what it would be like.” – Eli Wallach
19. The Opening Titles
Before we even get to the extensive character introductions that begin the film, Leone immediately sets the film apart from other Westerns of the era with the brilliant title sequence.
Using a variety of colours and gritty photos of sequences from the film as well as animation, the titles designed by Iginio Lardani are incredibly cool – especially alongside Morricone’s score.
20. Clint and the Kitten
In the midst of the violence, Clint can be seen cuddling a random kitten and letting it play around in his hat….. Just to show that he’s not all bad.
Awwwww
21. Music: Il Tramonto (The Sundown)
22. It Greatly Influenced Quentin Tarantino
Tarantino makes it no secret that his filmmaking style owes a great debt to the films which he himself grew up idolizing and re-watching endlessly. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is perhaps the greatest influence on Tarantino, being both his favorite film of all-time and the one which is frequently alluded to with similar scenes and references throughout his work.
‘Reservoir Dogs’ torture sequence is a tribute to the Tuco torture sequence, while ‘Inglorious Basterds’ and ‘Kill Bill’ are stuffed to the brim with references to Leone’s masterpiece. The entire opening of ‘Inglourious Basterds’, where Christoph Waltz’s sinister Nazi “Jew Hunter” turns up to a small house to seek out any hidden Jews, is incredibly reminiscent to the introduction of Angel Eyes in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – complete with an Ennio Morricone score.
Tarantino has
praised the film on numerous occasions and labeled it as “The best-directed film of all time”
Love him or hate him (I sit in the middle) he’s got a point !
23. These Custom Figures
Sadly these awesome figures aren’t for sale, but are the handiwork of work of artist
Geoff Trapp and designed in the style of NECA’s Batsu figures.
If they were available for sale, these would be at the top of my Christmas wishlist.
24. Scene – “Your Spurs”
25. It Turned Clint Eastwood Into A Star
While Clint had appeared in several films (including classic ’50s B-Movie ‘Tarantula’) and TV shows prior to the ‘Dollars Trilogy’, it wasn’t until the worldwide success of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly that Clint’s career truly took off. Two years later he’d work with director Don Siegel on ‘Coogan’s Bluff’, which would lead to another four collaborations with the director including ‘Dirty Harry’ and ‘Escape From Alcatraz’.
Now at the age of 81, Clint Eastwood is a true Hollywood legend with an academy award winning directorial career which has included classics such as ‘Million Dollar Baby’, ‘Gran Torino’ and his own definitive take on the western genre, ‘Unforgiven’.
26. The Poncho
The Good the Bad and the Ugly didn’t exactly invent the Poncho, nor was it the first film in the ‘Dollars Trilogy’ to have Eastwood sporting one – but the South American garment has never been cooler than it was as worn by Eastwood in this movie.
The picture used at the top of this article – of Eastwood in his poncho during the climax of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – has become an iconic image that’s permanently associated with the garment.
27. Quote – The Gunslinger
“Every gun makes its own tune. ” – Blondie
28. Music – La Carrozzo Dei Fantasmi (The Carriage Of The Spirits)
29. Music – Padre Ramirez
30. The Iconic Posters
31. Scene – Blowing The Bridge
As war rages out between Union and Confederate troops on either side of a small bridge, Blondie and Tuco take matters into their own hands in order to get through the conflict and head towards Sad Hill Cemetery to find the buried gold. They arm the bridge and blow it with dynamite in an explosive scene which comes right in the middle of Leone’s epic staging of a violent Civil War battle.
32. The Jackass Number 2 Tribute
33. Quote – Tuco’s Upper Hand
“There are two kinds of people in the world, my friend: Those with a rope around the neck, and the people who have the job of doing the cutting.” – Tuco
34. Quote – Blondie’s Upper Hand
“You see, in this world there’s two kinds of people, my friend: Those with loaded guns and those who dig. You dig.” – Blondie
35. Music: Il Triello (The Trio)
36. It’s Still Iconic and Influential
So much of the iconography of The Good The Bad and the Ugly has become synonymous with the Wild West and its depiction in popular culture. Even after 43 years since its release, the film is still considered a benchmark for its vivid and iconic imagery, effortlessly cool style and a genuinely hard edge which makes its gritty world just as violent, shocking and relevant as it was back in ’66.
37. Scene – Tuco Torture
The scene where Tuco is tortured for information by Angel Eyes (Van Cleef) and the imposing Corporal Wallace (Mario Brega) is notable for the way in which it juxtaposes a graphic and unpleasant scene of violence with Ennio Morricone’s beautiful and mournful piece of music ‘La Storia De Un Soldato’ – which is forcefully played by the camp band to drown out Tuco’s screaming.
The disturbing but powerful scene was one of Tarantino’s influences for the torture scene in ‘Reservoir Dogs’, in which Mr.Blonde tortures his victim to music in a similar way to Wallace and Angel Eyes.
38. It’s An Epic
In its original theatrical release, The Good the Bad and the Ugly ran at a hefty 161 minutes, with several scenes cut out at the request of the studio and under the supervision of Leone. When these scenes were reinstated in a extensive 2003 restoration, the film was extended to 171 minutes long and soon became the default version and the one you’ll see on DVD and Blu-ray releases. At almost three hours long, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly is a true epic – sweeping in scale, detail and plot.
What’s really shocking is that at its heart, it’s an incredibly simple treasure hunt story that Leone expands to its fullest potential.
39. Scene – The Train Escape
I’ve always loved Tuco’s feeble escape plan which he somehow manages to pull off against the odds. If you foolishly agree to let a convict urinate from a moving train while he’s chained to you, really you deserve to die.
Even better is Tuco’s way of breaking himself free from the chain, by shoving Corporal Wallace onto the tracks and waiting for a train to come and run him over.
40. It Gave American Westerns A Kick Up The Backside
The American westerns of the ’50s and ’60s are entirely different to those which came from Italy with the rise of the Spaghetti Western. While many of them are classics in of themselves, the unique style, hard edge and fresh perspectives which the spaghetti westerns brought to the genre left many of their rivals looking feeble and outdated. In the wake of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly the influence of the spaghetti western and Leone’s filmmaking style could be clearly seen on the entire western genre and continues to be felt to this day.
Films such as Sam Raimi’s ‘The Quick and The Dead’, Robert Rodriguez’s ‘El Mariachi’ and Tarantino’s upcoming ‘Django Unchained’ have been labeled by their filmmakers as direct tributes to Leone’s Spaghetti Westerns and often specifically The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
41. Quote – A Dedicated Killer
“The pity is when I’m paid, I always follow my job through. You know that. ” – Angel Eyes
42. The Title Itself
It’s such a simple title, but it’s also – despite the long running time – a very simple plot.
You only have to look at how often the title has been parodied and referenced since its release to see how effective the title was, and how its become as much of a pop-culture phenomenon as the film itself.
To this day the title is still frequently used as a satirical way of describing a group of people – from TV characters to a list of politicians.
43. The Trailer
It’s a cool trailer, although the reason why it’s so well remembered is that the narrator confuses Tuco as the bad and Angel Eyes as the ugly. I guess he personally felt that Eli Wallach was far more attractive than Lee Van Cleef.
44. Scene – The Desert
After being left in the middle of the desert by Blondie (he’s not exactly a nice guy himself) Tuco manages to find his way to a nearby town – dehydrated and hungry for revenge. When he eventually tracks down Blondie – pulling off the same scheme with a different bandit – Tuco exacts a similar torture on Blondie by having him trek across the desert, leading to extreme dehydration and heat stroke.
What really makes the scene classic outside of the great sun-drenched cinematography as Blondie is forced across the desert is how Tuco shows himself how much of a sniveling suck-up he really is. As soon as Blondie tells him that he knows the name of the grave in which the hidden loot is buried he rushes to his rescue, giving him water and bombarding him with endless compliments.
“Blondie….. Blondie…. Don’t die ! I’m your friend !”
45. “Eastwood….. Clint, Eastwood”
Back To The Future director Robert Zemeckis is a huge Sergio Leone fan, and paid tribute to the director with the third part of his time traveling series. In it, Marty McFly (Michael J Fox) can be seen taking not only Eastwood’s distinctive style of clothing from the ‘Dollars Trilogy’, but stealing the actors name by calling himself Clint Eastwood.
Many of the shootouts and action sequences of ‘Back To The Future Part III’ are also stylistically shot in a similar way to those of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, while Marty’s way of defeating Wild Dog Tannen is taken from ‘A Fistful Of Dollars’.
46. Quote – Learning To Read
Tuco – “See you soon, id… ” “id… ” “ids… ”
Blondie – “”Idiots”. It’s for you.”
47. It Gave Leone The Opportunity To Make Even Grander Films
In the wake of The Good, The Bad and the Ugly’s success, Leone had the freedom to produce more ambitious projects with even larger budgets and on a grander scale. He followed up the conclusion to the Dollars trilogy with the masterpiece ‘Once Upon A Time In The West’, which boasted a more lavish production and a cast including Charles Bronson, Henry Fonda and Claudia Cardinale thanks to backing from Paramount Pictures.
Following Once Upon A Time In The West, Leone directed the underrated Mexican revolution epic ‘A Fistful Of Dynamite’ (aka. Duck, You Sucker!) and the hugely ambitious and astounding ‘Once Upon A Time In America’. While it suffered from a difficult production and was massacred by Warner Bros on its original release (they cut more than 2 hours out of it and changed the structure of the narrative) in its extended form Leone’s final film is an absolute masterpiece and one of the finest portraits of organized crime ever made, even surpassing The Godfather…..
Yup, I said it.
48. And Taught Eastwood A Thing Or Two About Directing Westerns
Despite becoming a Hollywood icon, Eastwood’s true aspirations were grounded in his plans to eventually direct as well as star in his own films, giving him full creative control. His directorial debut was 1971′s brilliant thriller ‘Play Misty For Me’ which he followed with his first western ‘High Plains Drifter’ in 1973.
Eastwood has directed six westerns including ‘Pale Rider’ and ‘The Outlaw Josey Wales’, culminating in his final tribute and eulogy to the genre with the Oscar winning Unforgiven in 1992. While his own depiction of the West is entirely different to Leone’s, it’s indisputable that the shadow of his role as The Man With No Name hung over his forays into the genre, while he later dedicated ‘Unforgiven’ – his final western – to Sergio Leone and Don Siegel.
49. It Shows That Critics Can Often Be Wrong
The Spaghetti Westerns were considered exploitation movies, often taking the style of their American counterparts, chucking away the morality and throwing in more violence, explosive action and gruff anti-heroes which made John Wayne look like a sissy. Alongside all of this, the films are reflective of their modest budgets with bad dubbing, poor acting from minor characters and lower production values.
The result was that Leone’s films often received a largely negative reaction at the time of release, only to go on to be considered classic westerns many years later. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly was considered an amoral and curious film, especially compared to what audiences were used to seeing coming out of Hollywood studios.
“It must be the most expensive, pious and repellent movie in the history of its peculiar genre.” – The New York Times
“temptation is hereby proved irresistible to call The Good, The Bad and the Ugly, now playing citywide, The Bad, The Dull, and the Interminable, only because it is.” – Los Angeles Times
“The Good, the Bad and the Ugly—a title that might serve as the film’s own capsule review.” – TIME Magazine
“Ennio Morricone’s insistent music and Carlo Simi’s baroque art direction further contribute to the pic’s too-muchness.” – Variety
50. It Has One Of The Most Epic Final Battles In Cinema History
Seriously, one of the most epic scenes ever put to celluloid.
There’s barely a word spoken, just music and images combined to create a sequence which is tense, exciting and beautifully constructed. If you don’t find this a riveting and stunning piece of filmmaking then I have no time for you.
Good day Sir !
