Best. Movie. Ever.

This Wednesday, I had a new found favorite film. No. Not the Joker, but rather a film directed by Sergeo Leone called The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Released in 1966, the film has since soared to legendary status not only as a western, but as a cinematic masterpiece altogether. A particular fassit of this film that stands to be phenomenal would be the film’s iconic intros for the three protagonists. Specifically, the Bad: Within six minutes and forty seconds of the film, we see a boy riding a mule while operating a mill. A few sways around the machine until something catches his eye...a figure out in the distance. Ennio Marcconi’s beautiful score kicks in with a serene guitar, sounding as graceful as the wind. The boy gets off the mule and runs inside his nearby home. When the stranger approaches the home, he gets off his horse. Suddenly, the guitar turns violent, deep and sporadic, almost like an alarm. The stranger ties up his horse and walks straight to the camera, his face consumes the whole frame, from his mustache to his black hat. After the stranger steps inside, perches in the doorway, and sees an older man accompany what we guess is his on, all characters act cautiously, the camera takes in every character and their reaction to situation that is. No one says a single thing. This silence builds tension. We know that something is wrong, and or, is about to go wrong. And that is the beauty of this intro, Sergeo Leone makes the audience interpret everything. For example The stranger approaches, both the stranger and old man sit down and eat. What follows is a long stare down, with both men not taking an eye off each other while the wolf down the soup before them. Still no dialog. The first one to break the tension is the old man who asks: “You’re...from Baker?” The stranger devilishly grins. We learn that this man, was sent here. And for whatever reason, it’s not for good. The old man goes off, yelling and telling the stranger leave him alone and tell baker he doesn’t know where the gold is. The stranger straightens his head and widens his eyes. Leone did it again! Now we know that this has caught the strangers attention, meaning that he probably did not know about this before, which quest the audience to then listen up. Within 4 minutes and 55 seconds, we know that the stranger is dangerous, that he was sent here from a man named Baker, and that there is a large sum of cash involved, and finally, that the treasure most definitely interests him. As any great director would, Leone makes the viewer work for information, and it’s awesome.

After viewing this three hour heavyweight on my parents large flat screen tv, I, hands down, agree with all the acclaim. When describing this movie, and my thoughts about it to my mother, I told her that the movie made me feel like a kid. Not necessarily because it was a cowboy’s adventure, but rather because, for the first time in a while, I felt this movie’s magic. I got the same feeling watching this film as I did when I was a kid watching E.T., or Toy Story, Pirates of the Caribbean, or Jaws. This film breathed. I was brought on an amazing adventure through a Civil War-torn Southern America, accompanied with three lawless, greedy protagonists who are on a quest for gold. The acting, score, cinematography, and story swept brought me on a magic carpet ride through the wild west. It was a truly spectacle. The twists and turns of the story, along with the writing, action, and new characters with rich backgrounds, never left me bored. Truly a masterpiece.