A Fistful of Dollars
In his own way he is perhaps, the most dangerous man who ever lived!
The first in Sergio Leone’s unofficial Dollars, (or as some call it, the ‘Man with No Name’ trilogy), which, (as few people know), also happens to be a semi-remake of the famous Japanese Samurai adventure film Yojimbo. A Fistful of Dollars features Clint Eastwood as the famously quiet, humble yet heroically tough loner, who goes by the simple name of Joe, which happens to change in both subsequent films to Manco and Blondie. However you cut it, Clint’s character is essentially a man with no actual name. His identity literally changes with every place that he visits. In the first of the series, ‘Joe’ visits a small town on the Mexican border named San Miguel, which is in the midst of a power struggle between three corrupt brothers. During this long and aggressive scene, Joe decides to get himself involved, whether it be for the better or, (indeed), predictably for the worse.
This is definitely the most straightforward of the No Name/Dollar trilogy with the simplest story-line. Despite it’s extreme slow pace, it’s also the shortest clocking in at just over an hour and a half, compared with the two hour plus run time of ‘For a Few Dollars More’ and almost three hours for ‘The Good, Bad and the Ugly’. It’s also the most underwhelming film of the series. There is however a really cool opening sequence which features the music of Enrico Morricone, which would grow into the most significant and landmark feature of the trilogy. Eastwood’s performance as Joe is absolutely sensational and cemented his ability to play that silent but suavely strong role, which has made him an international superstar.
There are only a couple of very brief fight scenes in Fistful which are a tad graphic. This was not only due to the restrictions of the early 1960’s, but also to the fact that most filmmakers at the time, including Leone, didn’t focus on violence but rather character, atmosphere and story. Even though the film doesn’t come together perfectly, we know when watching Fistful, that the very best of the series is yet to come.
6/10 – Calum Robert
