The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo) A

Rated R, On DVD, theatrically released English version, 161 minutes

The third of Clint Eastwood’s three turns as the Man Without a Name, it is with shame that I admit I’d never seen this classic western by Italian master Sergio Leone. And a classic it is. Much has been written of the impact of Eastwood’s character on subsequent writers and directors (for instance, Lucas bases bounty hunter Boba Fett on him), but it is the narrative devices of this film that I see most clearly either stolen or paid homage to in subsequent films. In particular, the introduction of the three primary characters, the Good (Eastwood), the Bad (Tuco, played by Eli Wallach, recently so great in The Holiday), and the Ugly (Sentenza, Lee Van Cleef), each with their own vignette that establishes their character while advancing the plot, is echoed in a variety of ways in Quintin Tarantino’s canon.

Unlike other films that have lost their vitality because they’ve been stolen from or quoted too many times, Ugly remains vibrant and relevant. This energy derives from Eastwood’s quintessential anti-hero. Forty years on, few directors have the guts to create a truly morally ambiguous protagonist, and fewer still have the charisma or skill to make the audience pull for him. While he seems to be guided by his own ethical system, that system is in no way tied to any communal morality, even the axiomatic one rumored to be shared among thieves. Eastwood is “Good” only insofar as he is not “the Bad” or “the Ugly.” The film is set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, a war surpassed only by WWII in modern times in terms of having an easily distinguishable “right side” and “wrong side”. Yet none of the characters choose to side with either except insofar as they further their individual pursuits. If Eastwood eventually prevails, it is because, unlike the other two, his intelligence tempers his greed.

Plot and characterization aside, the film is a directing and producing (Alberto Grimaldi) tour de force. The cinematography is breathtaking, the direction is loping and lyrical, and the score, defined by that iconic refrain, sometimes played on instruments, sometimes sang, sometimes whistled, is unlike anything before or since. Technically, a perfect film. A masterpiece. A