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Spaghetti Western

A genre variation-turned-movement of the classic American western, made primarily in Italy and Spain during the ‘60s. The primary feature distinguishing the Spaghetti western from its American counterpart is its tone. Embracing the lawlessness of the frontier, the typical entry replaces the traditional white-hatted cowboy hero with a solitary, unshaven nomad (generally a bounty hunter) who is just as ruthless as his opponent. This grubby antihero is more likely to be pursuing money or a personal vendetta of revenge than fighting for a noble cause. Also, moral dilemmas tend to be cast in shades of gray rather than the polar good vs. evil of American westerns. Stylistically, these films distort and magnify traditional western landscapes and motifs. Action such as gunfights, or any form of violence, is gruesome and treated ceremoniously, often with filmmakers extending sequences with operatic music, slow motion and even slower pacing. Extreme close-ups of eyes, hats, and hands, shot with wide-angle lens, often pervert the cliched shots of wide-open spaces used in traditional westerns. Still, despite their conventional mockery and ironic humor, Spaghetti westerns contain brash realism and visual virtuosity that's unequalled, making the form both an homage and an interpretation. Over the years, some of the filmmakers involved in the movement (as well as prominent fans) have voiced an express distaste for the term “Spaghetti Western” – at times suggesting such less culturally stereotypical terms as “Euro-Western.” But while detractors of the term indeed have some extremely valid arguments as to why it should perhaps be rechristened, few film scholars would likely deny that the words “Spaghetti Western” have grown to become an integral component of the overall film lexicon. The genre was made internationally famous by director Sergio Leone with his "Man with No Name" trilogy -- A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly.

Major Works
Rating
Year
 Title
 
 Director
  9 Stars 1968 Once Upon a Time in the West   Sergio Leone
  9 Stars 1966 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly   Sergio Leone
  7 Stars 1965 For a Few Dollars More   Sergio Leone
  7 Stars 1964 A Fistful of Dollars   Sergio Leone
    5 Stars 1968 Con Lui Cavalca La Morte   Joseph Warren
  5 Stars 1976 Keoma   Enzo G. Castellari
  5 Stars 1977 Mannaja   Sergio Martino
    5 Stars 1968 Lo Voglio Morto   Paolo Bianchini
    5 Stars 1968 Se Incontri Sartana Prega Per la Tua Morte   Frank Kramer
    5 Stars 1968 One by One   Rafael Romero Marchent
    5 Stars 1966 Joe l'Implacabile   Anthony M. Dawson
    5 Stars 1971 Brothers Blue   Luigi Bazzoni
    5 Stars 1967 Sette Donne Per i MacGregor   Franco Giraldi
    5 Stars 1968 El Precio de un Hombre   Eugenio Martín
  5 Stars 1969 Sabata   Frank Kramer
    5 Stars 1966 Johnny Oro   Sergio Corbucci
  5 Stars 1968 Il Mercenario   Sergio Corbucci
    5 Stars 1970 Vivo Per La Tua Morte   Camillo Bazzoni
    5 Stars 1970 Un Esercito di Cinque Uomini   Don Taylor
  5 Stars 1972 Giù la Testa   Sergio Leone
    5 Stars 1968 La Resa Dei Conti   Sergio Sollima
    5 Stars 1967 Bandidos   Massimo Dallamano
  5 Stars 1970 They Call Me Trinity   Enzo Barboni
  5 Stars 1967 Un Dollaro a Testa   Sergio Corbucci
  5 Stars 1974 Il Mio Nome è Nessuno   Tonino Valerii
  5 Stars 1966 Django   Sergio Corbucci
  5 Stars 1967 Quién Sabe?   Damiano Damiani
    4 Stars 1968 Une Corde, un Colt   Robert Hossein
    4 Stars 1967 Wanted: Johnny Texas   Emimmo Salvi
  4 Stars 1971 È Tornato Sabata ... Hai Chiuso un'altra Volta!   Frank Kramer
  4 Stars 1975 Un Genio, Due Compari, un Pollo   Damiano Damiani
    4 Stars 1967 Faccia a Faccia   Sergio Sollima
  4 Stars 1967 Se sei vivo spara   Giulio Questi
  4 Stars 1978 China 9, Liberty 37   Monte Hellman
  4 Stars 1971 Trinity Is Still My Name   Enzo Barboni
    4 Stars 1973 Il Grande Duello   Giancarlo Santi
    3 Stars 1970 Il Prezzo del Potere   Tonino Valerii
  3 Stars 1969 Da uomo a uomo   Giulio Petroni
  3 Stars 1970 Vamos a Matar, Companeros!   Sergio Corbucci
  2 Stars 1974 Django de Bastardo   Sergio Garrone
    2 Stars 1966 Il Ritorno Di Ringo   Duccio Tessari
  2 Stars 1967 Johnny Yuma   Romolo Guerrieri
  1 Stars 1966 Tempi di Massacro   Lucio Fulci
 
 
 
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