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The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

 

Year: 1967 
Running Time:
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 (Scope) 
Certificate: BBFC 15 Cert – Not suitable for under 15s 
Subtitles: This film is not expected to be subtitled, though this cannot be guaranteed. 
Directed by Sergio Leone 
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach  
An image from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Review:

If you are going to watch a western, why settle for anything but the best? The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is, in every way, a true classic. The film follows three different men searching for one thing: $200,000 worth of gold. Blondie (The Good) a professional gunslinger trying to earn a few dollars. Angel Eyes (The Bad) a hit man who once he commits to a task will always see it through. Tuco (The Ugly) is a wanted outlaw trying to take care of his own hide. Tuco and Blondie share an uneasy alliance to try and find Angel Eyes and claim the bounty on his head. However, everything changes when the two men come across a carriage with only one survivor from whom they learn that he and a few others of the now deceased men buried a large amount of gold in a remote cemetery. However, Tuco is only given the name of the cemetery and Blondie is given the name of the grave. Now these two men must work together and keep each other alive if they are ever going to find this hidden fortune. Meanwhile, Angel Eyes, who had been looking for Carson, discovers that Tuco and Blondie know the location of the gold. All he needs is let them lead him to it. Together at last; The Good, The Bad and The Ugly must fight it out for the hidden treasure in one of the most iconic scenes in the history of Hollywood. With one of the most memorable soundtracks by Ennio Morricone, this rightly deserves it place in the pantheon of great Hollywood movies.

Hamish Brown

They formed an alliance of hate to steal a fortune in dead man’s gold One of the most iconic films in cinema…and with good reason! Clint Eastwood stars in one of the films that redefined the genre and made him a film star. He is Blondie - a bounty hunter drifting through the Wild West, earning a buck however he can... Having recently dissolved his partnership with Tucco (Eli Wallach) due to a disagreement about equitable division, Blondie is now searching for a lost fortune of $200,000 in gold. Unfortunately, there are complications... He has to resume, at least temporarily, his partnership with Tucco, since they both have details of the treasure’s location, though are unsurprisingly unwilling to share… Cold-hearted gun-for-hire and equally skilled sharpshooter, Angel Eyes (Lee van Kleef), has also got wind of this treasure and is hot on their trail! Sergio Leone was a director of great vision and made his name on ‘Fistful of Dollars’ and ‘For a Few Dollars More’. He shows his talent by creating a masterpiece which can use just shots of the landscape to create a feeling of menace, and without words (or even music) can raise suspense to fever pitch. The final showdown is one of the most, if not the most, tense in cinematic history and undoubtedly a huge contributing factor to why this film is ranked within both Empire’s Top 25 films ever and IMDB’s Top 10. If you have never watched a Western before, why not start with the best?

Natalie Tyldesley-Marshall

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Screenings of this film:

1973/1974 Autumn Term (16mm)
1980/1981 Summer Term (35mm)
1980/1981 Summer Term (35mm)
1984/1985 Autumn Term (35mm)
1998/1999 Autumn Term (35mm)
2016/2017 Autumn Term (35mm)
2016/2017 Spring Term (35mm)
2023/2024 Autumn Term (35mm)