overlooked gem

Rating: Null/10 (10 January 2004)

Warning, spoilers
Leone once described his feelings for this film as those of a father towards a disabled child. It's a movie with some interesting political themes about the futile way revolutions beget other revolutions, but don't expect any answers!
A great moment comes near the start when, out of the smoke of a bomb blast, James Coburn rides into view on a motorbike. It is the first time we have seen a petrol-fuelled vehicle in a Leone film, and it marks his goodbye to the horseriders of the western.
Rod Steiger, with an even more outrageous accent than usual (The Specialist, anyone?), picks up where Tuco left off in Good,Bad,Ugly. We see the film through his dumb eyes, and there are some standout scenes, especially the sparring between him and Coburn which is great to watch.
Morricone's music is woefully undervalued here (eclipsed by his other western themes). It's quirky, moving and downright cool in places. I challenge anyone to watch the whole build up to the bank robbery set-piece (with the little boy and the train) and not be riveted by the music and editing. (And I'm sure Goldfrapp lifted half the tunes for her albums!)
Other set-pieces - Steiger speech about revolutions, the bridge massacre, Steiger's discovery of his dead family, the shocking mass graves, and Coburn's nitro glycerine antics (literally a walking bomb) are among Leone's best work.
There is alot of humour and fun in the first half, which gives way to pathos and scenes of brutality in the second as Steiger's character finds himself a reluctant hero of the bloody Mexican revolution.
It is not a perfect film - it has MANY flaws. Structurally it has big problems (but i do hear rumours of a special edition somewhere). That aside, it is quite haunting once you have seen it - especially as a kid. I also don't think it is a film you will necessarily enjoy/get first time around. However, wait a few years then see it again - trust me it'll be worth it!
It's also good to see its growing influence upon films today - "Three Kings" being a recent example.
Leone was an amazing filmmaker, and this film contains his best and worst. The film also has more resonance now in the current political climate - the "terrorist or revolutionary" question is neatly left for you to decide.

8/10