Review: Once Upon a Time in the West

Once Upon a Time in the West is a classic western, directed by Sergio Leone (The Good, The Bad and the Ugly etc.) and starring Charles Bronson and Henry Fonda, who play is opposing gunslingers in the town of Flagstaff. It starts off very quickly with a trainhouse robbery within the first minute. Then, Harmonica (Bronson) arrives, and things start getting pretty hairy. It has a classic Leone feel, which is helped by the haunting Morricone soundtrack.

Watching this movie 40 years after its release, you can very obviously see it's influences with the movies of today, but not in the places you'd expect. There are comedic pauses and revelation face-zooms to name a few. These occur often and I almost laughed a few times when I saw them.

Back in the day, this movie might have been the definitive western and it probably still is today. But  for the modern viewer, I don't think this serves for any more than nostalgic entertainment.

Score: 7 out of 10