Dollars Trilogy

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Dollars Trilogy
Blu-ray box set cover
Created bySergio Leone
Original workA Fistful of Dollars (1964)
OwnerMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Years1964–1966
Films and television
Film(s)
Audio
Soundtrack(s)
Original music
Miscellaneous
Character(s)List of characters
Dollars Trilogy
Blu-ray box set cover
Directed bySergio Leone
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography
Edited by
Music byEnnio Morricone
Production
companies
Constantin Film
Jolly Film (1)
Ocean Films (1)
Produzioni Europee Associati (PEA) (2–3)
Arturo González Producciones Cinematográficas (2–3)
United Artists (3)
Distributed byUnidis (Italy, 1)
PEA (Italy, 2–3)
United Artists (US & UK, original)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (current)
Release dates
1: 16 October 1964
2: 18 November 1965
3: 23 December 1966
Running time
409 minutes (1–3)
CountriesItaly
West Germany
Spain
United States (3)
LanguagesEnglish
Italian
BudgetTotal (3 films)
$2,000,000–$2,025,000
Box officeTotal (3 films)
$84.3 million
126.8 million admissions

The Dollars Trilogy (Italian: Trilogia del dollaro), also known as the Man with No Name Trilogy (Italian: Trilogia dell'Uomo senza nome), is an Italian film series consisting of three Spaghetti Western films directed by Sergio Leone. The films are titled A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965) and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966). Their English versions were distributed by United Artists, while the Italian ones were distributed by Unidis and PEA.

The series has become known for establishing the Spaghetti Western genre, and inspiring the creation of many more Spaghetti Western films. The three films are consistently listed among the best-rated Western films in history.[1]

Although not Leone's intention, the three films came to be considered a trilogy following the exploits of the same so-called "Man with No Name" (portrayed by Clint Eastwood, wearing the same clothes and acting with the same mannerisms). The "Man with No Name" concept was invented by the American distributor United Artists, looking for a strong angle to sell the films as a trilogy.[2] Eastwood's character does indeed have a name (albeit a nickname) and a different one in each film: "Joe", "Manco" and "Blondie", respectively.

Films

A Fistful of Dollars (Per un pugno di dollari, 1964)

Main article: A Fistful of Dollars

The first film has the Man with No Name arriving, for unexplained reasons, in the Mexico–United States border town of San Miguel, base of two rival smuggling families, the Rojos and the Baxters. The Man with No Name (referred to by the old undertaker Piripero as "Joe") decides to play them against each other by collecting prizes for giving information, capturing prisoners and killing men, while also helping a woman, her husband and their son, held captive by the ruthless Ramón Rojo, to escape. He is discovered by the Rojos and tortured, but escapes. The Rojos massacre the unarmed Baxters while searching for him, but helped by Piripero he is hiding away from the town. The Man with No Name returns as the Rojos are preparing to hang the local innkeeper Silvanito, who had befriended him. He cold-bloodedly kills Don Miguel Rojo, uses his last bullet to free Silvanito, and engages and kills Ramón in a gunslinging duel. After the last remaining Rojo brother, Esteban, is killed by Silvanito while trying to shoot from a window, the Man with No Name – knowing that the US and Mexican governments will investigate – departs from the now-peaceful town.

For a Few Dollars More (Per qualche dollaro in più, 1965)

Main article: For a Few Dollars More

The second film introduces the Man with No Name (here nicknamed "Manco") as a

El Paso, and is forced to take part in it, though he manages not to wound any innocents. Later, El Indio transfers his gang to Agua Caliente, Mexico
, where Manco and Mortimer attempt to steal the money to take it back to the Bank. El Indio discovers their plot, but lets them escape as part of an operation to murder all but one of his associates in order to split the money in two instead of with the entire gang. Battle ensues between the bounty hunters and the bandits, according to El Indio's plan, as the two successfully kill all of them, and the one El Indio meant to spare is also killed. In the end, Manco discovers that Mortimer's hunt for El Indio is far more personal than his own, and lets him kill the bandit personally in a duel. Mortimer lets Manco keep all the money, and, now in peace with his past, rides away. Manco piles the bandit corpses in a horse-drawn cart and rides away with the stolen bank money to collect his bounty earnings.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo, 1966)

Main article: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

In the third film, set during the American Civil War, Mexican bandit Tuco Ramírez and the Man with No Name (whom Tuco calls "Blondie") work together to scam small towns: Blondie will collect the bounties on Tuco and then free him as he is about to be hanged. Meanwhile, a mercenary named "Angel Eyes" is shown to be searching for a man named "Jackson", who has stolen 200,000 dollars from the Confederate Army. Angel Eyes threatens the family of one of Jackson's former accomplices and learns that Jackson now goes under the alias of "Bill Carson" (who has already murdered both of his original accomplices). The partnership between Blondie and Tuco sours when Tuco complains that being repeatedly placed in a noose with only a single bullet standing between himself and death demands a larger cut than 50/50; Blondie immediately betrays Tuco, saying "The way back to town is only 70 miles... if a man like you holds your breath, I think you can manage it". Blondie is later caught out and tortured by a vengeful Tuco who first tries to put Blondie in a noose, but the raging war encroaches and drives them apart. Tuco then catches Blondie and drags him through "this hell [...] a hundred miles, that's a nice walk": the high desert. Tuco's erstwhile revenge is interrupted when they stumble upon a Confederate carriage carrying the bullet-riddled and barely-alive Bill Carson. Carson, bleeding and desperate for water, tells Tuco the name of the cemetery in which the gold is hidden – but while Tuco goes to get water, a dying Blondie manages to crawl past and get the name of the grave in which the treasure is buried just as Carson dies. Tuco realizes that he can't find the bounty without Blondie. The two form an uneasy alliance. During their journey to the treasure they are arrested by Union Army soldiers and brought to a prison camp in which Angel Eyes is posing as a Sergeant. Angel Eyes tortures Tuco into revealing his half of the secret and recruits Blondie to show him the grave. All three ultimately leave the prison. Blondie, Tuco, and Angel Eyes commence a game of betrayal and subterfuge. Tuco and Blondie are blocked by a brutal conflict between Union and Confederacy. Blondie subsequently tricks Tuco into revealing the name of the cemetery. The gunslingers eventually arrive at the graveyard where the treasure is hidden but find themselves in a three-way standoff with victory uncertain for anyone. Blondie takes up a burnt-ended cigar and a rock; he tells the others that he will write the name of the grave marker on the bottom of a stone. He then places the stone in the middle of the cemetery, and the film's iconic "Mexican standoff" duel begins. After the duel, Blondie takes his half of the money and leaving Tuco in a noose, balancing on an unstable grave stone. Blondie rides into the distance as Tuco curses him loudly. After Tuco nearly hangs himself, Blondie frees him from a distance using his rifle.

Development

Clint Eastwood as the Man with No Name in A Fistful of Dollars

A Fistful of Dollars is an unofficial remake of

Yojimbo starring Toshiro Mifune, which resulted in a successful lawsuit by Toho.[3][4]

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is considered a prequel,[5] since it depicts Eastwood's character gradually acquiring the clothing he wears throughout the first two films and because it takes place during the American Civil War (1861–1865), whereas the other two films feature comparatively more modern firearms and other props.[citation needed] For example, Lee Van Cleef's character in For a Few Dollars More appears to be a Confederate veteran who has come down in the world, and a graveyard scene in A Fistful of Dollars features a gravestone dated 1874.[citation needed]

Cast

The only actors to appear in all three films besides Eastwood are Mario Brega, Aldo Sambrell, Benito Stefanelli and Lorenzo Robledo. Four other actors each appear twice in the trilogy, playing different characters: Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volonté, Luigi Pistilli, and Joseph Egger.

"I think [the Leone films] changed the style, the approach to Westerns [in Hollywood]. ... They made the violence and the shooting aspect a little more larger than life, and they had great music and new types of scores. ... They were stories that hadn't been used in other Westerns. They just had a look and a style that was a little different at the time: I don't think any of them was a classic story—like [John Wayne's 1956] The Searchers or something like that—they were more fragmented, episodic, following the central character through various little episodes."

— Clint Eastwood reflecting on the impact of the films.[6]

Music

Composer Ennio Morricone provided original music score for all three films, although in A Fistful of Dollars he was credited either as "Dan Savio"[7][8] or "Leo Nichols", depending on the print.

Principal cast

Actor Films
A Fistful of Dollars
(1964) 		For a Few Dollars More
(1965) 		The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
(1966)
Clint Eastwood Man with No Name
Joe Manco
("Il Monco") 		Blondie
("Il Biondo")
Mario Brega Chico Niño Corporal Wallace
Aldo Sambrell Manolo Cuchillo Angel Eyes Gang Member
Benito Stefanelli Rubio Hughie (a.k.a. "Luke")
Lorenzo Robledo Baxter's member Tomaso Clem
Joseph Egger Piripero[9] Old Prophet[10]
("Vecchio Profeta") 		 
Gian Maria Volonté Ramón Rojo[11] El Indio[12]  
Marianne Koch Marisol[13]  
Lee Van Cleef   Colonel Douglas Mortimer Angel Eyes
("Sentenza")
Luigi Pistilli   Groggy Father Pablo Ramirez
Román Ariznavarreta   Half-Shaved Bounty Hunter[14] Bounty Hunter[15]
Antonio Molino Rojo   Frisco Captain Harper
Antoñito Ruiz   Fernando[16] Stevens' Youngest son[15]
José Terrón   Guy Calloway[17] Thomas 'Shorty' Larson[18]
Eli Wallach   Tuco Ramirez[19]

Crew

Role Film
A Fistful of Dollars
(1964) 		For a Few Dollars More
(1965) 		The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
(1966)
Director Sergio Leone
Producer Arrigo Colombo
Giorgio Papi 		Alberto Grimaldi
Writer Screenplay Sergio Leone
Jaime Comas Gil
Fernando Di Leo
Duccio Tessari
Tonino Valerii
 Sergio Leone
Luciano Vincenzoni
Sergio Donati 		Sergio Leone
Luciano Vincenzoni
Age & Scarpelli
Sergio Donati[20]
Story
Yojimbo
) 		Sergio Leone
Fulvio Morsella
Enzo Dell'Aquila
Fernando Di Leo[21] 		Sergio Leone
Luciano Vincenzoni
English Dialogue Mark Lowell
Clint Eastwood 		Luciano Vincenzoni
Mickey Knox
Music Composer Ennio Morricone
Director Ennio Morricone Bruno Nicolai
Cinematographer Massimo Dallamano Tonino Delli Colli
Editor Roberto Cinquini Eugenio Alabiso
Giorgio Serrallonga 		Eugenio Alabiso
Nino Baragli
Set and costume designer Carlo Simi

Reception

Critical reception

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic
A Fistful of Dollars 98% (8.20/10 average rating) (53 reviews)[22] 65 (7 reviews)[23]
For a Few Dollars More 92% (8.10/10 average rating) (38 reviews)[24] 74 (8 reviews)[25]
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly 97% (8.80/10 average rating) (75 reviews)[26] 90 (7 reviews)[27]

Box office performance

Film Release date Box office gross revenue Budget
Italy United States Italy United States & Canada Other territories[28] Worldwide
A Fistful of Dollars 12 September 1964 (1964-09-12) 18 January 1967 (1967-01-18) L. 2,700,000,000 ($4,400,000)[29] $14,500,000[30] $1,000,000 $19,900,000 $200,000–$225,000[31]
For a Few Dollars More 18 December 1965 (1965-12-18) 10 May 1967 (1967-05-10) L. 3,100,000,000 ($5,000,000)[32][33][34] $15,000,000[35] $5,500,000 $25,500,000 $600,000[36]
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly 23 December 1966 (1966-12-23)[37][38] 29 December 1967 (1967-12-29) $6,300,000[39] $25,100,000[40] $7,500,000 $38,900,000 $1,200,000[41]
Totals $15,700,000 $54,600,000 $14,000,000 $84,300,000 $2,000,000–$2,025,000
Film Box office admissions
Italy[42] United States & Canada France & Spain Germany Combined
A Fistful of Dollars 14,797,275 15,591,000[43] 7,665,321[44] 3,281,990[45] 41,335,586
For a Few Dollars More 14,543,161 13,761,000[46] 9,691,900[47] 3,072,010[48] 41,068,071
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly 11,364,221 21,271,000[49] 10,520,467[50] 1,250,000[51] 44,405,688
Totals 40,704,657 50,623,000 27,877,688 7,604,000 126,809,345

Accolades

Film Award Category Recipients Result
A Fistful of Dollars Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists[52] Best Score Ennio Morricone Won
Best Supporting Actor Gian Maria Volonté Nominated
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly Laurel Awards[53] Action Performance Clint Eastwood Runner-Up
Grammy Awards[54] 2009
Grammy Hall of Fame Award
 Ennio Morricone Won

Music

Soundtracks

Title U.S. release date Length Composer(s) Label
A Fistful of Dollars: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 1964 TBA[clarification needed] Ennio Morricone TBA
For a Few Dollars More: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 1965 TBA
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 1966 TBA

Singles

Literature

Novel series

The Dollars Trilogy spawned a series of spin-off books focused on the Man with No Name, dubbed the Dollars series due to the common theme in their titles:

  • A Fistful of Dollars (1972) , film novelization by Frank Chandler
  • For a Few Dollars More (1965), film novelization by Joe Millard
  • The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1967), film novelization by Joe Millard
  • A Dollar to Die For (1967) by Brian Fox
  • A Coffin Full of Dollars (1971) by Joe Millard
  • The Devil's Dollar Sign (1972) by Joe Millard
  • Blood For a Dirty Dollar (1973) by Joe Millard
  • The Million-Dollar Bloodhunt (1973) by Joe Millard

Comic series

In July 2007, American comic book company Dynamite Entertainment announced that they were going to begin publishing a comic book featuring the Man with No Name, titled The Man With No Name. Set after the events of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, the comic is written by Christos Gage. Dynamite refers to him as "Blondie", the nickname Tuco uses for him in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.[55] The first issue was released in March 2008, entitled, The Man with No Name: The Good, The Bad, and The Uglier.[56] Luke Lieberman and Matt Wolpert took over the writing for issues #7–11.[57][58] Initially, Chuck Dixon was scheduled to take over the writing chores with issue #12, but Dynamite ended the series and opted to use Dixon's storyline for a new series titled The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Despite its title, the new series was not an adaptation of the film. After releasing eight issues, Dynamite abandoned the series.[59]

Home media

The films had various

better source needed
]

The 1999 DVD, plus the 2010 and 2014 Blu-ray box set releases by

20th Century Fox Home Entertainment), make specific reference to the set of films as "The Man with No Name Trilogy".[62][63]

References

Citations

  1. ^ "Top 100 Western Movies". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  2. ^ Farino, Ernest (August 2020). "A Fistful of Pasta: The Italian Westerns of Sergio Leone". RetroFan (10). United States: TwoMorrows Publishing: 63.
  3. ^ Gelten, Simon. "FISTFUL – The Whole Story, part 2". The Spaghetti Western Database. Retrieved 3 June 2012.
  4. ^ Alfreds, David (24 April 2009). "Cinema this week: The greatest director of all time". When Falls the Coliseum. Retrieved 3 June 2012.
  5. ^ Anderson, Cal. "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly". Clint Eastwood.Net. Retrieved 3 June 2012.
  6. ^ Eliot (2009), p.114-115
  7. ^ "Man With No Name Movies – Fun Facts, Questions, Answers, Information". FunTrivia. 7 January 2014. Archived from the original on 20 November 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  8. ^ Anderson, Cal. "A Fistful of Dollars (1964)". Clint Eastwood.Net. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  9. ISBN 9781845112073
    .
  10. ISBN 9781101604632
    .
  11. ISBN 9785041721862
    .
  12. ISBN 9781107094512
    .
  13. Guardian News & Media Limited
    . Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  14. ISBN 9780857730459
    .
  15. ^
    ISBN 9781442245044
    .
  16. ISBN 9788498024326
    .
  17. ISBN 9780857730473
    .
  18. ISBN 9780810851320
    .
  19. ^ Rajgopal, K.S. (20 January 2017). "'When you have to shoot, shoot'". The Hindu. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  20. Sir Christopher Frayling
    , The Good, the Bad and the Ugly audio commentary (Blu-ray version). Retrieved on 3 August 2015.
  21. ISBN 978-1842433041
    .
  22. ^ "A Fistful of Dollars (1964)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  23. CBS Interactive
    . Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  24. ^ "For a Few Dollars More (1965)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  25. CBS Interactive
    . Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  26. ^ "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  27. CBS Interactive
    . Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  28. Newspapers.com
    .
  29. ISBN 978-1-84511-902-7
    .
  30. Amazon
    . Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  31. ^ Sources that refer to the budget of A Fistful of Dollars include:
  32. ISBN 9780231108638
    . Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  33. ^ Monaco, Eitel (11 October 1967). "Italian Films Succeed Alone And With U.S.A.". Variety. p. 29.
  34. ^ "Top Italian Film Grossers". Variety. 11 October 1967. p. 33.
  35. Amazon
    . Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  36. ^ "Per qualche dollar in più – Box Office Data, DVD Sales, Movie News, Cast Information". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  37. ^ "Catalog Of Copyright Entries – Motion Pictures And Filmstrips, 1968". Archive.org. Library Of Congress, Copyright Office. 1968. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
  38. ^ "The Good, The Bad And The Ugly – Release Info". IMDb.com. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
  39. ^ Eliot (2009), p. 88
  40. Amazon
    . Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  41. ^ "Il buono, il burtto, il cattivo – Box Office Data, DVD Sales, Movie News, Cast Information". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  42. ^ "La classifica dei film più visti di sempre al cinema in Italia". movieplayer.it. 25 January 2016. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  43. ^ "Per un pugno di dollari (A Fistful of Dollars) – Etats-Unis" [A Fistful of Dollars – United States]. JP's Box-Office (in French). Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  44. ^ "Per un pugno di dollari (A Fistful of Dollars)". JP's Box-Office (in French). Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  45. ^ "Per un pugno di dollari (A Fistful of Dollars)". JP's Box-Office (in French). Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  46. ^ "Per qualche dollaro in più (For a Few Dollars More) – Etats-Unis" [For a Few Dollars More – United States]. JP's Box-Office (in French). Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  47. ^ "Per qualche dollaro in più (For a Few Dollars More)". JP's Box-Office (in French). Archived from the original on 22 October 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  48. ^ "Top 100 Deutschland 1966" [Top 100 Germany 1966]. Inside Kino (in German). Archived from the original on 30 December 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  49. ^ "Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) – Etats-Unis" [The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – United States]. JP's Box-Office (in French). Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  50. ^ "Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly)". JP's Box-Office (in French). Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  51. ^ "Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly)". JP's Box-Office (in French). Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  52. Amazon
    . Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  53. Amazon.com
    . Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  54. ^ "The Police, Queen, Morricone Honoured At Grammy Hall Of Fame". Uncut. Archived from the original on 26 July 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  55. ^ Brady, Matt (15 August 2008). "Christos Gage on The Man With No Name". Newsarama. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  56. ^ Brady, Matt (28 April 2009). "First Look: Dynamite's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly #1". Newsarama. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  57. ^ Brady, Matt (19 August 2008). "The Man With No Name's New Team: Lieberman & Wolpert". Newsarama. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  58. ^ Phegley, Kiel (23 October 2008). "New Writers on The Man With No Name". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  59. ^ Brady, Matt (20 August 2008). "Chuck Dixon to Write The Man With No Name". Newsarama. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  60. ^ "Per un pugno di dollari/VHS releases - the Spaghetti Western Database".
  61. ^ "Cofanetto 5 VHS film Spaghetti Western SERGIO LEONE".
  62. ISBN 0792842502
    .
  63. ^ "Amazon.com: The Man with No Name Trilogy (A Fistful of Dollars / For a Few Dollars More / The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly) [Blu-ray]: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volonté, Aldo Giuffrè, Luigi Pistilli, Rada Rassimov, Enzo Petito, Claudio Scarchilli, John Bartha, Livio Lorenzon, Antonio Casale, Sergio Leone, Adriano Bolzoni, Agenore Incrocci, Duccio Tessari, Fernando Di Leo, Fulvio Morsella, Furio Scarpelli, Jaime Comas Gil: Movies & TV". amazon.com.

Bibliography

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dollars_Trilogy&oldid=1226799434"