Tuesday, June 22, 2010

A Fistful Of Dollars - 1964 - 3½ Stars

Actors: Clint Eastwood, Marianne Koch
Director: Sergio Leone

Clint Eastwood's 'Man With No Name's motivations elude me. Sure, he's a badass, and he's crafty, and he's not altogether concerned with money. And he's a legendary shot. A sense of adventure, perhaps, always up to a challenge; here, to defeat the ruthless men that have also come to the American Southwest to stake a claim for themselves.

Whatever the case, Leone's Yojimbo retelling succeeds in some places. Eastwood's character is supposed to anchor the whole thing, but doesn't quite pull it off for me - in Yojimbo, Toshiro Mifune plays the manipulative savant with Puckish flavor, enjoying every moment even as he risks his life - Eastwood's character is more taciturn, his enjoyment is internalized.

No comments:

Post a Comment