Original Author/Branch
The wind swept the yellow sand Wanliyang. In the dilapidated railway station, three yellow-clad men were impatient and seemed to be waiting for something.
The train stopped and walked, and a harmonica sounded poignantly and gracefully, piercing through the yellow sand. The three big men suddenly woke up and looked at the source of the sound in unison.
The man was ragged and played a harmonica...
At this time, the rhythm of the picture is stretched, and each shot is extremely expressive.
There is a genre of film called Westerns. Tells the story of 100 years of barbaric history of the white conquest of the West by white people in the East from the 19th to the 20th century.
There was a Western director named Sergio Leone. One director has only 7 films, four of which are in the imdb top 100.
The director brought Italian sensibilities to Hollywood, creating original Westerns with an epic style that had a profound impact on later generations including Wu Yusen and Quentin Tarantino.
As a representative work of Westerns, the story of "Once Upon a Time in the West" directed by Sergio Leone is not complicated. The producers wanted to see a sequel to The Golden Trinity, but Sergio Leone said, "Then I want to make a movie about the end of the Western era." ”
"Once Upon a Time in the West" was born.
The wind swept the yellow sand Wanliyang. A mysterious man appears playing harmonica and confronts three yellow-clad men, becoming a classic scene in film history.
On a dilapidated farm, bandits led by Frank killed the farmer's family.
Crowded station, beautiful woman Jill came from afar to marry her fiancé.
Noisy tavern, fugitive Cheyenne escapes from prison to investigate the man who planted the stolen goods.
Who is the mysterious man? What does he want to do?
Frank is trying to transform the capitalist in a vain way, what is he going to do?
Jill finds herself embroiled in a land battle, what should she do?
Cheyenne is in danger during the investigation, how can he get out of danger?
In this barbaric town that is about to be developed to usher in a new era, several forces meet, the entanglement of evil forces, the true feelings and falsehoods of men and women... Around the "end of the Western" a smooth and desolate war begins.
"Once Upon a Time in the West" has an epic picture and a calm atmosphere. As a widescreen film, it shows the vast expanse of yellow land in a long axis.
The film frequently uses two-stage shots. Panorama - Close-up - Panorama. Yellow sand flew, the wilderness was empty, the powerful horses and gunners on horseback, the roaring train, the heat. The slow-paced picture, with its visual impact and strong sense of rhythm, shows the barbaric scene of the American pioneering era.
Director Leone believes that the soundtrack is not only the soundtrack, it is also part of the plot. The soundtrack creates a desolate atmosphere in the west, promotes the development of the plot, and together with the picture, sets the tone of the film.
Each character in the film has a corresponding character music, such as the harmonica sound of a mysterious man. Whenever the harmonica sounds, it must be that he is about to appear. It can be said that harmonica sound has played an indispensable role in shaping this role.
The drama music plays a role in diverting emotions and narrative orientation. For example, in the switch between harmonica sound and soprano, the audience can
Zhi Wang is about to turn from a mysterious man to a jill, thus anticipating the emotional direction of the next story.
The soundtrack was composed by the famous score master Enio Molicone, who has scored many classic films such as The Godfather, The Beautiful Legend of Sicily and The Pianist at Sea.
Charles Bronson, who plays the mysterious man, is a Lithuanian immigrant who has shaped many classic Hollywood tough guys. In this film, he plays a minority with secrets.
Oscar-winning Actor Henry Fonda, who often appears as an American gentleman, played Frank, the only villain played by the sixth-largest actor in Hollywood film history.
The actor who plays the fugitive Cheyenne, Jason Robaz, has also won several Oscars.
Jill is played by the famous actress Claudia Katina from Italy. He has collaborated with many internationally renowned directors, including Fellini's "Eight and a Half Parts", Visconti's "Leopard", Herzog's "Boat on the Road" and so on.
It can be said that these four people represent the four types of people in the western pioneering era.
And there's a dialogue in the movie.
Mystery Man: You finally found out that you weren't a businessman anymore?
Frank: Just a man.
Mystery Man: An ancient people.
The mysterious man represents the conquered aborigines of the Pioneer Era, Frank represents the cowboy who attempts to transform and fail, and Cheyenne is a thief and a way outlaw, they belong to the wild west, the west that obeys the laws of pure nature. However, the West no longer belonged to them.
Three men, two dead and one gone. The one who survived chose to continue wandering, waiting for the call of death.
The West belongs to the coming civilization, and the times belong to those who dare to accept it. Jill's final choice represents her belief that everything will pass and the future is full of hope. One day the west will also rise up and come to life, and she is waiting for that day and preparing for that day.
It was the best of times and the worst of times. This is true in every period of historical change, fortunately, the yesterday of bloody killing and barbaric conquest is gone, and today, even if it is cruel, there is at least tomorrow to look forward to; the bad thing is that there is no soil for survival in ease and delay, and some people can only be abandoned in the past.
"Once Upon a Time in the West" is like a eulogy, full of nostalgia for the old times that have passed; but it is also like a warning book, how to get rid of the fate of being eliminated by the small people in the big era.
The times are still the masters of the world, and no one can resist them. On the way to changing their destiny, the little people firmly believe that "my life is up to me", some people have succeeded, some people have failed.
The rules laid down by Heaven have long since passed the original script, formulating each person's role.
Do you want to be an actor to follow the performance, or become a director to rewrite the script; choose to be eliminated by the times, or seize the opportunity to adapt to the future?
Everyone has no choice, but everyone still has a chance.
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In life, parting is a common thing, don't be too sad. - "Once Upon a Time in the West"