Movie Club: For A Few Dollars More

[LiamABC]

WELCOME EVERYBODY TO THE RELAUNCHED DISCUSSION THREAD OF THE NEW MOVIE CLUB, DESIGNED TO RUN PARALLEL WITH R.O.C.K.S.
A big thanks to everyone that are joining us through all of this.

This week, we’re continuing with Clint Eastwood’s “Dollars” westerns, watching For A Few Dollars More.

Remember any ideas for films to discuss are most welcome, and should be made on the Movie Club Introduction thread (the sticky one).

Just a friendly reminder to everyone that, whilst fans are obviously welcome to passionately discuss and give their views on these episodes, please remember to keep things on a friendly footing and respect your fellow posters.
Also, please do not post where or how to find the full movie online. And do not post asking others to PM it to you. You are however allowed to watch the movie in whatever manner you want.

[Wilycub]

I think I like this movie more than “A Fistful of Dollars”. Everything about it feels like more effort was put into it than AFOD. The theme music is awesome! I prefer it even more than that of “The Good The Bad and the Ugly’s”, though not by that much. Many of the elements in the theme music will then be used by Morricone for GBU, which is why I sometimes feel that this movie’s title theme is the superior one. But that’s just my opinion.

Clint has gone from Joe to Manco but his character traits remain pretty much the same, as does his outfit and trademark squint. But I feel that Lee Van Cleef is the real star in this one. He subtly steals the spotlight from Eastwood in every scene that they are together in. I like the uneasy partnership between the two characters. It leaves the audience just waiting for one of them to cheat the other one, which they do. Cleef also appears to be a better shot than Eastwood. :biggrin

The story is also more complex than AFOD. It was amusing to see the bank robbery in this movie and how intelligent it must have seemed back in the 60s. Of course, thanks to movies like “Ocean’s Eleven” and their super-complex heists, many folks today wouldn’t be too impressed with the bank robbery scheme. It was also cool how almost none of the characters trust each other.

Gian Maria Volonte was great as the notorious villain El Indio. The man oozes evil. I don’t think I can imagine him playing any character other than negative ones. One thing that always bugged me why didn’t Mortimer’s sister just shoot Indio when he was raping her instead of shooting herself. We also see the familiar Mari Brega as the villain’s toughie henchman.

[LiamABC]

I’ve just finished watching it myself, again for the first time. Naturally I’m making comparisons to A Fistful Of Dollars, and the results are mixed.

First off, I’d say that this one is not as iconic as the former. The former is everything you think of when you hear the word “western”, this doesn’t have that quality, although the locations are just as spectacular. On the other hand, the music for this is superior, it feels more familiar. Doubtless when we do “The Good, The Bad And The Ugly” next week I’ll hear the music I’m really thinking of.

The storyline is a little more involved, which is good, but it also takes a lot longer to set everything up. This film could easily have been half an hour shorter and not lost anything that mattered. The bank heist may seem simple by today’s standards, but then you have to remember this was set in a time when banks were simpler too.

I agree Wilycub that it’s great that no character trusts any other character in this film, and they spend as much time calculating their own and each other’s double-crosses as they do telling us the plans.

Also agreed on why that woman shot herself rather than her assailant in the rape flashback scene, it makes no sense.

Lee Van Cleef is definitely a match for Clint Eastwood, and the way the two characters are set up initially, it creates the expectation that they will face each other in the showdown at the end. But no, Indio and his gang are the real bad guys here.

Eastwood and Van Cleef are basically eyeing each other up in every scene. Eastwood’s character, who never has a formal name - “Joe” in the first film could simply be an epithet given him by the Mexicans because he is American. “Manco” here is again just an unconfirmed alias. He’s never formally acknowledged a name in either movie, and I’m sure he won’t in GBU either.

He does seem to have slightly more of a conscience in this movie. Not a lot, but there’s evidence of something. And by the end of it there’s definitely a mutual respect developed between the two characters.

Like I said last time, westerns aren’t really my thing, but this is enjoyable enough.

[Mark_M]

I like this movie a lot more than ‘‘A Fistful of Dollars’’.
Yes the movie could have been a bit shorter as it drags a little in parts but overall the story is very good and the leads characters/actors are excellent.
Again like AFOD, FAFDM has a great soundtrack even better than AFOD.
The scenes with Manco collecting his first bounty going into the saloon as it’s raining and the outlaw in the barbers chair are excellent scenes that inspired some very memorable scenes in two other Eastwood westerns ‘‘High Plains Drifter’’ and ‘‘Unforgiven’’.