Where’s my horse?—Once upon a time in the west Review

Once upon a time in the West is a story of the lives of many people whose lives intersect in a small town where a rail road is coming through. Charles Bronson is the drifter seeking revenge against Henry Fonda, in a rare villainous role. Fonda is trying to buy out the mail-order bride who arrived to find her family-to-be brutally murdered. Fonda wants to build a railroad, and he needs the land the lady inherits from her late husband. He hires some henchmen to convince her, and she hires some of her own to stand her ground.

Bronson is at his quiet best as the harmonica playing drifter. And Fonda is great as the vicious bad guy. It starts with a cool confrontation and ends with a satisfying showdown. The middle, although it drags a bit in places, is full of beautiful shots, and great dialogue.

While I enjoyed this film a lot, I don’t quite share Joe’s enthusiasm for it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great movie. I just enjoy other movies, including other westerns, more than this one. Overall, it is a great movie worth watching a few times. It was really cool to see perennial good guy Fonda as the villain. And there are some amazing quotes; from the “How can you trust a guy who wears suspenders and a belt. The man can’t even trust his own pants,” to the great opening exchange

Bronson: You brought three horses. Where’s my horse?

One of the three villains: Looks like we’re one horse short.

Bronson: No. You brought two too many.

Overall, and I’m sure I’m gonna hear from Joe about this, I rank it #40.

Stay tuned for our reviews of one of my all-time favorites, Jurassic Park.

Phil