Watched on Blu-Ray

The traditional Western was dying out in America when director Sergio Leone came up with the innovative Western "A Fistful Of Dollars" (Per un pugno di dollari). In the 1950s, the Western genre still accounted for one-third of film production in America. By the 1960s, it was down to nine percent. With this first installment of the so-called "Man with No Name" trilogy (the other installments are "For a Few Dollars More" and "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly"), Leone breathed new life into the traditional Western. A series of films that made Leone world famous and established Clint Eastwood's name as a full-fledged action hero forever.

Clint Eastwood is also the main reason why "A Fistful of Dollars" is so entertaining. With his trademark poncho, calm, confident demeanor and piercing gaze, he has become the personification of "cool"; the mysterious loner and outsider who turns out to be someone with unexpected abilities.

When Eastwood enters the Mexican town of San Miguel, he is humiliated by a gang of bandits. They shoot his mule, whereupon it takes flight and runs away. Moments later, having gained a business advantage, Eastwood takes revenge in a manner typical of him. While walking toward the bandits to the sounds of Ennio Morricone's unmistakable music, he passes the gravedigger, to whom he casually says, "Prepare three coffins." He then turns to the three bandits and a fourth who has joined them and politely asks them to apologize to his mule. As the men begin to laugh, Eastwood suddenly turns serious. He throws his poncho over his shoulder and exposes his revolver. Eastwood, who can be seen in close-up, now looks serious and explains that it is not seemly to laugh and that his mule does not appreciate it. The men realize that the situation is serious, and we see their hands reaching for their revolvers in close-up. The outcome is easy to guess. On the way back, passing the gravedigger, Eastwood says, "My mistake, four coffins."

This scene is almost a recommendation for the film. It immediately sets up Eastwood's character aptly and actually immediately captures the approach and mood of Sergio Leone's entire "Man With No Name" trilogy. Both in terms of content, as a precursor to the genre of "heroic bloodshed" where the hero is actually an anti-hero and therefore not easily grasped morally, and in terms of style (the characteristic cinematography and music), the scene sets the tone.

The story is an adaptation of Akira Kurosawa's samurai film "Yojimbo", about an outsider who stirs up trouble between two rival gangs. Leone has replaced swords with firearms, which leads to a slightly different dynamic as it requires larger spaces. For example, a ruse takes place in a nearby cemetery. A ruse that seems somewhat implausible due to the stupidity of the gang leaders. The same goes for the iconic last scene of the film, in which Eastwood uses a piece of iron as a bulletproof vest (a scene referenced in Back to the Future, Part III). Also, some of the supporting characters are a bit gauche or inconsistent in their actions (like the inn owner who acts as Eastwood's sidekick).

Nonetheless, this is an entertaining film whose story, while not particularly interesting, provides just enough basis for the magic of Eastwood, Leone and Morricone. Leone takes full advantage of the widescreen format, with the Italian invention of the techniscope in 1960 also allowing him to use depth of field in this format. Morricone provided, if not his best work, recognizable and memorable music. And Eastwood made a name for himself forever in his role as the "man with no name" (though he is called "Joe" by the gravedigger a few times in the film). Although they would later make the more complex, epic, and simply better "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly," they left their indelible mark on that film as well.