- Date: 1968
- Composer: Ennio Morricone
- Period: Modern (1910-1949)
Review
C¹erà una volta il West (Once Upon a Time in the West) was the last Western made by Italian director Sergio Leone, the best-known and most talented of the auteurs of the Italian genre often unfairly dismissed as "spaghetti Westerns." As usual, he teamed with Ennio Morricone, the composer whose 350 film scores makes him one of the most prolific writer of soundtracks in movie history.As originally filmed, C¹erà una volta il West was an epic running two hours and forty-five minutes. Butchered by its American releasing company, it did not do well in the USA, but at full length it was an international hit, and is now considered a classic. It is memorable on another point, allowing Henry Fonda, for once, to play an utterly evil villain. The film also starred Claudia Cardinale, Jason Robards, and (as Leone¹s quintessential nameless loner) Charles Bronson.
As usual, Morricone both wrote and orchestrated it, and had most of the work completed before shooting began. This caused Leone anxiety, for he didn¹t like any of Morricone¹s ideas for a theme for the character Cheyenne. Morricone confessed that he was lost in terms of what was needed for the theme. Leone asked the composer if he know the Disney film "Lady and the Tramp." Morricone answered that he did but failed to see the connection. "Cheyenne is the tramp," explained the director. "The music must express not only the violence but also the tenderness because the character is a romantic, a softie, proud and loving!"
The resulting music for the film is strikingly lyrical. There is a de-emphasis of heroism or Western swagger. Morricone¹s scoring is economical, using an 84-piece orchestra but with lonely, individual lines with a minimum of support. The score is considered one of Morricone¹s greatest. ~ Joseph Stevenson, All Music Guide
