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[[File:ouatitwposter_6897.jpg|frame]]
{{quote|
'''Cheyenne''': Judas was content for 4970 dollars less.
'''Harmonica''': There were no dollars in them days.
'''Cheyenne''': But sons of bitches? Yeah. }}
''Once Upon a Time in the West'' is considered [[Sergio Leone
It's remembered for its beautiful cinematography, cracklingly quotable dialogue, and its fascinatingly enigmatic characters. It's also remarkable for its brilliant casting: [[Charles Bronson]] as another [[No Name Given|"man with no name"]] seeking revenge, Claudia Cardinale as Jill, the young, pretty widow {{spoiler|with a past as a prostitute}}, Jason Robards as the bandit Cheyenne, and [[Henry Fonda]] as [[Playing Against Type|the villainous]] Frank, who works for the [[Railroad Baron|railroad tycoon]] Mr. Morton (Gabriele Ferzetti).
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Harmonica has a personal vendetta against Frank, so he and Cheyenne fight against Frank and his boss, Mr. Morton. They defend Jill's homestead and discover her late husband's plan to make a fortune.
[[Ennio Morricone]] contributed the soundtrack.
''Once Upon a Time in the West'' was added to the [[National Film Registry]] in 2009.
{{tropelist}}
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* [[Absolute Cleavage]]
* [[Accidental Public Confession]]: A chilling version occurs at the beginning of the movie. Frank and his men have just finished massacring a family, only to exit the house and find a small boy staring at them.
{{quote|
'''Frank:''' [[Pre-Mortem One-Liner|Now that you've called me by name.]] }}
* [[Affably Evil]]: Cheyenne ''is'' a bandit, but he's fighting against someone much worse.
* [[Anti-Hero]]
* [[Badass Boast]]: In Harmonicas establishing scene, [[Showdown At High Noon|when three of Franks men are waiting for him]]:
{{quote|
'''Frank's Man:''' ''"Looks like we are shy one horse."''
'''Harmonica:''' ''"You brought two too many."'' }}
* [[Badass Longcoat]]
{{quote|
* [[Batman Gambit]]
* [[Better to Die Than Be Killed]]: In the flashback, {{spoiler|Harmonica is kicked to the ground by his brother, who had Harmonica as a platform as he was being hanged by Frank and his men. Harmonica's brother would rather commit suicide that let his younger brother be responsible for his death.}} It all goes to show just how horrible Frank is.
* [[Blue Eyes]]: Henry Fonda's eyes are given a lot of emphasis. Especially notable as Fonda originally wanted to wear brown contact lenses, [[Good Eyes, Evil Eyes|as he was playing a villain]]. Leone told him to take them off.
* [[But for Me It Was Tuesday]]: Frank doesn't remember who Harmonica is, although Harmonica isn't keen on reminding him
** He does
* [[But Now I Must Go]]
* [[Chekhov's Army]]: {{spoiler|The railroad workers.}}
* [[City Slicker]]
** Be fair, huh? She's alone with the man who she thinks killed her new family. Not at all surprising that her hands are shaking.
* [[Color Coded for Your Convenience]]
* [[Combat Pragmatist]]: Harmonica uses concealed weapons to get the drop on others.
* [[Cuffs Off, Rub Wrists]]: After Cheyenne cuts him loose aboard Morton's train, Harmonica is seen rubbing his wrists in the background.
* {{spoiler|[[Dead Little Sister|Dead Older Brother]]}}
* [[Deconstruction]]
* [[Determined Widow]] - Jill
* {{spoiler|[[Did Not Get the Girl]]}}
* [[Dragon-in-Chief]]
* [[The Drifter]]
* [[Dying Alone]]
* [[Earn Your Happy Ending]]
▲* [[Earn Your Happy Ending]] - {{spoiler|Cheyenne dies, but Frank and his employer are both dead, and Harmonica has avenged his brother. Jill will go on to become a wealthy widow, and a respected and well-loved member of the Sweetwater Railroad town.}}
* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]: Cheyenne draws the line at killing children. He also doesn't kill priests.
** ...Catholic priest, that is.
* [[False Reassurance]]:
{{quote|
'''Frank:''' People scare better when they're dying. }}
* [[Flash Back]]
* [[For Doom the Bell Tolls]]
* [[The Gunslinger]]
* [[Hooker
{{quote|
* [[Ho Yay]]: Cheyenne and Harmonica, especially in the tavern during their first meeting.
{{quote|
** They even go [[Riding Into the Sunset]] together at the end. {{spoiler|And then, Cheyenne dies. But Harmonica ''keeps his body''.}}
* [[I Have You Now, My Pretty]]
** Harmonica was actually [[Playing
* [[Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain]] - Mr. Morton doesn't do much killing, being a crippled and dying old man. His last dream is to see the Pacific Ocean before he dies. {{spoiler|He spends his dying moments desperately crawling towards a small, muddy puddle as a substitute for the Pacific.}}
* [[Invincible Hero]]: [[Averted Trope|Averted]] right from the beginning, as Harmonica, [[Badass]] though he unquestionably is, is wounded in the very first fight. From then on it's not inconceivable that he might lose to Frank.
* [[Kick the Dog]]
** Harmonica pushing Jill around and tearing at her clothes. He doesn't actually hurt her, but still.
** Frank kicking Morton's crutches out from under him.
* [[Leitmotif]]: most of the main characters have their own, with [[Exactly What It Says
* [[Left the Background Music On]]: Just before Harmonica's entrance, the music changes subtly. Everybody starts looking around, then it is revealed the new tune is being played by a man with a harmonica.
* [[Loveable Rogue]]: Cheyenne
* [[Miss Kitty]]
* [[Murder Is the Best Solution]]: Morton just wants his opposition bought out or intimidate, but Frank prefers to massacre first and ask questions later.
* [[Musicalis Interruptus]]: Cheyenne's theme pauses several times so he can say a line, and starts up again. It even pauses to allow {{spoiler|his dead body to drop to the ground.}}
* [[No Name Given]]
** Until the end, that is.
* [[One-Woman Wail]]
* [[The Only One Allowed to Defeat You]]
{{quote|
'''Harmonica''': "I {{spoiler|didn't let them kill him}}, and that's not the same thing." }}
* [[Post Modernism]]
▲* [[Post Modernism]]- See [[Deconstruction]] or [[wikipedia:Once Upon a Time in the West#Film references|That Other Wiki]]. French theorist [[wikipedia:Jean Baudrillard|Jean Baudrillard]] once deemed Once Upon A Time In The West the first postmodern film.
▲* [[Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner]] - "''When you hear a strange sound, drop to the ground...''"
** And referenced in a later shootout:
{{quote|
'''Harmonica''': "Right... About... ''Now.''" }}
* [[Psycho for Hire]]
* [[Quick Draw]]
* [[Railroad Baron]]
* [[The Reveal]]
** When Jill is presented with a ton of lumber and a sign still awaiting a title to be carved into it. {{spoiler|She realizes her husband was planning on building ''an entire town'' and tells the woodcarver "I said print STATION!"}}
* [[Revenge]]
* [[Say My Name]]
* [[Scenery Porn]]
* [[Secret Stab Wound]]
* [[Secretly Dying]]
* [[Showdown At High Noon]]
* [[Signature Style]]
* [[Slasher Smile]]
* [[Son of a Whore]]
* [[Soundtrack Dissonance]]
* [[Spaghetti Western]]
* [[Team Dad]]
* [[Turncoat]]
* [[Villainy Discretion Shot]]: Cheyenne killing his prison escort.
* [[Whammy Bid]]: The five-thousand-dollar bid.
* [[What the Hell, Hero?]]
** Later on, Jill {{spoiler|seemingly enjoys sleeping with Frank, in spite of her strong contempt for this man who killed her family. However, earlier on, she says to Cheyenne that if he and his men all raped her, she could pick up the pieces and still live, so it's really just a way to stop him from murdering her.}}
* [[Would Hurt a Child]]: One of the earliest evil deeds Frank does is kill a child. He also {{spoiler|subjected Harmonica to a horrible torment at a young age, too}}. Henry Fonda, the actor who played Frank, was initially reluctant to take another a role in a western, having been in so many already and [[Typecasting|always playing one of the good guys]]. That is, until director Sergio Leone told him, "Picture this: the camera shows a gunman from the waist down pulling his gun and shooting a running child. The camera pans up to the gunman's face and... it's Henry Fonda." Fonda signed on in a heartbeat.
** If anything, Frank seems to get a special kick out of torturing kids.
* {{spoiler|[[You Killed My Father]]}}
{{reflist}}
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[[Category:National Film Registry]]
[[Category:Danny Peary Cult Movies List]]
[[Category:Index of Film Westerns]]▼
[[Category:Epic Movie]]
[[Category:Once Upon a Time in the West]]
[[Category:Film]]
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