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Downloaded from
YTS.MX
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Official YIFY movies site:
YTS.MX
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PROLOGUE
ONCE UPON A TIME
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ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD (2019)
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Well, it looks delicious.
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-Thank you.
-Enjoy, sir.
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After that Musso & Frank's lunch meeting,
Marvin did provide Rick job opportunities
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in the Italian film industry.
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Rick Dalton, Marvin Schwarz here. Hold on.
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Hennessy X.O on the rocks.
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Yes, Mr. Schwarz.
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Two words.
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Nebraska Jim, Sergio Corbucci.
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Nebraska what?
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Sergio who?
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-Sergio Corbucci.
-And who's that?
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The second-best director
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of Spaghetti Westerns
in the whole wide world.
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He's doing a new Western.
It's called Nebraska Jim.
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And because of me, he's considering you.
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First things first.
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Rick didn't understand Spaghetti Westerns.
He didn't like Spaghetti Westerns.
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But he wanted to continue being the lead
in movies, and he wanted make some money.
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So Marvin arranges for him
to meet with Corbucci for Nebraska Jim.
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So, he goes to Rome,
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and Sergio and his wife Nori
meet with him, with Marvin,
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at Sergio's favorite restaurant, in Rome.
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They talk, and Rick likes the script.
He likes the Nebraska Jim character.
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So he's talking to him
about the role and everything.
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They're trying to get to know each other
a little bit, but Rick made a big mistake.
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He thought Sergio Corbucci
was Sergio Leone
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because Marvin
had him watch A Fistful of Dollars,
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so he would get a better understanding
of the Spaghetti Western.
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Then he hears "Sergio,"
so he thinks it's the same guy.
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So he's sitting there
with Corbucci and Nori, and he's like,
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"You know, I gotta tell you.
I cannot believe that performance
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you got out of Clint Eastwood."
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"That's the best work
he's ever done and will ever do."
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00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:08,520
"I can't believe a director
got that out of him."
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"You did a great job directing him.
I thought that was terrific."
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And then both Sergio and Nori realized
that he thinks he's Leone.
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So he goes, "I didn't direct that film."
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"My friend Sergio Leone
directed that film,
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but I will be sure to tell him
that you like it."
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Marvin is completely humiliated.
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He's like,
"Why did you show me the movie?"
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"I showed it to you,
so you'd better understand the genre."
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He's like, "I don't even know what
that word means! What does 'genre' mean?"
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"I don't understand
what that word means."
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"I think you're showing me a movie
directed by a Sergio,
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and I figured this guy was
the same Sergio. This is not my fault."
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Nori takes him off the hook,
"Hey, Marvin. It's okay, you know,
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he doesn't speak Italian…
All these Sergios, a bit confusing."
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"He doesn't understand. It's okay."
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And Sergio, "Marvin, it's okay.
I barely know who he is."
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"He doesn't need to know who I am."
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But Rick sticks his foot in it again.
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They ask him, "Have you seen
any Italian Westerns?"
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And he mentions he saw
a really bad one on an airplane.
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And they go, "What's the bad one?"
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He says, "A horrible movie
with Burt Reynolds,
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where he's wearing a wig
that makes him look like Natalie Wood."
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"I think it's called Navajo Joe."
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And he's going on and on.
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Sergio stops them all
so they don't reveal that it's his movie,
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and then he says, "I directed the movie."
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After Rick has literally referred to it
as a piece of shit.
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Then again Sergio takes him off the hook.
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"Did you see the English version?"
"Yes." "I hate the English version!"
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"The English version's terrible.
I agree with you. It's terrible."
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But the, after a certain point,
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he has Nori and Marvin leave,
and Sergio talks to Rick and goes,
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"Look."
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"You don't respect me.
You don't respect the Italian films."
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"You call my movie a piece of shit.
Why should I work with you?"
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"I think you're interesting.
You're an arrogant bastard."
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"Nebraska Jim's an arrogant bastard,
so I like that."
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"I like that about you,
and I like you in your TV show."
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"I like you, but why should I work
with you if you think our stuff is shit?"
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Rick goes, "Sergio,
I don't understand Italian Westerns."
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"I will give you that."
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"I grew up watching
Hoot Gibson and Lash LaRue."
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"I don't get this Mario Banananano.
I don't understand that."
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"I don't understand
this whole Italian thing."
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"But I don't know about movies.
You know about movies."
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"What does it matter if I don't get it?"
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"What does it matter
if I like Nebraska Jim or not?"
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"I'm good in Westerns. I'm a good cowboy."
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"You put a hat on my head,
you put me in a cool costume,
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you put me on a horse,
you're gonna like what I do."
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"It doesn't matter if I get them."
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"It doesn't matter if I like them.
It matters whether or not you like them."
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"I'm good in Westerns. I'm a good cowboy."
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"I'll give you a good Nebraska Jim.
You'll be happy with my Nebraska Jim."
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And that convinces Corbucci to hire him.
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But it's his first movie,
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so he's not used
to the Italian way of shooting.
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He's not used
to the Tower of Babel shooting style,
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where the bad sheriff is German,
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the girl is Hebrew,
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the other bad guy is Spanish,
and everyone else is Italian.
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{\an8}So the Spanish guy says his line,
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{\an8}and then the German guy says his line,
and the Hebrew girl says her line,
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{\an8}and you knew when the Hebrew girl
stops talking, that's you're line.
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{\an8}So he didn't understand that.
He thought it was crazy.
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{\an8}"Wow! We thought television was bad.
This is horrible!"
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The whole non-synced stuff,
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everyone speaking their own language,
was ridiculous to him.
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And he couldn't believe
the intense conditions.
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They were in a trailer
in the middle of nowhere.
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If they gotta blow stuff up,
they're using real dynamite.
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Whoa!
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So he was problematic
during the making of the movie,
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and he had some temper tantrums
every once in a while.
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He liked Sergio,
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but he let it be known that he thought
this stuff was beneath him.
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Then he goes off,
and he makes four more Italian films,
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including Operation Dyn-O-Mite!
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{\an8}He actually worked with good directors,
to tell you the truth.
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{\an8}The entertaining Antonio Margheriti,
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{\an8}Calvin Jackson Padget,
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{\an8}and one of the best Paella Western
directors out of Spain,
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{\an8}Joaquín Romero Marchent.
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But in the course of making those movies,
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he realizes that Corbucci was a class act.
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And so, as he's wrapping up
his Italian sojourn,
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Corbucci is getting ready
to do The Specialists,
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and Rick really wants the part of Hud.
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He gets together with Sergio for dinner,
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and Sergio is moved
by Rick's new humble attitude.
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He likes Rick,
and he liked what Rick did in the movie.
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But Rick just had one
temper tantrum too many,
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and it's really hard
for a director to forget.
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You can forgive,
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but it's hard to forget an actor
when they have one tantrum too many.
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One tantrum where they put themselves
over the movie they were making.
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And so, he considers Rick
for The Specialists.
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But at the end,
he went with Johnny Hallyday.
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THE SPECIALISTS (1969)
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{\an8}For you, young people!
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{\an8}Your records, your problems, your topics.
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00:08:51,240 --> 00:08:55,040
{\an8}Hosted by Renzo Arbore
and Anna Maria Fusco.
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{\an8}-How are you?
-All good.
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00:08:57,200 --> 00:09:00,080
{\an8}I wasn't asking you.
I was asking our audience.
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Today, as usual, at 5:10 p.m. sharp,
we start our show of music and songs.
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The first record by Ohio Express,
the "Yummy Yummy Yummy" band,
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well known in Italy too, The Ohio Express.
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{\an8}GOD FORGIVES… I DON'T!
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{\an8}A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS
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A MOVIE BY SERGIO LEONE
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{\an8}FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE
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A FEW DOLLARS FOR DJANGO
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{\an8}FOR A FEW EXTRA DOLLARS
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{\an8}A PISTOL FOR RINGO
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{\an8}RINGO, THE MARK OF VENGEANCE
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{\an8}THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY
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{\an8}SHARP-SHOOTING TWIN SISTERS
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00:10:01,760 --> 00:10:03,440
{\an8}WHO KILLED JOHNNY R.?
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00:10:06,000 --> 00:10:08,360
{\an8}THE TOUGH ONE
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{\an8}ROME
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CHAPTER ONE
THE OTHER SERGIO
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After I did Inglourious Basterds,
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I had it in my mind that I wanted to write
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a book on Sergio Corbucci.
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I was gonna call it The Other Sergio
or something like that.
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And so, in watching these films
and breaking them down,
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that's when I started coming up
with my theory
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about everything was about Fascism,
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and that was
the subtextual aspect of the films.
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And then breaking down the archetypes,
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and seeing how they carried over
from film to film.
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COMPAÑEROS (1970)
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-Who do you vote for?
-I vote against Diaz.
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Put him against the wall.
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Dad!
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Squad, load!
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Aim!
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Fire!
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00:11:40,960 --> 00:11:45,080
One of the things
that I think is fundamental to his work
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is the idea that Corbucci,
as a little boy,
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grew up in Italy
dominated by the Fascists.
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He grew up
in a World War II Fascist Italy.
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His father was a uniform-wearing Fascist.
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His father wasn't into the Fascists.
Apparently, when he got home,
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he took off the uniform
and threw it in the corner,
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but he was made to be a Fascist.
He had to wear the uniform.
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Not only that,
when Sergio was a little boy,
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he was part of the kind
of Fascist Boys Choir
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that Mussolini had.
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And there actually was a moment
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where sort of kinda Sergio met Hitler.
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Hitler was visiting Rome
to visit Mussolini,
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00:12:28,800 --> 00:12:32,760
and so, when Hitler came up,
they actually had the Fascist Boys Choir.
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00:12:32,840 --> 00:12:34,760
They're singing for him.
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And so, apparently,
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00:12:37,360 --> 00:12:40,880
where Corbucci was sitting in the choir.
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He was, like, five feet
from both Hitler and Mussolini.
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00:12:45,920 --> 00:12:48,680
Like, you know,
shaking hands and hugging each other.
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00:12:50,720 --> 00:12:54,240
And Hitler looking and like,
"The boys are doing a very good job."
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00:12:54,320 --> 00:12:57,040
"It's very lovely.
The cream of Italian youth."
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00:13:06,200 --> 00:13:09,840
I believe that
once Sergio Corbucci got into
202
00:13:10,800 --> 00:13:13,040
doing the Westerns that we know him for,
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00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:18,880
I think he had a theme,
and I do think every single one of them,
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00:13:20,200 --> 00:13:23,920
of those Westerns,
works with this theme, you know.
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00:13:25,120 --> 00:13:29,680
I think they all were
his treaty on Fascism,
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00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:33,040
on the Fascism that he experienced
growing up in World War II.
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00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:36,320
The Fascism that Italy had come out of,
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00:13:36,400 --> 00:13:39,160
but that was, you know,
he knew his whole life.
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00:13:39,760 --> 00:13:41,480
And he had witnessed World War II.
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00:13:42,640 --> 00:13:49,160
And so, I think the Westerns
were all in response to that.
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00:13:49,240 --> 00:13:51,560
I want to know who you vote for,
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00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:52,640
pig.
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00:13:53,360 --> 00:13:54,600
Answer!
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00:14:04,280 --> 00:14:07,120
Now, do I really know
that this is exactly what Corbucci
215
00:14:07,200 --> 00:14:08,960
was thinking about at the time,
216
00:14:09,880 --> 00:14:11,920
and this is what he was executing?
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00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:13,840
No, I don't actually know that.
218
00:14:14,720 --> 00:14:16,840
But I know I'm thinking about it now.
219
00:14:17,720 --> 00:14:19,240
The Great Silence,
220
00:14:19,320 --> 00:14:22,560
which refers also to Vietnam
as well as to the Third World,
221
00:14:22,640 --> 00:14:25,240
is a movie about Fascism, against Fascism.
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00:14:25,320 --> 00:14:28,120
I think everyone should fight
against Fascism and Nazism.
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00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:31,320
Camera!
224
00:14:31,400 --> 00:14:32,600
CHAPTER TWO
THE NEW WESTERN WAVE
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00:14:32,680 --> 00:14:33,640
Silence!
226
00:14:33,720 --> 00:14:35,520
-Action!
-Started.
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00:14:36,120 --> 00:14:40,120
ON THE SET OF THE SPECIALISTS
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I'll show you what happens
to those who touch the Sheriff!
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00:15:13,200 --> 00:15:15,680
I can shoot too, and even better than you!
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00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:17,640
I could kill you if I wanted to!
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00:15:18,160 --> 00:15:21,480
That whole group, the first group
of Spaghetti Western directors,
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00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:27,200
Leone, Corbucci, Duccio Tessari,
Franco Giraldi, they were all friends.
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00:15:27,280 --> 00:15:30,160
They all were critics writing for…
234
00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:32,520
I think his brother Bruno
was one of them too.
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00:15:33,480 --> 00:15:35,880
They were all critics
writing for magazines
236
00:15:35,960 --> 00:15:37,600
and newspapers on movies,
237
00:15:37,680 --> 00:15:38,840
and…
238
00:15:40,600 --> 00:15:43,360
and they all loved Westerns.
239
00:15:43,440 --> 00:15:46,080
They loved Westerns
above all other movies,
240
00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:49,640
even though they liked other movies.
That was their thing.
241
00:15:49,720 --> 00:15:53,560
This group of guys
started working as critics,
242
00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:56,560
and then little by little,
became screenwriters.
243
00:15:57,360 --> 00:15:59,560
Sometimes credited, sometimes not,
244
00:15:59,640 --> 00:16:03,160
but they all got into the Italian
film industry through screenwriting.
245
00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:05,680
Then through screenwriting,
246
00:16:06,200 --> 00:16:08,840
they became second unit directors.
247
00:16:11,160 --> 00:16:14,400
And so, that's where
they really learned their craft.
248
00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:18,520
Where both of the Sergio's careers
really changed
249
00:16:18,600 --> 00:16:21,080
was when they did second unit work
on a movie called
250
00:16:21,160 --> 00:16:23,920
The Last Days of Pompeii,
directed by Mario Bonnard.
251
00:16:24,480 --> 00:16:25,960
And the thing about it was
252
00:16:26,520 --> 00:16:29,080
they were enlisted
to do second unit on that,
253
00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:33,520
and they did so much second unit
254
00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:38,160
that they were really kind of given credit
for the success of the movie.
255
00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:42,240
Actually, both Leone and Corbucci
have denied this, saying,
256
00:16:42,320 --> 00:16:44,040
"We did a lot of work on the film,
257
00:16:44,120 --> 00:16:47,480
but the film is definitely
Mario Bonnard's film. It's not our film."
258
00:16:48,200 --> 00:16:51,880
But they shot so much of it,
259
00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:55,120
that it was known in the Italian industry
how much they shot.
260
00:16:55,680 --> 00:17:00,560
And because it was known in the industry
how great their contribution was to it,
261
00:17:01,160 --> 00:17:04,480
that was where they were able
to get into the director's chair
262
00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:06,440
in a way that would be significant.
263
00:17:07,880 --> 00:17:11,200
And so, Leone did his first movie,
which was Colossus of Rhodes
264
00:17:11,280 --> 00:17:12,480
with Rory Calhoun,
265
00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:16,200
and Corbucci did
his biggest movie at that time,
266
00:17:16,280 --> 00:17:17,920
which was Duel of the Titans,
267
00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:20,200
which starred Steve Reeves
and Gordon Scott,
268
00:17:20,280 --> 00:17:21,760
which, at the time,
269
00:17:22,800 --> 00:17:25,240
at least as far as peplum was concerned,
270
00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:28,600
was like having Leonardo DiCaprio
and Brad Pitt starring in your movie.
271
00:17:28,680 --> 00:17:31,480
They were the two biggest
of the peplum stars.
272
00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:34,760
For them to actually be
in the same movie together was amazing.
273
00:17:36,360 --> 00:17:39,440
You are an ambitious man
and often a cruel one.
274
00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:41,160
Be quiet, old man!
275
00:17:42,280 --> 00:17:44,080
You shouldn't have done that, Remus!
276
00:17:46,280 --> 00:17:48,680
I know what should be done
and what shouldn't be done.
277
00:17:49,520 --> 00:17:52,680
You keep out of this, Romulus.
There's only one leader here, me!
278
00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:54,760
That's a decision you made on your own.
279
00:17:54,840 --> 00:17:57,440
Our mother's dying wish was
that we live in agreement
280
00:17:57,520 --> 00:17:58,920
and together build the city.
281
00:17:59,880 --> 00:18:02,840
The gods have chosen me,
and by the gods, I'll convince you!
282
00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:06,000
If you're trying to provoke me,
you won't succeed.
283
00:18:06,080 --> 00:18:07,480
I'd never fight my brother.
284
00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:10,400
After doing those movies,
285
00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:16,200
that's when Corbucci started heading
into doing Italian Westerns.
286
00:18:17,120 --> 00:18:21,520
But his first Westerns he did,
which he did before Leone,
287
00:18:21,600 --> 00:18:23,920
they were done pre A Fistful of Dollars.
288
00:18:24,520 --> 00:18:27,320
You can absolutely tell Corbucci did them,
289
00:18:27,400 --> 00:18:29,120
and you can tell they're Italian.
290
00:18:30,680 --> 00:18:34,600
But they don't have exactly
the surrealistic quality
291
00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:37,600
that we associate
with the Spaghetti Western
292
00:18:38,840 --> 00:18:40,560
that the Leone pictures did,
293
00:18:40,640 --> 00:18:44,760
and then the ones that came out after,
post A Fistful of Dollars.
294
00:18:45,360 --> 00:18:48,560
But there is a reason for that.
He wasn't looking for that.
295
00:18:48,640 --> 00:18:50,480
He liked American Westerns.
296
00:18:51,280 --> 00:18:52,600
He had grown up on them.
297
00:18:53,440 --> 00:18:55,240
And so, he wanted to do
298
00:18:56,600 --> 00:19:00,200
cool American-style Westerns,
just do them in Italy.
299
00:19:00,280 --> 00:19:01,640
And the two that he did,
300
00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:04,800
Massacre at Grand Canyon
with James Mitchum
301
00:19:04,880 --> 00:19:08,720
and Minnesota Clay with Cameron Mitchell,
302
00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:13,400
are the two movies
that fit into that category.
303
00:19:13,480 --> 00:19:18,560
And Minnesota Clay
is like a superior version
304
00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:21,240
of a Glenn Ford, Delmer Daves Western.
305
00:19:21,320 --> 00:19:24,280
The whole movie could have been done
starring Ford and Daves.
306
00:19:25,280 --> 00:19:27,040
I like the Ford-Daves Westerns,
307
00:19:27,120 --> 00:19:29,640
but amongst them,
it'd be one of the best ones.
308
00:19:29,720 --> 00:19:32,080
And as much as I like
Massacre at Grand Canyon,
309
00:19:32,160 --> 00:19:33,720
I prefer Minnesota Clay.
310
00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:36,600
I think Minnesota Clay
is one of Corbucci's best films.
311
00:19:41,880 --> 00:19:42,720
Water.
312
00:19:44,920 --> 00:19:47,200
We don't serve water around here, buddy.
313
00:19:47,280 --> 00:19:51,080
I'm looking for a man called Fox,
Five Aces Fox. A smart guy.
314
00:19:51,160 --> 00:19:55,960
Hey, buddy, you must be new around here
if you go around asking these questions.
315
00:19:57,120 --> 00:19:58,120
Whereas…
316
00:19:59,920 --> 00:20:01,680
you must be hard of hearing.
317
00:20:01,760 --> 00:20:04,520
I asked you
where I can find a man called Fox.
318
00:20:04,600 --> 00:20:06,360
You ask too many questions.
319
00:20:07,560 --> 00:20:09,680
And we are trigger-happy here.
320
00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:13,840
I think when he does Minnesota Clay,
he does everything he wanted to do.
321
00:20:14,640 --> 00:20:18,840
Then his colleague, Sergio Leone,
does A Fistful of Dollars,
322
00:20:19,880 --> 00:20:22,440
and that changes everything.
323
00:20:22,520 --> 00:20:26,000
It changes the landscape
of Italian Cinema.
324
00:20:26,080 --> 00:20:29,920
It changes the Italian film industry,
325
00:20:30,440 --> 00:20:33,400
and even though no one knows it yet,
it's changed Westerns.
326
00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:36,920
American… It's changed Westerns forever.
327
00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:39,760
The world doesn't quite realize it yet,
but it has.
328
00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:52,080
CHAPTER THREE
THE WILD BUNCH
329
00:20:54,840 --> 00:20:58,440
All those are authentic Roman images.
330
00:20:58,520 --> 00:21:00,560
Yes, the vestiges of the conquest.
331
00:21:03,480 --> 00:21:05,800
The conquest of the Wild West,
332
00:21:06,360 --> 00:21:10,480
which has left a deep mark
on the soul of the eternal city.
333
00:21:14,120 --> 00:21:17,280
Every year, we would make 150 Westerns
334
00:21:17,360 --> 00:21:20,120
of varied quality.
Truly different quality.
335
00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:22,880
Marco, it was okay,
but I didn't see you smile.
336
00:21:22,960 --> 00:21:25,280
Let's do it again. Let's change it.
337
00:21:26,760 --> 00:21:29,960
When we made Django, the horses ran away.
338
00:21:30,040 --> 00:21:33,600
Action. Go! Start going…
339
00:21:33,680 --> 00:21:36,360
The horses ran away
and went to a different set.
340
00:21:36,440 --> 00:21:38,000
But that happened all the time.
341
00:21:38,880 --> 00:21:42,200
Another set, another movie,
just 30 meters away.
342
00:21:42,880 --> 00:21:47,320
The director, Count Guido Celano
is ready for the kidnapping scene,
343
00:21:47,400 --> 00:21:50,240
which is the spotlight
of his movie Gun Shy Piluk.
344
00:21:51,800 --> 00:21:53,960
Okay. You got it. I can tell you…
345
00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:57,400
Nobody knew
which one was the right set anymore.
346
00:21:57,480 --> 00:22:00,680
There were the Elios studios,
which were done first,
347
00:22:00,760 --> 00:22:03,240
by the photography director,
Alvaro Manconi.
348
00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:07,440
After that, they made even smaller ones.
349
00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:10,720
There was one in Manziana,
350
00:22:10,800 --> 00:22:15,160
another one in Abruzzo.
351
00:22:15,240 --> 00:22:18,760
-Why do you make Westerns?
-Pardon me?
352
00:22:18,840 --> 00:22:21,520
I make Westerns
because Abruzzo is my home,
353
00:22:21,600 --> 00:22:25,560
and Abruzzo is the real Italian West.
It's like America.
354
00:22:25,640 --> 00:22:28,080
I remember, as an assistant director,
355
00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:30,600
I started with Rossellini,
356
00:22:31,120 --> 00:22:33,400
then I had a period with Bragaglia,
357
00:22:33,480 --> 00:22:38,480
then I worked with Sergio Corbucci,
then Bolognini, with all the directors,
358
00:22:39,080 --> 00:22:43,600
with Autant-Lara, with Losey…
359
00:22:44,840 --> 00:22:47,400
And then they'd also send me
with boneheads
360
00:22:48,400 --> 00:22:52,680
because I had to teach them
how to be a good director.
361
00:22:52,760 --> 00:22:57,000
They really were boneheads.
They knew nothing.
362
00:22:57,880 --> 00:23:01,920
Rome in the '60s was incredible.
363
00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:08,160
And Sergio was always
at the Dolce Vita in Via Veneto,
364
00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:10,320
with a big entourage.
365
00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:14,920
At that time, his name, Sergio Corbucci,
already had a place
366
00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:19,360
among the intellectuals,
like Piero Piccioni and all the others.
367
00:23:20,800 --> 00:23:22,640
I was still young.
368
00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:26,080
I had just made two movies
with Rossellini,
369
00:23:27,120 --> 00:23:28,320
when I got a call
370
00:23:28,400 --> 00:23:29,560
from Titanus,
371
00:23:31,320 --> 00:23:35,800
and they said, "You'd need to leave
the day after tomorrow to Egypt
372
00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:38,480
to play The Slave."
373
00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:44,320
And I made myself noticed.
Since then, Sergio always called me.
374
00:23:44,400 --> 00:23:46,880
I did 13 movies with him.
375
00:24:36,360 --> 00:24:42,200
CHAPTER FOUR
V FOR VIOLENCE
376
00:24:42,800 --> 00:24:44,000
Ready? Go.
377
00:24:44,640 --> 00:24:46,480
Right. That's good. Show me.
378
00:24:47,760 --> 00:24:51,200
It needs more blood. Add some more blood.
379
00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:54,400
THE GREAT SILENCE (1968)
380
00:25:04,920 --> 00:25:07,000
As far as I am concerned,
381
00:25:07,080 --> 00:25:11,440
Leone creates the greatest trilogy
in the history of cinema
382
00:25:12,000 --> 00:25:13,520
with the three dollars movies.
383
00:25:14,440 --> 00:25:17,000
Each movie is a bigger epic
than the last one.
384
00:25:17,080 --> 00:25:19,320
Each one is
a bigger statement of Westerns.
385
00:25:19,400 --> 00:25:22,360
Each one is a bigger statement
on him as an artist,
386
00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:24,560
on who he is and what he wants to do.
387
00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:29,640
Each one is a bigger recreation
of the Western as seen from his eyes.
388
00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:32,920
Corbucci is different.
389
00:25:33,720 --> 00:25:35,840
Corbucci decided to not do that.
390
00:25:35,920 --> 00:25:39,840
Once he started doing Spaghetti Westerns,
391
00:25:41,080 --> 00:25:42,280
he didn't go out for epics.
392
00:25:42,360 --> 00:25:46,560
He went for the more violent
cowboy picture kind of movie.
393
00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:49,800
He wanted to keep them genre.
They're not epics.
394
00:25:49,880 --> 00:25:52,600
They're cowboy pictures.
They're vengeance pictures.
395
00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:19,480
He wanted to make
396
00:26:20,640 --> 00:26:22,280
a Japanese movie.
397
00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:25,160
You know, a dark one,
398
00:26:26,040 --> 00:26:27,480
with black humor.
399
00:26:27,560 --> 00:26:31,440
So, every day, he was,
"Fra, how many shall we kill today?"
400
00:26:31,520 --> 00:26:34,160
"I don't know. Shall we say 20, 25?"
401
00:26:34,240 --> 00:26:36,080
We'd have a laugh about that.
402
00:26:43,040 --> 00:26:47,160
This Western director created
the most violent West possible.
403
00:26:47,760 --> 00:26:51,080
As violent as the real West was,
Corbucci's West was more violent,
404
00:26:51,160 --> 00:26:53,480
and that ends up giving it
this operatic quality.
405
00:26:54,760 --> 00:26:58,240
Well, Bolognini taught me elegance,
406
00:26:59,040 --> 00:27:03,560
which helped me work on 1,700 adverts.
407
00:27:03,640 --> 00:27:06,720
It was thanks to the elegance
that Bolognini taught me.
408
00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:13,480
Rossellini taught me how to tell stories.
I can tell a story in 15 seconds.
409
00:27:14,720 --> 00:27:18,120
And I got all the cruelty
from Sergio Corbucci.
410
00:27:18,640 --> 00:27:20,600
He was really cruel.
411
00:27:21,120 --> 00:27:24,600
I mean, the slicing off the ear, you know.
412
00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:27,040
But that's how he was.
413
00:27:27,120 --> 00:27:29,720
He was bloodthirsty.
He didn't give a damn.
414
00:27:30,320 --> 00:27:32,040
He was also ironic, though.
415
00:27:32,600 --> 00:27:34,080
Yes, absolutely.
416
00:27:37,920 --> 00:27:39,360
No!
417
00:27:51,480 --> 00:27:52,520
Go.
418
00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:00,320
Hey, Yankee.
419
00:28:13,320 --> 00:28:16,320
Do you like the scene
where he stabs the hand with a fork?
420
00:28:16,400 --> 00:28:18,120
-Do you like Westerns?
-Yes.
421
00:28:18,200 --> 00:28:20,760
-Yes? Which type of Westerns?
-Violent ones.
422
00:28:20,840 --> 00:28:25,560
Violent? Do you also like war movies?
423
00:28:25,640 --> 00:28:28,320
Because here they're shooting a war movie.
424
00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:32,360
-If there's violence, yes.
-There's always violence in those films.
425
00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:34,960
In Westerns, there's more violence.
426
00:28:35,040 --> 00:28:37,800
-You like horses then…
-Blood. I like blood.
427
00:28:37,880 --> 00:28:40,360
In Westerns movies, I like fistfights.
428
00:28:40,440 --> 00:28:43,400
We're a bit sadistic.
We like seeing blood, fights…
429
00:28:43,480 --> 00:28:45,160
What do you mean, "sadistic"?
430
00:28:45,240 --> 00:28:49,960
We like blood, fistfights, killing…
431
00:28:58,000 --> 00:29:02,640
Now tell me who gave you the money
to buy my brother's house.
432
00:29:04,280 --> 00:29:05,240
Say it!
433
00:29:05,840 --> 00:29:07,440
You'd better say it, Boot.
434
00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:10,400
-I'm losing my patience.
-I know nothing.
435
00:29:13,520 --> 00:29:16,760
-I know nothing!
-Tell me who paid you to shoot Charlie.
436
00:29:18,200 --> 00:29:20,680
Tell me!
437
00:29:21,280 --> 00:29:22,440
Say it!
438
00:29:27,480 --> 00:29:33,040
The villain is the most important
character in the whole movie,
439
00:29:33,640 --> 00:29:35,200
The villain runs the show.
440
00:29:35,280 --> 00:29:38,720
The villain tells the story
that's being told.
441
00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:41,600
The villain creates the landscape.
442
00:29:41,680 --> 00:29:45,040
Everything Corbucci
wants to say about Fascism,
443
00:29:45,120 --> 00:29:47,040
he says it through his villains,
444
00:29:47,120 --> 00:29:48,120
and his villains
445
00:29:49,080 --> 00:29:53,160
are always stand-ins
for 20th century or BC villains.
446
00:29:53,840 --> 00:29:58,400
So his films are always a standout
for the National Socialist Party,
447
00:29:58,480 --> 00:30:00,240
THE MERCENARY (1968)
448
00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:02,800
with a brown shirt, Fascist movements,
449
00:30:03,720 --> 00:30:06,720
for Manson-like, gangs of killers…
450
00:30:10,720 --> 00:30:13,040
No! Let go of me!
451
00:30:13,120 --> 00:30:15,480
Now we'll show you what we can do!
452
00:30:15,560 --> 00:30:17,720
-Cowards!
-We will show you!
453
00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:19,040
…a Fascist Police Force,
454
00:30:20,080 --> 00:30:21,720
that has unlimited power,
455
00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:23,800
or Caesar,
456
00:30:24,960 --> 00:30:26,200
or Caligula.
457
00:30:30,080 --> 00:30:31,320
In the later films,
458
00:30:32,320 --> 00:30:37,360
it's only his heroes' combat
with the villains
459
00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:41,480
and the evilness of the villains
that even allows the avengers
460
00:30:41,560 --> 00:30:44,400
to even be portrayed
anywhere in a heroic light.
461
00:30:44,480 --> 00:30:48,240
It's only by contrast to the antagonist.
462
00:30:48,320 --> 00:30:52,320
In this film, Mr. Corbucci,
have you much death and violence?
463
00:30:53,600 --> 00:30:56,000
Well, you probably know that I am a Roman,
464
00:30:56,080 --> 00:31:00,840
and at home, in some closets,
it's presumed to be the skeleton of Nero,
465
00:31:00,920 --> 00:31:03,440
who is proving to be
a good example for me.
466
00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:06,160
Yes, I am killing a lot of people.
467
00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:09,760
I have killed more people
than Nero and Caligula.
468
00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:13,960
But each time, it's more difficult for me
to find a new method of murder.
469
00:31:14,040 --> 00:31:15,520
That's why I hate Westerns.
470
00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:19,040
After this, Mr. Corbucci,
what films will you do?
471
00:31:19,120 --> 00:31:20,280
A Western, naturally.
472
00:31:20,360 --> 00:31:26,240
CHAPTER FIVE
THE PROTAGONISTS
473
00:31:34,680 --> 00:31:38,280
He really wanted me for The Great Silence,
474
00:31:38,800 --> 00:31:40,800
a movie he did on the snow,
475
00:31:42,680 --> 00:31:44,480
where the main character dies.
476
00:31:45,200 --> 00:31:47,600
The bad one survives and the hero dies.
477
00:31:48,400 --> 00:31:50,240
There is a mute character,
478
00:31:50,320 --> 00:31:53,000
and the other one
is played by Klaus Kinski.
479
00:31:54,040 --> 00:31:58,160
I said, "Sergio, I'm off to the US,"
and he didn't take it well.
480
00:31:58,240 --> 00:32:01,440
"Why the heck do you want
to go to the US?"
481
00:32:01,520 --> 00:32:07,560
"You'd better work here now
that we've had a big success with Django."
482
00:32:07,640 --> 00:32:10,000
I said, "Sergio, I'm going to America."
483
00:32:11,400 --> 00:32:14,800
He was very disappointed,
and he hired Trintignant.
484
00:32:14,880 --> 00:32:18,920
Jean Louis Trintignant
is now doing his first Western,
485
00:32:19,000 --> 00:32:21,440
an Italian Western, with me.
486
00:32:21,520 --> 00:32:26,720
It's an unusual one
because the main character is French,
487
00:32:26,800 --> 00:32:31,480
and then, it's entirely set
in the snow, in the winter.
488
00:32:31,560 --> 00:32:34,960
We'll be shooting in a region
where, we are told,
489
00:32:35,040 --> 00:32:38,680
it'll be 21 degrees Celsius below zero,
so it will be challenging.
490
00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:43,760
Among other things about this movie,
which is called The Great Silence,
491
00:32:43,840 --> 00:32:47,520
and which is my sixth Western,
yes, the sixth one, I think,
492
00:32:48,440 --> 00:32:53,520
the main character never speaks.
You never speak in the movie, right?
493
00:32:53,600 --> 00:32:55,640
In fact, he's mute. A mute gunslinger.
494
00:33:04,360 --> 00:33:06,160
You could at least answer me.
495
00:33:13,760 --> 00:33:14,920
Can't you speak?
496
00:33:23,360 --> 00:33:24,280
I'm sorry.
497
00:33:26,280 --> 00:33:29,880
He has other archetypes.
He has his lead protagonist.
498
00:33:29,960 --> 00:33:31,200
His lead protagonists
499
00:33:32,840 --> 00:33:35,880
are never heroes.
They're not what you would call a hero.
500
00:33:35,960 --> 00:33:38,720
The best you could call them
is an avenger.
501
00:33:39,800 --> 00:33:42,960
That's the nicest thing
you can say about them, an avenger.
502
00:33:43,040 --> 00:33:44,680
In another Western,
503
00:33:44,760 --> 00:33:46,320
they could be the villain.
504
00:33:47,040 --> 00:33:50,600
In fact, not only that,
in another Corbucci Western,
505
00:33:50,680 --> 00:33:52,640
a Corbucci protagonist
506
00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:55,320
could be the villain
to another Corbucci protagonist.
507
00:33:59,640 --> 00:34:02,360
One day, Sergio came to me
and said, "Rugge,
508
00:34:04,120 --> 00:34:05,760
we have to make a movie."
509
00:34:05,840 --> 00:34:08,320
And he brings me a comic.
510
00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:11,640
There was a guy pulling a coffin.
511
00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:15,880
It was a great idea,
a guy pulling a coffin.
512
00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:22,800
Django was inspired
by Japanese movies, Seven Samurai,
513
00:34:23,400 --> 00:34:25,400
Rashomon, which were movies
514
00:34:25,480 --> 00:34:27,600
a bit dark, full of mud.
515
00:34:27,680 --> 00:34:30,160
Maybe a bit macabre
because there was a coffin.
516
00:34:30,240 --> 00:34:32,320
A lot of my movies had a coffin.
517
00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:35,160
Even in movies with Totò,
there were often coffins.
518
00:34:35,240 --> 00:34:38,800
Because a coffin in a movie
always brings good luck, not sure why.
519
00:34:38,880 --> 00:34:40,720
So I went to the Elios.
520
00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:42,480
A big mess.
521
00:34:43,360 --> 00:34:46,400
It was really basic, dirty.
522
00:34:47,160 --> 00:34:48,440
And so much mud.
523
00:34:49,200 --> 00:34:51,200
A run-down village.
524
00:34:52,480 --> 00:34:57,640
The extras were horrendous,
525
00:34:57,720 --> 00:35:00,640
but they were cheap
and were already there, so I said,
526
00:35:01,240 --> 00:35:04,280
"Sergio, shall we put
some red hoods on them?"
527
00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:11,520
During the shooting,
528
00:35:12,040 --> 00:35:16,280
the movie with Clint Eastwood
by Sergio Leone was already out.
529
00:35:16,360 --> 00:35:18,200
Since they were friends,
530
00:35:19,040 --> 00:35:22,640
they spoke, and Sergio said to Leone,
531
00:35:22,720 --> 00:35:28,400
"Come and see me on the set,
and I'll show you the actor I chose."
532
00:35:28,920 --> 00:35:31,520
So, one day, Leone showed up.
533
00:35:31,600 --> 00:35:35,280
There was mud everywhere.
We were at Elios, and it was full of mud.
534
00:35:36,200 --> 00:35:40,640
I will never forget
how Leone started staring at me.
535
00:35:40,720 --> 00:35:44,480
He kept looking at me,
and Sergio went, "So what do you think?"
536
00:35:45,440 --> 00:35:47,160
"You hit the jackpot!"
537
00:35:47,240 --> 00:35:49,040
Meaning, you won the lottery.
538
00:35:49,560 --> 00:35:51,880
These were his words, Leone's words.
539
00:35:51,960 --> 00:35:54,440
More mud brought good luck.
540
00:35:55,560 --> 00:35:58,160
Red hoods brought good luck.
541
00:35:58,240 --> 00:36:00,160
Franco Nero brought luck.
542
00:36:01,400 --> 00:36:02,920
He also said,
543
00:36:04,160 --> 00:36:08,760
"I think this movie will be a big hit,
and do you know why?"
544
00:36:10,160 --> 00:36:12,160
"Because it addresses the working class."
545
00:36:12,680 --> 00:36:13,840
And he was right
546
00:36:14,480 --> 00:36:19,320
because it had become
a great political movie,
547
00:36:20,000 --> 00:36:23,480
where the Mexican peons
were the oppressed ones.
548
00:36:23,560 --> 00:36:27,200
When it comes to those Westerns
that we're talking about
549
00:36:27,280 --> 00:36:29,800
of that period,
550
00:36:30,960 --> 00:36:33,520
my two personal favorites
are The Hellbenders
551
00:36:33,600 --> 00:36:35,200
and Navajo Joe.
552
00:36:37,960 --> 00:36:38,920
What's your name?
553
00:36:42,640 --> 00:36:43,480
Joe.
554
00:36:45,400 --> 00:36:47,280
I've never known an Indian named Joe.
555
00:36:49,120 --> 00:36:52,360
And I've never seen a Navajo
so far south before.
556
00:36:53,680 --> 00:36:56,160
And me an Indian girl
that asks so many questions.
557
00:36:57,280 --> 00:36:58,360
Navajo Joe
558
00:36:58,440 --> 00:37:01,280
was the most violent movie
559
00:37:01,360 --> 00:37:03,840
ever released by a studio
560
00:37:04,720 --> 00:37:08,080
to American screens until The Wild Bunch,
561
00:37:08,840 --> 00:37:11,200
which was about two years later, I think.
562
00:37:15,040 --> 00:37:16,840
Navajo Joe was fun
563
00:37:16,920 --> 00:37:23,440
because there was Burt Reynolds
who was meant to replace Marlon Brando.
564
00:37:24,120 --> 00:37:29,200
He was so ill-humored.
I used to go to his trailer to call him,
565
00:37:30,400 --> 00:37:32,920
"I'm not coming.
I'll come when I feel like it."
566
00:37:33,000 --> 00:37:35,400
He was young and just started his career.
567
00:37:36,200 --> 00:37:40,320
So once, I told him, "Fuck you, asshole!"
568
00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:46,600
After 15 years, he came to Rome.
569
00:37:47,120 --> 00:37:52,120
He went to an actor's house, in Zagarolo,
570
00:37:53,080 --> 00:37:54,800
and he said, "Let's call Ruggero."
571
00:37:55,480 --> 00:37:57,960
And so, he went…
572
00:37:58,040 --> 00:38:00,680
Lucio Rosato, the actor,
573
00:38:00,760 --> 00:38:03,640
said to me,
"Burt Reynolds wants to talk to you."
574
00:38:04,240 --> 00:38:07,280
So he puts Burt Reynolds on, and he goes,
575
00:38:07,840 --> 00:38:10,680
"Ruggero, fuck you, asshole."
576
00:38:11,680 --> 00:38:14,360
After 15 years, he remembered that.
577
00:38:25,080 --> 00:38:30,440
His physical performance
is astonishing in that movie.
578
00:38:30,520 --> 00:38:33,120
It's one of the great action
physical performances.
579
00:38:33,200 --> 00:38:36,720
One of the things that's fantastic
about his performance in Navajo Joe,
580
00:38:36,800 --> 00:38:38,760
it's such an athletic performance.
581
00:38:38,840 --> 00:38:40,720
Joe has a fighting style
582
00:38:41,320 --> 00:38:43,920
that is recognizable
when you watch the film
583
00:38:44,000 --> 00:38:46,200
as he attacks Duncan's men.
584
00:38:47,520 --> 00:38:51,560
Burt Reynolds had this blitzkrieg,
football attack against the bad guys.
585
00:38:51,640 --> 00:38:55,760
He's, like, leaping and jumping on them
and doing somersaults in the dirt.
586
00:38:56,480 --> 00:38:59,520
And he practically killed himself
making the movie.
587
00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:03,400
Until martial art movies,
that was not a thing.
588
00:39:03,920 --> 00:39:05,880
Lead characters
didn't have a fighting style.
589
00:39:05,960 --> 00:39:09,280
They didn't have a style you could notice
fighting from this film to that film,
590
00:39:09,360 --> 00:39:12,640
this opponent to that opponent.
It was just donnybrooks.
591
00:39:13,520 --> 00:39:17,400
It's just usually Big Valley.
I hit you. You hit me.
592
00:39:17,480 --> 00:39:19,040
And eventually, I hit you more.
593
00:39:33,040 --> 00:39:37,400
If you look at a lot of the Westerns
from the '50s, and even in the '40s too,
594
00:39:39,000 --> 00:39:40,600
those Western heroes
595
00:39:41,880 --> 00:39:43,080
they weren't cool.
596
00:39:43,960 --> 00:39:44,880
They were tough.
597
00:39:45,640 --> 00:39:46,760
They were badass,
598
00:39:48,280 --> 00:39:49,160
but, you know,
599
00:39:49,760 --> 00:39:51,600
some version of righteousness
600
00:39:51,680 --> 00:39:55,400
was enabled in their character
and then their story.
601
00:39:55,480 --> 00:39:58,800
Even if they were a bad guy,
they were trying to do good
602
00:39:58,880 --> 00:40:00,200
at some point in the film.
603
00:40:00,840 --> 00:40:01,960
They weren't sexy.
604
00:40:02,520 --> 00:40:04,640
Their costumes were more functional.
605
00:40:05,680 --> 00:40:08,080
And, you know, there's nothing…
606
00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:10,800
And I'm not putting them down.
607
00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:13,200
Those '50s Westerns
608
00:40:13,720 --> 00:40:15,080
would have a second…
609
00:40:15,160 --> 00:40:18,800
Some of them
would have a secondary character,
610
00:40:19,400 --> 00:40:23,000
secondary lead, and that was more
of an antihero character.
611
00:40:23,080 --> 00:40:25,800
Were they gonna turn up
being good or bad?
612
00:40:25,880 --> 00:40:28,440
You almost had to watch
the whole movie to find out.
613
00:40:28,520 --> 00:40:31,120
And those kind of characters were, like,
614
00:40:31,200 --> 00:40:35,000
Richard Widmark's Comanche Todd
in The Last Wagon,
615
00:40:35,080 --> 00:40:37,360
which was a direct influence
on Navajo Joe.
616
00:40:37,880 --> 00:40:40,160
Burt Lancaster's character in Vera Cruz.
617
00:40:41,000 --> 00:40:44,760
Even Marlon Brando's character,
Rio, in One-Eyed Jacks.
618
00:40:44,840 --> 00:40:48,920
They all fit into an antihero,
619
00:40:49,000 --> 00:40:50,480
dubious morality.
620
00:40:50,560 --> 00:40:54,080
Were they gonna work out good or bad?
That was almost the point of the movie.
621
00:40:54,680 --> 00:40:57,480
You had to watch the whole damn thing
to find out what was going on.
622
00:40:57,560 --> 00:41:01,760
But those characters were not righteous.
They all had their problems.
623
00:41:01,840 --> 00:41:03,400
They all had their demons.
624
00:41:05,080 --> 00:41:06,760
They were played sexier
625
00:41:07,640 --> 00:41:09,120
than the stalwart lead.
626
00:41:09,200 --> 00:41:13,480
There was a sexy quality about them,
and there was a sense of panache
627
00:41:14,080 --> 00:41:15,880
to the way they were costumed.
628
00:41:16,760 --> 00:41:21,680
They didn't just pick a shirt that fit.
There was a comic-book panache.
629
00:41:22,200 --> 00:41:25,880
And this is something Leone did,
and Corbucci took it further.
630
00:41:27,040 --> 00:41:30,440
I don't know if he took further,
but he double-downed on it for sure.
631
00:41:31,280 --> 00:41:32,680
He gave them
632
00:41:33,880 --> 00:41:37,360
slightly comic-book prowess.
633
00:41:37,440 --> 00:41:40,560
They were faster than fast.
634
00:41:41,440 --> 00:41:44,640
There was something about them
that was more than just…
635
00:41:44,720 --> 00:41:46,680
that went beyond a realistic Western.
636
00:41:46,760 --> 00:41:50,000
There was a comic-book panache
to their prowess.
637
00:42:14,400 --> 00:42:20,160
The one that I have
a special affection for is Sonny and Jed.
638
00:42:20,800 --> 00:42:23,880
But I have a different reading
on Sonny and Jed than the rest.
639
00:42:23,960 --> 00:42:26,280
Sonny and Jed was sort of
his Bonnie and Clyde.
640
00:42:26,920 --> 00:42:29,520
It's a Western,
it's one of the he did into the '70s.
641
00:42:30,280 --> 00:42:33,760
And it was Tomas Milian and Susan George
642
00:42:34,800 --> 00:42:37,480
playing a couple of outlaw rascals
on the run.
643
00:42:40,960 --> 00:42:43,360
Sonny and Jed tends to turn people off.
644
00:42:43,960 --> 00:42:45,520
One, it has
645
00:42:46,840 --> 00:42:50,800
two of Corbucci's
best-directed set-pieces.
646
00:42:50,880 --> 00:42:52,120
The whole opening section,
647
00:42:52,200 --> 00:42:55,520
the whole opening 12-minute section
of the movie.
648
00:42:57,000 --> 00:43:00,680
And then there's the scene
where Jed is hiding in the corn.
649
00:43:01,480 --> 00:43:04,640
Two of Corbucci's
greatest action sequences ever.
650
00:43:05,840 --> 00:43:07,840
But people tend
to be turned off by the movie
651
00:43:07,920 --> 00:43:11,560
because they tend
to be turned off by Tomas Milian's
652
00:43:12,520 --> 00:43:14,000
cretinous character
653
00:43:14,720 --> 00:43:16,040
of Jed.
654
00:43:17,800 --> 00:43:21,440
Now, I'm turned off by Jed too
and his treatment of Sonny,
655
00:43:21,520 --> 00:43:25,080
but there's an aspect about it
that's interesting because
656
00:43:25,760 --> 00:43:28,600
it pretty much looks like,
not even an allegory,
657
00:43:28,680 --> 00:43:30,560
it pretty much looks like what it is.
658
00:43:30,640 --> 00:43:35,600
It looks like a Western story starring
Charles Manson and Squeaky Fromme,
659
00:43:36,080 --> 00:43:38,400
with Susan George playing
the Squeaky Fromme character
660
00:43:38,480 --> 00:43:41,640
and Tomas Milian going all out
playing Charlie Manson.
661
00:43:43,920 --> 00:43:46,600
I think Sonny and Jed
662
00:43:47,280 --> 00:43:50,160
are not the heroes.
I think they are the antagonist.
663
00:43:50,680 --> 00:43:52,800
I think Sonny and Jed are the villains.
664
00:43:52,880 --> 00:43:55,160
Jed is definitely the villain. Sonny…
665
00:43:55,240 --> 00:43:57,800
That's one of the things about Corbucci
we haven't talked about,
666
00:43:57,880 --> 00:43:59,440
Corbucci's female characters.
667
00:44:01,040 --> 00:44:03,120
Corbucci's female characters never
668
00:44:03,200 --> 00:44:07,960
fit the role of the standard archetype
that I laid out.
669
00:44:08,040 --> 00:44:10,240
They're always doubling up.
670
00:44:11,280 --> 00:44:12,840
Give me that bible, Raschietto.
671
00:44:23,240 --> 00:44:25,400
Swear it's not a trap.
672
00:44:26,840 --> 00:44:30,560
Swear that Clay is really
by himself out there.
673
00:44:34,000 --> 00:44:36,040
But be careful, sweetheart.
674
00:44:36,120 --> 00:44:38,560
This will be your last oath
675
00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:41,520
because you'll die soon after.
676
00:44:41,600 --> 00:44:43,400
I'm not scared, Fox.
677
00:44:43,480 --> 00:44:45,640
I don't fear anyone now.
678
00:44:46,240 --> 00:44:48,360
They're hero and victim.
679
00:44:49,520 --> 00:44:51,200
Or townsperson and villain.
680
00:44:58,720 --> 00:44:59,640
Virginia!
681
00:45:02,000 --> 00:45:03,520
-I got him!
-Virginia!
682
00:45:03,600 --> 00:45:04,440
Hurry!
683
00:45:04,520 --> 00:45:07,400
-Call the Sheriff, ma'am! Hurry up!
-Virgina, help me!
684
00:45:07,480 --> 00:45:09,560
Hurry up!
685
00:45:16,400 --> 00:45:18,760
They're, like…
686
00:45:18,840 --> 00:45:21,400
They usually combine
two of the archetypes together,
687
00:45:21,480 --> 00:45:24,360
for his women, which suggests
these women are complicated.
688
00:45:25,600 --> 00:45:30,240
And Sonny is a villain/victim in the film.
689
00:45:30,320 --> 00:45:33,840
But to me, the hero of the movie
690
00:45:34,440 --> 00:45:36,800
is Telly Savalas's character, Francisco.
691
00:45:36,880 --> 00:45:39,440
He's the real hero of the film.
692
00:45:39,520 --> 00:45:41,880
Watch the movie from
693
00:45:42,920 --> 00:45:45,120
Telly Savalas's perspective.
694
00:45:45,200 --> 00:45:48,160
Next time you see it, don't watch it
from Milian's perspective,
695
00:45:48,240 --> 00:45:50,760
watch it from Telly Savalas's perspective.
696
00:45:50,840 --> 00:45:52,800
He is a Corbucci hero.
697
00:45:52,880 --> 00:45:55,080
And then, even when he gets blinded,
698
00:45:55,720 --> 00:45:57,240
when he's completely blind,
699
00:45:57,320 --> 00:46:00,320
he still goes after Sonny and Jed.
He doesn't stop his quest.
700
00:46:00,400 --> 00:46:03,040
Now, that makes him a Corbucci's hero.
701
00:46:03,720 --> 00:46:07,320
Because the thing
that Corbucci did with his movies
702
00:46:07,840 --> 00:46:11,200
that was different than any other
of the Western directors,
703
00:46:12,680 --> 00:46:15,240
he would give his heroes,
704
00:46:15,320 --> 00:46:19,520
like I said, a comic-book panache
when it comes to their prowess.
705
00:46:19,600 --> 00:46:22,920
They were faster
than you could be in real life.
706
00:46:23,000 --> 00:46:28,960
They had something that gave them
almost superhero qualities.
707
00:46:29,640 --> 00:46:30,560
However,
708
00:46:31,560 --> 00:46:33,800
then he takes their prowess
away from them.
709
00:46:34,880 --> 00:46:37,360
The thing that sets them up as…
710
00:46:38,280 --> 00:46:40,720
as a superhero cowboy is gone.
711
00:46:41,400 --> 00:46:43,960
He literally removes
their superpowers from them.
712
00:46:44,560 --> 00:46:48,560
Even a skilled gunslinger
needs his hands. Isn't that right, Django?
713
00:46:49,920 --> 00:46:51,160
Bye now, Django.
714
00:46:51,840 --> 00:46:54,040
My men and I are going back to Mexico,
715
00:46:54,120 --> 00:46:56,000
to either win or die!
716
00:46:56,080 --> 00:46:58,440
Vamos compañeros!
717
00:47:02,160 --> 00:47:05,160
Adios, gringo! See you in hell!
718
00:47:13,320 --> 00:47:15,680
And then he makes them face the villain.
719
00:47:16,800 --> 00:47:20,320
And it's only them facing the villain
720
00:47:20,400 --> 00:47:24,440
without their superpowers
that they can claim to be a hero.
721
00:47:24,520 --> 00:47:28,200
It's only the end,
when they actually face up
722
00:47:28,280 --> 00:47:31,320
against these figures of Fascism
723
00:47:32,040 --> 00:47:33,680
without, you know…
724
00:47:34,880 --> 00:47:38,520
without their superpowers
in their back pocket,
725
00:47:38,600 --> 00:47:40,160
without their ace in the hole.
726
00:47:40,240 --> 00:47:41,560
That's… There…
727
00:47:41,640 --> 00:47:44,080
From that point on,
for the last five minutes,
728
00:47:44,160 --> 00:47:46,160
that's the moment
they can call themselves heroes.
729
00:47:46,760 --> 00:47:48,080
And so it shall be!
730
00:48:10,960 --> 00:48:16,640
When you just take the Spaghetti Western
as a genre in totality,
731
00:48:16,720 --> 00:48:21,920
I actually think Lee Van Cleef
and Franco Nero are the two genre leads.
732
00:48:22,440 --> 00:48:26,280
They are the two most iconic figures,
not for just one character,
733
00:48:26,360 --> 00:48:29,520
but it's also for, you know,
they did a series of movies.
734
00:48:29,600 --> 00:48:31,160
They created a persona,
735
00:48:31,240 --> 00:48:34,440
and they became
New World Western mythology.
736
00:48:35,120 --> 00:48:39,440
All my movies
have always been inspired by comics.
737
00:48:39,520 --> 00:48:43,920
Those adventure comic books
that when I was little were called
738
00:48:44,000 --> 00:48:45,760
Mandrake, Tim Tyler's Luck…
739
00:48:46,560 --> 00:48:50,240
and that when I grew up,
as a director, became many Westerns,
740
00:48:50,320 --> 00:48:54,200
costume movies,
Bud Spencer and Terence Hill…
741
00:48:54,280 --> 00:48:58,520
And, for example, I see Terence Hill
as a Milton Caniff hero.
742
00:48:58,600 --> 00:49:03,320
Do remember Terry?
Or Bud Spencer as Dick Fulmine.
743
00:49:04,040 --> 00:49:05,480
Adriano Celentano…
744
00:49:06,760 --> 00:49:09,720
could also be a Li'l Abner character.
745
00:49:10,400 --> 00:49:16,240
CHAPTER SIX
SHADOW AND LIGHT
746
00:49:50,440 --> 00:49:51,640
How are you, Hud?
747
00:49:56,680 --> 00:50:01,840
God knows how happy I am
to see you here visiting your brother.
748
00:50:01,920 --> 00:50:07,480
If it wasn't for me and the sheriff,
they wouldn't have even buried him.
749
00:50:07,560 --> 00:50:11,600
They'd have said, "He's a thief.
Let's leave him to the vultures."
750
00:50:12,200 --> 00:50:15,920
As much as he hates his Fascists,
he hates the communities all the more.
751
00:50:16,000 --> 00:50:19,200
The communities represented
by every single one of these towns,
752
00:50:19,280 --> 00:50:21,360
whether it'd be Pollicut's little town…
753
00:50:21,440 --> 00:50:23,400
Welcome to Snow Hill.
754
00:50:23,480 --> 00:50:25,200
…or Blackstone…
755
00:50:29,720 --> 00:50:31,240
The people who live in the town,
756
00:50:31,320 --> 00:50:33,640
they're horrible representatives
of society.
757
00:50:35,960 --> 00:50:40,520
It's almost a sick joke
on John Ford's characters,
758
00:50:41,240 --> 00:50:44,360
of the pioneers,
"We are the people that rule the West,
759
00:50:44,440 --> 00:50:47,280
and we're creating a community."
760
00:50:48,840 --> 00:50:52,000
The community that Ford created
of his characters,
761
00:50:52,080 --> 00:50:54,680
trying to create a community
in this wasteland,
762
00:50:54,760 --> 00:50:57,160
is really what he's about.
763
00:50:58,720 --> 00:51:03,120
And then, in Corbucci's movies,
it's like society is a cesspool.
764
00:51:03,640 --> 00:51:05,240
Society is a sewer,
765
00:51:05,320 --> 00:51:09,080
and all these people in this town
deserve anything that's happening to them.
766
00:51:10,520 --> 00:51:12,480
They've all got it coming.
767
00:51:14,360 --> 00:51:20,280
He actually makes that subtext
actually text in The Specialists.
768
00:51:20,360 --> 00:51:23,680
Come on! Horrible pigs!
769
00:51:23,760 --> 00:51:26,360
-Crawl!
-Look! He's coming!
770
00:51:49,920 --> 00:51:53,400
All the three movies I did with Sergio
are political movies,
771
00:51:53,920 --> 00:51:56,400
because The Mercenary
is a political movie too,
772
00:51:56,480 --> 00:51:58,880
and so is Compañeros, so…
773
00:51:58,960 --> 00:52:03,400
In Compañeros,
there was the famous professor,
774
00:52:03,480 --> 00:52:04,560
Fernando Rey,
775
00:52:05,080 --> 00:52:09,520
who taught young people about revolution,
in the right way.
776
00:52:09,600 --> 00:52:15,360
They used to wear the red scarves,
you know, the students…
777
00:52:16,680 --> 00:52:19,560
Yes, definitely.
They were political movies.
778
00:52:20,200 --> 00:52:22,360
Those soldiers you killed to save me
779
00:52:22,880 --> 00:52:24,400
were human beings.
780
00:52:26,120 --> 00:52:27,880
And killing a human being,
781
00:52:27,960 --> 00:52:29,560
even if he's our enemy,
782
00:52:30,080 --> 00:52:31,160
is a crime.
783
00:52:31,800 --> 00:52:34,400
Haven't I always taught you this?
784
00:52:35,280 --> 00:52:36,480
Answer me!
785
00:52:36,560 --> 00:52:39,160
What should have we done?
Let them shoot you?
786
00:52:39,240 --> 00:52:42,240
The ideals I believe
are fearless of death,
787
00:52:42,760 --> 00:52:45,000
and they don't need guns to prevail.
788
00:52:45,640 --> 00:52:46,640
Guys,
789
00:52:47,920 --> 00:52:50,080
never forget this principle.
790
00:52:51,320 --> 00:52:55,920
When fighting for the right ideal,
you can also win without violence.
791
00:52:59,280 --> 00:53:01,600
Clearly, I am too old,
792
00:53:02,720 --> 00:53:04,520
and you are all too young.
793
00:53:05,880 --> 00:53:08,440
All of Corbucci's films
aren't created equally.
794
00:53:08,520 --> 00:53:12,080
There's not much humor in Navajo Joe.
795
00:53:12,160 --> 00:53:14,600
There's not much humor in The Hellbenders.
796
00:53:14,680 --> 00:53:17,400
There's no humor in The Great Silence.
797
00:53:19,440 --> 00:53:22,680
I did The Great Silence
for all those who believe in freedom
798
00:53:22,760 --> 00:53:25,240
and for all those who want to fight.
799
00:53:25,320 --> 00:53:28,320
He breaks out of that when he does the…
800
00:53:30,000 --> 00:53:31,440
the Mexican Revolution trilogy.
801
00:53:31,520 --> 00:53:33,160
God, how beautiful this is.
802
00:53:33,760 --> 00:53:35,160
Thirteen red.
803
00:53:40,720 --> 00:53:44,640
They stand separate. They stand separate
from Navajo Joe, from Django.
804
00:53:44,720 --> 00:53:48,160
They stand separate from Hellbenders.
They're different.
805
00:53:48,240 --> 00:53:51,320
Those are the ones
where he's indulging more like Leone,
806
00:53:52,360 --> 00:53:54,560
in, like, more comedy bits.
807
00:53:55,840 --> 00:53:59,800
And it's not always black humor
in the Mexican Revolution trilogy.
808
00:54:13,040 --> 00:54:15,240
Paco wants to see you, gringo.
809
00:54:15,320 --> 00:54:19,480
And when Leone does Duck, You Sucker!,
that's absolutely his version
810
00:54:19,560 --> 00:54:23,760
of a Corbucci Mexican Revolution Western.
811
00:54:24,400 --> 00:54:25,640
Four Jacks.
812
00:54:28,960 --> 00:54:29,920
Two ladies…
813
00:54:31,120 --> 00:54:32,240
plus two more…
814
00:54:34,480 --> 00:54:35,440
makes four.
815
00:54:35,520 --> 00:54:40,480
The Mercenary was meant
to be directed by Gillo Pontecorvo.
816
00:54:41,200 --> 00:54:42,680
Here's the story.
817
00:54:42,760 --> 00:54:47,240
Alberto Grimaldi, back then,
wanted to produce four movies,
818
00:54:47,760 --> 00:54:50,680
one by Elio Petri, one by Fellini,
819
00:54:52,160 --> 00:54:54,160
one by Pontecorvo,
820
00:54:55,200 --> 00:54:59,960
and the other one should have been
by Corbucci, but not this film,
821
00:55:00,040 --> 00:55:01,520
just a film by Corbucci.
822
00:55:02,520 --> 00:55:03,600
Basically,
823
00:55:05,400 --> 00:55:08,360
Pontecorvo pulled out of making the movie.
824
00:55:08,880 --> 00:55:12,200
Corbucci, with his usual savoir faire,
825
00:55:12,280 --> 00:55:17,720
one day, went to what should have been
Pontecorvo's office and said,
826
00:55:17,800 --> 00:55:19,960
"Hey, I'll make this movie!"
827
00:55:20,040 --> 00:55:24,600
So he convinced Grimaldi that he was
the right director to make The Mercenary.
828
00:55:24,680 --> 00:55:25,680
Go!
829
00:55:53,880 --> 00:55:55,680
-Thanks.
-Come on. Let's run!
830
00:56:00,040 --> 00:56:02,280
The cast should have been made up of
831
00:56:02,840 --> 00:56:05,960
James Coburn, playing the American guy,
832
00:56:06,480 --> 00:56:09,360
and Franco Nero, playing the Mexican.
833
00:56:11,280 --> 00:56:15,000
One day, I went to watch a movie,
The Incident,
834
00:56:16,320 --> 00:56:20,000
and I noticed this incredible actor,
Tony Musante.
835
00:56:20,080 --> 00:56:23,120
I called Sergio and said,
"Go and watch this movie."
836
00:56:23,200 --> 00:56:25,800
"You've found the Mexican, if you ask me."
837
00:56:25,880 --> 00:56:28,760
He watched the movie and said,
"You were right."
838
00:56:28,840 --> 00:56:30,600
And he hired Tony Musante.
839
00:56:36,440 --> 00:56:39,000
I must say you're rather fast.
840
00:56:39,520 --> 00:56:40,880
Who are you?
841
00:56:40,960 --> 00:56:43,840
The Polish,
but for you, I'm called Bad Luck
842
00:56:43,920 --> 00:56:46,520
because if they don't let me pass,
I'll kill you.
843
00:56:46,600 --> 00:56:49,000
You're in bad luck too, buddy,
844
00:56:49,080 --> 00:56:52,800
because they don't care
whether you kill me or not.
845
00:56:53,400 --> 00:56:56,400
-You know how to count to ten?
-Sure, I can.
846
00:56:56,480 --> 00:57:00,600
I can also add,
and occasionally subtract too.
847
00:57:01,160 --> 00:57:02,600
Fine.
848
00:57:02,680 --> 00:57:04,680
Start counting.
849
00:57:05,480 --> 00:57:08,400
While Corbucci specialized in doing
850
00:57:09,320 --> 00:57:11,960
these Westerns, these cowboy pictures,
851
00:57:12,960 --> 00:57:15,320
he never took Leone on,
852
00:57:15,920 --> 00:57:22,080
when it came to the whole concept
of the showdown and the Morricone score,
853
00:57:22,920 --> 00:57:25,640
except for the first
of the Mexican Revolution movies,
854
00:57:25,720 --> 00:57:27,440
except for The Mercenary.
855
00:57:27,520 --> 00:57:29,360
That's his only time
856
00:57:29,440 --> 00:57:33,880
he actually, "Okay now I'm gonna
take Sergio with a full-on showdown,
857
00:57:33,960 --> 00:57:35,840
with a full-on Morricone score."
858
00:57:35,920 --> 00:57:38,400
And as far as I'm concerned,
along with the Leone ones,
859
00:57:38,480 --> 00:57:41,000
it's the best of all those ever done.
860
00:59:25,080 --> 00:59:30,920
CHAPTER SEVEN
THE LAST REVOLUTION
861
00:59:33,880 --> 00:59:38,120
Of all the great Western directors,
Corbucci created the most pitiless West
862
00:59:38,200 --> 00:59:39,400
that there was.
863
00:59:39,480 --> 00:59:44,000
The most pitiless, the most pessimistic,
the most surrealistically grotesque,
864
00:59:44,760 --> 00:59:46,320
the most violent.
865
00:59:47,680 --> 00:59:50,880
Nobody is guaranteed safe passage
866
00:59:51,560 --> 00:59:52,680
in a Corbucci film.
867
00:59:52,760 --> 00:59:56,360
The hero could die at the end
just as easily as anybody else.
868
01:00:08,280 --> 01:00:11,440
The sheriff's girlfriend.
869
01:00:11,520 --> 01:00:13,120
Chester! No!
870
01:00:15,160 --> 01:00:18,240
A priest.
Nobody is guaranteed safe passage.
871
01:00:22,480 --> 01:00:26,160
And actually,
their innocence could doom them.
872
01:00:30,160 --> 01:00:32,000
Don't cry.
873
01:00:33,040 --> 01:00:33,880
No!
874
01:00:35,400 --> 01:00:37,480
We said no witnesses, remember?
875
01:00:39,080 --> 01:00:41,680
You boys better decide
what to do with the kid.
876
01:00:43,560 --> 01:00:44,400
So…
877
01:00:45,360 --> 01:00:46,440
Wow!
878
01:00:48,160 --> 01:00:53,560
So, if I was gonna try
to create that surrealistic, grotesque,
879
01:00:54,560 --> 01:00:58,400
absolutely pitiless West
880
01:00:59,560 --> 01:01:04,720
that Corbucci created for American Mexico,
and I was gonna put it in America,
881
01:01:05,240 --> 01:01:06,400
where would that be?
882
01:01:07,880 --> 01:01:10,320
And then I was,
"Well, the antebellum South."
883
01:01:11,280 --> 01:01:12,760
That's exactly where it'd be.
884
01:01:12,840 --> 01:01:15,360
It would be Mississippi,
it would be Louisiana
885
01:01:15,440 --> 01:01:18,640
during the time of slavery.
America under slavery would…
886
01:01:18,720 --> 01:01:21,960
is, actually, that grotesque world
887
01:01:22,680 --> 01:01:24,840
that Corbucci drew on.
888
01:01:25,920 --> 01:01:31,480
And there, the most surrealistic things,
the most garish things actually happened.
889
01:01:32,480 --> 01:01:34,600
What makes them grotesque
is their reality.
890
01:01:38,160 --> 01:01:39,600
What's everybody staring at?
891
01:01:40,200 --> 01:01:42,400
They've never seen no nigger
on a horse before.
892
01:01:47,320 --> 01:01:52,480
Corbucci, ultimately, did Westerns
because he's a genre filmmaker,
893
01:01:53,080 --> 01:01:55,160
and that was a popular genre at the time.
894
01:01:56,480 --> 01:01:58,320
The same reason he did peplums.
895
01:01:58,400 --> 01:02:00,400
That was the popular genre at the time.
896
01:02:00,480 --> 01:02:02,360
So Westerns became the popular genre.
897
01:02:03,240 --> 01:02:07,640
Early '70s, when they fizzled out,
he abandoned them.
898
01:02:08,720 --> 01:02:10,480
And apparently never looked back.
899
01:02:11,920 --> 01:02:16,880
And then he concentrated
on doing comedies.
900
01:02:16,960 --> 01:02:17,960
However,
901
01:02:19,400 --> 01:02:22,120
some of those comedies
that he did in the '70s,
902
01:02:22,640 --> 01:02:23,960
are, to this day,
903
01:02:24,040 --> 01:02:27,000
some of the most successful movies
in the history
904
01:02:27,080 --> 01:02:29,120
of the Italian film industry.
905
01:02:31,360 --> 01:02:33,960
When he's doing his Revolution trilogy,
906
01:02:34,040 --> 01:02:37,920
it's that third one
that's kind of the transition.
907
01:02:38,520 --> 01:02:40,880
The whole film gets
this kind of comical aspect.
908
01:02:42,400 --> 01:02:44,760
He used to enjoy trying new things.
909
01:02:45,720 --> 01:02:49,280
He wasn't a director
tied to strict patterns,
910
01:02:49,360 --> 01:02:54,880
so probably with Villaggio,
jokingly, they went,
911
01:02:54,960 --> 01:02:58,920
"Let's make a movie
with the sober Gassman too,
912
01:02:59,000 --> 01:03:05,760
and we'll talk about revolution
with a comic twist."
913
01:05:33,280 --> 01:05:35,360
Sergio used to do different things.
914
01:05:36,240 --> 01:05:37,920
That was a great quality he had.
915
01:05:38,880 --> 01:05:42,520
He'd easily go from a movie with Totò
to all the other movies.
916
01:05:42,600 --> 01:05:46,800
Something that not all directors could do.
917
01:05:46,880 --> 01:05:50,600
Sergio knew
918
01:05:50,680 --> 01:05:52,800
that he would never win an Oscar.
919
01:05:53,520 --> 01:05:55,400
He said, "I will never win an Oscar."
920
01:05:55,960 --> 01:05:58,480
But he had won the people's Oscar.
921
01:05:58,560 --> 01:06:03,080
And he knew this because he was
truly the people's director.
922
01:06:03,600 --> 01:06:06,040
I really don't understand Corbucci's
923
01:06:08,120 --> 01:06:11,200
career once you get past the early '70s.
924
01:06:11,800 --> 01:06:15,200
{\an8}There was a commercial director aspect
to Corbucci,
925
01:06:15,280 --> 01:06:18,360
and it's actually one of the things
I actually kind of admire.
926
01:06:19,800 --> 01:06:21,840
There's part of me that kind of wish
927
01:06:21,920 --> 01:06:24,080
he was a little bit more
artist-in-residence
928
01:06:24,800 --> 01:06:26,440
the way that Leone was.
929
01:06:27,280 --> 01:06:29,440
{\an8}I think it's a damn shame that
930
01:06:29,520 --> 01:06:32,240
{\an8}so few of the Italian directors
came to America
931
01:06:32,320 --> 01:06:34,680
to try their hand doing American movies.
932
01:06:35,280 --> 01:06:39,200
I brought it up once about the idea
of "What if Sergio had done that?"
933
01:06:39,840 --> 01:06:43,880
And then people,
"No, he would never do that."
934
01:06:43,960 --> 01:06:47,720
He would never leave Italy
to make a movie in America.
935
01:06:47,800 --> 01:06:52,480
I remember this actor, Tony Musante,
who came to Italy to work with me,
936
01:06:52,560 --> 01:06:54,840
and then he also had a great career.
937
01:06:54,920 --> 01:06:59,200
He came for a movie, with Palance
and Franco Nero, called The Mercenary.
938
01:06:59,280 --> 01:07:02,840
He was one of those engaged actors,
like Kazan.
939
01:07:03,360 --> 01:07:06,640
{\an8}As he was getting off his horse once,
I said, "Look…"
940
01:07:06,720 --> 01:07:11,360
{\an8}We had a scene where he was
going to exit the shot, running.
941
01:07:11,440 --> 01:07:15,600
{\an8}He was leaving the scene
during a bombing, something like that.
942
01:07:16,120 --> 01:07:20,320
{\an8}He had to get off his horse, run,
then throw himself to the ground later.
943
01:07:21,200 --> 01:07:23,760
Because of the next scene requirements,
944
01:07:23,840 --> 01:07:28,360
I told him, for the second shot,
when he was meant to come back in,
945
01:07:28,440 --> 01:07:32,440
I said, "Come in the scene running,
then lay down on the ground
946
01:07:32,520 --> 01:07:36,120
because I need to lower the camera
to film a guy shooting over there.
947
01:07:36,200 --> 01:07:38,120
He said, "Why do I need to go down now?"
948
01:07:38,200 --> 01:07:41,800
I went, "I don't know.
Pretend you have a stone in your boot."
949
01:07:41,880 --> 01:07:45,560
"So you need to sit down,
take your boot off, let the stone out,
950
01:07:45,640 --> 01:07:50,560
and put the boot back on, which is funny
while they're all shooting at you."
951
01:07:50,640 --> 01:07:52,200
"I think it could look nice."
952
01:07:52,840 --> 01:07:55,840
He went, "We'll have to redo
the previous scene then."
953
01:07:55,920 --> 01:07:56,800
I went, "Why?"
954
01:07:56,880 --> 01:08:01,840
He said, "Because in the previous one,
I left the scene without the stone."
955
01:08:02,520 --> 01:08:04,440
I was like, "What do you mean?"
956
01:08:04,520 --> 01:08:06,440
He said, "This has to start earlier
957
01:08:06,520 --> 01:08:10,440
because I'd have felt the stone
as soon as I put my foot on the ground,
958
01:08:10,520 --> 01:08:14,120
so I would have left the scene
differently from now."
959
01:08:14,760 --> 01:08:18,840
I went, "Look, we're doing
an Italian Western here."
960
01:08:18,920 --> 01:08:20,360
"I mean, you know…"
961
01:08:20,880 --> 01:08:27,280
I said, "If you need to show you have
a stone in your boot, just do it now."
962
01:08:27,360 --> 01:08:30,920
"You didn't realize it before,
but you're realizing it now."
963
01:08:31,000 --> 01:08:37,360
He went, "That's fine, but I need time
in my trailer to focus on how to do this."
964
01:08:37,440 --> 01:08:40,040
I said, "Okay, go.
I'll do something else."
965
01:08:40,120 --> 01:08:42,320
Then he came back and said, "I got it."
966
01:08:42,400 --> 01:08:46,000
I said, "I've moved on now.
No more stone in the boot."
967
01:08:46,080 --> 01:08:51,240
"We'll do something different.
The sun went down. The horse was thirsty…"
968
01:09:06,080 --> 01:09:07,440
Where are we going?
969
01:09:07,520 --> 01:09:08,880
Inside the cannons!
970
01:09:12,360 --> 01:09:13,360
Jump out, quick!
971
01:09:38,840 --> 01:09:40,920
There's nothing wrong with the label
972
01:09:41,000 --> 01:09:45,400
"second-best Spaghetti Western
director after Leone," all right.
973
01:09:46,440 --> 01:09:50,040
I don't believe Ford is the greatest
of American Western directors,
974
01:09:50,120 --> 01:09:53,600
but if you take that thought, all right,
975
01:09:54,800 --> 01:09:57,080
if you take that place,
then who's the second?
976
01:09:58,080 --> 01:10:01,680
Is it Peckinpah? Is it Hawks?
977
01:10:01,760 --> 01:10:03,840
Is it Raoul Walsh? Is it Delmer Daves?
978
01:10:03,920 --> 01:10:07,080
Who is it? Who's number two?
All right? That's a dogfight.
979
01:10:07,960 --> 01:10:09,720
It's not a dogfight in Italy.
980
01:10:09,800 --> 01:10:11,720
Number two is fucking Corbucci.
981
01:12:38,120 --> 01:12:45,120
{\an8}TO NORI CORBUCCI
982
01:12:58,800 --> 01:13:01,240
There's an interesting thing
about Django solely…
983
01:13:02,680 --> 01:13:06,880
I haven't talked that much about Django,
so I might talk a bit about it, okay?
984
01:13:07,600 --> 01:13:10,280
There's an interesting aspect
to the movie.
985
01:13:11,480 --> 01:13:13,000
Who is Mercedes?
986
01:13:14,160 --> 01:13:17,360
And it's never ever answered
987
01:13:18,080 --> 01:13:19,320
who Mercedes is.
988
01:13:19,840 --> 01:13:25,240
All right, and what I mean by that is
Django has come to this town.
989
01:13:26,040 --> 01:13:28,400
It seems like he's coming there
990
01:13:29,160 --> 01:13:30,160
for a vengeance.
991
01:13:32,280 --> 01:13:38,440
You see him visiting a grave
of a woman named Mercedes.
992
01:13:40,640 --> 01:13:43,640
Who this woman is, is not clear.
993
01:13:44,760 --> 01:13:50,480
The only thing we know about Django is
he was probably in the Union Army
994
01:13:50,560 --> 01:13:54,040
or the Union Cavalry,
because of his cavalry pants.
995
01:13:54,120 --> 01:13:57,520
So he was in the war, and he was
definitely on the side of the North.
996
01:14:00,760 --> 01:14:02,240
He's going to the South.
997
01:14:06,160 --> 01:14:10,720
And the Colonel's character,
he's definitely a figure from the South.
998
01:14:10,800 --> 01:14:13,320
He's definitely a figure
from the Confederacy,
999
01:14:14,280 --> 01:14:17,000
and he has this Ku Klux Klan,
1000
01:14:18,480 --> 01:14:22,440
like, hooded army, all right,
that are, you know…
1001
01:14:22,960 --> 01:14:29,280
it would appear that they've wiped out
all the Black folks in the area,
1002
01:14:29,360 --> 01:14:31,840
and now they're working on their way
through the Mexicans.
1003
01:14:31,920 --> 01:14:36,040
It would appear there were Black folks
in this area, and they were all murdered,
1004
01:14:36,120 --> 01:14:37,720
and now it's the Mexican's turn.
1005
01:14:41,880 --> 01:14:43,000
Who is Mercedes?
1006
01:14:44,600 --> 01:14:46,120
Is Mercedes Django's wife?
1007
01:14:48,520 --> 01:14:50,880
Well, that's an interesting story.
1008
01:14:52,320 --> 01:14:56,000
He has a wife. He leaves her
in this village, a Southern village,
1009
01:14:56,080 --> 01:14:57,880
and goes off to fight for the North?
1010
01:15:00,240 --> 01:15:02,920
He comes back, and she's dead,
but it doesn't seem to suggest
1011
01:15:03,000 --> 01:15:05,520
that he's just come back
the minute the war's over.
1012
01:15:06,200 --> 01:15:08,520
He's done a bunch of stuff,
and now he's there.
1013
01:15:10,000 --> 01:15:11,080
So that's his wife.
1014
01:15:12,720 --> 01:15:14,000
That doesn't seem likely.
1015
01:15:14,640 --> 01:15:17,440
It doesn't seem likely
he would have a wife.
1016
01:15:17,520 --> 01:15:20,960
It doesn't seem likely if he had a wife,
he would abandon her.
1017
01:15:22,200 --> 01:15:25,920
I've come up with a version of it
that I think is the case.
1018
01:15:30,200 --> 01:15:31,160
I think…
1019
01:15:33,920 --> 01:15:35,640
he never knew Mercedes.
1020
01:15:36,960 --> 01:15:38,600
I think he was in the war.
1021
01:15:40,480 --> 01:15:42,840
And I think Mercedes…
1022
01:15:44,960 --> 01:15:47,760
is the wife of somebody he served with.
1023
01:15:49,360 --> 01:15:54,920
Mercedes was the wife of somebody
in the Union Army that he served with,
1024
01:15:56,400 --> 01:15:57,440
that he died,
1025
01:15:58,240 --> 01:15:59,160
and he died
1026
01:16:00,280 --> 01:16:02,200
in Django's arms or around Django.
1027
01:16:03,280 --> 01:16:07,240
Before he died, he gave him something
to give to his wife.
1028
01:16:08,640 --> 01:16:11,800
"And when the war's over,
when you get around to it,
1029
01:16:11,880 --> 01:16:15,080
go down to this village and find my wife."
1030
01:16:16,560 --> 01:16:20,400
And I'd like to think,
since I'm writing this all on my own,
1031
01:16:21,560 --> 01:16:23,040
that it was a Black soldier.
1032
01:16:26,480 --> 01:16:28,400
And so, finally,
1033
01:16:28,920 --> 01:16:31,960
he goes to this village to track down
1034
01:16:32,040 --> 01:16:34,480
the wife of the Black soldier
that he knew,
1035
01:16:35,880 --> 01:16:39,040
in the town that she was living in,
to find her murdered.
1036
01:16:40,720 --> 01:16:42,440
And he finds the whole history
1037
01:16:43,080 --> 01:16:45,440
of how this Ku Klux Klan-like gang
1038
01:16:46,040 --> 01:16:48,520
has genocided the Black folks in the area,
1039
01:16:48,600 --> 01:16:51,000
and are now working
their way through the Mexicans.
1040
01:16:52,520 --> 01:16:54,720
And then revenge is perpetrated
1041
01:16:54,800 --> 01:16:57,680
against the leader of this Klan Army
1042
01:16:58,240 --> 01:17:00,720
by an actor whose last name is Nero,
1043
01:17:01,360 --> 01:17:02,840
which is Italian for "black."
1044
01:17:04,080 --> 01:17:06,240
That's my version of it.
1045
01:17:10,440 --> 01:17:15,360
{\an8}Subtitle translation by: Angelica Lacetera