Sergio Leone's film Once Upon a Time in the West set out
to be the ultimate Western - a celebration of the power of classic Hollywood
cinema, a meditation on the making of America, and a lament for the decline of
one of the most cherished film genres in the form of a 'dance of death'. It is
an exploration of the relationship between myth ('Once Upon a Time...'),
history ('...in the West') and his own autobiography as an avid film-goer. This
would be a horse opera in which the arias aren’t sung, they are stared.
Once Upon a Time has since inspired several generations
of filmmakers worldwide. Its combination of 'film about film” with an angry
historical epic, told with great style, has resonated for half a century, and
its reputation has steadily grown. This book, by the world-renowned authority
on Sergio Leone Christopher Frayling, includes revealing personal interviews
with all the key players involved in the film,including an interview with Bernardo
Bertolucci, who wrote the story outline for the film: among the many recent
tributes to this late, great Italian film-maker, this book adds an important
missing episode in his creative life, a bridge between Bertolucci's early
low-budget films and his later international successes. Also included are a
wealth of never-before-published documents, designs and photographs, and the
latest research into the making of a masterpiece, shot by shot. It is
introduced with an in-depth foreword by Quentin Tarantino, who cites the film
as a major influence on his career. This year is the 50th anniversary of Once
Upon a Time in the West and this richly illustrated book is a suitably
spectacular birthday tribute.
Here is a short video on the upcoming release of Sir Christopher
Fraylings book on Once Upon a Time in the West: Shooting a Masterpiece, due for
release May 21, 2019.
No comments:
Post a Comment