The Soundcheck
By Alfonso La Manna
November 19, 2025
Screened during the days of the Piccolo Grande Cinema of
the Cineteca Milano, West and Soda seen in the restored theater gives a unique
amazement. An irreverent parody of the western that still sets the standard
today.
On Saturday 15 November, on the final evening of the
Piccolo Grande Cinema festival of the Cineteca Milano, there was the screening
of West and Soda in the Restored Edition, with the presence of Bruno Bozzetto.
So, what better opportunity to dive back into that
anarchic and rebellious imagery staged by the master of Italian animation, than
with the first feature film that made him known to the whole world?
Because, 60 years later, West and Soda is a film that
still manages to amaze. A work that young people should absolutely rediscover
and that represents a fundamental piece of Italian and world cinema, not only
in the field of animation.
The premise
In the scenario of an unlikely old west populated by
shady and bizarre characters, the fearsome Despicable is scraping together land
and power thanks to his violent henchmen Ursus and Slender. But his conquered
properties are missing one last possession: that of the young and sensual
Clementine, who lives on her farm in the company of her beloved animals.
The cowardly criminal obviously has no qualms about
targeting the young farmer and sends his henchmen to the ranch to force the
woman to give him the property. But soon the young cowboy Johnny, who has come
from afar, arrives from the horizon bringing Clementine the opportunity to
solve the hostile situation.
Why is West and Soda so important?
West and Soda is not only one of the very first Italian
animated feature films, but one of the first great examples of an animated film
that went against the trend of the Disney classics, proposing a smaller film,
but anarchic, crazy, very funny. Something that had never been seen before and
that paved the way for the master's subsequent works, but which also inspired
generations of subsequent directors. One of those first examples that
demonstrated how animation could also challenge conventions and genres,
proposing a new model free from the usual formulas.
And its release is also extraordinary, linked a few
months later to that of Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars, consecrating that
historical moment to that of the birth of the spaghetti western. Because West
and Soda is nothing more than a parody of the western. A very intelligent
parody, which knows how to take all the clichés of the genre and reinvent them
in an unpredictable way. And that, after 60 years, has lost none of its
irreverent charge.
A parody of the hilarious western
From the hilarious opening sequence to the saloon, up to
the surreal final duel – which traditionally takes place under the blazing
midday sun – West and Soda still today, with its thousand ideas, gimmicks,
visual solutions, manages to give amazement and smiles even on the faces of new
spectators. It is not only a courageous film, but also a work full of heart and
passion, perceptible in every single scene. A film of the free spirit, which
already showed part of the genius that Bozzetto would demonstrate in subsequent
works.
Even reduced within the western genre, West and Soda
brilliantly reveals itself as a skillful parody of a genre that is desecrated in
all its formulas. There are no explanations about treasure findings, turbulent
backstories that afflict the protagonist or classic showdowns to the death. It
would be enough to mention the only visual device used to show Johnny's change
of outfit to admire how much this is still a film that manages to amaze and
always get off every track.
Unpredictable, brave and worthy of the charge that only a
gunslinger could have.
Rediscovering Bruno Bozzetto with the exhibition at
the Interactive Cinema Museum
This moment represents an unmissable opportunity to dive
into the works of a giant of Italian and world animation. Because it is
currently possible to discover – or rediscover – the entire production of our
Bozzetto through the splendid exhibition La Pop Art Animata by Bruno Bozzetto,
dedicated to him at the Interactive Museum of Cinema in Milan, now extended
until next March 15, 2026.
The gallery presents a very rich exhibition of original
rodovetri, preparatory materials, finds, sketches, storyboards of the master's
production and mini cinema to see all his restored short films at the highest
quality. An unmissable opportunity to admire the work of a filmmaker whose
influence has been mentioned too little lately, but whose value and legacy are
inestimable.
