The greatest western movie ever, and one of the best movies anyway. Amazing soundtrack, by Ennio Moricone.

They will never make a film like this again. An epic western with a large cast and real sets. The cinemascope widescreen format on real film. The languid pacing, demanding patience from the viewer, revealing the story slowly. The artistic shooting and framing of everything. The stylization. Somehow getting A-list hollywood talent into a film by a foreign, b-movie filmmaker. It simply couldn't be done today, and it will forever amaze me that it was done at all. This was Leone's best film, the one where everything came together. The acting, the music, the cinematography, the sets, the landscapes, and the story. It's all there. "Once Upon a Time in the West" may very well represent "peak cinema" - the exact high water mark of the film format. And for that reason, it's my favourite film.

Perhaps the greatest western that Leone made. Everything about it is just epic and oozes style. The cinematography, music, story and definitely the characters are great. All main characters are memorable from the mysterious and heroic "Harmonica" and villainous Frank, to the drop dead gorgeous Jill played by Claudia Cardinale! Gripping from the opening scene till the last shot, it's a thrilling ride for sure!

This one only gets better with each viewing. Leone's masterful storytelling and Morricone's crazy, beautiful, epic soundtrack; desperate, haunted faces that look like the barren landscapes the story is set in and a plot that unfolds with impeccable pacing to culminate in THE ultimate western finale. As in Leone's previous films, music isn't just used to add to the atmosphere but is essential to the story, or perhaps even more: Morricone's main musical theme plays the actual role of a (or rather: the) protagonist in the film. Anyone who thought that the so called "Spaghetti Westerns" were nothing but cheap, violent B-movies had to reconsider after seeing this film. It doesn't get any better than this: this is movie history; iconic, classic, unforgettable, epic - for this film, I just run out of words.