For a Few Dollars More, Salt

I honestly can't remember if I'd seen For a Few Dollars More before. Blasphemy, I know, but it's just one of those movies that everyone has seen parts or is at least aware of it and its iconic score and imagery, that I honestly wasn't sure if I had sat down and watched the thing all the way through. So, yesterday, just to be sure, I put it on and watched that sucker.

I had watched A Fist Full of Dollars, the first part of Leone's Man with No Name Trilogy, a few weeks ago and while that movie is an undeniable classic, I have to admit I enjoyed For a Few Dollars More quite a bit more. Everything about this movie seems more confident than the first. Eastwood, Leone, and even Ennio Morricone's score impressively build on what they started with A Fist Full of Dollars. The addition of Lee Van Cleef as Eastwood's unlikely ally also adds the overall enjoyment.

For me, these movies are all about Eastwood. Even if he had never made a western again he would still be just as connected with the genre as he is today solely based on this trilogy. Not only does his Man with no name not give a fuck, but he only uses his right hand for shooting and nothing else. He lets his left do all the drinking and fighting. A serious badass.

As I've said before in this blog, the western is one of my favorite film genre's, so it's particularly exciting to watch this trilogy as it not only cements Eastwood as supreme western God, but it also influenced countless films and filmmakers alike. Leone's trilogy may not be my absolute favorite westerns, but they are without a doubt some of the best ever put to film.



I also watched Salt yesterday, an action flick starring Angelina Jolie as a spy who is forced to go on the run after she has been accused of trying to assassinate the Russian President.

I honestly don't know why I wanted to watch this all of a sudden. I've always enjoyed Jolie in action films, but this one really didn't speak to me when it came out last summer. However, when I saw it was on Netflix instant I kind of said to myself " Fuck it".

And you know what? I liked it. It's pretty silly and very stupid, but like I said, Jolie is easy to watch in this genre. I genuinely believe that she could kick my ass, as most people could.

Salt isn't as solid as Mr.& Mrs. Smith, or as ridiculous as Wanted, but it actually went places I didn't expect, something which is hard to say for a lot of mainstream action films these days.

The worst thing I could say about it is that I called out who the villain was 2 minutes in, but even so I was able to just go along for the ride. I recommend watching this one if you've got an afternoon to kill or some beers to drink, otherwise you might just end up hating me for having suggested it.