Review CXI - Per qualche dollaro in più

Review 111
For a Few Dollars More (1965)

This review was supposed to come out waaay before I'm actually posting it. But I ended up getting bu- what, you're tired of hearing the same excuses over and over again? Fine. So, here is the second film in the "Dollars" trilogy from Sergio Leone, Per qualche dollaro in più with our usual protagonist Clint Eastwood, alongside the ever-so-lovely Lee Van Cleef and familiar face Gian Maria Volonté. Lezz go!

The Man with No Name (Clint Eastwood) returns, stronger than ever to get those bounties. However, bounty hunter Colonel Douglas Mortimer (Lee Van Cleef) is particularly interested in catching one man, El Indio, a criminal with a high bounty. When Monco (as The Man with No Name is known in the film) decides to go after El Indio as well, the colonel decides to work together in order to catch this infamous and crazy man. But does Monco really approve?

Okay, so For a Few Dollars More was beautiful. It was a lot more colourful than A Fistful of Dollars, and you could see Sergio Leone was exploring more in this film. However, the plot was... lacking. I mean, you had the first one ripping off some Japanese film (I watched Yojimbo - it really is a double to A Fistful of Dollars, but with funnier music), but now I can see why - Sergio Leone wasn't quite at his peak in story-telling yet. Hence why this one is a bit meh at times. I mean, Monco is cool, Colonel Mortimer is cool, but El Indio's back story was meh. I mean, the way the shots were put together for the back story was cheesy, and I don't know, it was flimsy. I don't want to ruin it, but you guys might see what I mean if you watch the film. I dunno, it's just weak. But the ending worked with it, so Sergio Leone was close, but he really got it down with The Good, The Bad, The Ugly. Again, like A Fistful of Dollars, this was more of an experiment, or practice, if you will, which would lead into an ultimate classic.

As I mentioned, the shots were very nice. Not quite The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, but Sergio Leone was trying. There is some reference to the final scene of The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, but less refined. But in this one, he played with mirrors, with windows, the like. It was good. Not spectacular, but good nonetheless. And the additional colours were nice. Not just going with sandy brown, dark browns, black, and sandied-green, but brighter yellows, blues, etc. Not necessarily something you care about, but it's something my boyfriend enjoyed mentioning throughout the whole film, hehe.

For a Few Dollars More is not necessarily as good plot-wise as its predecessor or successor, but at least this one was no rip-off. Sergio Leone was trying to get more stable footing in terms of cinematography in this one, and its higher budget is definitely noticed. Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Gian Maria Volonté all did great jobs, though unfortunately, the plot made it so no one particularly shined... Well, they were still all bad ass, so I guess that isn't completely true, hehe. Not his best, but still a fun watch from Sergio Leone! Oh, and Ennio Morricone still rocks it.