Spaghetti westerns differ greatly from traditional American western films because they were filmed by Italian directors and provide us with an outside perception of American culture and society. They don’t follow the “classic” Western formula, which generally consisted of townspeople, outlaws or criminals who threaten the townspeople, and heroes who act on behalf of the townspeople and triumph over the outlaws. Whereas in traditional films the alpha male cowboys ultimately act on behalf of the people they are trying to help, the cowboys in spaghetti westerns act on behalf of their own self-interest. Themes that are continually emphasized in spaghetti westerns are greed and violence. As we see in the The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, all three characters are after one thing—$200,000 that is hidden in an unmarked grave in a cemetery. They stop at nothing to get to the grave, killing many people along the way. The “bad” especially displays a great deal more violence than we’ve seen in other villainous characters in traditional westerns. He is hired in the beginning of the film to kill a man after he retrieves information from the man, and before he kills him, the man gives Angel Eyes money to repay the favor to the person who wanted him murdered. Angel Eyes returns to the first man, and after sharing the information with him, murders him as well because he always goes through with something he is paid for. This kind of portrayal of Americans shows that foreigners believed Americans would stop at nothing to get what they wanted, especially if what they wanted was money. Americans acted on behalf of their own self-interest and no action was too violent to commit.
Navajo Joe is also significantly different from traditional Westerns because we see a person who was once an “other” in American films taking on a lead role in a film and becoming an alpha male character. This film focuses on revenge, as we learn that both Joe and the outlaw, Duncan, are both seeking revenge on each other throughout the film. Duncan and his band of outlaws sweep through an entire Indian village and brutality murders all but Joe. They scalp the Indians for cash, even when the sheriff says that he will arrest Duncan because he is now killing innocent Indian tribes as opposed to troublemakers. What we later learn is that Duncan’s father was murdered by Indians when he was a child, which is why he doesn’t stop murdering Indians. Joe is following Duncan and his men because they murdered his village and his woman, and he spoils Duncan’s plan to hold up a train that is carrying half a million dollars. Once again, money is the driving force behind everyone’s actions in the film, even Joe’s. He doesn’t want to protect the townspeople from Duncan unless they are willing to pay him. Both of these films represent greed and the violent crimes that men committed to get what they desired.
Spaghetti westerns differ greatly from traditional American western films because they were filmed by Italian directors and provide us with an outside perception of American culture and society. They don’t follow the “classic” Western formula, which generally consisted of townspeople, outlaws or criminals who threaten the townspeople, and heroes who act on behalf of the townspeople and triumph over the outlaws. Whereas in traditional films the alpha male cowboys ultimately act on behalf of the people they are trying to help, the cowboys in spaghetti westerns act on behalf of their own self-interest. Themes that are continually emphasized in spaghetti westerns are greed and violence. As we see in the The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, all three characters are after one thing—$200,000 that is hidden in an unmarked grave in a cemetery. They stop at nothing to get to the grave, killing many people along the way. The “bad” especially displays a great deal more violence than we’ve seen in other villainous characters in traditional westerns. He is hired in the beginning of the film to kill a man after he retrieves information from the man, and before he kills him, the man gives Angel Eyes money to repay the favor to the person who wanted him murdered. Angel Eyes returns to the first man, and after sharing the information with him, murders him as well because he always goes through with something he is paid for. This kind of portrayal of Americans shows that foreigners believed Americans would stop at nothing to get what they wanted, especially if what they wanted was money. Americans acted on behalf of their own self-interest and no action was too violent to commit.
ReplyDeleteNavajo Joe is also significantly different from traditional Westerns because we see a person who was once an “other” in American films taking on a lead role in a film and becoming an alpha male character. This film focuses on revenge, as we learn that both Joe and the outlaw, Duncan, are both seeking revenge on each other throughout the film. Duncan and his band of outlaws sweep through an entire Indian village and brutally murder all but Joe. They scalp the Indians for cash, even when the sheriff says that he will arrest Duncan because he is now killing innocent Indian tribes as opposed to troublemakers. What we later learn is that Duncan’s father was murdered by Indians when he was a child, which is why he doesn’t stop murdering Indians. Joe is following Duncan and his men because they murdered his village and his woman, and he spoils Duncan’s plan to hold up a train that is carrying half a million dollars. Once again, money is the driving force behind everyone’s actions in the film, even Joe’s. He doesn’t want to protect the townspeople from Duncan unless they are willing to pay him. Also, the townspeople in the film don’t notice that Joe isn’t present when his horse rides into town with their stolen money, which is the only thing they are concerned about. Both of these films represent greed and the violent crimes that men committed to get what they desired.