 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
A Fistful of Dollars
- Review Date: July 19, 2007
- NR
- Genre: Western
- 2007
Common Sense Media says
Guns galore in intro "spaghetti Western" serving.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this is more violent than many of the Hollywood Westerns that preceded it -- though ones that came after were worse. Lots of men (and one woman) die, even if we don't see bullets leaving exit woods. A little boy is tormented by being fired at (but not hit) by bullies, and the hero suffers an excruciating beating. One character uses a plate of metal under his poncho as an effective bulletproof vest -- a real don't-try-this-at-home detail.
What's the story?
A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS is set in a grim Mexican border town called San Miguel. Into its dusty streets rides an American who would become known as The Man With No Name (Clint Eastwood). After getting bullied by some gunmen (who also harass a little boy by shooting at him), TMWNN learns from a friendly saloon-keeper that San Miguel makes its money buying guns and ammunition cheaply, then selling it to the Indians up north. Moreover, there are two factions involved, frequently killing each other: the corrupt sheriff/mayor Baxter and his family, and a rival gang led by the Rojo brothers. TMWNN hires on with the Baxter gang, then with the Rojo gang, studying their methods and informing each criminal boss about the other's movements, turning them against each other.
Is it any good?
In the 1960s Italians, Spanish, Germans, and even Israelis started making their own Westerns, sticking to the classic iconography of gun duels, saloons, and desperadoes on horseback, but without the censorship codes of Hollywood. In the case of Italian director Sergio Leone, there was not just an elevated level of violence, but also a then-groundbreaking filmmaking style, with an emphasis on long, tense close-ups of the actors' faces, widescreen camera compositions, and hauntingly unusual music by Ennio Morricone. Westerns had been jokingly called "horse operas" before. Leone made them something close to real opera, and his style was much imitated.
It also helped that Leone was recommended the lean, little-regarded young actor Eastwood to play his recurring unnamed hero (Morricone originally wanted Henry Fonda or James Coburn), triggering another illustrious career. Though he doesn't come across as all that horrible these days, The Man With No Name was so disturbing to American tastes that when A Fistful of Dollars first aired on U.S. television, the studio hastily shot a prologue (with an Eastwood stand-in with his back to the camera) to explain that he's got a higher purpose than profit -- he's really an undercover lawman being sent on a mission to clean up the town, by guile and stealth. That little addition is missing from the home-video release versions of A Fistful of Dollars. Instead there's just a scrap of incidental dialogue to indicate that the gunslinger empathizes deeply with the victims in San Miguel, not the victimizers.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about why the nameless Clint Eastwood character caused such a ruckus in the 1960s. Is the Man With No Name truly "amoral," as many commentators have called him? What are his motives? Is it a clue when he tells a family he's rescuing that he knew someone who needed help once, when no help came? You can use this movie to get kids interested in the Japanese classic it remakes, Yojimbo.
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AGE
A Fistful of Dollars
Gotta love the Eastwood westerns. What a fantastic preformance.
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AGE
I can't help but loving it!
after I broke my arm I couln't do anything exept watch movies(not even play video games!). so I went to a second hand movie store and bought this movie and it's two sequles, and this is my favoret of both of them. it's my favoret clint eastwood movie and my favoret western movie. oviously CM doesn't know what their talking about, this movie isn't "not rated" it's rated R but, at the time it was made there was no PG-13 rating. in my oppinon it should be rated PG-13 I recommend this movie to anyone there isn't even any bad language! 11 and up it's a go!
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AGE
Some Concerns, but Approved for My Boys
Although this is a very violent movie, I approved it for my 13 and 10 year old boys. Unlike most westerns, the main character was not out for revenge. He was obviously plotting two rival western gangs against each other to rid the town of them. A town whose innocent people had been tortured, murdered, and worse by these bullies. In this time and place in history there was no court or prison system; the only way to protect the innocent from evil-doers was to end the lives of the evil-doers. I believe "killing the bad guys" is only appropriate in a circumstance like this where victims can be protected in no other reasonable way. Also, unlike most westerns, there was a great respect for the personhood of women (and children and good men too). When the main character had the opportunity, he didn't even look at a vulnerable woman inappropriately, let alone lay a hand on her. Also, it shows another woman as valuable for being the person she is, as well as for her important roles as wife and mother in her family. The main character also protects a victim family with, potentially, his life, taking a severe beating and knowing he might die, but continues to keep the family protected. These things are very commendable as far as I'm concerned.
There are some drawbacks, and it did take some conversation between my husband and I to determine if our boys could watch this. There is a little revenge at one point when he prolongs the death of a bad guy a little, but it's not as obvious of revenge again as in most westerns. The women's clothing is certainly low-cut, although I don't think they come across as provocative, but rather the style of the day. There is a LOT of mindless killing, although by the bad guys in order to show just how ruthless they are. There IS blood, despite what the Common Sense review says, though not much and it looks more like paint, and the "murderous suitor" DOES "lay and hand on her" - he kisses the captured woman. And it may be of concern to some parents that there is continuous smoking and a lot of drinking.
Overall, I'm glad I previewed this. I had said "no" upon reading the Common Sense review, but decided to preview myself after the heartfelt pleading of my older son. :)
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| Studio: | MGM/UA |
| Director: | Sergio Leone |
| Cast: | Clint Eastwood, Marianne Koch, Wolfgang Lukschy |
| Genre: | Western |
| Run time: | 102 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | August 27, 2007 |
| DVD release date: | October 5, 1999 |
| MPAA rating: | NR |
| MPAA explanation: | not rated |
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