Movie Review: "For a Few Dollars More"

Back in the 1960's, when movie acting actually required talent and screenwriters knew how to write plots that involved more than the predictable plot line, a man named Sierra Leone produced a trio of movies starring Clint Eastwood.  Known as "spaghetti westerns," these movies are far from predictable - they will keep you on the edge of your seat, and your mind racing trying to unravel the plot and predict an ending.

The scoop?  Spaghetti westerns means that these movies don't follow the typical plot - they have no discernible exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.  Just like spaghetti, everything is all interconnected and interwoven, but there is no real ending.

My boyfriend got me started on these several months ago.  We started with "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," then moved to "A Fistful of Dollars," and two days ago watched "For a Few Dollars More."  Out of the three, "For a Few Dollars More" has the most predictable plot.

It's a western movie set in beautiful, desolate country.  Clint Eastwood, with his cigar constantly hanging out of his mouth, calmly serves justice, as a bounty killer, against all odds.  I'm sure you can go to any movie review site to read all about this movie in the most technical and academic terms, so I'm just going to tell you what I like about the movie.

First off, the setting, as I mentioned before, is breath-taking.  It's desolate country, yes.  Country that I would not want to be stranded in, but country that takes your breath away.  It builds the suspense in the movie, because surviving in that country is an art and sometimes you aren't sure your favorite character is going to survive.

Secondly, I love the plot - or rather, the lack thereof.  I greatly dislike predictable.  My favorite books and movies are all devoid of your standard plot - they contain non-linear plot, no plot at all, or they have a plot line that is hard to discern.  I don't like movies, books, and songs that I can put my brain on autopilot through; I like having to think below the surface and to have to dig deeper to find the meaning.  While all three of Sierra Leone's movies make the cut for me in this area, I will say that "For a Few Dollars More" was my least favorite in this regard, because it actually has a very discernible plot line, once you reach the end of the movie.  It also actually ends like you think it will.  The other two movies don't end predictably, and I like them better for that quality.

Thirdly, you  cannot beat the acting of Clint Eastwood.  His calm manner, always unperturbed even when facing certain death, won me over quickly.  He isn't a man of many words, his facial expression rarely changes, but you always know his brain is one ahead of his enemy and that his character will come out alive.

All that to say, if you are going to watch one of Sierra Leone's movies, I recommend starting with "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly."  If you like that one, you will like the other two.  They are not for the faint of heart, though.  If you like the easy fare of movies that we are so used to these days, the tangled plot lines and long movies (all over two hours) of Sierra Leone might not be your thing.