Once Upon a Time in the Italian West: The Filmgoers' Guide to Spaghetti Westerns

by Howard Hughes

Covering every Italian Spaghetti Western--mainly the good but also the bad and the ugly--this is an authoritative, entertaining and comprehensive companion to the implausible international fusion of producers, directors, actors and composers who created the mythical Spaghetti West under the most improbable circumstances. Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy led the field but many more major Spaghetti Westerns were made by important directors, including Sergio Corbucci's Navajo Joe, Carlo Lizzani's The Hills Run Red, Duccio Tessari's A Pistol for Ringo. Combining analysis, information and lively anecdotes, this popular guide explores all of these films through the biographies and filmographies of key personnel, stories of each production, their locations and sets, sources, musical scores, detailed cast information and many illustrations, including original posters and stills.

Genres: Film, Media Tie In, Italy, Nonfiction

266 pages, Paperback

First published September 24, 2004

Reviews

[Jerry St.peter]

The description of this book on Goodreads says it covers every Italian western. The truth is that there are 20 chapters on 20 of the (arguably) most well-known films of the genre. In his analyses of those films, Hughes refers to many others, but only briefly. Though I liked the book overall, and would recommend it to a novice, it is not as comprehensive as the blurb on Goodreads would lead you to believe.

[Karl O' · Rating 3 out of 5]

Heavy on facts, light on analysis. I did get value from the intruduction chapters and s hood overall sense of the spaghetti west genre. Past that the book deep dives into twenty specific movies, some which I knew well. I didn’t much like the writing style. All said, a good reference of not that comprehensive.

[Mike Travers · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great guide to the top line Spaghetti's, covering the best but also mentioning a trove of others. I have read it through 3 times, My jumping off point as it were.

Also see 'Any Gun Can Play" by Kevin Grant.

I have now seen 63 with a number to go.

[Luis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great insight into these films! Wish the chapters were a bit longer.

[Erich Scholz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't put this thing down. Hughes (not THAT Howard Hughes, mind you) leaves out one of the obvious choices -- the book's namesake ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST after rating all of Leone's previous films, but the detail captured including dates of filming, sets, costumes and analysis of the movies' musical scores makes this one a keeper.

[Paul John Blair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book and simple- author picks his top ten Spaghetti Westerns and reviews them. That simple! Great book for fans new to the genre to start with and seek out the films! Hughes is also an interesting writer.