The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Three morally flexible gunslingers navigate Civil War chaos, shifting alliances, and lethal betrayals in a baroque race for buried gold.
Overview
Three men, each with their own motives, race against time to claim a buried treasure in a lawless land.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- operatic
- witty
- cynical
- classic movie night
- western marathon
What critics said
Widely regarded as a landmark spaghetti western, praised for Sergio Leone's operatic direction, visual invention, performances, and set pieces despite early objections to its length and stylized violence.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Sergio Leone reshapes the conventional western through Italian production, exaggerated violence, iconic antiheroes, and operatic pacing.
The $200,000 treasure and the divided information about its cemetery and grave name propel all three protagonists toward their collision.
Leone alternates sweeping Civil War landscapes and battlefield spectacle with extreme close-ups of the three gunslingers during confrontations.
Blondie and Tuco repeatedly depend on one another to survive while exploiting, abandoning, and hunting each other.
Films like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and why
Once Upon a Time in the West
stylized western violence, morally ambiguous gunslingers, expansive landscapes, and operatic filmmaking
For a Few Dollars More
spaghetti western conventions, taciturn antiheroes, bounty-driven conflict, and heightened gunplay
The Wild Bunch
revisionist western atmosphere, outlaw protagonists, dark humor, and memorable standoffs
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
treasure-hunt structure, cynical adventurers, comic violence, and morally flexible protagonists
Movie Details
- Director
- Sergio Leone
- Release Date
- 1966-12-23
- Runtime
- 161 min
- Rating
- 8.5 / 10 (9980)
Cast
- Clint Eastwood
- Eli Wallach
- Lee Van Cleef
- Aldo Giuffrè
- Luigi Pistilli
- Rada Rassimov
- Enzo Petito
- Claudio Scarchilli
- Antonio Casale
- Livio Lorenzon
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly about?
- Three morally flexible gunslingers navigate Civil War chaos, shifting alliances, and lethal betrayals in a baroque race for buried gold.
- What is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly as graphic.
- What did critics think of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?
- Widely regarded as a landmark spaghetti western, praised for Sergio Leone's operatic direction, visual invention, performances, and set pieces despite early objections to its length and stylized violence.
- Which films are like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?
- Films with a similar feel include Once Upon a Time in the West, For a Few Dollars More, The Wild Bunch, and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
- How long is The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?
- The Good, the Bad and the Ugly runs 161 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?
- In United States, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly streams on fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus.
