Very good no doubt about it, even if I feel it's an odd fitting third installment of the Dollars trilogy.
In case this review sounds negative at any point, I wanna explicitly state for the avoidance of any doubt that 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly' is very good! Any cons noted are relative.
I just feel like it's a drop-off from the brilliant double of 'A Fistful of Dollars' and 'For a Few Dollars More'. The near 3hr run time is one of the reasons, though the pacing is actually pretty good in fairness. I guess it's more so the plot, which is filled with an American Civil War setting which I didn't feel matched the characters.
The man in the middle/bounty hunting aspects of the original two films are perfect for the characters of Clint Eastwood & Co., whereas them tagging along for the war just felt odd; the story didn't feel as raw or volatile to me.
As stated, it's still - on its own merits - an entertaining western. Eastwood remains quality, while Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach are extremely worthy onscreen counterparts. I will say Van Cleef feels forgotten about, probably just by me, towards the end until he magically reappears. Still, as a trio they are really enjoyable. The plot away from the war is properly fun, much more in keeping to what I was expecting. The score is also awesome, yet again.
Minus the ACW and a shorter run time and I'd probably be classing this as great as AFOD and FAFDM. It's still very good though, which I evidently want to stress, and I'd definitely revisit it.
watched: "Extended English-language version".
Even though this version is the same as the original Italian release (177 minutes), but seemingly the US shortened run time is considered the true incarnation? Odd.