Once Upon a Time in the West

(My first time doing this, but trigger warning for some discussion of sexual assault in the context of plot points from a movie. Any advice on if I am doing this wrong much appreciated in the comments!)

I went into this one with a small measure of anticipation. I had watched and enjoyed a couple of the Sergio Leone 'Dollars' trilogy, and enjoyed them greatly. Whilst OUATitW may lack the steely gravitas Clint Eastwood provided those films, the triple threat of Charles Bronson, Henry Fonda and Jason Robards was sure to be ample compensation.

Sure enough, the film opens with a opening scene both laid back and tense, all at once. Ennio Morricone puts us right back in the old west instantly with another iconic score. Leone is in top form, showing us three bandits taking over a sleepy rural rail station, and waiting for the train to arrive. All the directors signature tools of the trade are in evidence as the virtuoso sequence climaxes in a shootout between the bandits and Bronson's laconic antihero, Harmonica.

Soon we are introduced to the delectable Claudia Cardinale's character, the widow Jill McBain. I would hesitate more over describing Ms Cardinale as delectable, if the film didn't take great pains to highlight her character's main positive quality as being her eroticism (both in terms of story and production choices). This despite her character being formidable in many ways, and all the more interesting for it.

More problematic still is how the three main male characters interact with the Widow McBain. I'm afraid to say it all gets a little bit rapey. OK, a lot rapey. A few selected moments:

• When Harmonica 'surprises' McBain in her barn, he forcefully and aggressively tears the lace collar from her dress, tears her sleeves open and pushes her to the floor, restraining her there. Once it is clear he is dominant and in total control of her, he lets her up and flatly orders her to fetch him some water. I should point out that Harmonica is ostensibly the good guy of the piece.
• Henry Fonda plays Frank, a villainous 'fixer' in the employ of a crooked railway baron. He was responsible for the death of McBain's husband. Later, when he has kidnapped McBain she is forced to have sex with him whilst he taunts her about responsibility for her husbands death. Even more disturbing, McBain is shown responding to these advances with outright arousal, as Frank says"You'll do anything to save your own skin." Sure, she hates the guy, but she is rendered helpless by the touch of a man, any man it seems.
• Jason Robards is probably the most respectful of the three, despite his character being the most morally neutral. As the bandit leader Cheyenne, he ends up coming down on the side of good. Towards the end of the movie, he advises McBain to bring water to the thirsty crew of railroad workers who are building their tracks towards her property. He continues "Can't imagine how happy it makes a man to see a woman like you. Just to look at her. And if one of them should pat your behind, just make believe it's nothing. They earned it." Apparently a hard days work is all it takes for a man to be able to ignore a pretty woman's personal boundaries and body autonomy. Sure enough, Cheyenne gets his ass pat in before he leaves.

So yeah plenty of excellent life lessons to be had here. /sarcasm

It is a shame, because the film has some terrific set pieces and otherwise would be a terrific companion to the Dollars trilogy. As it stands though it is difficult to recommend. Probably one to leave back in the sixties, where it belongs.