A Fistful of Dollars

Original title: Per un pugno di dollari

1964
R
1h 39m

IMDb RATING

7.9/10

240K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer1:41

Spaghetti Western Drama Western

A wandering gunfighter plays two rival families against each other in a town torn apart by greed, pride, and revenge.A wandering gunfighter plays two rival families against each other in a town torn apart by greed, pride, and revenge.A wandering gunfighter plays two rival families against each other in a town torn apart by greed, pride, and revenge.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.9/10

240K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

2,600

231

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win & 5 nominations total

Ramón Rojo
(Italian, English version)
(as John Wells, Johnny Wels)

Marianne Koch

Marisol

Wolfgang Lukschy

John Baxter
(as W. Lukschy)

Sieghardt Rupp

Esteban Rojo
(as S. Rupp)

Joseph Egger

Piripero
(as Joe Edger)

Antonio Prieto

Don Benito Rojo…

José Calvo

Silvanito
(as Jose Calvo)

Margarita Lozano

Consuelo Baxter
(as Margherita Lozano)

Daniel Martín

Julián
(as Daniel Martin)

Benito Stefanelli

Rubio
(as Benny Reeves)

Mario Brega

Chico
(as Richard Stuyvesant)

Bruno Carotenuto

Antonio Baxter
(as Carol Brown)

Aldo Sambrell

Rojo gang member
(as Aldo Sambreli)

Raf Baldassarre

Juan De Dios
(uncredited)

Luis Barboo

Baxter Gunman 2
(uncredited)

Frank Braña

Baxter Gang Member
(uncredited)

José Canalejas

Rojo Gang Member
(uncredited)

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Yojimbo

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Clint Eastwood's contract for Rawhide (1959) prohibited him from making movies in the United States while on break from the series. However, the contract did allow him to accept movie assignments in Europe.

Goofs
When the Rojo gang ambush the Mexican army unit the gun Ramon uses to kill all the troops is a Mitrailleuse volley gun. Each barrel had to be laboriously loaded by hand before all barrels were fired together in a single volley. However, the film shows the volley gun being used as a form of machine gun. The only machine gun around at the time was the hand-cranked Gatling gun which the soundtrack also seems to depict.

A volley gun could fire each round individually using a hand crank. However, Ramon clearly has both hands on the (incorrect) twin grips at all times.

Quotes
[Having said "get three coffins ready" earlier]
Joe: My mistake. Four coffins...

Alternate versions
The original British theatrical release had about 4 minutes cut by the BBFC. Many closeup shots of bloodied faces and bodies (including the body of Chico) were removed, as well as a shot of Ramon dripping blood from his mouth. The main cuts, however, were to the beating up of Eastwood, which lost a hand stomping scene, and extensive cuts to the assault on the Baxters' house which was cut to shorten the overall sequence by removing all shots of men on fire, and the shooting of Consuela Baxter. (The cut version removes the shot of her falling backwards.) The 1999 MGM video and DVD releases are fully uncut and the same as the USA DVD release.

Connections
Featured in The Man with No Name (1977)

Soundtracks
Sweet Betsy from Pike
(uncredited)
Written by John A. Stone
Performed by Clint Eastwood

User reviews389

Review

Featured review

8/10

A Barrelful of Bullets (Amongst Other Things)...

A one man vigilante enters town, proceeds to take four shooters down without a frown, the filling of, a feudal sandwich, allies to both, presents his own pitch, it's not too long before his masterplan is blown. As the barrels start to role and then cascade, cadavers keep the coffin man in trade, the bullets ricochet, will our Joe make his payday, or will the bandits and the smugglers have their say.

It's hard to believe this 1964 western is as engaging as it was when I first watched it as a kid growing up. I've enjoyed its company many times since, as well as that of Yojimbo upon which it was based; the timeless tale of one man doing the right thing, fighting the corrupt and the crooked, just for a fistful of dollars or, in modern parlance, a computer full of crypto - I know which I prefer.