Global InformationA Fistful of Dollars information
| A Fistful of Dollars | |
|---|---|
 Italian theatrical release poster | |
| Italian | Per un pugno di dollari |
| Directed by | Sergio Leone |
| Based on | Yojimbo by Akira Kurosawa Ryūzō Kikushima (both uncredited) |
| Produced by | Arrigo Colombo Giorgio Papi[1] |
| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Massimo Dallamano[1] |
| Edited by | Roberto Cinquini[1] |
| Music by | Ennio Morricone |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 99 minutes[1] |
| Countries |
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| Languages | English Spanish Italian |
| Budget | $200,000–225,000[3] |
| Box office | $19.9 million |
A Fistful of Dollars (Italian: Per un pugno di dollari) is a 1964 spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood in his first leading role, alongside Gian Maria Volonté, Marianne Koch, Wolfgang Lukschy, Sieghardt Rupp, José Calvo, Antonio Prieto and Joseph Egger.[4] The film, an international co-production between Italy, West Germany and Spain, was filmed on a low budget (reported to be $200,000), and Eastwood was paid $15,000 for his role.[5]
Released in Italy in 1964 and in the United States in 1967, the film initiated the popularity of the spaghetti Western genre. It was followed by For a Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, both also starring Eastwood. Collectively, the films are known as the Dollars Trilogy, or the Man with No Name Trilogy, after the United Artists publicity campaign referred to Eastwood's character in all three films as the "Man with No Name". All three films were released in sequence in the United States in 1967, catapulting Eastwood into stardom.[6]
The film has been identified as an unofficial remake of the Akira Kurosawa film, Yojimbo (1961), which resulted in a successful lawsuit by Toho, Yojimbo's production company.[7] Kurosawa wrote to Leone directly, saying, "Signor Leone, I have just had the chance to see your film. It is a very fine film, but it is my film. Since Japan is a signatory of the Berne Convention on the international copyright, you must pay me." He and Toho received 15% of the film's revenue, and it is believed that Kurosawa earned more money from the financial settlement than he had made on his own film, Yojimbo.[8]
Few spaghetti Westerns had been released in the United States at the time, so many of the European cast and crew adopted American-sounding stage names. These included Leone ("Bob Robertson"), Gian Maria Volonté ("Johnny Wels") and composer Ennio Morricone ("Dan Savio"). A Fistful of Dollars was shot in Spain, mostly near Hoyo de Manzanares[9] close to Madrid, but also (like its two sequels) in the Tabernas Desert and in the Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park, both in the province of Almería.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Cite error: The named reference
Curti192was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c "Per un pugno di dollari". Lumiere. European Audiovisual Observatory. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Budgetwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Variety film review; 18 November 1964, page 22.
- ^ "Ennio Morricone" by Jerry McCulley, essay in the 1995 CD "The Ennio Morricone Anthology", Rhino DRC2-1237
- ^ McGilligan, Patrick (2015). Clint: The Life and Legend (updated and revised). New York: OR Books. ISBN 978-1-939293-96-1.
- ^ Norman, Dalton (26 February 2023). "Every Movie Based On Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on 29 August 2023. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
- ^ "Film Club: Yojimbo (1961)".
- ^ Caldito, Angel (3 September 2008). "Los primeros decorados del Oeste en España, en Hoyo de Manzanares" (in Spanish). Historias Matritenses. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.