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Apr 25, 2011

It finally hit me...

When I finally sat down to watch The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly some months back, Lee Van Cleef had to have been the standout for me. Pure evil, yet with grace. He also just had himself one hell of a unique look. Funny then, that he reminded me of someone then. Thing is, I could never figure out who...until now.

I'm now saying that there should ever be a remake, but if they were to, could they get Stephen Lang to take Van Cleef's place?




9 people have chosen wisely: on "It finally hit me..."

Colin Biggs said...

Lee Van Cleef... that opening scene of Good, Bad and the Ugly makes you want to gun him down right there.

JL said...

You know, I have yet to get around to watching this movie in its entirety. I've seen bits and pieces here and there, but never in full and through one sit-through. I really need to get to it.

Jack L said...

Lee Van Cleef is awesome, he was always my favourite of the three.

I suppose Lang could do an alright job but it could only ever be a pale imitation of Cleef's portrayal.

Do you think they will ever remake The Good The Bad and The Ugly ?

Anonymous said...

Dylan wants a remake of GBU? BLASPHEMY.

Gotta watch out for those nefarious typos.

Univarn said...

A remake of GBU would end disastrously. That was such a rare triple threat of the right cast for the right story with the right writer/director all blending together at once. At best you'd probably get one of those three today - but I'm willing to bet it'd never be the cast.

Anyways, I'm thinking Stephen Lang needs to team up and do a buddy western movie with Sam Elliot. At least while good ol' Ennio Morricone is around to provide the soundtrack!

Fletch said...

@ Fitz - I hear ya. It's all right there in the title.

@ JL - Certainly understandable given the length and pacing (by today's standards). But it's worth it.

@ Jack - Seriously, right? Van Cleef just has such a cool face.

I don't know about that imitation stuff, though. You're probably right, but watch Avatar and then Tombstone and tell me Lang doesn't have chops. But yes, I was going more off the physical resemblance.

Well, never say never to any remake - ANY. Even the ones we think untouchable now might not seem so untouchable in 60 years. I wouldn't bet on anything not being remade in time. That said, GBU would probably be pretty far down the line. Not in Godfather land, but not too far away, either.

@ James - Yes! Do it! *evil*

@ Univarn - Well, actually, he kinda has, in a way, with Tombstone. But hell yeah...we need another big Western role for Elliott...I don't care if he's a caricature of himself, that man is an institution.

Thaddeus said...

I really gotta rewatch TGtB&tU soon. I haven't been in the mood for a western in ages, but I put this and "For a Fistful of Dollars" on my rental queue two weeks ago.

A remake, as I'm sure we can all guess, would have a 70% chance of disaster. =)

Kaiderman said...

Good call. It's in the eyes and brow.
He's intense but I don't think you can copy that original performance.

M. Hufstader said...

Crap, this is interesting. And it got me thinking about who I'd pick to possibly play Angel Eyes (even though, as everyone says, obviously can't be copied). It's hard to think up any actors with that sort of quiet "evil yet graceful" that you pointed out. And the truth is, I really can't think of any actors these days who are that subtle. Daniel Day Lewis is the only one that comes to mind for me, and I'm thinking along the lines of his Gangs of New York performance. Ralph Fiennes is also incredibly subtly yet intimidating.

But neither of them really have that strength in silence that Lee Van Cleef does. However, if we're going by looks, Stephen Lang definitely looks the part, and now I really have to see that movie you recommended.