Spaghetti Westerns: Cowboys and Europeans from Karl May to Sergio Leone (Cinema and Society)

“Christopher Frayling’s Spaghetti Westerns is a particularly entertaining and enjoyably readable book. Frayling is obviously both a film buff and film critic, so he is able to appreciate Spaghetti Westerns as popular entertainments, to celebrate their cinematic stylishness, while simultaneously knowledgeably exploring their many social and political dimensions.” – Gary Crowdus, Cineaste “Unquestionably the single best book written about the Western.” – Journal of Popular Film and Television Prologue : The European western: Sutter and his gold -- pt. 1. The context -- Spaghettis and society -- The studio -- Karl May and the noble savage -- pt. 2. The critics -- The 'cultural roots' controversy -- pt. 3. The films -- Sergio Leone's films--the sources -- The 'Dollars' trilogy--decors and details -- The 'Dollars' trilogy--analysis -- Once upon a time in the west -- Spaghettis and politics -- Epilogue : Spaghettis in the looking-glass -- Appendix 1 : Critical filmography -- Appendix 2 : The cut sequences in Leone's westerns -- Appendix 3 : The impact of spaghettis on the American western -- Appendix 4 : Box office receipts of A fistful of dollars in Italy -- Appendix 5 : Umberto Eco's model of the Superman formula

Spaghetti Westerns is the major critical exploration of the European Western. Christopher Frayling approaches the Westerns produced at Cinecitta Studios in Rome from a variety of perspectives, placing them in the Italian, social, political, industrial and cinematic contexts from which they evolved. Over 400 Spaghetti Westerns were produced during their 1960s peak period; Frayling deals with the most interesting examples, giving special attention to the films of Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood.

This is a major critical exploration of the European Western movie. Christopher Frayling examines the Westerns produced at Cinecitta Studios in Rome, giving special attention to the work of Sergio Leone