Vimeo user, Max Tohline, whom I’m assuming is a professor at Ohio University based on a Google search, has posted the following video taking a look at the editing in Sergio Leone‘s spaghetti western classic The Good, the Bad and the Ugly with a focus on the film’s climax and exploring what he calls the “mathematical patterns, images of thought, and pure musical rhythm” of the scene, all achieved by the editing.
[amz asin=”B003EYEF2S” size=”small”]Max offers some fascinating insight that I would have never noticed, though one opening quote doesn’t quite sit well with me, though I get his point. After examining a couple of classic moments and Leone’s usage of framing in GBU, Max says, “For me this encapsulates the way most people watch movies, because they’re only looking for the story, they miss the film.”
I can’t quite tell if he is saying this as a negative, and while it’s an astute observation, at the same time I’d argue that’s the point of good cinema and why I never would have noticed what he explores in the following video. If you’re watching the movie and you begin to take notice of the filmmaking and, in this case, Leone’s editing patterns, one could argue the filmmaking technique has taken you out of the movie. I’d say was one of my minor problems with Gravity, where the marvelous technical achievements began to outweigh the overall feature.
I’d argue it’s best something like this goes unnoticed unless you decide to take a closer look. Give the video a watch and let me know what you think.
