This Classic Western Turned a Beloved Hollywood Hero Into a Vicious Monster

Sergio Leone's 1968 Hollywood epic Once Upon a Time in the West is widely praised as one of the greatest films in the Western genre (if not the greatest). The Italian director's fourth outing in the genre, following his Clint Eastwood-starring Dollars trilogy, Once Upon a Time in the West is both a love letter and a critique of the Western. It has the staples of tense shootouts, fast-paced action, and sublime imagery of the vast American desert, but at the same time, it manages to deconstruct the iconography through unexpected twists, heightened violence, and a subversive casting decision that manages to reflect a shift in cinema and society all in a single role. Yes, we're talking about Henry Fonda as Frank.