The Great Silence (1968)
"Il grande silenzio" (original title)

A mute gunslinger faces off against a gang of bounty hunters in the great blizzard of 1899, and a grim, tense struggle unfolds.

Director:

Sergio Corbucci

Writers:

Mario Amendola (screenplay), Bruno Corbucci (screenplay),

Stars:

Jean-Louis Trintignant, Klaus Kinski, Frank Wolff

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jean-Louis Trintignant	...	Silence
Klaus Kinski	...	Tigrero / Loco
Frank Wolff	...	Sheriff Burnett
Luigi Pistilli	...	Pollicut
Vonetta McGee	...	Pauline
Mario Brega	...	Martin, Pollicut's Assistant
Carlo D'Angelo	...	Governor
Marisa Merlini	...	Regina
Maria Mizar
Marisa Sally
Raf Baldassarre	...	One-Eyed Bounty Hunter
Spartaco Conversi	...	Walter, Leader of the Outlaws
Remo De Angelis
Mirella Pamphili	...	Saloon Girl

Storyline

Bounty killers led by Loco prey on outlaws hiding out in the snowbound Nevada mountains. After Pauline's husband becomes Loco's latest victim, she hires a gunman for revenge; Silence, mute since his throat was cut as a child

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Plot Keywords:

mute | gunslinger | outlaw | mountain | bounty hunter | 

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

19 November 1968 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Great Silence

Filming Locations:

Cortina d'Ampezzo, Belluno, Veneto, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Adelphia Compagnia Cinematografica, Les Films Corona

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Sound System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jean-Louis Trintignant had agreed to do the film in order to help out the producer, who was a friend of his.

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Goofs

Various spelling mistakes in the title cards.

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Quotes

Sheriff Burnett: You ain't by some chance one of them no- good bounty hunters, are ya? .... I asked you a question, so answer. I'm a sheriff....Well? Where you come from? How long you intend to stay? If you think you're bein' smart, just watch yourself. Now then, stranger, let's have it--
Pauline: He can't answer, sheriff. He's a mute.
Sheriff Burnett: [Turns to Silence] Well I'll be. At least you could have told me.

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Connections

Referenced in Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

User Reviews

Brilliant And Unique, One Of The Best Westerns Ever Made!

Sergio Corbucci's masterpiece "Il Grande Silenzio" aka. "The Great Silence" is more than just one of the greatest Westerns of all-time. Unlike Corbucci's earlier masterpiece "Django" from 1966, a violent Spaghetti Western, but also full of dark humor, "The Great Silence" is a sad and utterly serious movie from the beginning to the end, a brutal tale about misery, greed and selfishness, about injustice and the desire for revenge.

Winter of 1898, in the mountain town of Snow Hill, Utah. People who were forced to steal in order to survive an ice cold winter, are mercilessly chased and murdered by unscrupolous bounty hunters, who don't care who they kill as long as there is a reward on their victim's head. The most atrocious of these bounty hunters is vicious Loco, outstandingly pictured by Klaus Kinski. In their calamity, desperate relatives of the head hunters' victims hire a mute gunman called Silence, in order to avenge their loved ones and end the killings.

The acting in this movie is brilliant. Nobody could be as diabolical as Klaus Kinski in the role of Loco, Jean-Louis Trintignant performance as Silence is just great, and Vonetta McGee is amazing as Pauline, a beautiful black woman, who falls in love with Silence after losing her husband to the bountykillers. The supporting cast contains such great Spaghetti Western actors as Luigi Pistilli, Mario Brega and Frank Wolff. The Music by Ennio Morricone is, once again, excellent (how couldn't it), the main theme is one of his greatest compositions. The locations are very well-chosen, impressive images of a snowy mountain wasteland make you almost feel the cold. "The Great Silence is", after "Django", Sergio Corbucci's second film that could be described as one of the most important Westerns of all-time. Both brutal and both masterpieces, the two movies are still completely different. While Django was violent but, in its dark way, also humorous, The Great Silence is sad, serious and severe. Incomparable in every aspect, "The Great Silence" even surpasses "Django" in its brilliance, and easily deserves to be named as one of the greatest Westerns ever made.

The Great Silence is a must-see, not only for fans of Spaghetti Westerns, but for every lover of film. Brilliant And Unique, one of the greatest Westerns ever made, one of my favorite movies of all time! 10/10