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My Name Is Nobody surprised me in more ways than one and gave me a reason to love it when a single movie managed to swallow me with so much suspense.
My father and I recently went on a business trip to Vancouver, where we swapped a huge pile of Western DVDs. Indeed, my family is old school like that which is why we love our DVDs. Anyway, I chose to watch My Name Is Nobody because it had the shortest runtime of the Spaghetti Westerns in the stack.
Should chroniclers note which movie turned a young lad into a hysterical twink, it would certainly be My Name is Nobody (1973). I don’t hold high expectations out of post-1970 Westerns, and My Name is Nobody is an exception as well. The reviews and ratings certainly didn’t hold high esteem for this piece and the cover is notoriously embittering. The beat from the trailer and the words felt entirely out of place and left me puzzled. The quotes as stated to be a renowned ‘rollicking and thrilling’ experience are far from accurate.
And boy, holy. I’ll keep my facts correct, so please stop me if I’m wrong, but did someone say laugh? This term barely covers an inch of space when describing this show. It tackles a unique subject matter only, inside of the space Westerns it’s crafted which makes it indescribably iconic. It captures your attention in ways bone and lifeless could only beg to see. The pile of DVDs I sifted through surely contained every Terence Hill movie and my hands restored to dripping gold.
The story revolves around 1899, a specific year depicting the era of the Old West and all its glory. Despite the Italian language and its eastern art, the majority of its cast garners to Europe. The saddening part for Spain fans is that most scenes were shot in New Mexico and the rest were done there.
Starting with the unique opening theme to the caustic closeups and peripheral dialogue, to the ridiculously sharp focus on singular sounds these films can easily be the face of ASMR. You instantly engage with the Spaghetti Western genre. Villains on horseback arrive in the town. They try to kill the aging gunman Jack Beauregard (Henry Fonda) but they are met with defeat as he swiftly takes them out.
A child asks the bewildered barber if there is anyone in the world who possesses greater speed to which he states, “Faster than him? No one!”
Who is set on a tranquil retirement, finds a young drifter (Terence Hill) with exceptionally quick reflexes who is seen slapping fish. During their next encounter, it is alongside a time bomb. “What is your name?” Beauregard inquires, to which the drifter responds, “Who? Me? Nobody.”
It turns out that he is actually Beauregard’s finest fan and has a singular goal that includes seeing Beauregard take down the old Wild Bunch and in turn, elevating him to a true living legend. But Nobody is no ordinary drifter and Benaregard is completely in for a wild ride. Literally.
The writing is exceptional, based on a premise by Sergio Leone that was further developed by three other writers, and even the parts that are outright baffling are still remarkably comical.
The cinematography certainly brings some Leone nostalgia to mind (particularly during the few sequences Leone filmed himself) but the plethora of other new, unexpected angles and shots are astounding as well. The combination of tense close-ups and broad shots with ‘70s elements and fast-paced action is exactly what the story needs.
Everyone from the leads to the most minor characters nails their role, which makes the overall performance perfect.
Some of the trick riding in the last scenes is incredibly impressive and quite breathtaking.
It’s insane how great the story plays out without there being any antagonists at all, sure, there are some incompetent villains trying to chase down Beauregard and the mysterious Wild Bunch, but good versus evil isn’t why this story shines.
To add to that, My Name is Nobody laughs along with the genre while simultaneously laughing at it for the entirety of the movie.
In one of my favorite scenes, Nobody and Beauregard are at a tomb rest. Nobody decides to recite the names on the tombs and says “Sam Peckinpah. What a lovely name for a Navajo person.”
“It does not even mention Peckinpah,” said, “Pekimpek” is more appropriate, but that was the laugh-out-loud joke! People often forget that he was the director of his bountifully self-indulgent The Wild Bunch. Did he place Peckinpah ‘in the ground’ out of contempt? Was it a blemish? A joke? An acknowledgment? No clue! That same Clint Eastwood High Plains Drifter placed a tombstone symbol with Leone’s name on it that same year.
Fun Facts The remaining live members of the Doolin-Dalton Gang also dubbed the Wild Bunch did their very last bank hit in 1895. As opposed to the movie with 150 members, there were only 11 known gang members. To top this all one Hmm, one member was named Arkansas and I find endlessly delightful because now I’m picturing Vegas singer Tom Jones in a Western.
Whenever I discuss My Name is Nobody, I feel the essence of the actors deserves a minute to dissect. Fonda and Hill, in my opinion, are perfectly suited for this script, but there seems to be no other options who could have turned it into an outstanding movie like this.
Fonda, against all trends, chose to go for a different genre and this was his last Western movie as usual, he did not overpower the audience with the base expectation of his role, rather giving it more depth. As strong as his portrayal of Beauregard is, it uses so many more layers than you would expect from this sort of role. He acts as if he is tired of life, and gives off a ‘been there done that’ attitude, but as Nobody soothes his ego, the glimmers of hope and determination start to show. This is the attitude of a fanboy and the way Fonda depicted this was extraordinary. It’s quite a performance.
You only wish you could chill with Nobody now watching Terence Hill because he radiates an amazing aura of a chill dude. Not only do I admire him for being so relaxed, but I also respect him for capturing the attention of the audience simply with the rough timing of his joking. His pacing, as I am accustomed to in this genre of movie, was brilliant.
With his ridiculous facial expressions, prop comedy, and one-liners, there is never a dull moment while he is on screen. He was without a doubt the funniest part of the movie where he continuously grabs a man’s pistols and slaps him in the face with them before putting them back. Not once, but numerous times. That’s when I realized how unbelievably enjoyable this movie turned out to be. He was the best part of the film.
Like I said before, even the sidekicks and the goons are good characters. R.G. Armstrong is particularly strong as the grim-faced and determined leader Honest John, whose more than a few attempts on Beauregard range from bad to cartoonishly funny. And there’s an old failed gold miner in the movie whose name was not in the cast, but he is so good that he steals his scenes from Fonda and Hill.
In Italy, My Name is Nobody was the third highest-grossing film of the year, but once it was released in the United States, it was as massive as a tank, no offense. With that said, it does seem to have gotten an audience and now many people understand its context. In fact, it does come with some decent online rankings with 100% Rotten Tomatoes. Although, for some reason, they have omitted it from their 100% Fresh list.
There seem to be some fishy traces and drama while shooting the movie as well. Director Tonino Valerii suffered from an ear infection which made Sergio Leone direct the film for a day. The other story where it is stated that because Fonda’s costumes went missing, they had to divide the filming into 2 units, which required Leone to operate the second unit. Either way, there seems to be quite some contention on which scenes he actually shot and what the extent of his credit is.
An extra reported that Leone shot the last battle scene on horseback whilst an unknown screenwriter claimed that Valerii directed the rest of the film. It is rather concerning that there is nothing tangible but I must admit, I enjoy some drama on set as well as it heightens my viewing experience.
If your passion lies in comedies as well as Spaghetti Westerns, then look no further than My Name is Nobody. They do not permit any losses so to speak. So stop what you are doing, forgo outings with family and even feeding your children, and pets do not feed yourself either just watch the film.
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