Author: Tony Williams <[log in to unmask]> Date: 12/13/94 12:27 PM [Editor's note: This message was submitted to SCREEN-L by the "Author" noted above, and not by Jeremy Butler ([log in to unmask]).] From: Tony Williams English SIUC Leone "lied." !!!! A very blunt statement and one needing consideration. Certainly, the Kurosawa influence is there but what about others from Leone's own cultural background. Chris Frayling's SPAGHETTI WESTERNS (1981) stresses this point. Since there are comedic aspects in FISTFUL (as there are in YOJIMBO) what about some relationship to a suggested Italian tradition no matter how indirect? During a 1977 conference on Latin-American culture held at the University of Exeter (England) after a screening of FISTFUL, Frayling commented on a then recent BBC documentary on Leone which compared FISTFUL and YOJIMBO but editing scenes together (excluding all the different camera angles and treatments) to make them appear identical. Frayling criticized the BBC for re-editing the works making FISTFUL a copy of YOJIMBO. There are many differences in editing style, culture, and genre between the two works, especially those relating to the Italian tradition which need emphasis. Many critics would accuse you of"cultural imperialism" in terms of the blunt, one-sentence statement you made. This is supposed to be a network discussing and interrogating filmic issues unlike the other "joke", trivia groups around. Further interrogation and more critical analysis supporting your statment is needed, not high-school/freshman knee-jerk reaction. Tony Williams.