‎The Great Silence (1968) directed by Sergio Corbucci • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

The Great Silence

1968 ‘Il grande silenzio’ Directed by Sergio Corbucci

His voice was the silence of death!

A mute gunslinger fights in the defense of a group of outlaws and a vengeful young widow, against a group of ruthless bounty hunters.

Jean-Louis Trintignant Klaus Kinski Frank Wolff Luigi Pistilli Vonetta McGee Mario Brega Carlo D'Angelo Marisa Merlini Maria Mizar Marisa Sally Raf Baldassarre Spartaco Conversi Remo De Angelis Mirella Pamphili Fortunato Arena Giulio Baraghini Gino Barbacane Bruno Corazzari Jacques Dorfmann Paolo Figlia Adriana Giuffrè Rocco Lerro Loris Loddi Mauro Mannatrizio William Mayor Emilio Messina Benito Pacifico Fulvio Pellegrino Mimmo Poli Show All…

105 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Sean Baker 12

Even though I may have seen this years ago in a dorm room on VHS tape, seeing the Film Movement Blu-ray of this restored classic was like watching the film for the first time.

It is a must-see. Classic spaghetti western with a wholly unique approach - a snowy western. Without this film and Cut Throats Nine, there would be no Hateful Eight.

From wiki: In March 2017, the Cinémathèque Française reported that Cineteca Nazionale, with the cooperation of Italian distribution rights holder Movietime, had authorised a complete restoration of The Great Silence (including the alternative ending) from the original camera and sound negatives in 4K resolution. The restoration was carried out at the film laboratories Augustus Color and Studio…
Review by Ian West ★★★★★ 9

An unforgiving journey into the grim confines of ‘no hopesville’, this is Corbucci’s fully realized blizzard world of blurred morality, an ominous snow-swept frontier loaded with corruption, greed, despicable bounty hunters, a man called Loco, and a man named Silence. Beautiful, bleak, and unforgettable.

Corbucci’s masterpiece.
Review by Colin the dude ★★★★½ 5

Someone build a bronze statue of Klaus Kinski so I have something tangible to pray and worship to.
Review by matt lynch ★★★★½

"What times we live in!"
Review by laird ★★★★★

Infinity: Avengers War

"It's all within the law."

Plenty of spaghetti westerns deal with the rippling effects of violent vengeance, but The Great Silence is something else, something heavier and colder and more malevolent. It's haunted. It's the ghost of all of the previous vengeance cycles, the blankets of snow its shroud, the sound of bullet casings hitting saloon floors its rattling chains. Its story is the prequel to a ghost town. A silent scream.

It's hard watching it today not thinking of its relevance to current events. A crooked powerman looks a grieving widow in the eyes and shrugs at her cries of injustice. "Your husband broke the law. His death was his own fault." Starving, huddled masses considered outlaws by merciless bounty hunters, have to live outside of the town for fear of being taken down if they step foot in the wrong city. Life is cheap, but business is good if you lack humanity. Cold truth.
Review by ScreeningNotes ★★★★ 7

"The law has a right to kill."

Grotesque political nihilism. The Great Blizzard of 1898 has thrown the small Utah town of Snow Hill on hard times, but rather than help those forced by circumstance to steal in order to survive, the government puts out rewards on the heads of the unfortunate thieves. A mute gunslinger (Jean-Louis Trintignant) comes to the aid of the peasants, but the fearful ruling class hires a gang of ruthless bounty hunters led by the heartless killer known as Loco (Klaus Kinski) to cleanse Snow Hill of its supposed impurities. Two immortal performers embodying two essential extremes. The epitome of frontier justice: the ethical outlaw vs. the dishonorable lawman. Morality forced outside the bounds of…

Recent reviews

Review by Stank Williams ★★★★½

Spectacular fable.
Review by Mathias Rainer ★★★★½

Zwei charismatische Hauptdarsteller, die statt durch Worte mit ausdrucksvoller Mimik beeindrucken. Musik von Ennio Morricone, die erneut zu einer dichten Atmosphäre beiträgt. Der Regisseur, ebenfalls ein Meister seines Faches. Eine wunderschöne, aber todbringende Schneelandschaft als Schauplatz. Und ein Ende, das selbst für das Western-Genre überraschend hart daherkommt.
All diese Komponenten zusammen machen diesen Corbucci zu einem der Besten Western überhaupt. Wer Quentin Tarantinos "The Hateful Eight" gesehen hat, wird außerdem rasch erkennen, von welchem Streifen sich der Kult-Regisseur - zumindest optisch - hat inspirieren lassen. Funfact: Trintignants Charakter ist deshalb stumm, weil der Mime des Englischen nicht mächtig war.
Review by DrStatic ★★★ 1

Brutal. I have to knock some points for the some of the low budget ridiculousness. Call me a prude, but they haven't aged well.
Review by Seamonsterneil ★★★★ 2

As Ennio Morricone's romantic theme swells up a few minutes into The Great Silence, the last thing I was expecting was a movie as cold as its beautiful, snowy landscapes. I was aware this didn't have a happy ending, but I was unprepared for the punch in the gut this was going to serve up for the finale. I wasn't expecting to feel so unsettled by a western from the 60's, especially one from the same director as the fun, murder-happy Django. I have a feeling I'm going to be thinking about this one for the next few days.
Review by Ian Woolstencroft

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

A spaghetti western that features the bloody violence one would expect from the genre but also much that sets it apart. The spectacular snowbound locations give the film a unique look, while its mute hero displays a strong moral fibre that’s at odds with the usual Italian western anti-hero. Known as Silence because he cannot speak, he refuses to shoot first, preferring to goad his opponents into making their move, he also has a tendency to shoot their thumbs off.

It’s unusual for having a black love interest for the hero, in the shapely form of Vonetta McGee who later found fame in Blacula and a score of other blacksploitation flicks in the '7os. The film has an international cast…
Review by Yarim ★★★★½

One of the most beautiful westerns ever shot.
Review by Josh Hawkins ★★★

A decent spaghetti western with interesting characters set to an excellent snowy setting. With a 3rd act so bleak it will be hard to forget. I'd recommend watching if your a fan of westerns.
Review by Max彡 ★★★★½ 8

It's a movie where just the mood is so freaking intense. Holy snowy Hell!
Review by Emanuele Fava ★★★½

Half a star more because of:
-Ennio Morricone
-Klaus Kinski (can't help it, despite being dubbed)
-the love scene
-the director's ending? (I haven't decided yet, but I'm almost sure in a few days I will love the memory of it)