Who directed The Great Silence and when was it released?
The Great Silence was directed by Sergio Corbucci and released in Italy in November 1968. It was an Italian-French co-production distributed in most territories by 20th Century Fox.
Questions about The Great Silence
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Why is The Great Silence considered a political film?
Corbucci conceived the film as an allegory about authoritarian capitalism, with the bounty killers operating legally in the service of a corrupt banker who is also a judge of peace. Corbucci told the German magazine Film that he dedicated the film to Che Guevara, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, all three of whom were assassinated while he was making it.
Why is the main character in The Great Silence mute?
The character's muteness originated as a practical casting solution. When Jean-Louis Trintignant was hired for the lead role and Corbucci learned he did not speak English, Corbucci made the character mute to bypass the need for an English-speaking lead. The backstory within the film is that bounty killers sliced the boy's throat in childhood to keep him from identifying them.
Who composed the score for The Great Silence?
The score was composed by Ennio Morricone and conducted by Bruno Nicolai. Morricone ranked it as his best Spaghetti Western soundtrack aside from his work for Sergio Leone's films. The soundtrack was released on CD in 1995, 2005, and 2014, and on a limited vinyl edition of 500 copies by Dagored in April 2016.
When did The Great Silence first release in the United States?
The Great Silence had no American theatrical release until 2012, when a 35mm print toured cinema screens across the country. Darryl F. Zanuck of 20th Century Fox had refused to distribute it in the United States after being shocked by the film's ending. The first American home media release came on the 4th of September 2001, when Fantoma Films and Image Entertainment released it on DVD.
How did The Great Silence influence Quentin Tarantino?
Tarantino has called The Great Silence his favorite snow Western and paid homage to it in both Django Unchained and The Hateful Eight. Cinematographer Robert Richardson confirmed that he and Tarantino studied the film's photography to understand the visual intimacy Tarantino wanted to achieve in The Hateful Eight.