--- title: "For a Few Dollars More: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/for-a-few-dollars-more/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/for-a-few-dollars-more" critics_score: 78 critics_reviews: 6 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # For a Few Dollars More (1965): what the critics said Critics' score 78 from 6 reviews: 5 positive, 0 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics respond warmly to Sergio Leone’s Western, with praise clustering around his handling of confrontations, close-up detail and larger-than-life characters. The pairing of Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef gives the bounty-hunting story a rivalry that keeps its loyalties uncertain. The reviews particularly value the prolonged shoot-outs and playful exchanges, while the Western imagery, distinctive supporting faces and Ennio Morricone’s elaborate score add to the film’s appeal. Plot matters less to these admirers than the pleasure of individual scenes. Reservations concern both the storytelling and the violence, though the spread is wide rather than mildly divided. Empire admires the scenes while finding that they do not form a tightly plotted story; Variety praises the action but considers the film somewhat overlong. The New York Times is the clear dissenter, treating the elaborate shooting and killing as an indulgence of bloodlust rather than a source of enjoyment. ## Radio Times — David Parkinson Rating 5/5. The second instalment of Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy is arguably the best and most influential of the three. While the pursuit of bandit Gian Maria Volonté by bounty hunters Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef forms the core of the action, it's the attention to everyday detail and the symbols of a passing era that give this operatic classic its distinctive aura. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-ao9kge/for-a-few-dollars-more/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 1967. The critic calls the film a gloriously greasy, sweaty, hairy, bloody and violent Western that is delicious. He singles out its larger-than-life, melodramatic situations and drawn-out shoot-outs for praise over conventional plotting. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/for-a-few-dollars-more-1967) ## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 19 September 2011. The review praises the film for giving Eastwood a worthy rival in Van Cleef, creating genuine tension and uncertainty about who is the hero. It singles out the extended hat-shooting standoff as a highlight of Leone's playful yet masterful direction. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/for-a-few-dollars-more-1798227467) ## Empire — Kim Newman Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 23 November 2006. The critic describes the film as a string of individually outstanding scenes rather than a tightly plotted story, but praises its wealth of marvellous Western imagery, grotesque-comic business, Ennio Morricone’s baroque score, iconic stars and unforgettable supporting faces. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/dollars-per-qualche-dollari-piu-review/) ## Variety — Variety Staff Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1965. The review deems it a hard-hitting western and topnotch action entry from the Italo stable. It praises Leone’s bigger-than-life style combining upfront action and closeup details, along with literate dialogue, while noting the film is somewhat overlong. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1965/film/reviews/for-a-few-dollars-more-2-1117791012/) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 4 July 1967. The review presents the film as a synthetic Italian-Spanish Western that indulges bloodlust through fancy flourishes of shooting and killing. It notes the cool-cat image of Eastwood repeated from the prior film but highlights the conglomerate stimuli of dread, danger, and vivid violence. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1967/07/04/archives/screen-for-few-dollars-more-openstranslux-west-shows-new-eastwood.html) ## Slant Magazine — Jake Cole 24 May 2022. The often-overlooked middle film in Leone’s Dollars trilogy is hailed as a taut, nasty thriller where the director finds his singular voice. It singles out the atmospheric Scope framing, psychosexual elements, and bleak vision of revenge and bounty hunting for praise. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/for-a-few-dollars-more-4k-uhd-review-sergio-leone/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/for-a-few-dollars-more.md