Once Upon a Time in the West poster

Once Upon a Time in the West Quotes

"There were three men in her life. One to take her… one to love her —and one to kill her."

PG-13 1969 · 2h 46m
83
Audience
83
Audience
21 quotes
Understanding Death's Influence on Humanity
Cheyenne You don't understand, Jill. People like that have something inside... something to do with death.
The Allure of Wealth in Railroads
Cheyenne Harmonica, a town built around a railroad. You could make a fortune. Hundreds of thousands of dollars. Hey, more than that. Thousands of thousands.
[laughs]
Harmonica They call them "millions".
Cheyenne Millions". Hmm.
Confrontation of Fate and Responsibility
Harmonica Your friends have a high mortality rate Frank. First three, then two.
Frank So, you're the one who makes appointments.
Harmonica And you're the one who doesn't keep them.
Value of Money and Betrayal in History
Cheyenne Judas was satisfied with 4,970 dollars less.
Harmonica There weren't no dollars in them days.
Cheyenne But sons-of-bitches? Yeah.
Confrontation between Frank and Harmonica
Frank Who are you?
Harmonica Jim Cooper. Chuck Youngblood.
Frank More dead men.
Harmonica They were all alive until they met you, Frank.
A Shortage of Horses in the West
Harmonica And Frank?
Snaky Frank sent us.
Harmonica Did you bring a horse for me?
Snaky It looks like we're... it looks like we're shy of one horse!
[Chuckling]
Harmonica You brought two too many.
[Harmonica shoots the three henchmen dead]
Identity Revealed in a Tense Encounter
Frank What's your name?
Harmonica Dave Jenkins.
Frank Dave Jenkins has been dead a long time.
Harmonica Calder Benson.
Frank What's your name? Benson's dead, too.
Harmonica You would know, Frank. You killed them.
The Nature of Weapons and Understanding
Morton There are many things you'll never understand.
Morton This is one of them. You see, Frank, there are many kinds of weapons. And the only one that can stop that is this. Now, shall we get back to our little problem?
Frank My weapons might look simple to you, Mr. Morton, but they can still shoot holes big enough for our little problems.
Betrayal and Loyalty in a Changing Landscape
Jill But... but those were his men.
Harmonica Yeah.
Jill And they tried to kill him.
Harmonica They must've found someone who pays better.
Jill And you! You saved his life.
Harmonica I didn't let them kill him. That's not the same thing.
Self-Discovery Amidst a Changing World
Frank Morton once told me I could never be like him. Now I understand why. Wouldn't have bothered him, knowing you were around somewhere alive.
Harmonica So, you found out you're not a businessman after all.
Frank Just a man.
Harmonica An ancient race. Other Mortons will be along, and they'll kill it off.
Frank The future don't matter to us. Nothing matters now - not the land, not the money, not the woman. I came here to see you. Cause I know that now, you'll tell me what you're after.
Harmonica ...Only at the point of dyin'.
Frank I know.
The Mysterious Harmonica Player
Cheyenne Do you know anything about a guy going around playing the harmonica? He's someone you'd remember. Instead of talking, he plays. And when he better play, he talks.
A Woman's Strength and Resilience
Jill Mrs. McBain goes back to civilization. Minus a husband and plus a great future.
Cheyenne You deserve better.
Jill The last man who told me that is buried out there.
Cheyenne You know, Jill, you remind me of my mother. She was the biggest whore in Alameda and the finest woman that ever lived. Whoever my father was for an hour or for a month... he must have been a happy man.
A Conversation About Power and Memory
Jill If you want to, you can lay me over the table and amuse yourself. And even call in your men. Well. No woman ever died from that. When you're finished, all I'll need will be a tub of boiling water, and I'll be exactly what I was before - with just another filthy memory.
Cheyenne You make good coffee, at least?
[sighs]
Anticipation in the Silence of Whittling
Jill What's he waiting for out there? What's he doing?
Cheyenne He's whittlin on a piece of wood. I've got a feeling when he stops whittlin'... Somethin's gonna happen.
A Final Plea for Dignity in Death
Cheyenne Hey, Harmonica - when they do you in, pray it's somebody who knows where to shoot... Go away... go away... go away, I don't want you to see me die.
Reflections on Violence and Morality
Cheyenne They wanna hang me. The big, black crows. Idiots. What the hell? I'll kill anything. Never a kid. Be like killin a priest. Catholic priest, that is.
Trust and Insecurity in Appearance
Frank How can you trust a man who wears both a belt and suspenders? The man can't even trust his own pants.
Longing for a Future Reunion
Jill I wish you'll come back someday.
Harmonica Someday.
Advice on Maintaining Family Harmony
Frank Keep your lovin brother happy.
[Harmonica's brother stands on his shoulders with a rope around his neck, Frank puts a harmonica in his mouth]
Mysterious Encounter with Dusty Figures
Harmonica I saw three of these dusters a short time ago. They were waiting for a train. Inside the dusters there were three men.
Cheyenne So?
Harmonica Inside the men there were three bullets.
Cheyenne That's a crazy story, Harmonica, for two reasons. One, nobody around these part's got the guts to wear those dusters except Cheyenne's men. Two, Cheyenne's men don't get killed. That surprise you?
Harmonica Yeah. Well, you know music and you can count. All the way up to two.
Cheyenne All the way up to six if I have to. And maybe faster than you.
[Turns the cylinder of his revolver; gestures to Harmonica's wound]
Fear and Control in Conflict
Morton Tell me, was it necessary that you kill all of them? I only told you to scare them.
Frank People scare better when they're dying.