Mexican standoff 1966 Western "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly", where the titular characters played by Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach face each other at gunpoint. Director John Woo, considered a major influence on the action genre, is known for his highly chaotic action sequences, Mexican standoffs, and frequent use of slow motion. Director Quentin Tarantino (who has cited Woo as an influence) has featured Mexican standoff scenes in his films like "Pulp Fiction" (restaurant sequence); "Inglourious Basterds" (the tavern scene features multiple Mexican standoffs including meta-discussion); and the climactic scene of "Reservoir Dogs", which depicts a standoff
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly critics as more defined by his actions than his words. All three characters can be seen as anti-heroes killing for their personal gain. Leone also employed stylistic trick shooting, such as Blondie shooting the hat off a person's head and severing a hangman's noose with a well-placed shot, in many of its iconic shootouts. "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" opened in Italy on 23 December 1966, and grossed $6.3 million at that time. In the United States, "A Fistful of Dollars" was released 18 January 1967 (28 months after its initial Italian release); "For a Few Dollars More"