Film Listology: #85 - Once Upon a Time in the West Artwork

Special Topics in Media

Special Topics in Media Studies is a lecture-based podcast that tackles media history one artifact at a time. Each season of the series we will investigate a different mass media theme, medium, or programming genre. While our focus is educational (it is an academic podcast after all), we tailor our conversations toward a broad audience of media enthusiasts.

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Film Listology: #85 - Once Upon a Time in the West

July 16, 2024 • Garret Castleberry • Season 8 • Episode 29

In this episode, hosts Garret and Scott weigh the artistic beauty of Sergio Leone's 1968 masterpiece Once Upon a Time in the West, and compare it against the film's lower profile as a pop culture artifact. Do fewer distribution opportunities help protect the film as a critical darling, or is relegating it to cult status a precursor to a short lifespan in the popular imaginary? Ranking #85 on the analytical super index, the dialogic duo assess the film's cultural significance factor as part of our "Film Listology" season of Special Topics in Media.

Hosts: Garret Castleberry, Scott McMurry

Producers: Garret Castleberry, Will McMurry (Audio Engineer), Alli Garner (Cover Art), Austin Foster (Music)

Recommended readings paired with our Film Listology season:
Rick Altman. Film/Genre. British Film Institute, 1999.

Jim Collins, Ada Preacher Collins, Hilary Radner (Eds.). Film Theory Goes to the Movies, 1st Edition. New York: Routledge, 1992.

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