It was 13 years ago today that Sergio Leone died, but dead or alive, his influence on film makers over the past two decades has been nothing less than formidable. Young guns like Quentin Tarantino, Takashi Miike, Kim Ji-woon and Robert Rodriguez, as well old skool, cutting-edge auteurs like Martin Scorsese. John Carpenter, Alex Cox, Tsui Hark and Alejandro Jodorowsky, owe much to Leone’s widescreen visions of a mystical and mythical American West where men face down death with the cold-eyed detachment of Zen monks staring into infinite space.

Leone’s films need to be enjoyed on the biggest screen possible. Decades ago I saw a restored 70mm print of Once Upon A Time In The West presented by Martin Scorsese at New York City’s Film Forum. It was a breathtaking experience. And for those of you who live in NYC you have a chance to see a newly restored 35mm print (presented by Scorsese) this coming June at the Forum. Details here.

As a reminder of just how splendid Leone’s epic is and to inspire you to see it when you can on the big screen, here’s the full-length Italian theatrical version: