Fistful of DollarsLeone's First Dollars Film

Sergio Leone's first "spaghetti western" A Fistful of Dollars deals with some interesting questions for morality and law. The town of San Miguel represents a place where there is an absence of both of the above. With this in mind, the question of the Stranger, Marisol, and her son's purpose must be answered. Also what, if anything, is accomplished through the Stranger's actions? Throughout the film, there are subtle clues the lead to the conclusion that law is a thing of the past and morality is even harder to come by. Both will be symbolically thrown aside and killed for the sake of money and power. By the end, the Stranger will turn into a strange savior figure and the evil that resides in San Miguel will totally disappear.

To argue that the Stranger turns into a savior figure, it must first be proven that something must be saved. If San Miguel is indeed a lawless town, then its inhabitants must be brought to justice. It is important to prove that the town is, in fact, missing the proper authority to clean itself of crime. As the Stranger comes back to the Baxter house moments after he is shot at, he tries to get the culprits to apologize to his horse. This attempt is laughed at by the shooters, so the Stranger ends up shooting the men in order to atone for his misfortune. What happens next is interesting. John Baxter, the head of the Baxter house, comes out and claims that the Stranger is at fault and must pay for his actions. He then takes a few moments to search his pockets and find his badge, claiming that he is the sheriff of the town. Of course, the sheriff has no power over the Stranger since he is never reprimanded for the killings, but walks away and makes some humorous comments. The important image to get from this exchange is that Baxter is not wearing his badge, and it takes him awhile to actually find it. He may even be in more danger if he actually did wear the badge. Law has no say in San Miguel and is ignored by everyone, leaving the town in need of someone to clean it up.