When MGM restored 14 minutes of deleted footage for a "Special Edition" release, they faced a problem: those scenes had never been dubbed into English in the 1960s.
: Without bulky microphones, Leone could use sweeping camera movements and extreme close-ups without worrying about audio interference. The Three Major Dubbed Versions the good the bad and the ugly dubbed
Most purists turn up their noses at dubbing. But The Good, the Bad and the Ugly wasn’t made like a normal movie. Leone shot it silent, with actors speaking their native languages on set: Clint Eastwood (English), Eli Wallach (English and some Spanish), and Lee Van Cleef (English). Extras spoke Italian, German, Spanish—whatever was handy. When MGM restored 14 minutes of deleted footage
The original 1966 Italian release was heavily cut for violence. The 1967 U.S. release (United Artists) trimmed about 20 minutes—including key Tuco scenes. That version had its own unique English dub, with different voice actors for some characters. But The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Below are three review styles focusing on different viewing experiences: The "Purist" Perspective: The International Theatrical Cut