Cigars, whistles, and gunshots: in the vast imagery of the American frontier, there is a before and after Sergio Leone. Through the tributes of friends and admirers (Eastwood, Morricone, and Tarantino, naturally, but also some unexpected ones), the life and career of the great Italian director are retraced, from his childhood in Trastevere to the immense production of Once Upon a Time in America.