Official HTF Western Appreciation Thread (1 Viewer)

[cinemiracle]

Nice topic!

My favorite Westerns include:

* The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly --- This marvelously entertaining movie contains at least three dozen iconic Western/Civil War scenes all seamlessly stitched together in the search for the stolen gold. Fabulously directed in a very unique style by Sergio Leone with an equally unique score from Ennio Morricone; and starring Clint Eastwood at his sardonic best with able support from Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach. It just doesn't get much better than this!

* The Magnificent Seven -- The best American version of "The Seven Samurai" to date with legendary performances from an all-star cast. The fact that they're remaking this is a complete joke since it has already been remade as "Battle Beyond the Stars", "The Three Amigos", "A Bug’s Life", and on and on. Regardless, this movie remains the best interpretation and no additional remakes are necessary as long as you can pull this down off the shelf!

* Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid -- Ah ... Robbing trains and banks: These are the cornerstones of the Western genre. But here we get a whimsical look at the process in a movie loosely based on a true story. And I don't know what it is about Westerns that inspires unique scores, but this movie provides one of the most unique ever from composer Burt Bacharach. (We even get "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" inserted into the movie to a bicycle riding montage. Try finding anything like that in any other Western.) The main reason this is one of my favorite Westerns, though, is that it never ceases to bring a smile to my face. (Of course, I always hit the stop button just after Australia is mentioned...)

Other Favorites:

John Wayne:
* Fort Apache
* The Searchers
* True Grit
* The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Other Clint Eastwood favorites:
* For a Few Dollars More
* Hang 'Em High
* Pale Rider
* Unforgiven

Comedy/Western favorites:
* Support Your Local Sherrif
* Cat Ballou
* City Slickers
* Rustlers' Rhapsody

I forgot about CAT BALLOU simply brilliant in ever way. I did hate BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID when I saw it on it's first release. I saw it again recently and still did not like it.Did any other forum reader dislike this film like I did?

 

[Tino]

Butch Cassidy is an awesome classic film. Cat Ballou haven't seen in a long time. Great recommendations guys. [emoji106]

 

[Tino]

Just realized I own Shane...another classic western I haven't seen.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Well, I'm never quite sure what to say in this type of thread. It just does not occur to me that somebody might not have seen The Searchers...which to me is like saying "I've never seen Citizen Kane or 2001 or The Godfather."

I grew up watching Westerns so I've seen more than I can list but there are plenty of lists already here and they are good lists. So, if you have not seen many of the films already listed here...well...you've got a lot of really good viewing ahead of you.

There were obviously some big director/actor pairings in the Western genre:

John Ford and John Wayne (Howard Hawks and Wayne also made some nice Westerns)

Anthony Mann and Jimmy Stewart

Budd Boetticher and Randolph Scott

It would be pretty easy and a good place to start by working your way through the films made by these guys. One thing to know is that the 1950s really saw the rise of the "adult" psychological Western. The Searchers being a prime example of this where Wayne plays a racist, revenge driven lunatic. His character seethes with hate and this hate just keeps pushing him on his quest for revenge...which combines aspects of Film Noir with the Western genre. You will find this in the Mann/Stewart and Boetticher/Scott films as well. These are far more than white hat vs. black hat tales, they really delve into the psychological and emotional landscape of their characters as well.

It is interesting to watch how the Western changes from decade to decade from earlier decades that were closer to the "old west" in the 1930s and 1940s, into the post-World War II Western period where a lot of psychological damage to the characters becomes more intertwined with the stories, into the 1960s where the films become more nasty and the characters seem often to be riding through a dying west and in general doomed to meet a grim end...see The Wild Bunch as a prime example or of course Sergio Leone's series of films with Clint Eastwood. The 1970s then becomes the decade of the revisionist Western. Right out of the gate in 1970 we got Little Big Man which really does a number on "Western myths" and has a whole lot of fun playing with the "tall tales" these myths were built upon.

There are so many great Westerns that the list could get very long but if you want to try some Westerns that may not be as well known try these...

The Man From Colorado (1948) - This is an absolutely gorgeous Western that is beautifully shot in vivid color. It stars Glenn Ford giving a great performance as a man that has been horribly psychologically damaged by fighting in the Civil War and what happens when he returns home to become a leader in his town. William Holden plays his friend and fellow veteran that knows Ford's character is becoming more insane and dangerous with each passing day. This is a great story wonderfully told and I think a very important and somewhat forgotten Western that precedes the boom of intense psychological Westerns of the 1950s. If you enjoyed The Searchers this is one to seek out.

The Bravados (1958) - You've never seen Gregory Peck like this and this is a performance that really stands out in his career because he did not often play such a ruthless and nasty character. Again this plays up the psychological aspect of Peck's revenge driven character and his vicious pursuit of the men that killed his wife. Beautifully directed by Henry King this is another Western I really hope makes it to blu-ray.

Man of the West (1958) - Another Western from Anthony Mann (all of his Westerns are fantastic) this time with the great Gary Cooper. Thankfully this is on blu-ray and if you don't already own it and have an interest in classic Westerns what are you waiting for? There is a crazed and absolutely nasty moment in the film where Cooper not only doles out a beating but intentionally psychologically humiliates Jack Lord's young cocky gunfighter that is still strange and startling to watch now...must have been mind-blowing to see this on a big screen when this film was released in 1958.

Warlock (1959) - A stellar cast (Henry Fonda, Richard Widmark, Anthony Quinn) inhabits the town of Warlock, a nasty little Western village that is a hotbed of danger and psychological intrigue...and it only gets weirder when Fonda's gunfighter is hired to clean-up the town and arrives with his sidekick Quinn who has more than a little man crush on Fonda. This is one seriously wacky little ride that is very much a Noir in the old west. This film certainly reflects an attempt to make a more complex character driven Western and boy does it succeed...you'll remember these characters long after the last shot is fired.

 

[Robert Crawford]

So many great westerns to view. I recommend "Vera Cruz" and The Professionals" both with Burt Lancaster in lead roles. In my view Mr. Lancaster was a great actor in any genre but I particularly enjoy his performances in westerns made at any stage of his lengthy career. Enjoy your journey into the west!!

IMO, The Professionals is the best written Western of all-time. Easily in my Westerns Top Ten. Vera Cruz is a very fine film too.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Just realized I own Shane...another classic western I haven't seen.

You need to remedy that situation.

 

[TravisR]

Well, I'm never quite sure what to say in this type of thread. It just does not occur to me that somebody might not have seen The Searchers...which to me is like saying "I've never seen Citizen Kane or 2001 or The Godfather."

I think it's indicative of how quickly westerns became a thing of the past. If a viewer isn't a certain age, westerns are almost non-existent to most of them. I'm in my mid-30's and I'd bet that even among big movie fans that I know, most of them haven't seen and maybe haven't even heard of The Searchers. If it wasn't for my dad watching westerns when I was young, I wonder when I would have seen great movies like The Searchers or Rio Bravo.

As much as I gripe about the internet and social media, discussions like this are a positive of the internet because people can hear about good movies that they may have missed.

 

[Robert Crawford]

For some recent Westerns, I recommend Open Range. I'll never forget talking Ron Epstein and a few other HTF Moderators into seeing this film while we were out in LA during one of our trips. It was my second viewing of it so I knew the guys would love it.

Also, ten recommendations of some underrated Westerns:

South of St. Louis
Last Train from Gun Hill
The Bravados
The Tin Star
Apache
The Last Wagon
Escape from Fort Bravo
Ambush
Hombre
Cowboy

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

To me The Searchers seems like a film the majority of film fans would know, particularly because it was such an influence on the movie brat directors of the 1970s and guys like Scorsese and Bogdanovich have discussed it and brought it up so many times. The interesting thing is I don't really think The Searchers was thought of as a great film until guys like Scorsese and Bogdanovich started promoting it as a great film. I mean in the 1970s when directors were elevated to celebrity stature I think this is when these guys really started to promote the films and directors of the past. I think prior to the 1970s audiences were drawn to films more by the stars that were in them and really did not care much about who directed them.

I do agree that having these discussions is great because I also love hearing about when somebody like Tino experiences a film like this for the first time and loves it. I have many times over the years tried to introduce people to films I love and it is not always a good experience. I mean I recall reading on this website how many people that post here don't like Citizen Kane...which I find baffling but based on experiences I have had not really surprising.

The other day I was listening to a podcast where some college age guys were discussing a bunch of older films and wow, I had to turn it off. They in quick succession talked about how everything from 2001, to Animal House and The Blues Brothers were horrible films that should be avoided and basically labelled just about all old Westerns as horribly offensive and politically incorrect...and granted there was the age thing to consider but I have seen 2001 called horrible many times and listed as an overrated film...likely by people much younger than I am. I did once recommend 2001 to some people younger than I that had never seen it and they came back and told me it was one of the most boring films they had ever seen saying watching paint dry or grass grow would be more exciting.

I don't think the Western has gone away really, and lately it seems to be having a bit of a resurgence albeit mostly low budget, but I do think whereas when I was a boy Westerns were a big draw for youngsters now the young audience is more enamored with super heroes which has sort of replaced the Western.

 

[Bob Gu]

I like Reggie W's point about 30's and 40's westerns being closer to the actual western history being portrayed. This is especially true of the background stuff in how people did everyday things. It gives these old movies a sense that the characters are really inhabiting that world. It was their world, too, through their parents and grand-parents.

Most of the movies listed are the usual suspects. Randolph Scott is one of my favorites, but I think the Budd B. and Burt Kennedy ones use the same story and exact dialog over and over again. Watch the other Scott westerns too. It's a great time to be a Scott collector now with the economic DVD releases of his Columbia and WB westerns. And there are Blu-Rays of two of his Fox Cinecolors coming out soon.

Embrace the myth. Embrace the fun and action of the B- Westerns and A-Minus westerns.

Seriously, check out Hop-A-Long Cassidy, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers. Warner Archive has given us Tim Holt and Wild Bill Elliott and even Dick Foran. Fun movies with great stunts.

 

[RolandL]

Maybe not a classic but I enjoyed Open Range.

 

[Tino]

I have plenty of film buff friends and invariably almost all of them have classic films they haven't seen. Godfather 2, Casablanca, Singing In The Rain etc. Better late than never I say. [emoji6]

 

[Alan Tully]

Yup, my favourite genre, & I can't pass up a list. I'll keep it to a manageable 15, but it wouldn't be hard listing a hundred:

They Died With Their boots On '41
Unconquered '47
She Wore Yellow Ribbon '49
The Big Sky '52
Bend Of The River '52
Comanche Station '60
One-Eyed Jacks '60
The Comancheros '61
Rio Conchos '65
The Wild Bunch '69
Little Big Man '70
Ulzana's Raid '72
The Life & Times Of Judge Roy Bean '72
The Outlaw Josey Wales '76
The Hateful Eight '15

 

[Dave B Ferris]

Two Stewart-less westerns that Anthony Mann directed in that same time-frame are showing on TCM in a week. Both westerns have their followers---

The Last Frontier (1956) with Victor Mature, Guy Madison, and Robert Preston - July 12 11:00 PM Central
Devil's Doorway (1950) with Robert Taylor - July 13 1:00AM Central

TCM precedes these two with the Mann/Stewart NAKED SPUR and THE MAN FROM LARAMIE.

The OP (Tino) can let TCM be his curator, for a list of "Shane and 100 Other Great Westerns" because that is in fact the title of a programing thread on TCM this month. For all of July, two entire days each week (not just the nighttime programming) will be devoted exclusively to showing the movies on the list.

 

[Tony J Case]

While I enjoy westerns, I find that I'm not so down with domestic ones. Oh sure, I'll enjoy Magnificent Seven or High Noon - but I really, really love the Spaghetti Westerns. Any of the Django series, Sabata (either the Yule Brenner or Lee Van Cleef versions), and stuff nobody has ever heard of like Have a Nice Funeral, Sartana Will Pay! or A Bullet for the General - great stuff!

Yeah, I love the Dollars flicks, but there is SO much more than just those three - sometimes even better than what Sergio did.

 

[Robert Crawford]

While I enjoy westerns, I find that I'm not so down with domestic ones. Oh sure, I'll enjoy Magnificent Seven or High Noon - but I really, really love the Spaghetti Westerns. Any of the Django series, Sabata (either the Yule Brenner or Lee Van Cleef versions), and stuff nobody has ever heard of like Have a Nice Funeral, Sartana Will Pay! or A Bullet for the General - great stuff!

Yeah, I love the Dollars flicks, but there is SO much more than just those three - sometimes even better than what Sergio did.

I'm the opposite, I don't enjoy Spaghetti Westerns except for a select few.

 

[dpippel]

I love 'em all.

 

[Richard V]

Several of my favorites have already been mentioned, esp The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence, which is not only my favorite western, but my FAVORITE MOVIE EVER. Adding a few here I haven't seen mentioned:


Jeremiah Johnson : It grew on me
Silverado : Maybe not a classic, but HIGHLY entertaining.
The Shootist : Just awesome, perfect final movie for The Duke

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I think it's indicative of how quickly westerns became a thing of the past. If a viewer isn't a certain age, westerns are almost non-existent to most of them. I'm in my mid-30's and I'd bet that even among big movie fans that I know, most of them haven't seen and maybe haven't even heard of The Searchers. If it wasn't for my dad watching westerns when I was young, I wonder when I would have seen great movies like The Searchers or Rio Bravo.

As much as I gripe about the internet and social media, discussions like this are a positive of the internet because people can hear about good movies that they may have missed.

I'm in the same boat - except my dad didn't watch westerns, so I've had to come to it on my own in recent years. I'm pretty good in most genres, except for horror and westerns. Having now watched a few westerns over the past couple months, I can say that in general, I'm enjoying westerns more than I ever enjoyed horror.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I love 'em all.

Don't get me wrong, I like the Sergio Leone films and maybe a few others, but generally I'm not a big fan Spaghetti Westerns.