The Best of the West(erns) – A Guide for Modern Cowboys

If you check with Hollywood, you will see that once upon a time, westerns ruled the silver screen. The silent film era was rife with classic westerns, and then sound came along and countless hour-long “oaters” and serials make westerns a joke. It enjoyed a revival in the 40s and 50s, when Monument Valley became a popular setting, before once again fading away.

Westerns made countless names famous for a time. Hopalong Cassidy, Gene Autry, Will Rogers, Tom Mix, Tex Ritter, Bob Steele and, of course, John Wayne. If you don’t know half the names on that list, don’t worry, you’re not alone. It seems that cowboys’ stars rise and fall much faster than other genres.

While there have been plenty of westerns since the 1960s, one won’t have to argue that the genre has been a bit more selective. Sure, you have Clint Eastwood and the spaghetti westerns, and John Wayne going out on a high note and some recent hits, but they’re certainly not as prevalent. If you fancy yourself a modern cowboy, mosey on down and check out the best of the recent westerns.

Sergio Leone is a great place to start. The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, Once Upon a Time in the West: this group highlights the greatest of the spaghetti westerns and helped propel Clint Eastwood to stardom.

True Grit is about to get a makeover from the Coen Brothers, but you might as well check out the only role that earned John Wayne an Oscar before you see the new version. The Duke was certainly no stranger to the western genre, but this was one of his highest points.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid: It’s a good thing that Robert Redford and Paul Newman had great chemistry. It’s hard to imagine that anyone else could play the roles now. Great camaraderie, memorable scenes and one of the greatest endings to any film – a western no fan should miss.

The Wild Bunch: With a name like Sam Peckinpah, you know it’s going to be good. I can’t say this is the movie that has the most gunfire, but it has to be pretty high on the list. A lot of time westerns are about loners, but when you get a good group together, this is as good as it gets.

Unforgiven: Out of all the recent westerns, this may be the greatest. Clint Eastwood is in top form. Once again, many westerns require men to come out of retirement for “one last job”. However, rarely does it turn out this well and it has the awards to back it up.

3:10 to Yuma: Remakes may or may not live up to the original. Lucky for us this film benefits from having two great leads in Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, along with a superb supporting cast, including Peter Fonda. This may be a bit more violent than your typical western, but in these modern times, you take what you can get and this continues in the great western tradition.

In an age of CGI, 3D and never-ending sequels, it’s nice to know that the spark of the old west still raises its head every now and then and reminds us that character and story still matter.

About the Author

I am the Community Manager of http://www.filmcrave.com and an ardent fan of film. I hope to use my knowledge and love of movies to provide informative and hopefully entertaining articles for other movie fans.

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