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March 29, 2024, 01:46:15 PM

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Best Westerns

Started by Chedney Honks, April 11, 2021, 08:15:31 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

zomgmouse

Quote from: ImmaculateClump on January 14, 2022, 12:17:21 PMOld Henry is good fun if you fancy something new - https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/old_henry

oh yeah this wasn't bad. found it a little flat though

Crenners

This isn't a joke post but what are some of the best Westerns where Cowboys and Native Americans are fighting?

I think most of the fantastic Westerns I've seen don't even really feature Native Americans. It's all homesteaders and outlaws and the cusp of civilisation type stuff. I absolutely love all that but aside from The Searchers, which I also really liked, I haven't seen any 'Cowboys and Indians' films. Any good ones?

Quote from: zomgmouse on January 15, 2022, 12:50:54 AMoh yeah this wasn't bad. found it a little flat though

Yeah, I know what you mean, and it doesn't amount to much, but it's a nice little story, well told, I thought.
Definitely worth a watch.

notjosh

Quote from: Crenners on January 15, 2022, 10:05:22 AMThis isn't a joke post but what are some of the best Westerns where Cowboys and Native Americans are fighting?

I think most of the fantastic Westerns I've seen don't even really feature Native Americans. It's all homesteaders and outlaws and the cusp of civilisation type stuff. I absolutely love all that but aside from The Searchers, which I also really liked, I haven't seen any 'Cowboys and Indians' films. Any good ones?

Stagecoach has a great old-fashioned Injun attack. Enough to put it on TCM's problematic list recently, though I'd argue that it simply depicts one tribe of Native Americans as natural adversaries of white settlers without moral judgement.

Fort Apache (loosely inspired by Custer's last stand) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon are both built around tensions between the US cavalry and Native Americans, though told primarily from the cavalry's perspective.

Broken Arrow with Jimmy Stewart is a decent one which is much more sympathetic to Native Americans.

Crenners

@notjosh Cheers for that. I actually have Stagecoach but not watched it yet. I've got Yellow Ribbon on my long list, too.

mothman


kalowski

Quote from: mothman on January 15, 2022, 05:34:36 PMRun Of The Arrow.
I agree with this. So much, in fact, that I put it on page one. Oooh winking emoji...😉

mothman

Well yeah but I was answering Crenners's question! 😛

Quote from: Crenners on January 15, 2022, 10:05:22 AMThis isn't a joke post but what are some of the best Westerns where Cowboys and Native Americans are fighting?

I think most of the fantastic Westerns I've seen don't even really feature Native Americans. It's all homesteaders and outlaws and the cusp of civilisation type stuff. I absolutely love all that but aside from The Searchers, which I also really liked, I haven't seen any 'Cowboys and Indians' films. Any good ones?

I wouldn't say it was good, per se, but Soldier Blue takes 'Cowboys and Indians', and adds a bit of Vietnam and a dose of exploitation movies.

paddy72

The Man From Laramie and Man of the West.

More recently, The Proposition and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, which is a masterpiece.

Quote from: paddy72 on January 22, 2022, 02:38:04 PMThe Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, which is a masterpiece.

I watched that last night and didn't really care for it. Far too long and boring, really self indulgent.
Still a 3 bagger, but it outstayed it's welcome.

Menu

Quote from: notjosh on January 15, 2022, 01:39:22 PMStagecoach has a great old-fashioned Injun attack. Enough to put it on TCM's problematic list recently, though I'd argue that it simply depicts one tribe of Native Americans as natural adversaries of white settlers without moral judgement.

Fort Apache (loosely inspired by Custer's last stand) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon are both built around tensions between the US cavalry and Native Americans, though told primarily from the cavalry's perspective.

Broken Arrow with Jimmy Stewart is a decent one which is much more sympathetic to Native Americans.

Saw Fort Apache recently. It must be one of the first to at least attempt to show that Native Americans might have their own grievances and who weren't pure evil or a nuisance. In fact Henry Fonda as a decorated cavalry officer, is shown in a worse ethical light than the Native American leader. Must have been quite shocking in its day.

Menu

Quote from: Crenners on January 15, 2022, 05:26:46 PM@notjosh Cheers for that. I actually have Stagecoach but not watched it yet. I've got Yellow Ribbon on my long list, too.

You may be way ahead of me but watch 'Fort Apache' before you watch 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon'. They are the fist two in a trilogy and some characters and themes recur. The finial film in that trilogy is 'Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach' 'Rio Grande'.

paddy72

Quote from: ImmaculateClump on February 14, 2022, 12:05:23 PMI watched that last night and didn't really care for it. Far too long and boring, really self indulgent.
Still a 3 bagger, but it outstayed it's welcome.

The languorous pacing is one of the reasons I love it. There's rumour of an even longer cut, which I'm totally there for! 

Twit 2

McCabe and Mrs Miller hasn't been mentioned yet.

Crenners

Having watched a lot of Westerns now, I feel certain the best one is Once Upon A Time In The West.

My favourite American Western is a probably Shane.

Quote from: paddy72 on February 20, 2022, 09:46:30 AMThe languorous pacing is one of the reasons I love it. There's rumour of an even longer cut, which I'm totally there for! 

Yeah, I sometimes really like a slow film but I wasn't entirely feeling this one.
I didn't find Brad Pitt entirely convincing as a cowboy, and thought Casey Affleck was overacting a lot of the time, his face was all over the shop, constantly rolling his eyes around and stifling a mischievous grin, the handsome idiot! The Nick Cave stunt casting was very jarring as well. Maybe one more train robbery could have saved it for me. Not too much happened.

Pink Gregory

https://youtu.be/wVx8RhHvokc

Rich Hall's 'How the West Was Lost' from 2008.  Good supplementary viewing if interested.  McCabe and Mrs. Miller does feature.

Crenners

Quote from: Menu on February 16, 2022, 03:33:16 AMYou may be way ahead of me but watch 'Fort Apache' before you watch 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon'. They are the fist two in a trilogy and some characters and themes recur. The finial film in that trilogy is 'Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach' 'Rio Grande'.

Cheers. I have the Eureka release of Rio Grande but want to watch the other two first. I'll get to it.

Just finished Johnny Guitar again, big broad strokes melodrama, some magnificent dialogue and Joan Crawford is superb.

Anyway, catch you round.


Dr Rock

What's the worst Eastwood western? Hang 'em High isn't much cop.

The Beguiled isn't really a western, western-adjacent.. just set in them days. Very good

paddy72

Quote from: ImmaculateClump on February 20, 2022, 02:50:49 PMYeah, I sometimes really like a slow film but I wasn't entirely feeling this one.
I didn't find Brad Pitt entirely convincing as a cowboy, and thought Casey Affleck was overacting a lot of the time, his face was all over the shop, constantly rolling his eyes around and stifling a mischievous grin, the handsome idiot! The Nick Cave stunt casting was very jarring as well. Maybe one more train robbery could have saved it for me. Not too much happened.

Ha, I know what you mean about Affleck, but I do like both leads. It's Pitt's best performance, for me.

Cave's appearance is a little jarring, yes, but not too troublesome. That train robbery sequence in the dark is worth the price of admission alone. Roger Deakins in excelsis.

Menu

Quote from: Crenners on February 20, 2022, 06:00:59 PMCheers. I have the Eureka release of Rio Grande but want to watch the other two first. I'll get to it.

Just finished Johnny Guitar again, big broad strokes melodrama, some magnificent dialogue and Joan Crawford is superb.

Anyway, catch you round.



Enjoy!

Old Thrashbarg

No mention of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid? Not necessarily the most traditional of Westerns, but a very enjoyable film, with some great performances and a wonderful score.