Vote for Your Top 20 US Westerns

Not an easy list to compile … and I’m sure I will kick myself for omitting a few classics.

But here goes …

  1. The Magnificent Seven
  2. The Searchers
  3. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
  4. The Cowboys
  5. Jeremiah Johnson
  6. True Grit (1969)
  7. A Man Called Horse
  8. The Culpepper Cattle Company
  9. The Professionals
  10. The Scalphunters
  11. Vera Cruz
  12. The Wild Bunch
  13. The Man who shot Liberty Valance
  14. El Dorado
  15. Red River
  16. Ride the High Country
  17. The Spikes Gang
  18. The Comancheros
  19. Shane
  20. How the West was Won.
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Oooops! … forgot about ‘The Big Country’ Classic :grinning:

Good movie, but there are better ones, imo
From the director, I prefer The Left-Handed Gun and Little Big Man to The Missouri Breaks, but all three are good movies. Arthur Penn is one of the very best directors of his era

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I’m starting to realize that.

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For me also, but it seems his reputation is nowadays steadily sinking.

Of course he could have achieved more considering his talent, but he was probably to sensible, not asshole enough, for all the Hollywood fights.

Bonnie and Clyde, Little Big Man and Night Moves are excellent movies. Three 10ers, not much directors do that for me.

Didn’t know this was directed by the same director as did Bonny and Clyde. By now this will not come as a surprise to you I guess. But Night Moves is I think a real beautiful film, one I surely will get back to when I (again) turns to film noir.

Wasn’t so impressed with The Chase (1966), though. Despite its stellar cast – among others, Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda, Robert Redford, Angie Dickinson, Robert Duvall and Martha Hyer – the film simply doesn’t work. It was obviously a very ambitious project, dealing with such topics as racism, vigilantism, sexual freedom, small town hypocrisy and whatnot, but it didn’t manage to live up to its makers’ high hopes. In some respect, Brando’s performance is both the film’s boon and bane; as it will be, to an even greater extent, of The Missouri Breaks ten years later.

  1. Ulzana’s Raid
  2. Duel at Diablo
  3. El Condor
  4. The Wild Bunch
  5. Doc
  6. The Outlaw Josey Wales
  7. Little Big Man
  8. Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid
  9. Mr. Horn
  10. Monte Walsh
  11. The Missouri Breaks
  12. The Culpepper Cattle Company
  13. McCabe and Mrs Miller
  14. Bad Company
  15. Mountain Men
  16. Breakheart Pass
  17. Hombre
  18. Heaven’s Gate
  19. The Revengers
  20. 40 Guns to Apache Pass (good cheesy fun)

I would have included Chato’s Land and Valdez Horses if it wasn’t for the fact they are classed as Eurowesterns. Same with The Hunting Party.

That was one of the films for which Penn lost the war with the producer. He called it later a Sam Spiegel film and his only real Hollywood film. Penn was not allowed to cut it, and he claimed he did not understand many of the decisions which were made in the cutting phase. But truth is also that the often overly pretentious dialogues was a part of the film’s screenplay.

The Chase could have become a great film considering its potential, but it was kinda ill fated from the beginning on. He shouldn’t have directed it. Still not a bad film. 6/10

For me they are allowed as they are basically US westerns.

Well, that wasn’t easy.

  1. The Wild Bunch
  2. Little Big Man
  3. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
  4. McCabe & Mrs. Miller
  5. The Ox-Bow Incident
  6. The Ballad of Cable Hogue
  7. The Big Country
  8. The Missouri Breaks
  9. The Gunfighter
  10. Dead Man
  11. Heaven’s Gate
  12. The Big Sky
  13. High Noon
  14. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
  15. My Darling Clementine
  16. The Westerner
  17. Tombstone
  18. Quigley Down Under
  19. Vera Cruz
  20. Pale Rider

Interesting, I didn’t know that. (But we’re off-topic here.)

Nice, lads.

I’m appalled - where’s Duel in the Sun (King Vidor, 1946)? Does no-one love steamy, bubbling, purulent kitsch any more? It would easily be in my top 20 …

I really like the top 20 US Western idea.
Thank you guys.
Much to see and learn :slight_smile:

As I was reading I noticed that ,after John made up the top 20 list, there are a lot of new top 20 from forum members.
Is there gonna be an update on the top 20 list??

Thank you