#classical western

First Cow

Time to saddle up.

The Western! An old American staple, and one of the most iconic film genres ever. They’ve had many forms over the past 100 years, but you usually know a Western when you see it. And there are a few reasons for that, from my relatively limited understanding.

Now, I say limited because I really JUST got into Westerns. Before about 4 years ago, I’d only really seen one or two. But, since then, I’ve got a few more under my belt, and I do actually like the genre. But OK, what exactly is the genre about? Haven’t done a genre recap in a good while, but let’s give this a shot! So, first things first...

Setting

While not every film classified as a Western takes place in the same location, the classic setting for the Western is, well...the West. Specifically, the American Old West, or the American Frontier. Cattle ranches, dustball towns, the prairies and the desert, so on and so forth. The vivid landscapes of the American deserts are a often gorgeous and usually iconic background for these films.

And, since I just finished watching a bunch of historical films, it behooves me to mention the history involved here. There are Westerns set in the modern day, but the VAST majority of these films are set between 1848 and 1899, and focus on settlements that were established during an area of vast expansion into the western half of the American continent. The beginning of the period is the beginning of the California Gold Rush, and that alone causes a huge amount of immigration. This so-called “Manifest Destiny” disrupted the lives of countless indigenous populations, and...yeah, that horrendous topic is a needed conversation for a later date. Trust me. Anyway, these new settlements were founded upon a few industries and values, and these prompted the development of specific...

Characters

Cowboys, ranchers, and cattle wranglers! Criminals and sheriffs! Disenfranchised native peoples trying to fight for their ancestral lands only to be fucked over by the brutal invasion from the east WE’LL GET THERE I SWEAR! Also, prostitutes. Lots and LOTS of them. Which, to be fair, is actually a major part of the time period, as brothels helped to build the Old West from the very beginning. But anyway, the characters!

The people in these films are representative of real people from the time, although almost always somewhat exaggerated for cinematic effect. Occasionally, you have those who change out, like Clint Eastwood’s The Man with No Name, or the Lone Ranger, or the real life Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday. But more often than not, the iconography of the characters combine with the setting to make them iconic. Cowboys riding out to the desert on their horses with a herd of cattle. A lone sheriff standing up against criminals trying to take over the town. Native Americans trying to survive against the onslaught of those who would destroy their way of life. Yeah. That’s kind of a theme, and I’m...not looking forward to that part of it.

Plot

Started hinting at this with the last part. There are a few plots that are pretty standard in the Western genre, and those plots both feed off of and into other genres. Some involve the construction of the railroads, and the trouble contained there within (The Great Train Robbery). You’ve got the interactions and struggles between ranchers and Native American populations, or course (The Searchers). One or several outlaws may menace an area, only for a lone vigilante or gunslinger to take them down (The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly...and Rango). And let’s not forgot stories about bounty hunters taking someone down (True Grit). 

There are quite a few stories that use these beats, but there are also other plots in Westerns. Still, these are quite common, and I’m sure I’ll see these throughout this month of films. I’ll point them out when I do, don’t worry.

So, with that...which Westerns have I actually seen? Lemme check my Letterboxd real quick...

The Searchers (1956), dir. John Ford: Excellent film! I give this a 90%.

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (1966), dir. Sergio Leone: Another excellent film! Gorgeous and iconic, sitting at a 92% as well.

Blazing Saddles (1974), dir. Mel Brooks: One of my favorite Mel Brooks comedies, for various reasons! A 95% for this one!

Dances With Wolves (1990), dir. Kevin Costner: This historical film (which is only lightly historical) is technically a Western. And it’s not bad, honestly. 80% from me!

Brokeback Mountain (2005), dir. Ang Lee: It’s known for being a romance, but it actually is a Western when you look at it! Check out my Recap (Part 1 | Part 2) and Review from February on this one!

Jonah Hex (2010), dir. Jimmy Hayward: One of the most interesting DC Comics characters! In an EXTREMELY shitty movie, dear God. 40%, and that’s generous.

Meek’s Cutoff (2010), dir. Kelly Richardt: This movie about the Oregon Trail is...goddamn, it’s bleak and wonderful. Not as typical a Western as the rest, but quite good. 80%!

Rango (2011), dir. Gore Verbinski: Johnny Depp is a chameleon stranded in the Wild West. Ridiculous. It’s...it’s one of my favorite Westerns. 85%.

Cowboys & Aliens (2011), dir. Jon Favreau: I cannot express how much I dislike this movie. First of all, the comic book is a lot more interesting (despite being mediocre). And second of all...it’s just not a good movie. 25%.

Django Unchained (2012), dir. Quentin Tarantino: Look, Tarantino might use the n-word a little...much in this one, but it’s still pretty good. Didn’t get as much out of it as many, but it’s still a good movie, and one of the few I’ve seen with a black lead. 74%.

The Hateful 8 (2015), dir. Quentin Tarantino: Yet another Tarantino Wester, and one I didn’t like...at first. I’ve only seen this 3-hour monster once, and it left a 65% taste in my mouth. But I keep hearing that this one needs to be rewatched to be appreciated, so...maybe...

The Revenant (2015), dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu: Can I just say...holy shit? This movie is fantastic, and no wonder DiCaprio won an Oscar for it. 90%, all the way.

Logan (2017), dir. James Mangold: YOU BETTER GODDAMN BELIEVE THIS IS A WESTERN. This is a Neo-Western, and a brilliant one at that. One of the best superhero movies, and a refreshing take on the genre, this one’s a goddamn banger. 95%. Hell yeah.

I’m genuinely excited for this month. Not only because of the genre in and of itself, but also because of the unique takes on the central genre. Western is both overly specific and quite versatile, and the specialized diversity is to be appreciated. Those variations, by the way, are reflected in the various subgenres. Your classic Western is what I’ve already described above. I’ve got a few of those on my list this month, specifically:

Stagecoach (1939), dir. John Ford

My Darling Clementine (1946), dir. John Ford

Red River (1948), dir. Howard Hawks

Broken Arrow (1950), dir. Delmer Daves

The Naked Spur (1953), dir. Anthony Mann

Shane (1953), dir. George Stevens

Johnny Guitar (1954), dir. Nicholas Ray

3:10 to Yuma (1957), dir. Delmer Daves

Rio Bravo (1959), dir. Howard Hawks

The Magnificent Seven (1960), dir. John Sturges

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), dir. John Ford

But you’ve also got:

Spaghetti Western: This is barely a subgenre, and is more of a school of Westerns. These are the films directed by Italian directors, especially Sergio Leone, who really defined the genre. Low-budget, shot on location, with true neutral aligned protagonists, as opposed to the typically good-aligned protagonists of classic Westerns. These films were grity, serious, and took a lot of risks with their protagonists. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly is one of these. On my watchlist, I have these:

A Fistful of Dollars (1964), dir. Sergio Leone

For a Few Dollars More (1965), dir. Sergio Leone

A Bullet or the General (1966), dir. Damiano Damiani

Django (1966), dir. Sergio Corbucci

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), dir. Sergio Leone

Acid Western: This is the successor to the classical and Spaghetti Western, mostly emerging through the 60s and 70s. These are far more surrealist, taking the trappings of the Western genre and injecting them with the counterculture stylings of the era. Basically, it’s the Western on acid, hence the name. There are a few of these, like 1970′s El Topo by Alejando Jodorowski, and Alex Cox’s 1987 film Walker, but I’ll only be looking at one for the sake of simplicity.

Dead Man (1995), dir. Jim Jarmusch

Revisionist Western: Here’s yet another take on the Western genre, born in the 1940s, and reborn in the 1960s, smack-dab in the middle of the civil rights era for both Black Americans AND Native Americans. The changing political landscape caused a welcome reexamining of the genre, and degraded the idea of the lawful good Western hero. Like the Spaghetti Westerns, it added shades of grey into the spectrum of the Western. But they also included Native Americans in this, which was not done as much in spaghetti Westerns. Instead of putting them in the role of villain (which was their normal role in Westerns), they were given a lot more agency and positive representation. The ones on my list in this subgenre (that I haven’t already mentioned) include:

High Noon (1952), dir. Fred Zinnemann

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), dir. George Roy Hill

McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), dir. Robert Altman

The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), dir. Philip Kaufman

Unforgiven (1992), dir. Clint Eastwood

Tombstone (1993), dir. George P. Cosmatos

True Grit (2010), dir. Joel and Ethan Coen

Neo-Western: There are surprisingly a lot of these. The Neo-Western is a more contemporary take on the Western. This usually means that it’s set in the modern day with the trappings of a Western attached to it. I’ve seen a few of these, like Rango, Logan, Brokeback Mountain, and the Mad Max franchise (although, those are really more Outback Western, to be fair). The ones on my watchlist in this genre are:

Midnight Cowboy (1969), dir. John Schlesinger

No Country for Old Men (2007), dir. Joel and Ethan Coen

Hell of High Water (2016), dir. David Mackenzie

Epic Western: A version of the historical epic, these are the films that put the Western on an epic scale. This either involves a massive production, or a massive event. This includes the American Civil War, the Mexican Revolution, and conflicts with Native Americans. Many of the Spaghetti Westerns adhere to this, like The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly and The Searchers. So does Dances with Wolves, Django Unchained, and technically The Revenant. On my list in this category, you’ve got:

The Wild Bunch (1969), dir. Sam Peckinpah

How the West Was Won (1962), dir. Henry Hathaway, John Ford, and George Marshall

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), dir. Andrew Dominik

Ramen Western: And finally, Italy’s not the only non-American country to make a Western. Russia, Greece, Australia, India, Mexico, and China have all taken a shot at the genre. And then, of course, there’s Japan. The Ramen Western isn’t overly popular, and I’ve never seen any of them. In fact, I’m technically cheating on this list, as one of these isn’t as much of a Western as it is inspired by them, and influential in its own right. And the other one is...interesting.

Seven Samurai (1954), dir. Akira Kurosawa

Sukiyaki Western Django (2007), dir. Takashi Miike

And there’s the list! Well...most of it.

Here’s the thing: as I’ve previously stated, the whole movie-a-day thing is a little tougher than expected. However, these are the films that I’ll be trying my damnedest to get to. Probably won’t complete the list, but I’ll at least be making progress on it! And the fun thing is this: I have more films. In fact, there are 19 more films on my watchlist, at minimum. I’ll get to those eventually.

So, who’s first?

Insert outdated Huckleberry Hound reference here...

...and now I can start. I watched a lot of Boomerang as a kid, so sue me. Anyway, it’s another John Ford movie! And this one is based off of a historical event! Remember last time (right here, if you wanna read my long-ass review of Stagecoach, and a recap of John Ford’s history)? I mentioned that John Wayne’s college football coach was a friend of both director John Ford and Old West LEGEND Wyatt Earp? Well, it’s impossible for me to believe that that connection never resulted in Ford meeting Earp at some point, And that’s somewhat justified by the existence of this film.

And indeed, Ford DID meet Earp, but that coach had nothing to do with it! See, while Ford was an assistant on film sets, he would often work with people who lived in the Old West, including in the town of Tombstone, Arizona. And who came to visit some of his old friends on set? Wyatt. Fucking. Earp. Holy shit, can you imagine? You’re just setting up props, when suddenly a FUCKIN’ LEGEND JUST ROLLS UP because he and Fred played poker a few times. But why exactly was Earp a legend? Well...

Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (yes, really) was born in Monmouth, Illinois on March 19, 1848. He was the fourth child of eight, and was born JUST a little too late to serve in the Union army, as his father and two oldest brothers did. Wyatt, meanwhile, worked on the farm, despite wanting to fight for the Union Army. And after the war ended, the entire family survived and moved out west to California for a bit, until eventually going back east to Missouri.

It was in Missouri that Earp’s father joined law enforcement, with Wyatt joining him as constable soon after. He got married when he was 21, but she died of typhoid fever while pregnant with their child, which SHATTERED Wyatt. With his personal life in shambles, his professional life also fell apart, culminating in an alleged horse theft in 1871. Earp was arrested, and then escaped from jail and RAN for Illinois.

He wouldn’t escape for too long, as he was found and arrested AGAIN the next year, along with Sally Heckell, a prostitute who claimed to be his wife. By this point, he’d actually found a way to purchase a brothel boat, WHICH WAS A THING, BY THE WAY. And so, when they got enough money to get out of jail, they took off for Kansas, where his brother ALSO ran a brothel. Like I said before, sex workers built the West! It’s true!

And Wyatt once again took the role of Wild West pimp, possibly. This is alongside his brother James, and his wife Bessie Ketchum. So, Bessie and James...Ketchum...wait...

...Huh. Completely unrelated, but...huh.

OK, so Sally takes off at some point, leaving Wyatt, his brother, and his brother’s wife to prepare for trouble. And trouble was constant in Wichita, Kansas. It was a booming cattle town, and cowboys from recent drives LOVED to celebrate with a BUNCH of booze. That meant drunken cowboys WITH GUNS, and an overwhelmed police force. 

That’s where Wyatt stepped into a new profession: police officer. Starting in the mid 1870s, Earp became an officer, eventually moving up to the rank of deputy. But, after yet another altercation with a compatriot, he was fired by the department. His brother went to Dodge City to open a brothel, and Wyatt went with him. There, he was appointed assistant police chief, or assistant marshall, and worked in Dodge City and Deadwood. Yes, that Deadwood.

After a successful career in the police force, he left Dodge City and went to watch a robber nicknamed “Dirty Dave”. Yes, really. Apparently, dude was rumored to have hated water and bathing...allegedly. Anyway, on this journey, Earp met a gambler who knew Dave by the name of Doc Holliday. Yes, THAT Doc Holliday. He redirected Earp to Dodge City to find the robber, and was appointed Assistant Marshall once again. Doc Holliday also came to Dodge City with his wife, Big Nose Kate. Which is...certainly a nickname. Did she like that name? I don’t know if she liked that name?

Quite a lot of shit went down in Dodge City, including a showdown in the Long Branch Salloon, during which Holliday saved Earp’s life as he was being held at gunpoint. It’s actually a pretty badass story, real talk. Anyway, Earp got married again, killed a couple of dudes, and then moved to a little town in Arizona.

It’s 1879, and Wyatt arrives in Tombstone with TWO brothers, Virgil and James. Wyatt started gambling quickly, and earned a lot of money that way. The brothers bought a mine and water rights, and Wyatt eventually started escorting Wells Fargo strongboxes as a bodyguard. Soon, brothers Morgan and Warren joined them, as did Doc Holliday. Things were looking good for the Earps...until the Cochise County Cowboys rolled into town. 

These outlaw cowboys posed a threat to Tombstone, leading the army to ask U.S. Marshal Virgil Earp to help track them down. He brought along Morgan and Wyatt, and they tracked them down. There’s some stuff involving stolen government mules, but I’ll summarize it by saying that the cowboys were assholes about the whole thing. The CCC and the Earps were now enemies after this, and their feud became deadly.

From here...I can’t get into all of Earp’s exploits, because I DO NOT HAVE THE GODDAMN TIME. Seriously, dude was a legend for a reason. Suffice to say that, by the time we get to October 26, 1881, a 33 (THIRTYFUCKINGTHREE) year-old Earp is a very well-known face in Tombstone, and in the Wild West. It’s at this point that the Earps and Holliday meet the CCC in a place on Fremont Street, known as the O.K. Corral.

I’d go into it, but I don’t want to spoil the movie! However, I will say this: the movie is probably inaccurate. And I say this because the estate of Earp SUED THE FUCK out of the author, claiming it as incorrect to his legend. But again...later. I’ll also save the history lesson about film star Henry Fonda for a later date. For now...HISTORY LIVES! KINDA!

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

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