The Western – a Primer




Hello friends, many of you probably know of my Western Odyssey that began out of a desire to prepare myself for Red Dead Redemption II. It led me to watching a whole hell of a lot of Westerns. To date I have seen 60+, which while not making me an expert on the genre, has given me some insight into the way it works and why it continues to resonate with us after so long, even if the days of it being one of the most popular genres are long gone. If you like the genre and want to discuss/trade recs or are curious where to start, Muggins is here to help you on your way!




Where To Start




As with many genres, it is tempting to shun the popular in favour of obscure recs to prove the individual's credentials. In the case of the Western – in its day, a ridiculously popular genre – it is safe enough to point the seeker in the direction of Sergio Leone, Sam Peckinpah and John Ford. When I first saw the Dollars Trilogy, I was in awe at their style, their power and their undeniable level of cool, defined forever on screen by Clint Eastwood. If one was forced to choose an actor who defined the genre, I would go for Clint over John Wayne any day of the week. That is not to deny the power and swagger of Wayne and his undeniable importance to the genre of course, but if there is anyone who can be said to embody the positive artistic nature of the Western and its connected culture, I would much rather it be Clint Eastwood than the bitter and rambling Wayne who hated communists and gays more than he loved working in pictures. Anyway, I suppose that's beside the point. Here are the films I recommend a beginner start their journey with:




[ol] [li] The Good, The Bad and The Ugly – Sergio Leone. Probably the most celebrated Western of all time, and for damn good reason. This is unbelievably stylish, powerful, witty, visually sublime and all around big time fun. Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef and Eli Wallach as Tuco, a role for which he should have won an Oscar. Set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, it is hard to believe that this film came out so long ago. If one were tasked with making a Western today, they would be hard pressed to make as vital and modern seeming a picture as this. This film is a good measure of whether one will enjoy the Western.


[/li][li] The Searchers – John Ford. The greatest work of art that John Ford or John Wayne ever had their name attached to. While the story has unhelpful depictions of Native Americans, it still manages to pack a powerful emotional wallop and is riveting from start to finish. John Wayne was a shit and it helps that here he basically plays a shit, who is the only one rough and tough enough to get the job done. While True Grit would earn him his only Oscar, The Searchers is his best work. John Ford would eventually come to see the errors of his ways as far as depictions of the Native Americans with his final film Cheyenne Autumn, a fine movie in its own right.


[/li][li] The Magnificent Seven (original re-imaginging of Seven Samurai) – John Sturges. Just a big ball of fun. This is, much like Leone's pictures, a Western that many people have seen, even while not being huge fans of the genre. The quintessential town with a problem of outlaws and seven heroes come riding in to sort them out. Excellent cast. A whole mess of fun.


[/li][li] The Wild Bunch – Sam Peckinpah. This was one of the very first Westerns that my father Noel showed me, many, many years ago. It remains one of my favourites. Brutally violent, beautifully shot with some fine performances from William Holden and Ernest Borgnine. A huge influence on every outlaw driven Western that followed, especially something like Red Dead Redemption I and II. Sam Peckinpah also made the superb Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid, which you should also give a watch, though make sure to get the far superior Director's Cut!  
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Digging Deeper




The Western is a varied genre and there are many interesting twists and turns, some politically/morally forward thinking, some regressive and in love with traditional roles. Here are some of my favourite discoveries from my Western Odyssey.




[ol] [li] Broken Arrow – Delmer Daves. Jimmy Stewart was in a lot of Westerns – two of which I mention here – and this is tied with Winchester 73 for my favourite. This was an early example of a Western that tried to stand up to the terrible stereotyping, racism and cruel treatment of the Native American. And while it is unfortunate that white actors play most of the roles, it is a rivetting, emotionally powerful bit of film and well worth a watch.
[/li][li] Winchester 73 – Anthony Mann. A tale of revenge and frontier justice with a great twist that I won't spoil here. Jimmy Stewart is so charismatic here – as he was in almost everything – and nails the everyman and the emotion of the piece. Not a particularly unusual Western, unlike Broken Arrow, but a ridiculously good one all the same.
[/li][li] The Outlaw Josey Wales – Clint Eastwood. Definitely the most popular film in this Digging Deeper section. I include it here as it is often forgotten for Clint's more celebrated works like the Leone pictures and Unforgiven, but it is arguably the best film he has made as a director. Similar in approach to Broken Arrow, though with far deeper Native American characters, here actually played by Native actors. Chief Dan George's character is particularly interesting and well written and acted. This has all the makings of a John Wayne picture – Josey Wales' family is murdered by rogue Union soldiers, leading him to join a Confederate outfit. This though is driven by the pain of loss and not through seeing eye to eye with their larger cause. Thrilling, exceedingly well directed and acted. One of my favourites.
[/li][li] Bone Tomahawk – S. Craig Zahler. Kurt Russell was born to be in Westerns, and this is a rather good and unusual one. A tad racist yep, but a really well executed bit of Western Horror, two genres which should have more to do with one another.
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Quality Remakes




[ol] [li] True Grit – The Coen Brothers. The original John Wayne vehicle – which won him his only Oscar – is a brilliant film, but so is this beautiful remake, which I honestly prefer. Jeff Bridges is quite different from Wayne and plays the part of Rooster Cogburn with a ridiculous and entertaining verve. The major difference and where The Coens have the edge, in my opinion, is Hailee Steinfeld, who is so good here. The ending is also far superior. Big time emotions, and a whole lot of fun.
[/li][li] 3:10 To Yuma – James Mangold. This is so much better than the original it's ridiculous. A big part of that is the faster pace and the performances from Bale and Crowe, who play off each other wonderfully. Hits hard where it needs to and ends on a bittersweet note. Very well directed and written.
[/li][li] The Magnificent Seven – Antoine Fuqua. The reason I watched this was partly because Nic Pizzolatto – the writer and creator of True Detective – co-wrote the screenplay. It is, like the original, a ridiculously entertaining yarn with a cast almost as good as the original. Denzel Washington is, as nearly always, a mess of big time charisma and well judged and subtle acting choices. Obviously never going to be as iconic as the original, but this is well worth a watch if you're a fan of that great film.
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Modern Westerns

While the Western is nowhere near as common or as popular as it was in the 1940s and 1950s, every now and then we see a quality Western. It does amuse me that some criticized Rockstar for not taking risks, while putting a hundred million into a genre that hasn't been a big time popular genre for six+ decades... anyway here are some of my favourite and best Westerns of the 21^st century.




[ol] [li] The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford – Andrew Dominik. If you only see one modern Western, make it this one. A big influence on the tone of Red Dead II – especially the train robery here – and very likely the best Western movie of the 21^st century. Meditative, philosophically profound and with two stunning performances from Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck. A bully and a coward.
[/li][li] Hostiles – Scott Cooper. A desperately sad story but undoubtedly powerful. Christian Bale plays a bigoted man who hates Indians, but is tasked with taking a dying Cheyenne Chief back home so that he can die in his tribal lands. This hits hard and provokes a tear or two. Well worth a watch.
[/li][li] The Salvation – Kristian Levring. Mads Mikkelsen in a Western. Oh yes.
[/li][li] Django Unchained – Quentin Tarantino. Probably my pick for best Tarantino. Powerful, a wicked sense of humour, and epic as fuck. When 2 Pac and James Brown come in at the close of the film, when justice is cast down... I lose it. Tarantino has more than a bit in common with Sergio Leone – both are talented scholars, who borrowed more than a bit from other artists' work, yet they manage to take that something and turn it into something fresh and new.
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Television Westerns




[ol] [li] Deadwood – David Milch. This was until Red Dead II, my all time favourite Western, and now with a sublime ending, is definitely in the top three greatest works of art done in the Western genre. Slow burn, focused on the relationships between characters, sometimes unspeakably brutal, with a quick turn to a dark sense of humour. Ian McShane and Robin Weigert alone make this worth watching and celebrating.
[/li][li] Godless – Scott Frank. While this was always destined to be compared to Milch's work, this is quite good when you can seperate it in your mind from Deadwood. Jeff Daniels is very much a Dutch Van Der Linde figure and the way things end up does have quite a bit in common with Rockstar's masterpiece.
[/li][li]Lonesome Dove – Simon Wincer. Robert Duvall, surely one of the greatest living actors does some of his best work here, and with Tommy Lee Jones, this is a brilliant mini-series.
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