Josey Wales had some awesome one-liners. I quoted them ad nauseum while I was deployed. Dyin' ain't much of a livin'. Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms.
@@amns8900 you get those holes leaking, I'm gonna whomp you with a knotted plow like. Well, Mr Carpet Bagger, we have a thing in these parts called a Missouri boat ride. One of my old homies and I might get to drink together every few years, and we usually end up smashed and singing Rose of Alabama
Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining. I'm not American, but man that Dixie Land song and Rose of Alabama are beautiful songs. I've had them stuck in my mind for years thanks to that film. Clint Eastwood is undeniable. I'll sing the song when he passes on. 😢
For me, western mythologies and setting as part of US history, just like the Victorian Era in England, will never cease to be fascinating and attractive and carry timeless potential that won't go out of style.
Timestamps 1:47 [10. The Big Gundown] 5:27 [9. For A Few Dollars More] 8:14 [8. Django] 12:17 [7. Have Gun Will Travel] 15:21 [6. The Dark Valley] 17:12 [5. Hell on Wheels] 21:36 [4. Deadwood] 27:17 [3. Tate] 30:41 [2. Pale Rider] 33:12 [1. The Great Silence]
Lee Van Cleef is to the spaghetti western what Randolph Scott was to the classic American western. The star that real aficionados tend to be most familiar with.
My father and I did cowboy competition shooting for many years, his alias was "lefty van Cleef" because he is left handed, and Cleef is his favorite actor
Here's a question for the true weird west fans: Can anybody tell me which movie I saw when the internet was young, being a 50s style black and white western with a narrator and birds (mostly parakeets) as actors in a charming miniature western environment? I presume it wasn't a true movie, but probably some kind of short 16mm spoof to amuse school children - but I've never been able to find that treasure again.
I loved Hell on Wheels, probably because my grandfather was a Georgia Pacific Foreman in the 20s and 30s and I was raised on stories of Railroad corruption. My grandfather died in the early 50s from a stroke, brought on by immobility as he was wheelchair bound.. as the railcar that cut his brother in half left a fist-sized cavity in his back and he was permanently paralyzed. Deaths were common, even at that point, and plays into the general corruption behind the whole industry.
The fact that Hell On Wheels made the list brings me so much joy. The Swede is one of my favorite love-to-hate-him assholes of tv, and the concept is much more original than "outlaws ride into western town, sheriff kills them and becomes a hero"
As a child I sat and watched The Magnificent 7 with my father and Grandfather. I was enraptured with it. The visuals, the characters, the story, the score...all epic. My father then introduced me to the original, 7 Samurai. Such epic storytelling that transcended language and culture. My love of anti-hero, revengeful stories was born. I would ride the arm of the sofa as my horse, whilst wielding my sword or pistols. Now, a near half century later I still get enthralled by the tales of the old west and sweeping tales of revenge.
I grew up with Don Bluth movies, so Fivel Goes West was the first western (adjacent) thing I saw; meanwhile my dad was a huge mark for The Duke, and my mom was a huge Mel Gibson fan girl so 'Maverick' was a household staple. My older brothers got me into Young Guns' in high school by way of the self-contained sequel, 'Young Guns 2', so westerns were pretty ubiquitous in my house. I loved spaghetti westerns like Sartana, Django, and the Wild Bunch whereas my father preferred the more aspirational stuff.
What makes magnificent 7 is the message from Bronson about the fathers being the honorable men, not the gun fighters and how all the fighters, on both sides are losers, and the farmers, the families who keep on living are the winners.
Pale Rider was the FIRST rated R movie I was allowed to watch as a young man. What a great film to start with! My Dad made me promise not to tell mom he took me ❤ I’ll always remember this classic movie and that afternoon fondly
I give you massive props for being very candid about your inspirations for your own Western comic. Far too many are happy to say they formulated their artistic efforts from the aether and their own farts.
Sometimes people indeed kind of do that, although it's a declaration they make born from ignorance. Even if the memory isn't clear and present enough in your mind, it doesn't mean you didn't base your idea on something else. We base everything we think on something else or a remix or mixture of such memories. Of course expecting this knowledge from most is expecting too much. On the other hand, if they don't know any better, they deserve some leniency.
So glad you like "The Great Silence"! I wrote the subtitles for the British Blu-ray - they're more reflective of Corbucci's vision than the dubtitles on the American release.
I just got into a mood for westerns because of Wendigoon's Blood Meridian video and now Razorfist releases a recommendation video? The universe is telling me its time to saddle up boys.
So glad you put For a Few Dollars More on this list. My absolute favorite and the final duel when the music swells after he says “now we start” is amazing! Great list. Every year I visit home me and my dad watch the old westerns that were on back in the day. Classic shows
The beauty of the western is how versatile it is. Besides the fact it can blend well with futuristic sci-fi multiple countries have had their take. I recently watched the Proposition because my friend loves abd collects westerns and this was the only Australian equivalent. It really demonstrated our wild west that gets less attention. The Italians, like with horror movies, made some of the best spaghetti westerns to rival the US. And I also remember hearing of a Curry western on our foreign movie channel as a kid. Spain has even also dished out a few. It's like the genre itself is an abstract concept that's culturally synonymous with the pioneer era of the US that popularised it. All you need is a harsh climate, an isolated settlement, guns, outlaws, and maybe a few natives for good measure, and you can make a western. Doesn't matter if the setting is fictional or historical.
top ten westerns for me in no order: Bullet for the General, Good the Bad and the ugly, For A Few Dollars more, Once Upon a Tme in the West, Four of hte Apocalypse, The Wild Bunch, 100 Rifles, Keoma, Major Dundee, Companeros.
10 good westerns i love: -Treasure of the silverlake -They call me Trinity -Rio Lobo -White Buffalo -Arizona colt -100 Rifles -They still call me Trinity -Red Sun -The good the bad and the ugly -Companeros
My Pop-Pop, may he rest in peace, was a mega fan of westerns. I would always catch him watching them, whether they be old or new. He even got me into them and I have a soft spot for the genre. Thanks for making this Razor. I recognize some of these thanks to my Pop-Pop.
Right here too. Could've been the cheapest piece of garbage you ever saw, shot on a backlot in three days and an afternoon, grainy as Hell, sound like it was recorded through a beekeper's hood but if it was a Western, my dad would sit in front of it lke a moth at a lightbulb.
19:00 Cuts the best part. Reverend Cole: Ah... mercy of a bullet was somethin' they didn't deserve. Cullen Bohannan: Well, I owned slaves. Reverend Cole: Yeah, well, lucky for you, you weren't in Kansas that night. Cullen Bohannan: No, preacher. That's lucky for You.
I was never a fan of Westerns and generally disliked them. Then I watched "Once Upon a Time in the West" and that changed completely. One of the greatest movies I've ever seen. Breakheart Pass was another that helped change my mind on them. Up there with some of Jerry Goldsmith's finest film scores.
@@abrahemsamander3967 I accidentally stumbled on it while looking through Jerry Goldsmith's discography and decided to check it out. It plays out sort of like a Western and murder mystery. Didn't do very well, but I enjoyed it. Worth it just for more Charles Bronson.
As a kid, 'Have Gun Will Travel' was my favorite TV Western. Living in a hotel and eating in restaurants until saddling up, a gun on your hip, and riding out helping people for money. 👍 As an adult, I can see how well written it actually was and still enjoy watching the boxed sets I got from my youngest son one Christmas.
My son absolutely killed me a while back when he said, "You know you're old when all you watch is old westerns." I fell out laughing. I grew up on westerns. My favorite movie is Josie Wales. An epic list for sure. Haven't seen the last one or Tate so I'll check them out. GOD FUCKING SPEED
THE VALLEY OF GWANGI is one of the few Westerns that made me cry at the end. That poor dinosaur didn't deserve to die that way. You may think I'm joking, but I'm dead serious.
Fun fact: Ted Levine and Tom Noonan (both featured in Hell On Wheels as well as Michael Mann's Heat) starred as the main serial killer in The Silence of The Lambs and Manhunter. Two of the first films in the Hannibal Lector "series".
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is my preferred western. Pacing wise it can be slow at points but I think a foreigner’s perspective in the American west and then later the gangster film Once Upon A Time in America it’s honestly impressive how Leone is very much a visionary who not only was known for not having to draw up storyboards in his last film but also picture the shots in his head to screen. Honestly Leone is still my favorite because of his ability to even do such a task. I must see Once Upon A Time… in the Revolution!
I actually really like the classic hollywood westerns. Shane has been growing and growing on me over the years. While Unforgiven was the one I fell in love with at 11 years old, Shane is rising fast to become a personal favorite.
SHANE and THE SEARCHERS are the high point of the classical western. I’ve also been fond of STAGECOACH, MY DARLING CLEMENTINE, WAGON MASTER, WINCHESTER 73, THE GUNFIGHTER, the John Ford Cavalry films like FORT APACHE, and SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON; WARLOCK (1959); VERA CRUZ; Man of the West. The genre is basically a treasure horde.
These are all great westerns. But, my all time favorite is Hang 'em High starring Clint Eastwood. The story about the conflict between revenge and justice is perfectly portrayed in the stoorry.
You inspired me and my wife to write a western pulp graphic novel. Been working on volume 1 for about 8 months. It's neo- and noir with a frenchman😅 stay tuned and thanks for the inspiration and motivation. Hail to the Iron Age.
I've never been into Westerns, though I certainly didn't mind watching one. As opposed to the current movie genres nowadays, deep storylines really make me stay engaged. So thanks for giving us this list, Razor. I'll watch them.
Had a conversation with a feminist about 10 year's ago in a coffee shop. Somehow the topic became the genre of Westerns she said her favorite was High Plains Drifter. She loved the barn scene in the beginning and said a lot of Women wanted that behind their false bravado.
We still need a razorfist recommends 10 film Noir, your suggestions of doubke indemnity, murder my sweet and the big sleep were superb. And i think a lot of people would find your list helpful
Hell on Wheels is still one of my favorite shows. I wasn't reuined by the commercial breaks having missed it during its original airing, so I was able to just sink into it during my first binge watch about 5 years ago.
I wrote a western/sci-fi book called “Dawkin: A Tall Tale” I released a couple years back. I know it’s pretty shameless to try and advertise it here but I figure if we’re talking about westerns I may as well mention mine lol. Best of luck with your next project, Razor.
Great list. Would love a noir list too. So many great westerns: Pursued, Once Upon a Time..., My Darling Clementine, The Big Country, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Unforgiven, The Lusty Men, 3:10 to Yuma, Warlock, Red River. Could go all day.
I'll never forget when I was around 7 or 8 years old, my mom, a huge western fan (because Belgium), is watching Django. I'm seeing that guy dragging a coffin and wonder "The poor guy is burying a friend", then as I see the bad guys shooting and Django looking at the casket I think "Wait a second", and then he just opens it and slaughter them with that gun and thought "Ho my God that's the coolest thing I have ever seen in my life". Of course because it was 8pm I had to go to bed but never did I forget that moment of utter badassery. As of High Plains Drifter, sorry not sorry, still my absolute favorite Western. (Gotta give Pale Rider a rewatch tho)
Does it seem strange to anyone else that Jamie Foxx had to point out the "D" in Django was silent? He only spoke it. No one can see the letters in a name when it's spoken. Imagine if Obi-Wan Kenobi had asked Jango Fett, "Is the 'D' silent?" Fett would have said, "No, you're thinking of Django Fetch. He lives on Tatooine, like everyone else."
@@Elfrunner *Django Unchained* was just a retread of *Kill Bill* (I love Chris Waltz, but why wasn't Franco Nero the dentist?) and *The Hateful Eight* was just a piss poor 90 minute story told in 3 to 4 hours. I read the script before the movie came out, and the scene where Ruth (Kurt's character) starts spewing blood genuinely surprised me. The movie on the other hand? The big dummy spoils the surprise!
@@TheRealNormanBates Probably better titles for these two movies would have been _Djenga Unstacked_ and _The Ungrateful Bait,_ since that's about all each one amounted to. Christoph Waltz is a good actor, though.
It is a rather wild coincidence that at a time when a certain genre of film was taking over the industry, that two of the biggest names creating hits for said genre were the same name, the two Sergios.
Just now seeing this video, but I've been binge watching Bonaza because I've gotten on this dopamine kick of Western and Cowboy country. Artists like Marty Robbins, Hank Williams Sr., and that era (50s, 60s, and 70s) country music just hits my soul just right. Now this King puts out a movie watch list? Wish I had seen this sooner.
And in that same alternate life, I'd be his right hand man, Nero Finley. A tough piece of steak that blazed a trail of destruction from Wichita to San Juan and was bound for an early grave till Razor found me in a bar one night with the local sheriff's wife. Needless to say, we skinned those smokestacks and sent many a lawman to the afterlife before making our escape on horseback.
I highly recommend The Merkabah Rider books to anyone interested in a supernatural Weird Western with a side of pulp and plenty of Lovecraftian horror, is literally magic gunslingers, angels and demons vs the Cthulhu Mythos and it does the whole "elemental" force of justice, or in this case order, in an unexpected way. Ps: there's also a bible thumping steampunk cyborg priest, have fun with that.
I'm with you, and that would be my only quibble with this essay and his list: I would've definitely included one of those, and probably the same one you pick. They're all great, but that's my favorite one.
They play a lot of Randolph Scott movies on Grit TV. Randolph Scott, Audie Murphy, Kirk Douglas had a lot of underrated movies. Even Jimmy Stewart. Lol.
Where has this channel been hiding from me? Comics, westerns, comic westerns, pulp, badass anticommunism, everything I love. UA-cam was hiding this channel from me on purpose, I am sure. ;) I always thought "For a Few Dollars More" was the best of the three.
Funny you mentioned the ostensibly Mormon protagonist in one of your movie picks. I've been working on a story based around the Mormon war of 1838. I grew up on a farm right in the middle of the county where it all happened and I've been reading a lot about it over the past year or so. So much crazy stuff happened from 1830-1860 and it all got overshadowed by the civil war. There's a lot of great Western material yet to be worked with.
Seems to be the case for a lot of big conflicts. The buildup is just a series of chaos and nastiness that explodes into that giant conflict, be it in the bronze age, to the information age and thensome.
@@zab6124 Missouri was the center of a bunch of brushfire wars leading up to the civil war and a lot of it was memory-holed because the antagonists were abolitionist zealots who murdered and graped their way through Missouri with the blessing of the federal government. The Mormon War was more a product of Sidney Rigdon being insane and the governor of Missouri not wanting to pick sides so whoever won would still vote for him. I'm really thinking about starting a rumble channel about Missouri history because UA-cam would yeet my channel into the sun the first time I talked about what the red legs and jayhawkers actually did leading up to Quantril's raid on Lawrence.
I watch Rawhide and Rifleman on Pluto even now.😊 Amazing how that stuff holds up. I remember the Long Riders as a kid. Great Western. Look forward to your Western!
This is awesome! I just watched The Great Silence and rewatched the Dollars Trilogy. I'm on a Western binge at the moment, so your timing's impeccable!
I got into Westerns because of you, Razor. The way you spoke about them in your videos got me interested in the genre, so thank you for that. Having you talk more about Westerns is a real treat
Please do more of these "Razorforce-approved" videos. I owe much to your fine tastes: Westerns, film noir, DS9, fantasy books, black metal, etc. So many of my favorites have come straight from your videos but I will always take more.
Unforgiven is the greatest western ever made. The ode to all westerns ever made, all while becoming the western to end all westerns. I finished watching it, and felt like I had nothing else to see. To watch, maybe the most stunning transformation of a character in cinema history, was jaw dropping and gut-wrenching.
High Plains Drifter is hands down my favorite Western. I know you said Pale Rider is peak elemental Eastwood but High Plains Drifter throw me for a loop in those final 3 or 4 shots, a truly shocking twist to end a true tale of fucking JUSTICE. Godspeed, Razor ❤
I’m not sure why but that one never resonated with me. That one and Hang Em High. I probably haven’t watched either since I was in Middle School. Maybe I should give it another watch.
Oh, wow! Going the extra-mile with the aesthetic, and that includes your comic art! The moon and reddish (I have a filter so might be seeing a different color) shadow trim on the horse and rider looks beautiful! And nice to hear your The Ghost of the Badlands comic western launching tomorrow April 21!
This was great! I’ll always have the Outlaw Josie Wales at the top of my own list, but mad respect for your picks. Best thing for me: my sons are teens now, and we've been beginning their “education”
I find myself going back and forth between “For A Few Dollars More and” and “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” as my favorite western film of all time. I think part of the reason I prefer TGTBTU most of the time is the civil war scenes and Tuco. Also want to mention the under appreciated and criminally overlooked “The White Buffalo”
13:25 all evil begins with a compromise... ive never heard that line before. in fact ive never heard anyone but myself equate compromise to the beginning of nothing but evil. so color me shocked that someone in a movie said it. hot damn imma gonna have to watch it now
My grandmother introduced me to Bud Spencer and Terence Hill movies, mainly comedies. When I was a teenager, my brother and I found a bunch of them in a bargain bin at the video store so we bought every single one. Among them was the Trinity series. Those were my first spaghetti westerns, and I then went through a western phase where I literally wanted to be a cowboy.
Great List, some I have to see. Pale Rider is a clever remake of Shane. Living across street from school I got to come home for lunch in 2nd Grade. Watched by myself probably the first rerun airings of Tate. Until Public Domain 50 years later I thought his left arm was burnt black in the war.
Super surprised and happy to see #7--one of my all-time favorites. Will definitely pick up your book, Razor. Thanks for the great video and great list.
Ah, "Pale Rider", another under-appreciated western. Clint's love letter to the classic western in all its incarnations. You have the gun-slinging preacher trope who is the mysterious stranger with a past, the range war (now waged against prospectors instead of sheep herders), obvious call-outs to "High Noon", "Shane", and Eastwood's own "High Plains Drifter" in reverse. Also rocks a cast that was born to play their parts like I've never seen before, especially that veteran actor who plays the leader of the mercenaries.
Holy crap it's been awhile. Edit: after watching the list, I have only seen Pale Rider. And you showcased perhaps the best scene in the movie when Clint just looks at that carpet bagger without saying a single damn word. Just lasers straight into his soul.
Razor! Thank you very much for curating all of these movies, I recently started watching a lot of Westerns since June started and I am enjoying every second of it especially when I enter by release order all the movies you recommended. Now, I am fully committed on consuming as much Western media as I can. God fucking speed!
It always warms my cockles that film either has to dazzle with insane amounts of extras and extravagance, or nurture the brain with witty dialogue and great characters...and if you do both, you win.
Young Guns is probably most millennial and zoomers favorite Western. And generally their first. Probably the most accessible starter Western to show somebody.
You should have seen my parents, I made them sit down and watch the whole "Deadwood" series with me, initially they were kinda bored, but by the end they were fully invested, and you should have seen the look on my dad's face when I told him the series got canceled at the end of season 3, HE WAS PISSED.
Deadwood is one of the best TV shows of all time. Barely anything happens for entire episodes at a time, and I love that fact. The setting just totally immerses you
The Outlaw Josey Wales, Unforgiven, and The Searchers are some of my favourites.
Josey is probably my favorite movie of all time, not only my favorite western
Tombstone, Boss Ni**er, The Posse. The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, and I agree with you on Unforgiven.
Josey Wales had some awesome one-liners. I quoted them ad nauseum while I was deployed.
Dyin' ain't much of a livin'.
Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms.
@@amns8900
you get those holes leaking, I'm gonna whomp you with a knotted plow like.
Well, Mr Carpet Bagger, we have a thing in these parts called a Missouri boat ride.
One of my old homies and I might get to drink together every few years, and we usually end up smashed and singing Rose of Alabama
Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining.
I'm not American, but man that Dixie Land song and Rose of Alabama are beautiful songs. I've had them stuck in my mind for years thanks to that film. Clint Eastwood is undeniable. I'll sing the song when he passes on. 😢
For me, western mythologies and setting as part of US history, just like the Victorian Era in England, will never cease to be fascinating and attractive and carry timeless potential that won't go out of style.
Is that a fact?
So the Old West is like Bloodborne's UK? (not real and tall tales)
Timestamps
1:47 [10. The Big Gundown]
5:27 [9. For A Few Dollars More]
8:14 [8. Django]
12:17 [7. Have Gun Will Travel]
15:21 [6. The Dark Valley]
17:12 [5. Hell on Wheels]
21:36 [4. Deadwood]
27:17 [3. Tate]
30:41 [2. Pale Rider]
33:12 [1. The Great Silence]
Gentlemen and Scholar
Thank you sir
@LaVerdadEsCatólica
It's def up there as far as US western inspired shows.
Thank ya kindly for the time stamps.
Very disappointed in the lack of Trinity on this list 🧐
Lee Van Cleef is a horribly underrated actor. Him opposite Eastwood is perfection 🥰
Lee Van Cleef is to the spaghetti western what Randolph Scott was to the classic American western. The star that real aficionados tend to be most familiar with.
Agreed
My father and I did cowboy competition shooting for many years, his alias was "lefty van Cleef" because he is left handed, and Cleef is his favorite actor
@@AnandVenigalla Both were damn good actors.
You failed to mention the most quintessential Western of all time, The Terror of Tiny Town.
LOL
Ah, yes. The eternally underrated talent of Billy Barty. Truly, an American classic.
Here's a question for the true weird west fans:
Can anybody tell me which movie I saw when the internet was young, being a 50s style black and white western with a narrator and birds (mostly parakeets) as actors in a charming miniature western environment?
I presume it wasn't a true movie, but probably some kind of short 16mm spoof to amuse school children - but I've never been able to find that treasure again.
@@peka__ Bill and Coo?
@@JT-xg4di
Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you!
You're in my Book of Good People, kind Sir!
I loved Hell on Wheels, probably because my grandfather was a Georgia Pacific Foreman in the 20s and 30s and I was raised on stories of Railroad corruption.
My grandfather died in the early 50s from a stroke, brought on by immobility as he was wheelchair bound.. as the railcar that cut his brother in half left a fist-sized cavity in his back and he was permanently paralyzed.
Deaths were common, even at that point, and plays into the general corruption behind the whole industry.
I tried watching hell on wheels a long time ago, I don’t really remember why I stopped but I do remember O’Brien was one of the villains
For A Few Dollars More will forever be not only my favourite western but film of all time. A masterpiece.
Pretty close up there for me too. Definitely in my top 10 favorite movies for sure. And definitely in my top five a favorite westerns.
Best spaghetti anyways. GBU is epic but not as watchable. Fistful is ok but lacks Any continuity or cohesion whatsoever, fun watch though.
It's very underrated.
The whole trilogy is a great, a fist full of dollars, for a few dollars more, the good the bad and the ugly
Eli Wallach pushes GBU over FAFDM for me, just barely though. Both are essentially perfect however.
The fact that Hell On Wheels made the list brings me so much joy. The Swede is one of my favorite love-to-hate-him assholes of tv, and the concept is much more original than "outlaws ride into western town, sheriff kills them and becomes a hero"
As a child I sat and watched The Magnificent 7 with my father and Grandfather. I was enraptured with it. The visuals, the characters, the story, the score...all epic. My father then introduced me to the original, 7 Samurai. Such epic storytelling that transcended language and culture. My love of anti-hero, revengeful stories was born. I would ride the arm of the sofa as my horse, whilst wielding my sword or pistols. Now, a near half century later I still get enthralled by the tales of the old west and sweeping tales of revenge.
The Magnificent 7 is one of the finest westerns period. "We deal in lead, friend..." Maybe the greatest line ever.
I grew up with Don Bluth movies, so Fivel Goes West was the first western (adjacent) thing I saw; meanwhile my dad was a huge mark for The Duke, and my mom was a huge Mel Gibson fan girl so 'Maverick' was a household staple. My older brothers got me into Young Guns' in high school by way of the self-contained sequel, 'Young Guns 2', so westerns were pretty ubiquitous in my house.
I loved spaghetti westerns like Sartana, Django, and the Wild Bunch whereas my father preferred the more aspirational stuff.
I love the convergence of Western and Samurai stories. Vastly different cultures that still understood common values and themes.
What makes magnificent 7 is the message from Bronson about the fathers being the honorable men, not the gun fighters and how all the fighters, on both sides are losers, and the farmers, the families who keep on living are the winners.
Pale Rider was the FIRST rated R movie I was allowed to watch as a young man. What a great film to start with! My Dad made me promise not to tell mom he took me ❤ I’ll always remember this classic movie and that afternoon fondly
I give you massive props for being very candid about your inspirations for your own Western comic. Far too many are happy to say they formulated their artistic efforts from the aether and their own farts.
😆
True 😂
Sometimes people indeed kind of do that, although it's a declaration they make born from ignorance. Even if the memory isn't clear and present enough in your mind, it doesn't mean you didn't base your idea on something else. We base everything we think on something else or a remix or mixture of such memories. Of course expecting this knowledge from most is expecting too much. On the other hand, if they don't know any better, they deserve some leniency.
Doe anyone know what Razorfist things of Shane? It’s my favorite western and I’m just curious what he thinks of it.
@@lorddeathspit1124 I have no clue tbh
My grandmother loves this video! She is a fan of westerns for many a decade and I still go over to visit and watch her favorites with her.
🥰
I could listen to RF talk about old movies ALL DAY!
You rule dude.
So glad you like "The Great Silence"! I wrote the subtitles for the British Blu-ray - they're more reflective of Corbucci's vision than the dubtitles on the American release.
I just got into a mood for westerns because of Wendigoon's Blood Meridian video and now Razorfist releases a recommendation video? The universe is telling me its time to saddle up boys.
I haven't gotten to Wendigoon's vid yet only cus it's so long, but I hope to get to it soon
So glad you put For a Few Dollars More on this list. My absolute favorite and the final duel when the music swells after he says “now we start” is amazing!
Great list. Every year I visit home me and my dad watch the old westerns that were on back in the day. Classic shows
FAFDM is my favorite, it has an emotional centre and character development that is lacking in TGTBATU.
@@capuchinhelper I agree. Both are good but For a Few Dollars More just always had more I enjoyed and I liked seeing Lee Van Cleef as a good guy haha
@@capuchinhelper Glad to hear someone else thinks this way.
The Wild Bunch. Best ending ever. You even lost count of how many people die in the shootout.
There's an homage to that scene in a lesser known 80's movie "Extreme Prejudice" which I haven't seen in a looong time.
It ain't like it use to be , but it'll do
The beauty of the western is how versatile it is. Besides the fact it can blend well with futuristic sci-fi multiple countries have had their take. I recently watched the Proposition because my friend loves abd collects westerns and this was the only Australian equivalent. It really demonstrated our wild west that gets less attention. The Italians, like with horror movies, made some of the best spaghetti westerns to rival the US. And I also remember hearing of a Curry western on our foreign movie channel as a kid. Spain has even also dished out a few.
It's like the genre itself is an abstract concept that's culturally synonymous with the pioneer era of the US that popularised it. All you need is a harsh climate, an isolated settlement, guns, outlaws, and maybe a few natives for good measure, and you can make a western. Doesn't matter if the setting is fictional or historical.
top ten westerns for me in no order: Bullet for the General, Good the Bad and the ugly, For A Few Dollars more, Once Upon a Tme in the West, Four of hte Apocalypse, The Wild Bunch, 100 Rifles, Keoma, Major Dundee, Companeros.
10 good westerns i love:
-Treasure of the silverlake
-They call me Trinity
-Rio Lobo
-White Buffalo
-Arizona colt
-100 Rifles
-They still call me Trinity
-Red Sun
-The good the bad and the ugly
-Companeros
You forgot the” Seriously I’m called trinity” 😂
My Name is Nobody is amazing!
Don't forget the samurai adaptation "Trinity desu ka?"
(Don't you know I'm Trinity)
It's more of a western comedy, but I _love_ blazing saddles.
My Pop-Pop, may he rest in peace, was a mega fan of westerns. I would always catch him watching them, whether they be old or new. He even got me into them and I have a soft spot for the genre. Thanks for making this Razor. I recognize some of these thanks to my Pop-Pop.
for me it was my grandmother and my great aunt that passed on the love of westerns
Right here too. Could've been the cheapest piece of garbage you ever saw, shot on a backlot in three days and an afternoon, grainy as Hell, sound like it was recorded through a beekeper's hood but if it was a Western, my dad would sit in front of it lke a moth at a lightbulb.
19:00
Cuts the best part.
Reverend Cole: Ah... mercy of a bullet was somethin' they didn't deserve.
Cullen Bohannan: Well, I owned slaves.
Reverend Cole: Yeah, well, lucky for you, you weren't in Kansas that night.
Cullen Bohannan: No, preacher. That's lucky for You.
I was never a fan of Westerns and generally disliked them.
Then I watched "Once Upon a Time in the West" and that changed completely. One of the greatest movies I've ever seen. Breakheart Pass was another that helped change my mind on them. Up there with some of Jerry Goldsmith's finest film scores.
Great picks, both.
Never heard of breakheart pass. Sounds great.
@@abrahemsamander3967 I accidentally stumbled on it while looking through Jerry Goldsmith's discography and decided to check it out. It plays out sort of like a Western and murder mystery. Didn't do very well, but I enjoyed it. Worth it just for more Charles Bronson.
@@abrahemsamander3967 It's classic Bronson. Can't go wrong.
Once upon a time is so wild and brilliant, everyone must watch. Instantly draws you in...Ill check out Breakheart
As a kid, 'Have Gun Will Travel' was my favorite TV Western. Living in a hotel and eating in restaurants until saddling up, a gun on your hip, and riding out helping people for money. 👍 As an adult, I can see how well written it actually was and still enjoy watching the boxed sets I got from my youngest son one Christmas.
Al Swearengen is one of the greatest fictional characters I've ever seen. Ian McShane couldn't have done a better job in his portrayal.
I would say Al Swearengen is THE greatest fictional character ever by a long shot.
His interactions with Mr Wu are the greatest thing every put on screen
He's not fictional. He was a real guy in Deadwood, SD.
He was a real person. As were most in deadwood.
@@consequence8836 In a show that is full of great interactions the ones with Wu are the most entertaining
My son absolutely killed me a while back when he said, "You know you're old when all you watch is old westerns." I fell out laughing.
I grew up on westerns. My favorite movie is Josie Wales.
An epic list for sure. Haven't seen the last one or Tate so I'll check them out.
GOD FUCKING SPEED
Never would I would of expected Razörfist in a cowboy hat yet here we are.
One thing we can all take away from these times is this: expect the unexpected.
It's not the first time I believe
I want to know what brand makes his hat because I want one.
With only one side popped up he looks like Recondo-fist.
It is actually a good look for him.
"Cowboy fist"
THE VALLEY OF GWANGI is one of the few Westerns that made me cry at the end. That poor dinosaur didn't deserve to die that way.
You may think I'm joking, but I'm dead serious.
The sci-fi western is a tiny but fun sub-genre!
😂
Westerns are great because there's an absence of centralized power, which really brings out the characters' true character.
Fun fact: Ted Levine and Tom Noonan (both featured in Hell On Wheels as well as Michael Mann's Heat) starred as the main serial killer in The Silence of The Lambs and Manhunter. Two of the first films in the Hannibal Lector "series".
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is my preferred western. Pacing wise it can be slow at points but I think a foreigner’s perspective in the American west and then later the gangster film Once Upon A Time in America it’s honestly impressive how Leone is very much a visionary who not only was known for not having to draw up storyboards in his last film but also picture the shots in his head to screen. Honestly Leone is still my favorite because of his ability to even do such a task. I must see Once Upon A Time… in the Revolution!
also titled Duck, You Sucker! Excellent film as well
@@ryans9008 yes, Leone thought that’s a catch phrase people in the West often used 😅
I actually really like the classic hollywood westerns. Shane has been growing and growing on me over the years. While Unforgiven was the one I fell in love with at 11 years old, Shane is rising fast to become a personal favorite.
Even the late 60s and early 70s movies of the Duke have a surprisingly high qualities to them. Especially sons of Katie elder.
Shane is a masterpiece
SHANE and THE SEARCHERS are the high point of the classical western.
I’ve also been fond of STAGECOACH, MY DARLING CLEMENTINE, WAGON MASTER, WINCHESTER 73, THE GUNFIGHTER, the John Ford Cavalry films like FORT APACHE, and SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON; WARLOCK (1959); VERA CRUZ; Man of the West.
The genre is basically a treasure horde.
@@pontiusporcius8430I can definitely vouch for BIG JAKE, THE COWBOYS, and THE SHOOTIST
After many decades of loving westerns, Clint Eastwood is my favorite Cowboy, and High Plains Drifter is my Favorite movie
These are all great westerns. But, my all time favorite is Hang 'em High starring Clint Eastwood. The story about the conflict between revenge and justice is perfectly portrayed in the stoorry.
Such a great overlooked gem of a movie
Hang em high is awesome. I really enjoyed that movie.
You inspired me and my wife to write a western pulp graphic novel. Been working on volume 1 for about 8 months. It's neo- and noir with a frenchman😅 stay tuned and thanks for the inspiration and motivation. Hail to the Iron Age.
What’s it gonna be called?
If we're talking spaghetti westerns let's throw out a mention to the man with the bowl of beans, Trinity. Those films always put a smile on my face.
I've never been into Westerns, though I certainly didn't mind watching one. As opposed to the current movie genres nowadays, deep storylines really make me stay engaged. So thanks for giving us this list, Razor. I'll watch them.
Dude, I wasnt either until recently and now I love em.
Had a conversation with a feminist about 10 year's ago in a coffee shop. Somehow the topic became the genre of Westerns she said her favorite was High Plains Drifter. She loved the barn scene in the beginning and said a lot of Women wanted that behind their false bravado.
Ayo?
Interesting
Concerning
I believe it. 50 Shades of Grey anyone?
Someone needs to do a study on why so many of them have gRAPE fantasies
We still need a razorfist recommends 10 film Noir, your suggestions of doubke indemnity, murder my sweet and the big sleep were superb. And i think a lot of people would find your list helpful
I thought he did one of those. I think I imagined it from putting together some of the noir essays he has done.
“Act of Violence” and “Kiss Me Deadly” are two other he’s mentioned before.
Criss Cross, Killers, White Heat, The Killing and Blue Daliha are pretty good noir movies as well.
Out of the Past anybody
i second this, my friends and I have started noir movie nights and I trust Razor for reccomendations
Just started watching Deadwood with my wife, what a stellar show!
Hell on Wheels is still one of my favorite shows. I wasn't reuined by the commercial breaks having missed it during its original airing, so I was able to just sink into it during my first binge watch about 5 years ago.
I wrote a western/sci-fi book called “Dawkin: A Tall Tale” I released a couple years back. I know it’s pretty shameless to try and advertise it here but I figure if we’re talking about westerns I may as well mention mine lol. Best of luck with your next project, Razor.
Great list. Would love a noir list too. So many great westerns: Pursued, Once Upon a Time..., My Darling Clementine, The Big Country, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Unforgiven, The Lusty Men, 3:10 to Yuma, Warlock, Red River. Could go all day.
Im so stoked that you got For a few Dollars More second favorite Western ever. Once Upon a Time in the West being number 1
All this talk of Westerns, I now feel like listening to the GUN soundtrack.
I'll never forget when I was around 7 or 8 years old, my mom, a huge western fan (because Belgium), is watching Django. I'm seeing that guy dragging a coffin and wonder "The poor guy is burying a friend", then as I see the bad guys shooting and Django looking at the casket I think "Wait a second", and then he just opens it and slaughter them with that gun and thought "Ho my God that's the coolest thing I have ever seen in my life". Of course because it was 8pm I had to go to bed but never did I forget that moment of utter badassery.
As of High Plains Drifter, sorry not sorry, still my absolute favorite Western. (Gotta give Pale Rider a rewatch tho)
Great story about a great movie. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Does it seem strange to anyone else that Jamie Foxx had to point out the "D" in Django was silent? He only spoke it. No one can see the letters in a name when it's spoken. Imagine if Obi-Wan Kenobi had asked Jango Fett, "Is the 'D' silent?" Fett would have said, "No, you're thinking of Django Fetch. He lives on Tatooine, like everyone else."
@LaVerdadEsCatólica
I didn't like either of them. The racial BS certainly didn't help.
@@Elfrunner *Django Unchained* was just a retread of *Kill Bill* (I love Chris Waltz, but why wasn't Franco Nero the dentist?) and *The Hateful Eight* was just a piss poor 90 minute story told in 3 to 4 hours. I read the script before the movie came out, and the scene where Ruth (Kurt's character) starts spewing blood genuinely surprised me. The movie on the other hand? The big dummy spoils the surprise!
@@TheRealNormanBates
Probably better titles for these two movies would have been _Djenga Unstacked_ and _The Ungrateful Bait,_ since that's about all each one amounted to. Christoph Waltz is a good actor, though.
It is a rather wild coincidence that at a time when a certain genre of film was taking over the industry, that two of the biggest names creating hits for said genre were the same name, the two Sergios.
My parents and I binged Hell on Wheels and loved it! Highly recommend. Luckily when we watched it, it was on demand without commercials.
Just now seeing this video, but I've been binge watching Bonaza because I've gotten on this dopamine kick of Western and Cowboy country. Artists like Marty Robbins, Hank Williams Sr., and that era (50s, 60s, and 70s) country music just hits my soul just right. Now this King puts out a movie watch list? Wish I had seen this sooner.
The original Magnificent Seven will always be my favorite. Yul Brynner and Steve McQueen were as cool as they came.
My first Eastwood western movie was "Hang 'Em High", and idk why but it's one of my favorite western movies.
In an alternate life, Razor would have been a highly successful ranch owner. Admit it.
And in that same alternate life, I'd be his right hand man, Nero Finley. A tough piece of steak that blazed a trail of destruction from Wichita to San Juan and was bound for an early grave till Razor found me in a bar one night with the local sheriff's wife. Needless to say, we skinned those smokestacks and sent many a lawman to the afterlife before making our escape on horseback.
@@Sweeptheleg83 lol 😂 👍
I highly recommend The Merkabah Rider books to anyone interested in a supernatural Weird Western with a side of pulp and plenty of Lovecraftian horror, is literally magic gunslingers, angels and demons vs the Cthulhu Mythos and it does the whole "elemental" force of justice, or in this case order, in an unexpected way.
Ps: there's also a bible thumping steampunk cyborg priest, have fun with that.
The Randolph Scott/Budd Boetticher westerns are often overlooked, the best one being Seven Men From Now.
I'm with you, and that would be my only quibble with this essay and his list: I would've definitely included one of those, and probably the same one you pick. They're all great, but that's my favorite one.
I love watching some of Randolph Scott's old classics. Truly, an underrated actor in general.
They play a lot of Randolph Scott movies on Grit TV. Randolph Scott, Audie Murphy, Kirk Douglas had a lot of underrated movies. Even Jimmy Stewart. Lol.
Where has this channel been hiding from me? Comics, westerns, comic westerns, pulp, badass anticommunism, everything I love. UA-cam was hiding this channel from me on purpose, I am sure. ;)
I always thought "For a Few Dollars More" was the best of the three.
Funny you mentioned the ostensibly Mormon protagonist in one of your movie picks. I've been working on a story based around the Mormon war of 1838. I grew up on a farm right in the middle of the county where it all happened and I've been reading a lot about it over the past year or so. So much crazy stuff happened from 1830-1860 and it all got overshadowed by the civil war. There's a lot of great Western material yet to be worked with.
Seems to be the case for a lot of big conflicts. The buildup is just a series of chaos and nastiness that explodes into that giant conflict, be it in the bronze age, to the information age and thensome.
@@zab6124 Missouri was the center of a bunch of brushfire wars leading up to the civil war and a lot of it was memory-holed because the antagonists were abolitionist zealots who murdered and graped their way through Missouri with the blessing of the federal government.
The Mormon War was more a product of Sidney Rigdon being insane and the governor of Missouri not wanting to pick sides so whoever won would still vote for him.
I'm really thinking about starting a rumble channel about Missouri history because UA-cam would yeet my channel into the sun the first time I talked about what the red legs and jayhawkers actually did leading up to Quantril's raid on Lawrence.
Who is the ostensibly Mormon protagonist? I didn’t catch that. Butch Cassidy would be one, but he isn’t mentioned here.
I watch Rawhide and Rifleman on Pluto even now.😊 Amazing how that stuff holds up. I remember the Long Riders as a kid. Great Western. Look forward to your Western!
You have good taste. Long Riders is very overlooked. I like The Warriors too by the same director.
This is awesome! I just watched The Great Silence and rewatched the Dollars Trilogy. I'm on a Western binge at the moment, so your timing's impeccable!
Deadwood is my all-time favorite tv show. I can only hope that something comes along that can dethrone it, but that is unlikely.
I got into Westerns because of you, Razor. The way you spoke about them in your videos got me interested in the genre, so thank you for that. Having you talk more about Westerns is a real treat
Please do more of these "Razorforce-approved" videos. I owe much to your fine tastes: Westerns, film noir, DS9, fantasy books, black metal, etc. So many of my favorites have come straight from your videos but I will always take more.
The puns and jokes are so fucking good as always. That aside, watching westerns always makes me want to buy every old revolver ever made
I want one of those old lever action rifles. A Winchester or a Henry.
Modern guns are so ugly. Why does that happen to everything?
@@jonwilson9131 Revolvers and lever actions rifles are both fun to shoot. They make you feel like a cowboy.
Get an Uberti colt navy conversion model in either .38 special or .45 colt. I’ve got one of each, and they’re both fantastic to shoot
Unforgiven is the greatest western ever made. The ode to all westerns ever made, all while becoming the western to end all westerns. I finished watching it, and felt like I had nothing else to see. To watch, maybe the most stunning transformation of a character in cinema history, was jaw dropping and gut-wrenching.
High Plains Drifter is hands down my favorite Western. I know you said Pale Rider is peak elemental Eastwood but High Plains Drifter throw me for a loop in those final 3 or 4 shots, a truly shocking twist to end a true tale of fucking JUSTICE. Godspeed, Razor ❤
High plains drifter is the single greatest Western ever imo. It's perfect.
I was actually surprised it didn't make the list.
I’m not sure why but that one never resonated with me. That one and Hang Em High. I probably haven’t watched either since I was in Middle School. Maybe I should give it another watch.
@@VinylMorpheus High Plains Drifter is in my Top 5 much better than the overrated The Unforgiven.
@@georgesykes394 I really love Unforgiven. Have to give HPD another shot. Maybe it’ll resonate more with me now than when I was a teenager.
Oh, wow! Going the extra-mile with the aesthetic, and that includes your comic art! The moon and reddish (I have a filter so might be seeing a different color) shadow trim on the horse and rider looks beautiful! And nice to hear your The Ghost of the Badlands comic western launching tomorrow April 21!
Love Raz0r, but if he was going to put a horse on the cover he could've used an artist that could draw one.
@@heroesytumbas looks fine to me
Hgwt has been my favorite TV show for almost 12 years. The writing and acting hold up to anything.
This was great! I’ll always have the Outlaw Josie Wales at the top of my own list, but mad respect for your picks.
Best thing for me: my sons are teens now, and we've been beginning their “education”
I find myself going back and forth between “For A Few Dollars More and” and “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” as my favorite western film of all time. I think part of the reason I prefer TGTBTU most of the time is the civil war scenes and Tuco.
Also want to mention the under appreciated and criminally overlooked “The White Buffalo”
Thanks RazorFist, you have great taste. "For A Few Dollars More" is my favorite from the famous trilogy as well.
13:25 all evil begins with a compromise... ive never heard that line before. in fact ive never heard anyone but myself equate compromise to the beginning of nothing but evil. so color me shocked that someone in a movie said it. hot damn imma gonna have to watch it now
Razor geeking out on westerns is always a good day.
Thanks for this...just discovered The Dark Valley is up on Prime...cant wait !!!!!
My grandmother introduced me to Bud Spencer and Terence Hill movies, mainly comedies. When I was a teenager, my brother and I found a bunch of them in a bargain bin at the video store so we bought every single one. Among them was the Trinity series. Those were my first spaghetti westerns, and I then went through a western phase where I literally wanted to be a cowboy.
I started watching Westerns again thanks to you Raz0rfist, Saddle Up 🤠
For a Few Dollars More is my favorite western ever. That ending gives me goosebumps every time.
Great List, some I have to see.
Pale Rider is a clever remake of Shane.
Living across street from school I got to come home for lunch in 2nd Grade. Watched by myself probably the first rerun airings of Tate. Until Public Domain 50 years later I thought his left arm was burnt black in the war.
My favorite thing about this channel is Razör’s unbridled enthusiasm about…well…everything.
Super surprised and happy to see #7--one of my all-time favorites. Will definitely pick up your book, Razor. Thanks for the great video and great list.
I can't remember when I ran into that show but instantly knew Paladin have gun will travel
and I've only seen a few episodes.
Love when Razorfist talks about movies, brings me back to why I loved his videos from back then!
Ah, "Pale Rider", another under-appreciated western. Clint's love letter to the classic western in all its incarnations. You have the gun-slinging preacher trope who is the mysterious stranger with a past, the range war (now waged against prospectors instead of sheep herders), obvious call-outs to "High Noon", "Shane", and Eastwood's own "High Plains Drifter" in reverse. Also rocks a cast that was born to play their parts like I've never seen before, especially that veteran actor who plays the leader of the mercenaries.
Nice to see The Great Silence get some love, it's a great movie that is often overlooked.
Holy crap it's been awhile. Edit: after watching the list, I have only seen Pale Rider. And you showcased perhaps the best scene in the movie when Clint just looks at that carpet bagger without saying a single damn word. Just lasers straight into his soul.
Ecstasy of Gold and Tuco running around that graveyard still brings a tear to my eye.
I’ll throw Ride the High Country, The Man from Laramie, and Johnny Guitar to the list.
Winchester 73
Blood on the Moon
The Furies (with Barbara Stanwyck )
Blazing Saddles
Yojimbo ( Japanese Western )
Razor! Thank you very much for curating all of these movies, I recently started watching a lot of Westerns since June started and I am enjoying every second of it especially when I enter by release order all the movies you recommended. Now, I am fully committed on consuming as much Western media as I can.
God fucking speed!
"Nothing like a good piece of hickory."
"You plant hate, you get a full crop" damn.. what a powerful line
that Beethoven monologue with Lee Van Cleef stare in reply is hipnotizingly EPIC
One Armed Bass Player psyched to hear of your One Armed Gunfighter!
Razor has a garage full of spaghetti western dvds. He's just waiting on that ebay surge now
It always warms my cockles that film either has to dazzle with insane amounts of extras and extravagance, or nurture the brain with witty dialogue and great characters...and if you do both, you win.
Young Guns is probably most millennial and zoomers favorite Western. And generally their first. Probably the most accessible starter Western to show somebody.
Yep I remember in Junior High me and most of the boys in my class were big fans of that movie for some reason( this was 2006-2007)
I am so damn glad you picked For a Few Dollars More. Excellent and notably darker than the others in the trilogy. El Indio is an excellent villain.
Coincidently, I just watched Once Upon a Time in the West and I’m currently looking for some more great ones. These will definitely work!
UA-cam needs to bring back the 5-star rating so I can give this video 10 Stars
You should have seen my parents, I made them sit down and watch the whole "Deadwood" series with me, initially they were kinda bored, but by the end they were fully invested, and you should have seen the look on my dad's face when I told him the series got canceled at the end of season 3, HE WAS PISSED.
Yeah it sucked that it got canceled but I’ll alway wondered how much of the show had left seeing Seth bullock would of had to leave deadwood
Love it. Loads on there I hadn’t heard of, let alone seen, so pretty much the perfect list.
No Name on the Bullet with real-life badass Audie Murphy.
Deadwood is one of the best TV shows of all time. Barely anything happens for entire episodes at a time, and I love that fact. The setting just totally immerses you
Glad you included Pale Rider. I wish you had included John Wayne's The Searchers. Great movie. I will definitely watch the ones I haven't seen.