Great list. I would add The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. John Ford and John Wayne’s last “great” movie. So many important themes raised and several iconic performances.
I think if someone with no knowledge of Westerns at all wanted to binge some of the most important, influential or groundbreaking of the genre from its golden age and some that just were perfect for the time to help grow the genre further or helped print the legend, I think I would recommend them these in this very order to understand the progression of the genre: . The Great Train Robbery (1903) . The Squaw Man (1914) . The Bargain (1914) . Hell's Hinges (1916) . Straight Shooting (1917) . Sky High (1923) . Riders Of The Purple Sage (1925) . The Covered Wagon (1923) . The Iron Horse (1924) . Tumbleweeds (1925) . 3 Bad Men (1926) . The Virginian (1929) . The Big Trail (1930) . Cimarron (1931) . The Plainsman (1936) . Stagecoach (1939) . Union Pacific (1939) . Frontier Marshal (1939) . Dodge City (1939) . They Died With Their Boots On (1941) . Buffalo Bill (1944) . My Darling Clementine (1946) . Red River (1948) . John Ford's Cavalry Trilogy [Fort Apache, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, Rio Grande] (1948-1950) . Pursued (1947) . Blood On The Moon (1948) . The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) {Western or not, it should probably be on this list} . Yellow Sky (1948) . Colorado Territory (1949) {after seeing High Sierra first} . The Gunfighter (1950) . High Noon (1952) . Shane (1953) . Hondo (1953) . Vera Cruz (1954) . The Searchers (1956) . Gunfight At The OK Corral (1957) . 3 10 To Yuma (1957) . Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo Trilogy [Rio Bravo, El Dorado, Rio Lobo (1959-1970) {To understand how Howard Hawks could remake the same concept more than once and make them all entertaining, and learn where so many people have ripped off the idea of the Siege movie genre from these Westerns} . The Magnificent Seven {after seeing Seven Samurai first and knowing how much Kurosawa himself also borrowed from John Ford as well} (1960) . The Alamo (1960) {Most famous depiction of The Alamo, historical accuracy aside, this should be watched to understand the Western/War epic of this era, and it's very entertaining} . Anthony Mann-Jimmy Stewart Western Cycle [Winchester 73, Bend Of The River, The Naked Spur, The Far Country, The Man From Laramie] (1950-1955) . Budd Boetticher-Randolph Scott Western Cycle [Seven Men From Now, The Tall T, Decision At Sundown, Buchanan Rides Alone, Westbound, Ride Lonesome, Comanche Station) . Man Of The West (1958) . Sergeant Rutledge (1960) . The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) . Ride The High Country (1962) . How The West Was Won (1962) {The Ultimate Western ensemble cast epic, must watch for that reason alone, and again, a very entertaining film} . Cat Ballou (1965) . Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy [A Fistful Of Dollars, after seeing Yojimbo first to know what Leone remade, For A Few Dollars More, and The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly] (1964-1966) . Once Upon A Time In The West (1968) . Sergio Corbucci's Mud And Blood Trilogy [Django, The Great Silence, The Specialists] (1966) {Corbucci is the second most famous Spaghetti Western director, it's worth seeing this trilogy for a further understanding of the sub-genre, very entertaining films too} . The Professionals (1966) . True Grit (1969) . Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969) . The Wild Bunch (1969) . Little Big Man (1970) . McCabe And Mrs. Miller . The Cowboys (1972) . High Plains Drifter (1973) . The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) . The Shootist (1976) . Pale Rider (1985) . Silverado (1985) . Dances With Wolves (1990) . Unforgiven (1992) . Tombstone (1993) It's a huge list, but one should definitely know all about the genre from the beginning of the century to the end after this.
All seminal Westerns! To these I might add 1. The Outlaw Josie Wales. Mesmerizing performance by Clint, engaging and revealing portrait by Chief Dan George. 2. Little Big Man. Epic, sprawling, covers a vast amount of time and territory. And again, Chief Dan George evokes such a powerful image of wisdom and cultural verity. 3. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Bittersweet, iconic, memorable. What's not to admire? I can still remember my freshman college year in 1969 people at the top of my Dormitory's stairs (7 flights up) yelling, "Oh, sh*****t!"
@@bravehome4276 Hey, those are on my list too! :) Only I just recommend watching 85 other Westerns first for the sake of chronological order and seeing the genre evolve. It's only 85 movies, it should take just 1 weekend, 😆.
Here are a few important westerns and why. 1: Cimarron Best Picture Oscar Winner 1a: Unforgiven 1:b Dances With Wolves. 2: The Iron Horse: First epic Western. 3: Stagecoach: Moved John Wayne to A List. 4: The Great Train Robbery ( First western) 5: Garden of Evil ( First CinemaScope western) 6: The Big Trail ( First talking epic Western and first starring role for John Wayne) 7; Vera Cruz ( Considered the first spaghetti western). 8: The Wild Bunch. First R rated western. 9: A Fist Full of Dollars ( first commercially viable spaghetti Western and Clint Eastwood’s breakout role) 10: The Winning of Barbara Worth. Gary Cooper’s first Western in a major role. 10:
Good list, davidbrown386, but I’d peg James Cruze’s “The Covered Wagon” (Paramount 1923) as the first epic western. Fox rushed to make “The Iron Horse” in the wake of its success. I’m glad you cited both “Garden of Evil” and “The Winning of Barbara Worth.” Couldn’t agree more with those choices. 👍🏼
That is a fair point. The Coveted Wagon did come before The Iron Horse.. Although I admit to preferring the sequel to The Covered Wagon ( Fighting Caravans) to part one. Why? Gary Cooper and looking at Lili Damilta.
A really good list - all the western masterpieces, except one is missing, it appears - The Wild Bunch, a unique, game changing western. Maybe even add Rio Bravo as well as Hawks' answer to 'High Noon'. But all the listed westerns in the video and the comments about them were spot on 👍
The 50s had a bunch of great westerns. The 60s had several and then there was a long stretch before Tombstone made them great again. Then another long stretch. A couple in the 80s were pretty fair.
@@davidbrown386 Some of those are very good, but IMO of the ones I've seen, none are what I'd call great. And none of those directors approach Ford, although Walsh is really excellent.
Ford was great, but look at some of the others. Cecil B DeMille ( The Plainsman), William Wyler ( Hell’s Heroes), Henry Hathaway ( To The Last Man) and last Victor Fleming ( The Virginian). Fleming did a little film called Gone With The Wind.
@@davidbrown386 All those directors are talented but still, none are on Ford's level. And I'm not the biggest fan of Gone With the Wind. It would have been better if Cukor had directed the whole thing. Fleming is OK and Oz is quite enjoyable. I'm not a big fan of Wyler either but must admit to never having seen Hell's Heroes.
Hey! Where's The Great Train Robbery? Tom Mix? You're not an historian, you're a shill for "The New Hollywood". --- in fact, where's "Appaloosa", or "Hell and High Water?" This "genre" --- it just keeps expanding!!
Great list. I would add The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. John Ford and John Wayne’s last “great” movie. So many important themes raised and several iconic performances.
I think if someone with no knowledge of Westerns at all wanted to binge some of the most important, influential or groundbreaking of the genre from its golden age and some that just were perfect for the time to help grow the genre further or helped print the legend, I think I would recommend them these in this very order to understand the progression of the genre:
. The Great Train Robbery (1903)
. The Squaw Man (1914)
. The Bargain (1914)
. Hell's Hinges (1916)
. Straight Shooting (1917)
. Sky High (1923)
. Riders Of The Purple Sage (1925)
. The Covered Wagon (1923)
. The Iron Horse (1924)
. Tumbleweeds (1925)
. 3 Bad Men (1926)
. The Virginian (1929)
. The Big Trail (1930)
. Cimarron (1931)
. The Plainsman (1936)
. Stagecoach (1939)
. Union Pacific (1939)
. Frontier Marshal (1939)
. Dodge City (1939)
. They Died With Their Boots On (1941)
. Buffalo Bill (1944)
. My Darling Clementine (1946)
. Red River (1948)
. John Ford's Cavalry Trilogy [Fort Apache, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, Rio Grande] (1948-1950)
. Pursued (1947)
. Blood On The Moon (1948)
. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) {Western or not, it should probably be on this list}
. Yellow Sky (1948)
. Colorado Territory (1949) {after seeing High Sierra first}
. The Gunfighter (1950)
. High Noon (1952)
. Shane (1953)
. Hondo (1953)
. Vera Cruz (1954)
. The Searchers (1956)
. Gunfight At The OK Corral (1957)
. 3 10 To Yuma (1957)
. Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo Trilogy [Rio Bravo, El Dorado, Rio Lobo (1959-1970) {To understand how Howard Hawks could remake the same concept more than once and make them all entertaining, and learn where so many people have ripped off the idea of the Siege movie genre from these Westerns}
. The Magnificent Seven {after seeing Seven Samurai first and knowing how much Kurosawa himself also borrowed from John Ford as well} (1960)
. The Alamo (1960) {Most famous depiction of The Alamo, historical accuracy aside, this should be watched to understand the Western/War epic of this era, and it's very entertaining}
. Anthony Mann-Jimmy Stewart Western Cycle [Winchester 73, Bend Of The River, The Naked Spur, The Far Country, The Man From Laramie] (1950-1955)
. Budd Boetticher-Randolph Scott Western Cycle [Seven Men From Now, The Tall T, Decision At Sundown, Buchanan Rides Alone, Westbound, Ride Lonesome, Comanche Station)
. Man Of The West (1958)
. Sergeant Rutledge (1960)
. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
. Ride The High Country (1962)
. How The West Was Won (1962) {The Ultimate Western ensemble cast epic, must watch for that reason alone, and again, a very entertaining film}
. Cat Ballou (1965)
. Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy [A Fistful Of Dollars, after seeing Yojimbo first to know what Leone remade, For A Few Dollars More, and The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly] (1964-1966)
. Once Upon A Time In The West (1968)
. Sergio Corbucci's Mud And Blood Trilogy [Django, The Great Silence, The Specialists] (1966) {Corbucci is the second most famous Spaghetti Western director, it's worth seeing this trilogy for a further understanding of the sub-genre, very entertaining films too}
. The Professionals (1966)
. True Grit (1969)
. Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969)
. The Wild Bunch (1969)
. Little Big Man (1970)
. McCabe And Mrs. Miller
. The Cowboys (1972)
. High Plains Drifter (1973)
. The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
. The Shootist (1976)
. Pale Rider (1985)
. Silverado (1985)
. Dances With Wolves (1990)
. Unforgiven (1992)
. Tombstone (1993)
It's a huge list, but one should definitely know all about the genre from the beginning of the century to the end after this.
GL getting any young folk to watch that list :) Best to prioritize it by seeding it with 'grabbers', then nurture them along with many of these.
I’m not sure all of that was really worth the effort lol
I had never heard of Hell’s Hinges, so I watched it in Tubi yesterday. thank you for mentioning it.
All seminal Westerns!
To these I might add
1. The Outlaw Josie Wales. Mesmerizing performance by Clint, engaging and revealing portrait by Chief Dan George.
2. Little Big Man. Epic, sprawling, covers a vast amount of time and territory. And again, Chief Dan George evokes such a powerful image of wisdom and cultural verity.
3. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Bittersweet, iconic, memorable. What's not to admire? I can still remember my freshman college year in 1969 people at the top of my Dormitory's stairs (7 flights up) yelling, "Oh, sh*****t!"
@@bravehome4276 Hey, those are on my list too! :) Only I just recommend watching 85 other Westerns first for the sake of chronological order and seeing the genre evolve. It's only 85 movies, it should take just 1 weekend, 😆.
@@azohundred1353 😂👍
Wish I could always mention all the relevant westerns. Just too many westerns :)
@@famouspeople63 There are a lot, but never too many :)
Thank you for sharing, my greatest westerns are The Searchers, Shane and High Noon
Here are a few important westerns and why.
1: Cimarron Best Picture Oscar Winner
1a: Unforgiven
1:b Dances With Wolves.
2: The Iron Horse: First epic Western.
3: Stagecoach: Moved John Wayne to A List.
4: The Great Train Robbery ( First western)
5: Garden of Evil ( First CinemaScope western)
6: The Big Trail ( First talking epic Western and first starring role for John Wayne)
7; Vera Cruz ( Considered the first spaghetti western).
8: The Wild Bunch. First R rated western.
9: A Fist Full of Dollars ( first commercially viable spaghetti Western and Clint Eastwood’s breakout role)
10: The Winning of Barbara Worth. Gary Cooper’s first Western in a major role.
10:
Good list, davidbrown386, but I’d peg James Cruze’s “The Covered Wagon” (Paramount 1923) as the first epic western. Fox rushed to make “The Iron Horse” in the wake of its success. I’m glad you cited both “Garden of Evil” and “The Winning of Barbara Worth.” Couldn’t agree more with those choices. 👍🏼
That is a fair point. The Coveted Wagon did come before The Iron Horse.. Although I admit to preferring the sequel to The Covered Wagon ( Fighting Caravans) to part one. Why? Gary Cooper and looking at Lili Damilta.
@@davidbrown386 a VERY fair point, lol!
A really good list - all the western masterpieces, except one is missing, it appears - The Wild Bunch, a unique, game changing western. Maybe even add Rio Bravo as well as Hawks' answer to 'High Noon'. But all the listed westerns in the video and the comments about them were spot on 👍
Thanks for sharing!
A Fist Full of Dollars was the first good spaghetti western and a game changer.
Your best list ! I'd put Red River in there somewhere.
Did I somehow miss that, when you listed the leads in "Shane," you neglected to name, uhm, the titular star...Alan Ladd?!
The 50s had a bunch of great westerns. The 60s had several and then there was a long stretch before Tombstone made them great again. Then another long stretch. A couple in the 80s were pretty fair.
All on my must watch list.
Brad Dexter? Who's Brad Dexter?
Have no idea what "important" means but it seems to me the first GREAT western was Stagecoach.in 1939 so maybe that was the most important
There were great westerns made before Stagecoach. The Plainsman, The Virginian, Hell’s Heroes, The Big Trail and To The Last Man to name a few
@@davidbrown386 Some of those are very good, but IMO of the ones I've seen, none are what I'd call great. And none of those directors approach Ford, although Walsh is really excellent.
Ford was great, but look at some of the others. Cecil B DeMille ( The Plainsman), William Wyler ( Hell’s Heroes), Henry Hathaway ( To The Last Man) and last Victor Fleming ( The Virginian). Fleming did a little film called Gone With The Wind.
@@davidbrown386 All those directors are talented but still, none are on Ford's level. And I'm not the biggest fan of Gone With the Wind. It would have been better if Cukor had directed the whole thing. Fleming is OK and Oz is quite enjoyable. I'm not a big fan of Wyler either but must admit to never having seen Hell's Heroes.
Don't agree with True Grit. The Duke deserved the oscar
You list the cast of Shane and don't even mention Alan Ladd, Shane himself? What the hell's the matter with you? I gave you a dislike just for that.
Thanks
Hey! Where's The Great Train Robbery? Tom Mix? You're not an historian, you're a shill for "The New Hollywood". --- in fact, where's "Appaloosa", or "Hell and High Water?" This "genre" --- it just keeps expanding!!
Just look in my channel, will find them all there. Cant mention all the movies in each video. Rather I make follow on videos.
@@famouspeople63 Just giving you stick -- you're actually very good