Smile When You Say That
I'm not a big fan of Westerns. My favorite is Red River, probably because it's more a Howard Hawks film than anything else.
Here are the top 100 Westerns according to the Western Writers Of America. A predictable list full of cliched choices. The top ten does include Red River, but the top three are perhaps the three more overrated Westerns of all: Shane, High Noon and The Searchers.
For a different, and I'd say more interesting, point of view, here's the top Westerns according to The Cinematheque. Scroll down to see Jesse Walker's list--he's a friend who told me about the voting. (In fact, they're already onto their latest poll--top films of the 80s.)
posted by LAGuy @ 12:34 AM
4 Comments:
I don't know enough about Westerns to rate High Noon versus anything else, but I think it is better than any Sergio Leone
Blazing Saddles made the list.
I'm not a big fan of High Noon. I come by it honestly. I thought it was kind of dull and even silly before I'd ever heard about Rio Bravo.
Love him or hate him, Sergio Leone is sui generis. You almost shouldn't call them Westerns.
This list seems to cover every Western I've ever heard of (except Pale Rider didn't- maybe there's a limit on Clint). I find the Westerns in color (mainly) made in the 60s and early 70s interesting more as a comment on the hairy grunginess of the era.
Ride The High Country (19) is a great bleak film which I've always felt just happens to be a western - the horses and the scenery are just backdrops for a study of some likeable horrible people.
OK I just figured out they left out the one where Bob Dylan talks about beans (called I think-"Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett"- too lazy to research?)- Not a great film but better than a lot that are on the list
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