Four Western Films

"Run, Man, Run", The Naked Spur, Last Train from Gun Hill, The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw

What I think of the Western

I have almost always considered the Western as one of my favourite genres. Even if I might not be in the mood for a Western film, that feeling usually dissipates as soon as I put one on. After a long time of not seeing that many of them, though, I started doubting if I still liked Westerns. So I made a conscious effort to see more and have now watched 65% of the top 100 Westerns on Letterboxd and aim to keep going.

What I like about them is that usually the dynamics between the characters are easy to understand, even if the characters’ motivations are complex. The stories can be deceptively simple as the challenges that arise in the frontier are perhaps more easy to visualise than those that come up in developed modern societies.

The vast desolate landscapes also help make everything easier to read and are an important part of the genre. Whether it’s shot in the US, Mexico, or a “spaghetti Western” shot by Italians in Spain, the landscape has to feel vast. When a low-budget spaghetti Western looks like it was shot in some small quarry, I can’t help but be disappointed.

There are also things to not like about the Western such as the typical portrayal of women as secondary characters, often just prostitutes, wives or daughters, and the occasional portrayal of Native Americans as simple savages.

Classical and Revisionist Westerns

Westerns are generally divided into classical Westerns (up to 1968 or so, when some of the Hays Code restrictions in the US were lifted) and revisionist Westerns (anti-Westerns). The classical ones usually have a clear separation of good vs. evil and portray simple romantic stories of almost mythical gun-slinging characters. The revisionist Western subverts this and goes for a more complex and realistic portrayal of characters, often blurring the line between good and evil.

There are also other corners of the genre to consider, such as “Poverty Row” Westerns, made en masse by Hollywood’s B-movie studios between the 1920s and 1950s. These are, generally speaking, not very good.

I watched 30 Westerns and recommend these

It’s too bad that I didn’t start this Substack last year, when I saw a lot more great Westerns than this year’s project. So be warned that these recommendations are not “the best four Westerns you could watch”, but they are just the really good ones that I saw in 2024.

Run, Man, Run (1968)

This is a sequel to what I consider the best spaghetti Western that wasn’t directed by Sergio Leone - The Big Gundown. The character “Cuchillo” (Spanish for “Knife”) portrayed by Tomas Milian is just astounding and possibly archetypal. In this movie several parties are trying to find a gold stash to finance the Mexican Revolution.

I watched the Eureka! Blu-Ray, but to my surprise the full movie is on YouTube.

The Naked Spur (1953)

Best of the James Stewart-starring Westerns I saw this year.

In this movie he plays a bounty hunter who has to accept the help of some strangers to transfer a murderer. It’s pretty thrilling and nicely shot. Despite being from the fifties it plays more like a revisionist Western, James Stewart’s character is a bit darker than usual for him.

Watched it on the Warner Archive UK Blu-Ray.

Last Train from Gun Hill (1959)

This one features a solid performance from Kirk Douglas as a marshal who seeks the rapist and murderer of his wife in a neighbouring town where the law is subjugated to big business. The script bears resemblance to some more famous Westerns where the action mostly happens during a single day in one town - High Noon, The Gunfighter and 3:10 to Yuma.

This film has been released on Blu-Ray in Germany, and it should have English audio and subtitles. There’s a fully English US release as well, that should play in Europe (Region B).

The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw (1958)

Thanks to having seen less of the highest regarded Westerns this year, which tend to be rather serious affairs, I can recommend this very fun and refreshing Western-comedy. It’s a story about an English gentleman gunsmith who travels to the frontier in hopes of finding new business, but gets coaxed into becoming the sheriff of a town where once again the law is not properly respected.

I was positively surprised that it worked well both as a Western and as a comedy. It’s not a musical, but does feature some musical numbers in the context of the story. The comedy mostly comes from the gunsmith’s misunderstanding of dangerous situations, and he often manages to solve them using his skills, but seemingly by accident.

I saw the Plan B/Signal One Blu-Ray, but this one also happens to be on YouTube.

Coming up: summary of my 2024 Western project

In a next post I will share more impressions of the 30 Westerns I saw, which includes more Jimmy Steward, Kirk Douglas, John Wayne, as well as a UK and Mexican Westerns, and a few “Poverty Row” ones, one of which might be worth a mention.

I had immediate plans to see more of this genre, but I tired of having too much of my daily movie watching planned ahead, so I finished early for this year and pushed all the remaining Westerns to 2025.