The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

[7] James Stewart and John Wayne star in this intimate John Ford western about a lawyer and a gunslinger who hold differing ideas about how best to deal with the town's most notorious criminal, Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Stewart plays…
Annie Oakley (1935)

Annie Oakley (1935)

[8] George Stevens (Gunga Din, A Place in the Sun) directs this romanticized tale of an American western legend -- Annie Oakley, the woman sharpshooter who could beat any man at gunplay. While the real Annie Oakley was surely rougher…
The Power of the Dog (2021)

The Power of the Dog (2021)

[8] Just as she did with The Piano nearly thirty years ago, director Jane Campion exposes the tragic consequences of rigid gender conformity in The Power of the Dog. Benedict Cumberbatch stars as a deeply closeted gay cattle rancher in…
The Furies (1950)

The Furies (1950)

[7] Barbara Stanwyck and Walter Huston square off in this western about a father and daughter fighting over who will control the future of the family's sprawling cattle ranch. The relationship begins as a loving, mentoring one, but transforms into…
Big Jake (1971)

Big Jake (1971)

[6] John Wayne stars as a crotchety loner cowboy who goes in search of the gang who kidnapped his grandson. Big Jake is not a serious western. It's more of a nostalgic love letter to old big-studio westerns. Sometimes that…
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

[7] Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck star in Andrew Dominik's dramatization of the last months of famous outlaw Jesse James' life. Pitt plays James and Affleck plays his admirer-turned-assassin, Robert Ford. The young Ford character is smitten from the outset,…
El Dorado (1967)

El Dorado (1967)

[7] John Wayne and Robert Mitchum headline this Howard Hawks western about a gunfighter-for-hire (Wayne) who teams up with a drunk sheriff (Mitchum) to help a family protect their land from a rival rancher. The plot to El Dorado was…
Yellow Sky (1948)

Yellow Sky (1948)

[6] Gregory Peck stars in William Wellman's (The Ox-Bow Incident, The Story of G.I. Joe) eerie western about a band of thieves that wander into a Death Valley ghost town where a young woman (Anne Baxter) and her grandfather have…
True Grit (2010)

True Grit (2010)

[8] A teenaged girl ropes an aging, alcoholic U.S. Marshall into helping her find justice for her father's murder. In this age of sequels and remakes, it's hard to believe one of them could actually be this good. The Coen…
Hombre (1967)

Hombre (1967)

[7] Paul Newman reunites with director Martin Ritt (Hud, The Long Hot Summer) for this ensemble Western based on the novel by Elmore Leonard. It's an Eastwoodesque performance from Newman, playing a reticent loner raised by Apaches who ends up…