Heaven’s Gate (1980)

Heaven’s Gate (1980)

[4] I'd never seen Heaven's Gate until recently. For decades, it has been the title synonymous with "flop" and studio bankruptcy, but it has also been picked back up, reexamined, and declared somewhat of an artistic treasure in recent years. The story centers…
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

[7] In 1880's Nevada, news spreads of the murder of a local cattle farmer, inciting a few dozen townspeople to form a posse hellbent on lynching those responsible for the crime. Based on the book by Walter Van Tilburg Clark and directed…
Cimarron (1931)

Cimarron (1931)

[5] This early Oscar-winning best picture is uneven at best. Richard Dix makes for a hammy lead, while Irene Dunne is stuck playing his harpy of a wife. The film follows the two as they move west to Oklahoma at the end…
Rocky Mountain (1950)

Rocky Mountain (1950)

[7] In one of his better westerns, Errol Flynn leads a ragtag team of Confederate soldiers west to do Robert E. Lee's bidding. Along the way, he rescues a damsel in distress from marauding Indians, only to learn she's betrothed to a…
The Missing (2003)

The Missing (2003)

[6] Ron Howard directs Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones in The Missing, an estranged father/daughter bonding flick by way of The Searchers. The story is set in motion after Blanchett's eldest daughter is kidnapped by an evil Apache mystic who is…
For a Few Dollars More (1965)

For a Few Dollars More (1965)

[7] I prefer the more crude and raw qualities of the first film over this sequel, which may be a little more polished but is also a bit less mysterious. Clint Eastwood's Man with No Name is upstaged in the end by…
True Grit (1969)

True Grit (1969)

[7] John Wayne took home the Oscar for his performance as crotchety Rooster Cogburn, an alcoholic US Marshall recruited by a young girl (Kim Darby) to capture her father's killer and bring him to justice. Wayne is low key as always, but…
Dodge City (1939)

Dodge City (1939)

[7] Errol Flynn tries a Western on for size (his first of eight), seizing the sheriff's badge and cleaning up the lawless town of Dodge City. He's with his usual leading lady, Olivia de Havilland, and his usual sidekick, Alan Hale, all…
The Left Handed Gun (1958)

The Left Handed Gun (1958)

[6] On one hand, Arthur Penn's take on Billy the Kid isn't as whitewashed as other tellings. On the other hand, why should we care that some hot-headed simpleton ran out and got himself shot? Despite an admirable effort from Paul Newman,…
The Hateful Eight (2015)

The Hateful Eight (2015)

[8] Quentin Tarantino's eighth film (because he's counting) is a three-hour long claustrophobic western about eight characters holed up in a lodge during a snowstorm who all have reason to kill one another. Leading the ensemble cast are Kurt Russell as a…