This article explores the enduring legacy of the Western genre in American cinema, highlighting its origins, evolution, and cultural impact. It presents a curated list of ten essential Westerns, showcasing the genre's versatility and enduring appeal.
No genre could be considered more quintessential to American cinema than westerns. Granted, some of the best films of the genre have come from filmmakers and studios from outside the U.S. and the definition of it has become so elastic that it can include movies involving superhero characters or that take place in the far reaches of outer space, but they all spring from the same well of inspiration: the American Frontier.
Tall tales of the wild west began before the first movie camera was even invented, with dime store novels embellishing the exploits of real-life outlaws, cowboys and lawmen. These, along with Wild West shows and America's reverence for the time period, helped to establish the American Old West as a time and place of mythological proportions and iconic villains and heroes. Filmmakers have continued this tradition for more decades now than the actual timeframe that inspired them. Westerns were such a prolific genre that at one point they accounted for a quarter of Hollywood's entire output each year. For perspective, when the seemingly dominant superhero genre was at its height, the movies didn't even account for one percent of the total releases of any given year. This means the Western genre has more options on offer than a fully stocked saloon, and many of those options are rousing, crowd-pleasing good times. No town is big enough to hold all the most entertaining westerns ever made, but ten is a nice round number to start off. Like a fistful of dynamite, these ten westerns are an absolute blast. 10 'Back to the Future Part III' (1990) Directed by Robert Zemeckis The Western template, which itself has often borrowed from other genres such as samurai epics, is such a sturdy one that it's been used as a framework for half a dozen other genres to hang their plotlines on. Bone Tomahawk and High Plains Drifter both ride point when it comes to the underrated western horror genre, but their brutality can make repeat viewings a challeng
WESTERN MOVIES CINEMA AMERICAN FILM HORROR
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