Westerns, anyone?

[Spart]

So, I've been into westerns lately, and I think it just might have become my favourite movie genre..

So I saw some random old western a couple of years ago, and I was surprised how addicting they are. A little later, I found some westerns on sale in the local store. So I bought Per qualche dollaro in più (For a few dollars more) and Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo (The good, the bad and the ugly of course), both from Sergio Leone. So no better way to start the hobby, eh? Then I later bought Once upon a time in the west, also from Sergio Leone, and this is of course as much of a masterpiece than the dollar-trilogy. Oh, and I also watch Deadwood on TV, what a great series.
Soon I'll be getting my hands on Fistful of Dollars and Fistful of Dynamite. Can't wait to see them.

So these are all Spagetti-westerns, which is a term used for mostly Italian-Spanish-made westerns. Actually it's meant to be offensive, but just by looking at all these achievements of these films and scores on IMdB and other reviews, I think I can use this term as a compliment. Although I heard that Leone's western's US releases were kind of screwed up, meaning they were shortened and edited. (For example, this happened with Once upon a time in America (which isn't a western btw :p). They completely re-edited the whole movie, changing the unique time structure and the great editing, and then the movie wasn't very appriciated) Now I've seen the 3 hours version of The good, the bad and the ugly, and I'll rank it as my favourite western, maybe my all time favourite movie.
And also, remember the music? Ahh, it's divine in some movies. Especially if it's composed by Ennio Morricone. It's so.. different.

I can't possibly remember all westerns I've seen so far, but besides the ones I just listed, I think that My name is nobody, The wild Bunch, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and The unforgiven deserve to be mentioned.

Sadly I haven't yet gotten to know the Hollywood-stuff, John Wayne that much, so I'll do it once I'll find some of those movies.

Here's a list of some great westerns by http://www.imagesjournal.com/ :

The Covered Wagon (1923)
The Iron Horse (1924)
Tumbleweeds (1925)
Stagecoach (1939)
Ox-Bow Incident (1942)
My Darling Clementine (1946)
Pursued (1947)
Red River (1948)
The Gunfighter (1950)
High Noon (1952)
Rancho Notorious (1952)
Hondo (1953)
Shane (1953)
Johnny Guitar (1954)
Vera Cruz (1954)
The Man From Laramie (1955)
The Searchers (1956)
Forty Guns (1957)
The Tall T (1957)
Man of the West (1958)
Rio Bravo (1959)
Ride Lonesome (1959)
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
Ride the High Country (1962)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
The Wild Bunch (1968)
High Plains Drifter (1972)
Unforgiven (1992)

But please do tell your own favourites, and recommend something worth watching.
Films recommended by TWC users:
Treasure of the Sierra Madre
Blazing Saddles
Silverado
Tombstone
Maverick
A Man Called Blade
The Outlaw Josey Wales
Pale Rider


Carry on.

[therussian]

I'm more of the Clint Eastwood westerns, not the John Wayne westerns. So yeah, if I see Clint on AMC, I usually watch it.

[Hansa]

Anything directed by Sergio Leone, music by Ennio Morricone. Magnifico, Spagetti all the way.

[Trajan]

Anything directed by Sergio Leone, music by Ennio Morricone. Magnifico, Spagetti all the way.

Same here. I love good westerns period but my favorites are the spaghetti westerns. "Once Upon a Time in the West", "Fistful of Dollars", "For a Few Dollars More", etc.

[IronBrig4]

Here's a list of some Westerns that you should definitely add to your list.

Treasure of the Sierra Madre (CLASSIC!)
Blazing Saddles
Silverado
Tombstone
Maverick

[Drexxus Maximus]

I love good Westerns. Sadly they are few and far between these days. Once Upon a Time in the West is probably my favorite Western of all time, Hell, all the Leone films are superb.

Also, check out the not so well known film: Mannaja - A Man Called Blade
http://www.amazon.com/Mannaja-Called.../dp/B0001KUE7I
Considered one of if not the last true "spaghetti" westerns. It's bloody and hardcore...they call him Blade for a reason hehe.

[Pelayo]

Anything directed by Sergio Leone, music by Ennio Morricone. Magnifico, Spagetti all the way.

Same here, all those sergio leone westerns are just cult, I have them all on DVD, it's a pleasure to watch them again.

And I have old Ennio morricone LP's, whith the soundtracks of the good, the bad, the ugly, for a few dollars (my favourite), and even the mission, this isn't a western, but the film was good and the soundtrack is just magnificent, but what else to expect from Ennio.

Another western I like alot is the magnificent seven!

[boofhead]

Here's a list of some Westerns that you should definitely add to your list.

Treasure of the Sierra Madre (CLASSIC!)
Blazing Saddles
Silverado
Tombstone
Maverick

Yeah Blazing Saddles is an absolute MUST.

[IronBrig4]

Yeah Blazing Saddles is an absolute MUST.

Totally. "Mongo like candy!"

[Warmaster]

Unfortunately, i've only seen A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. And really... who hasnt?

In general i dont really like westerns. The setting doesnt interest me, but damn, all 3 of the ones i mentioned above were pretty good. They have got to be the best of the sphaghetti westerns surely?

[Spart]

Well, I think that they are one of the best (The good, the bad and the ugly is my favourite), but I recommend watching those not-so-well-known westerns too if they happen to be on TV. Some of them are just weird, I mean, really weird, but that's the reason I want to see them Pure art..
Oh, and watch Once upon a time in the west. Almost as good as the gtbatu. Some might think it's better. #24 on IMDb's list.
Don't you too think that the endings especially are the best in Leone's films? Just thinking about Tuco running around the graveyard or Harmonica shooting Frank..

I'll add those ones you guys mentioned to the list =) As I'll be adding every great movies you find. Hmm.. I quess I could add some more info to the start post, make this a western info-thread..

[Pelayo]

Yeah, he builds the tension till the final shoot- out. We feel the influence of Kurosawa in Leone's work. The music of ennio morricone also plays a big part.
For me the climax of the good,the bad,the ugly, is when the three are in the center of the cemetery, they take place,the music begins and for five minutes you get close ups of the three focusing at their hands and eyes, and he changes from one to another faster and faster, you just feel the tension ,it's going to happen.

Or in a fistfull of dollars, when the rojos are in the town center and eastwood comes out of the dust with the trompet solo, you just know at their look that he means business this time.

[Spart]

Here's user rated top 50 by IMDb:
1 Buono, il brutto, il cattivo, Il (1966) 8.8/10 (53340 votes)
2 C'era una volta il West (1968) 8.7/10 (29033 votes)
3 Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The (1948) 8.5/10 (15189 votes)
4 Ox-Bow Incident, The (1943) 8.3/10 (3092 votes)
5 High Noon (1952) 8.3/10 (17340 votes)
6 Unforgiven (1992) 8.1/10 (43991 votes)
7 Per qualche dollaro in più (1965) 8.1/10 (15440 votes)
8 Wild Bunch, The (1969) 8.1/10 (15295 votes)
9 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) 8.1/10 (28485 votes)
10 Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The (1962) 8.0/10 (10562 votes)
11 Searchers, The (1956) 7.9/10 (14752 votes)
12 My Darling Clementine (1946) 7.9/10 (3663 votes)
13 Red River (1948) 7.9/10 (5686 votes)
14 Per un pugno di dollari (1964) 7.9/10 (14940 votes)
15 Rio Bravo (1959) 7.8/10 (10165 votes)
16 Stagecoach (1939) 7.8/10 (7672 votes)
17 Grande silenzio, Il (1968) 7.8/10 (1299 votes)
18 Magnificent Seven, The (1960) 7.8/10 (14328 votes)
19 Dances with Wolves (1990) 7.8/10 (39161 votes)
20 Way Out West (1937) 7.7/10 (1458 votes)
21 Little Big Man (1970) 7.7/10 (8330 votes)
22 Winchester '73 (1950) 7.7/10 (2518 votes)
23 Destry Rides Again (1939) 7.7/10 (2248 votes)
24 Blazing Saddles (1974) 7.7/10 (24001 votes)
25 Shane (1953) 7.6/10 (7602 votes)
26 Big Country, The (1958) 7.6/10 (2697 votes)
27 Outlaw Josey Wales, The (1976) 7.6/10 (10547 votes)
28 Gunfighter, The (1950) 7.6/10 (1529 votes)
29 Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, The (2005) 7.6/10 (6720 votes)
30 Mark of Zorro, The (1940) 7.6/10 (1599 votes)
31 Lonely Are the Brave (1962) 7.6/10 (1068 votes)
32 Fort Apache (1948) 7.6/10 (2845 votes)
33 Last of the Mohicans, The (1992) 7.6/10 (22006 votes)
34 Giù la testa (1971) 7.5/10 (3208 votes)
35 Shootist, The (1976) 7.5/10 (4594 votes)
36 El Dorado (1966) 7.5/10 (3546 votes)
37 Dead Man (1995) 7.5/10 (15561 votes)
38 Viva Zapata! (1952) 7.5/10 (1275 votes)
39 Ride the High Country (1962) 7.5/10 (2337 votes)
40 Tombstone (1993) 7.5/10 (23238 votes)
41 High Plains Drifter (1973) 7.4/10 (6417 votes)
42 McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) 7.4/10 (3570 votes)
43 Open Range (2003) 7.4/10 (13482 votes)
44 Johnny Guitar (1954) 7.4/10 (2161 votes)
45 Support Your Local Sheriff! (1969) 7.4/10 (2178 votes)
46 Proposition, The (2005) 7.4/10 (5690 votes)
47 Naked Spur, The (1953) 7.4/10 (1444 votes)
48 Man from Laramie, The (1955) 7.4/10 (1204 votes)
49 Bend of the River (1952) 7.3/10 (1065 votes)
50 Shenandoah (1965) 7.3/10 (1353 votes)

Probably should start seeing those..:hmmm:

[Cyrus the Virus]

Per qualche dollaro in più is the favourite Imo. Though I saw the good, the bad etc. first. I actually saw all three in the trilogy a couple of weeks ago. Love the music

ow I've seen the 3 hours version of The good, the bad and the ugly, and I'll rank it as my favourite western

Also have that version. too bad Eli and Clint sound so old in those new scenes, and Lee being dead..

[Seppuku]

Yes I do love them Spagetti is definetely the best, I've seen some random John Wayne westerns too.
Eastwood is my favourite actor.

[Caelius]

I'll Be Your Huckleberry

[mrjesushat]

I'll Be Your Huckleberry

YES

Most absurd Western of all time, in some respects. And yet, one of the baddest-*** films ever made. Waaay better than the historically-inspired biopic by Kevin Costner, that made me want to sleep.

But, has anyone mentioned, "The Outlaw Josey Wales"? If so, I didn't see it listed.

Definitely a good film, as is "Pale Rider".

[Spart]

Both added to "recommendations" =)
I have yet to see Tombstone, hopefully I'll get my hands on it soon. Judging by the trailers it looks pretty cool.

[megaflus]

old westerns are great but new ones are mostly crap

[Shigawire]

Absolutelydoo



Amazing tension, atmosphere and music.

I also think that HBO's Deadwood has resurrected the Western genre with a more brutally realistic approach.