Stagecoach (1939) This movie is notable for several reasons. First, it was director John Ford's first Western made using sound. It was also Ford's first of many movies made in Monument Valley. But more importantly for you Western fans, it was John Wayne's breakthrough role, the first movie that did big with him in it. Wayne plays an outlaw named Ringo Kid who rides along with a prostitute, a banker and others as they travel to Lordsburg, New Mexico, through Apache territory. To my way of thinking, this was the first real modern Western film.
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
Lots of stars in this picture. Yul Brynner, Eli Wallach, Charles Bronson, Steve McQueen, just to name a few. The story is simple. Seven gunmen are hired to protect a village from bandits. During the build-up to the conflict, and during the main conflict, the gunmen fall in love with the village. At least those who survive the battle do. Plenty of action here, and a touch of comedy here and there, also. This is a pretty standard Western for a big cast, basically having become an iconic screen favorite. Worth seeing time and time again.
A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
This particular film is director Sergio Leone's first in what came to be called the Dollars Trilogy, three spaghetti Westerns starring Clint Eastwood as the Man With No Name. Based upon the Japanese samurai movie Yojimbo, this film is about a bounty hunter caught up in the fight between two families in a small town. Truly, one of the first post-modern Westerns, and a worthy Western film debut for star Clint Eastwood. For anyone thinking I've left out The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, don't fret. That movie made it onto my original article, 10 Movies Every Western Fan Must See, so check it out there.
For a Few Dollars More (1965)
This is the sequel to A Fistful of Dollars. Clint Eastwood returns as a bounty hunter, but this time he's joined by Lee Van Cliff. Clint and Cliff team up to take on a band of bank robbers, but there's more than money at stake. Vengeance is the name of the game in this movie. And so I don't forget it, the score by Enio Morricone is just as good here as it is in Sergio Leone's other spaghetti Western flicks.
Django (1966)
Though much of the world thinks of Clint Eastwood and Sergio Leone when it comes to spaghetti Westerns (Western movies in the 1960s and 1970s that were mostly made by Italian directors), there were other films in the genre. This is probably the next-best known of the lot after The Dollars Trilogy. Starring Franco Nero as Django, the story is a complicated one of a gun runner who becomes involved in a conflict between two warring generals. After much bloodshed, Django finally gets revenge against the generals.
The Wild Bunch (1969)
If you like movies with lots of bullets and blood, this should be right up your alley. Truly, one of the most violent Western flicks ever made. Just about everyone is killed by the end of this one, which sounds kind of sad and pathetic in some ways, but it really works here. Director Sam Peckinpah originally meant for this movie to show theater crowds the ugliness of violence, but so many people loved the movie he eventually became somewhat disillusioned with his own message. The plot? A group of aging bank robbers try to survive the waining years of the cowboy age. Pretty simple, right? Not for this group of guys. A classic. Much like The Magnificent Seven, this one has a huge cast of stars, including William Holden, Ernest Borgnine and more.
The Cowboys (1972)
This is another one featuring John Wayne. It's not a traditional Western by most standards. You won't find gunslingers and sheriffs and Indians here, though there are a few outlaws. Wayne portrays a cattle rancher who has to drive hundreds of cows, but he's got this problem. All his ranch hands have run off to a gold rush. In fact, nearly all the men but Wayne have shot off looking for gold. So who is going to drive these steers? Boys. Yep, I said boys. This is the tale of a bunch of boys and John Wayne herding cattle across the prairie. Doesn't sound too adventurous, does it? Well, it is. There's a good bit of action and comedy both. The ending is one of my favorites of a Wayne film, though it is somewhat bitter sweet.
Jeremiah Johnson (1972)
Partly based on fact and partly on legend, this film starring Robert Redford isn't quite a Western. Though it sort of is. It's just set before the traditional time period of most Westerns, before six-guns were slapping against thighs and black powder rifles were the end-all, be-all weapon. But that being said, in my opinion, this is the best movie on this list. It's tale of mountain man Jeremiah Johnson, how he came to the mountains and the travails he faced once there. The tale is slow at times, but always thoughtful, and the action comes along often enough to keep the interest of more traditional Western fans.
Blazing Saddles (1974)
Okay, I can hear some folks complaining now. But I don't care. Blazing Saddles is a Western. Quite probably the funniest Western of all time. Director Mel Brooks brought a classic piece of comedic and Western cinema to the scree when he filmed this one. Starring Cleavon Little as a black sheriff stuck in a small town of whites who mostly hate him, other than gunslinger Gene Wilder. Loaded with laughs, and makes fun of plenty of Western stereotypes.
The Shootist (1976)
We started with John Wayne and we'll end with him. This is Wayne's final movie, which also starred Lauren Bacall and Ron Howard. The story concerns the last days of a dying gunfighter, which was fitting considering Wayne would die three years later of cancer. This isn't the best Western ever made, but it is a pretty decent one and it includes not only Wayne's final role, but one of his best.
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