Best Western Movies of All Time

Critics Consensus: A visually stunning film that may be too predictable and politically correct for adults, but should serve children well.

Synopsis: Follows the adventures of a wild and rambunctious mustang stallion as he journeys through the untamed American frontier. Encountering man for the first time, Spirit... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Matt Damon, James Cromwell, Daniel Studi, Chopper Bernet

Directed By: Kelly Asbury, Lorna Cook

Critics Consensus: It's all but impossible to add anything new or fresh to the traditional Western, but -- thanks in no small part to Mads Mikkelson's performance -- The Salvation comes close.

Synopsis: After shooting the man who murdered his wife, a Danish settler (Mads Mikkelsen) incurs the wrath of the man's brother (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), a ruthless... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Eva Green, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Éric Cantona

Directed By: Kristian Levring

Critics Consensus: Blackthorn invites comparisons to a classic Western -- and survives, thanks largely to a charismatic performance by a well-chosen Sam Shepard.

Synopsis: Leaving Bolivia and heading back to the U.S., the outlaw formerly known as Butch Cassidy (Sam Shepard) has a final adventure.

Starring: Sam Shepard, Eduardo Noriega, Stephen Rea, Magaly Solier

Directed By: Mateo Gil

Critics Consensus: The Magnificent Seven never really lives up to the superlative in its title -- or the classics from which it draws inspiration -- but remains a moderately diverting action thriller on its own merits.

Synopsis: Looking to mine for gold, greedy industrialist Bartholomew Bogue seizes control of the Old West town of Rose Creek. With their lives in jeopardy, Emma... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D'Onofrio

Directed By: Antoine Fuqua

Critics Consensus: While decidedly not for all tastes, Dead Man marks an alluring change of pace for writer-director Jim Jarmusch that demonstrates an assured command of challenging material.

Synopsis: Circumstances transform a mild-mannered accountant (Johnny Depp) into a notorious Old West gunslinger.

Starring: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen, Michael Wincott

Directed By: Jim Jarmusch

Critics Consensus: With a vibrant pastel color scheme and stylized action sequences, Tears of the Black Tiger is a bizarre, yet thoroughly entertaining Thai western.

Synopsis: A handsome bandit (Chartchai Ngamsan) falls in love with a wealthy woman (Stella Malucchi) while a policeman pursues the man's gang.

Starring: Chartchai Ngamsan, Stella Malucchi, Supakorn Kitsuwan, Passin Ruangvuth

Directed By: Wisit Sasanatieng

Critics Consensus: It might be a bit too eager to tug the heartstrings, but The Horse Whisperer is typically graceful, well-crafted Redford -- on both sides of the camera.

Synopsis: When teenage Grace (Scarlett Johansson) is traumatized by a riding accident that badly injures her horse, her mother Annie (Kristin Scott Thomas), a high-powered New... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Robert Redford, Kristin Scott Thomas, Sam Neill, Dianne Wiest

Directed By: Robert Redford

Critics Consensus: Aided by its spare setting and committed performances, The Keeping Room is just fascinatingly off-kilter enough to overcome its frustrating stumbles.

Synopsis: During the waning days of the Civil War, two Southern sisters (Brit Marling, Hailee Steinfeld) and a slave (Muna Otaru) must defend themselves against two... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Brit Marling, Hailee Steinfeld, Muna Otaru, Sam Worthington

Directed By: Daniel Barber

Critics Consensus: In a Valley of Violence offers a smartly conceived homage to classic Westerns that transcends pastiche with absurdist humor and a terrific cast.

Synopsis: A mysterious drifter (Ethan Hawke) and his dog journey toward Mexico through the barren desert of the Old West. Hoping to shorten their trip, they... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ethan Hawke, John Travolta, Taissa Farmiga, James Ransone

Directed By: Ti West

Critics Consensus: Boasting rich detail and well-told story, Silverado is a rare example of an '80s Hollywood Western done right.

Synopsis: Rambling man Emmett (Scott Glenn) assembles a group of misfit cowboys (Kevin Costner), (Kevin Kline, Danny Glover). After helping a group of settlers track down... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Kevin Costner, Rosanna Arquette

Directed By: Lawrence Kasdan

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: A merciless cowboy sets out on a dangerous journey across the frontier, determined to do whatever it takes to avenge his longtime partner's brutal murder.

Starring: Bill Pullman, Kathy Baker, Jim Caviezel, Tommy Flanagan

Directed By: Jared Moshe

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Tragedy seems to follow Pearl Chavez (Jennifer Jones) everywhere she goes. After a domestic dispute results in the death of both of her parents, Pearl... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotten, Lionel Barrymore

Directed By: King Vidor

Critics Consensus: Though its attempts to rework genre conventions may fall flat with some, Red Hill is a beautifully shot, tightly paced thriller that marks a strong debut for director Patrick Hughes.

Synopsis: A rookie cop (Ryan Kwanten) must contend with an escaped murderer (Tom E. Lewis) who has come to town seeking revenge.

Starring: Ryan Kwanten, Steve Bisley, Tommy Lewis, Claire van der Boom

Directed By: Patrick Hughes

Critics Consensus: Hostiles benefits from stunning visuals and a solid central performance from Christian Bale, both of which help elevate its uneven story.

Synopsis: In 1892, legendary Army Capt. Joseph Blocker reluctantly agrees to escort a dying Cheyenne war chief and his family back to their tribal land. Embarking... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Christian Bale, Rosamund Pike, Wes Studi, Jesse Plemons

Directed By: Scott Cooper

Critics Consensus: A traditional genre western, Appaloosa sets itself apart with smart psychology, an intriguing love triangle, and good chemistry between the leads.

Synopsis: Virgil Cole (Ed Harris) and his longtime friend and partner Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen) travel the 1880s Southwest, bringing justice to lawless towns desperate enough... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen, Renée Zellweger, Jeremy Irons

Directed By: Ed Harris

Critics Consensus: On the strength of its two lead performances Assassination is an expertly crafted period piece, and an insightful look at one of the enduring figures of American lore.

Synopsis: Infamous and unpredictable, Jesse James (Brad Pitt), nicknamed the fastest gun in the west, plans his next big heist while he launches pre-emptive strikes against... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Shepard, Mary-Louise Parker

Directed By: Andrew Dominik

Critics Consensus: Back to the Future Part III draws the trilogy to a satisfying close with a simpler, sweeter round of time-travel antics.

Synopsis: In this final chapter, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) obtains a 70-year-old message from the time-traveling Dr. Emmett Brown (Christopher Lloyd), in which he informs... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Mary Steenburgen, Tom Wilson

Directed By: Robert Zemeckis

Critics Consensus: If you're seeking a stylish modern western with a solid story and a well-chosen ensemble cast, Tombstone is your huckleberry.

Synopsis: Wyatt Earp and his brothers, Morgan and Virgil, have left their gunslinger ways behind them to settle down and start a business in the town... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Michael Biehn, Powers Boothe

Directed By: George P. Cosmatos

Critics Consensus: Imperfect yet intriguing, The Wind offers horror fans an admirably ambitious story further distinguished by its fresh perspective and effective scares.

Synopsis: Lizzy is a tough, resourceful frontierswoman settling a remote stretch of land on the 19th-century American frontier. Isolated from civilization in a desolate wilderness where... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Caitlin Gerard, Julia Goldani Telles, Ashley Zukerman, Miles Anderson

Directed By: Emma Tammi

Critics Consensus: Whilst never taking itself too seriously, this riotous and rollicking Sergio Leone-inspired Korean Western is serious fun.

Synopsis: In the 1930s Manchuria, an encounter on a train triggers an epic crusade for a treasure map, prompting a marathon chase in hot pursuit of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jung Woo-sung, Ryu Seung-soo

Directed By: Kim Jee-woon

Critics Consensus: Although the plot is really nothing to brag about, Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson work well together. The cinematography looks great, and Jackie delivers a hilarious performance. This is an old-fashioned crowd-pleaser.

Synopsis: Bumbling Chon Wang (Jackie Chan) works as an Imperial guard in the Forbidden City of China. When Princess Pei Pei (Lucy Liu) is taken hostage,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jackie Chan, Owen Wilson, Lucy Liu, Roger Yuan

Directed By: Tom Dey

Critics Consensus: Greatly benefiting from the tremendous chemistry between Kevin Costner and Robert Duvall, Open Range is a sturdy modern Western with classic roots.

Synopsis: Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall) and his cowhands Charley (Kevin Costner) and Mose (Abraham Benrubi) are driving cattle across a large expanse of country. When Mose... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Robert Duvall, Kevin Costner, Annette Bening, Michael Gambon

Directed By: Kevin Costner

Critics Consensus: By turns intoxicating and confounding, El Topo contains the creative multitudes that made writer-director Alejandro Jodorowsky such a singular talent.

Synopsis: A black-clad gunfighter (Alejandro Jodorowsky) embarks on a symbolic quest in an Old West version of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Starring: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Mara Lorenzio, Jacqueline Luis, Brontis Jodorowsky

Directed By: Alejandro Jodorowsky

Critics Consensus: With its pared down storytelling, The Long Riders delivers with an evocative atmosphere and artful brutality.

Synopsis: During a bank robbery by the legendary James-Younger Gang, Ed Miller (Dennis Quaid) impulsively kills a man, much to the displeasure of leader Jesse James... View Full Synopsis

Starring: David Carradine, Keith Carradine, Robert Carradine, James Keach

Directed By: Walter Hill

Critics Consensus: Its unusual approach won't be for all viewers, but True History of the Kelly Gang takes a distinctively postmodern look at Australia's past.

Synopsis: An exploration of Australian bushranger Ned Kelly and his gang as they attempt to evade authorities during the 1870s.

Starring: George MacKay, Russell Crowe, Nicholas Hoult, Essie Davis

Directed By: Justin Kurzel

Critics Consensus: A Western that swaps out the Hollywood glamor for shades of moral gray, Hud is a sobering showcase for a sterling ensemble of actors at the top of their respective games.

Synopsis: Hard-drinking, arrogant, womanizing Hud Bannon (Paul Newman) lives a self-centered, indolent life supported by his hard-working and morally upstanding father, Homer (Melvyn Douglas), on the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Paul Newman, Melvyn Douglas, Patricia Neal, Brandon De Wilde

Directed By: Martin Ritt

Critics Consensus: A squarely traditional yet somewhat progressive Western, The Homesman adds another absorbing entry to Tommy Lee Jones' directorial résumé.

Synopsis: A frontier farm woman (Hilary Swank) saves the life of a claim-jumper (Tommy Lee Jones) and persuades him to help her escort three insane women... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Hilary Swank, David Dencik, William Fichtner

Directed By: Tommy Lee Jones

Critics Consensus: Sam Peckinpah's mournful salute to the bygone West achieves moments of ruthless poetry, but clear signs of studio-dictated cuts and oft-unintelligible dialogue will make this dirge a slog for some.

Synopsis: Sheriff Pat Garrett (James Coburn) is ordered by Governor Wallace (Jason Robards) to go after the outlaw Billy the Kid (Kris Kristofferson) because the cattle... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James Coburn, Kris Kristofferson, Bob Dylan, Jason Robards

Directed By: Sam Peckinpah

Critics Consensus: The Hateful Eight offers another well-aimed round from Quentin Tarantino's signature blend of action, humor, and over-the-top violence -- all while demonstrating an even stronger grip on his filmmaking craft.

Synopsis: While racing toward the town of Red Rock in post-Civil War Wyoming, bounty hunter John "The Hangman" Ruth (Kurt Russell) and his fugitive prisoner (Jennifer... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins

Directed By: Quentin Tarantino

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Setting off on a journey to the west in the 1830s, the Prescott family run into a man named Linus (James Stewart), who helps them... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Carroll Baker, Lee J. Cobb, Henry Fonda, Carolyn Jones

Directed By: John Ford, Henry Hathaway, George Marshall, Richard Thorpe

Critics Consensus: Dances with Wolves suffers from a simplistic view of the culture it attempts to honor, but the end result remains a stirring western whose noble intentions are often matched by its epic grandeur.

Synopsis: A Civil War soldier develops a relationship with a band of Lakota Indians. Attracted by the simplicity of their lifestyle, he chooses to leave his... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney A. Grant

Directed By: Kevin Costner

Critics Consensus: Moving at a contemplative speed unseen in most westerns, Meek's Cutoff is an effective, intense journey of terror and survival in the untamed frontier.

Synopsis: During the 1840s, six settlers and their guide are caught in a dangerous situation: They are lost, food and water are running out, and the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michelle Williams, Bruce Greenwood, Will Patton, Zoe Kazan

Directed By: Kelly Reichardt

Critics Consensus: Tommy Lee Jones' directorial debut is both a potent western and a powerful morality tale.

Synopsis: When brash Texas border officer Mike Norton wrongfully kills and buries the friend and ranch hand of Pete Perkins, the latter is reminded of a... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Barry Pepper, Julio Cedillo, Dwight Yoakam

Directed By: Tommy Lee Jones

Critics Consensus: Brutal, unflinching, and violent, but thought-provoking and with excellent performances, this Australian western is the one of the best examples of the genre to come along in recent times.

Synopsis: In the 1880s Australia, a lawman offers renegade Charlie Burns a difficult choice. In order to save his younger brother from the gallows, Charlie must... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Guy Pearce, Ray Winstone, Emily Watson, Danny Huston

Directed By: John Hillcoat

Critics Consensus: With a supremely talented cast and just enough midlife drama to add weight to its wildly silly overtones, City Slickers uses universal themes to earn big laughs.

Synopsis: Every year, three friends take a vacation away from their wives. This year, henpecked Phil (Daniel Stern), newly married Ed (Bruno Kirby), and Mitch (Billy... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, Bruno Kirby, Patricia Wettig

Directed By: Ron Underwood

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: A once-peaceful frontier town becomes a den of vice after vicious outlaw Dutch Albert and his gang arrive and begin gunning down their opposition. Undertaker... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Emile Hirsch, John Cusack, Danny Webb, Antonia Campbell-Hughes

Directed By: Ivan Kavanagh

Critics Consensus: Yul Brynner gives a memorable performance as a robotic cowboy in this amusing sci-fi/western hybrid.

Synopsis: Westworld is a futuristic theme park where paying guests can pretend to be gunslingers in an artificial Wild West populated by androids. After paying a... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Norman Bartold

Directed By: Michael Crichton

Critics Consensus: Simple in story while sophisticated in texture, The Shootist is a fittingly elegiac swan song for one of Hollywood's most iconic stars.

Synopsis: J.B. Books (John Wayne, in his final film role) is an aging gunfighter diagnosed with cancer who comes to Nevada at the turn of the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Lauren Bacall, James Stewart, Ron Howard

Directed By: Don Siegel

Critics Consensus: Near Dark is at once a creepy vampire film, a thrilling western, and a poignant family tale, with humor and scares in abundance.

Synopsis: Cowboy Caleb Colton meets gorgeous Mae at a bar, and the two have an immediate attraction. But when Mae turns out to be a vampire... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Adrian Pasdar, Jenny Wright, Lance Henriksen, Bill Paxton

Directed By: Kathryn Bigelow

Critics Consensus: McCabe & Mrs. Miller offers revisionist Western fans a landmark early addition to the genre while marking an early apogee for director Robert Altman.

Synopsis: Charismatic gambler John McCabe (Warren Beatty) arrives in a mining community and decides to open a brothel. The local residents are impressed by his confident... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, Rene Auberjonois, John Schuck

Directed By: Robert Altman

Critics Consensus: Mystery Road evokes classic Westerns while using its Australian outback setting to delve into a surprisingly layered -- and powerfully impactful -- array of social issues.

Synopsis: An aboriginal detective returns to the Outback to investigate the murder of a teenage girl.

Starring: Aaron Pedersen, Hugo Weaving, Jack Thompson, Ryan Kwanten

Directed By: Ivan Sen

Critics Consensus: The Magnificent Seven transplants Seven Samurai into the Old West with a terrific cast of Hollywood stars -- and without losing any of the story's thematic richness.

Synopsis: A Mexican village is at the mercy of Calvera, the leader of a band of outlaws. The townspeople, too afraid to fight for themselves, hire... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Yul Brynner, Eli Wallach, Steve McQueen, Horst Bucholz

Directed By: John Sturges

Critics Consensus: As starkly beautiful as it is harshly uncompromising, The Revenant uses Leonardo DiCaprio's committed performance as fuel for an absorbing drama that offers punishing challenges -- and rich rewards.

Synopsis: While exploring the uncharted wilderness in 1823, frontiersman Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) sustains life-threatening injuries from a brutal bear attack. When a member (Tom Hardy)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter

Directed By: Alejandro González Iñárritu

Critics Consensus: Duck, You Sucker is a saucy helping of spaghetti western, with James Coburn and Rod Steiger's chemistry igniting the screen and Sergio Leone's bravura style on full display.

Synopsis: At the beginning of the Mexican Revolution in 1913, greedy bandit Juan Miranda and idealist John H. Mallory, an Irish Republican Army explosives expert on... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Rod Steiger, James Coburn, Romolo Valli, Maria Monti

Directed By: Sergio Leone

Critics Consensus: Bone Tomahawk's peculiar genre blend won't be for everyone, but its gripping performances and a slow-burning story should satisfy those in search of something different.

Synopsis: In the Old West, a sheriff (Kurt Russell), his deputy (Richard Jenkins), a gunslinger (Matthew Fox),and a cowboy (Patrick Wilson) embark on a mission to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kurt Russell, Patrick Wilson, Richard Jenkins, Matthew Fox

Directed By: S. Craig Zahler

Critics Consensus: Recreating the essence of his iconic Man With No Name in a post-Civil War Western, director Clint Eastwood delivered the first of his great revisionist works of the genre.

Synopsis: Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood) watches helplessly as his wife and child are murdered, by Union men led by Capt. Terrill (Bill McKinney). Seeking revenge, Wales... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Chief Dan George, Sondra Locke, Bill McKinney

Directed By: Clint Eastwood

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In this classic Western, wanderers Gil Carter (Henry Fonda) and Art Croft (Henry Morgan) ride into a small Nevada town plagued by cattle thieves. Initially... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews, Harry Morgan, Mary Beth Hughes

Directed By: William A. Wellman

Critics Consensus: Nearly a decade after The Outlaw Josey Wales, Clint Eastwood returns as a director to the genre that made his name with this elegant, spiritual Western that riffs on the classic Shane.

Synopsis: When property owner Coy LaHood (Richard Dysart) starts using a band of hooligans to terrorize a group of small-town gold miners into giving up their... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Michael Moriarty, Carrie Snodgress, Chris Penn

Directed By: Clint Eastwood

Critics Consensus: True Grit rides along on the strength of a lived-in late-period John Wayne performance, adding its own entertaining spin to the oft-adapted source material.

Synopsis: After hired hand Tom Chaney (Jeff Corey) murders the father of 14-year-old Mattie Ross (Kim Darby), she seeks vengeance and hires U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Glen Campbell, Kim Darby, Jeremy Slate

Directed By: Henry Hathaway

Critics Consensus: Made on a shoestring budget, El Mariachi's story is not new. However, the movie has so much energy that it's thoroughly enjoyable.

Synopsis: El Mariachi (Carlos Gallardo) is a traveling guitar player with the modest desire to play music for a living. Looking for a job, he stops... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Carlos Gallardo, Consuelo Gómez, Reinol Martinez, Peter Marquardt

Directed By: Robert Rodriguez

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When hired gun Tim Strawn (Lee Marvin) kills her rancher father, Cat Ballou (Jane Fonda) becomes an outlaw set on vengeance. Enlisting the help of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jane Fonda, Lee Marvin, Michael Callan, Dwayne Hickman

Directed By: Elliot Silverstein

Critics Consensus: Rango is a smart, giddily creative burst of beautifully animated entertainment, and Johnny Depp gives a colorful vocal performance as a household pet in an unfamiliar world.

Synopsis: A chameleon who has lived as a sheltered family pet finds himself in the grip of an identity crisis. Rango wonders how to stand out... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty

Directed By: Gore Verbinski

Critics Consensus: With Clint Eastwood in the lead, Ennio Morricone on the score, and Sergio Leone's stylish direction, For a Few Dollars More earns its recognition as a genre classic.

Synopsis: In the Wild West, a murderous outlaw known as El Indio (Gian Maria Volonte) and his gang are terrorizing and robbing the citizens of the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volonté, Joseph Egger

Directed By: Sergio Leone

Critics Consensus: Daring, provocative, and laugh-out-loud funny, Blazing Saddles is a gleefully vulgar spoof of Westerns that marks a high point in Mel Brooks' storied career.

Synopsis: In this satirical take on Westerns, crafty railroad worker Bart (Cleavon Little) becomes the first black sheriff of Rock Ridge, a frontier town about to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Cleavon Little, Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Slim Pickens

Directed By: Mel Brooks

Critics Consensus: The Sisters Brothers rides familiar genre trails in occasionally unexpected ways - a satisfying journey further elevated by its well-matched leading men.

Synopsis: It's 1851, and Charlie and Eli Sisters are both brothers and assassins, boys grown to men in a savage and hostile world. The Sisters brothers... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John C. Reilly, Joaquin Phoenix, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riz Ahmed

Directed By: Jacques Audiard

Critics Consensus: Smart and absorbing, Lone Star represents a career high point for writer-director John Sayles -- and '90s independent cinema in general.

Synopsis: In the Texas border town of Frontera, Sheriff Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper) digs up the past when he finds an old skull in the desert.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Peña, Joe Morton, Ron Canada

Directed By: John Sayles

Critics Consensus: With its iconic pairing of Paul Newman and Robert Redford, jaunty screenplay and Burt Bacharach score, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid has gone down as among the defining moments in late-'60s American cinema.

Synopsis: The true story of fast-draws and wild rides, battles with posses, train and bank robberies, a torrid love affair and a new lease on outlaw... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Katharine Ross, Strother Martin

Directed By: George Roy Hill

Critics Consensus: This remake of a classic Western improves on the original, thanks to fiery performances from Russell Crowe and Christian Bale as well as sharp direction from James Mangold.

Synopsis: Outlaw Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) terrorizes 1800s Arizona, especially the Southern Railroad, until he is finally captured. Wade must be brought to trial, so Dan... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Logan Lerman, Dallas Roberts

Directed By: James Mangold

Critics Consensus: Bisbee '17 offers one town's reckoning with its own history as a compelling argument that the mistakes of the past are truly corrected only when they're faced head on.

Synopsis: Locals stage re-creations of the town's controversial past.

Directed By: Robert Greene

Critics Consensus: Jeremiah Johnson's deliberate pace demands an investment from the viewer, but it's rewarded with a thoughtful drama anchored by a starring performance from Robert Redford.

Synopsis: A Mexican-American War veteran, Jeremiah Johnson (Robert Redford), heads to the mountains to live in isolation. Woefully unequipped for the task at hand, Johnson is... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Robert Redford, Will Geer, Stefan Gierasch, Allyn Ann McLerie

Directed By: Sydney Pollack

Critics Consensus: Formally thrilling and narratively daring, Bacurau draws on modern Brazilian sociopolitical concerns to deliver a hard-hitting, genre-blurring drama.

Synopsis: A few years from now... Bacurau, a small village in the Brazilian sertão, mourns the loss of its matriarch, Carmelita, who lived to be 94.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sônia Braga, Udo Kier, Barbara Colen, Julia Marie Peterson

Directed By: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles

Critics Consensus: Featuring a trio of classic leading men and a rich story captured by a director at the peak of his craft, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is one of the finest Westerns ever filmed.

Synopsis: Questions arise when Senator Stoddard (James Stewart) attends the funeral of a local man named Tom Doniphon (John Wayne) in a small Western town. Flashing... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin

Directed By: John Ford

Critics Consensus: Bold, bloody, and stylistically daring, Django Unchained is another incendiary masterpiece from Quentin Tarantino.

Synopsis: Two years before the Civil War, Django (Jamie Foxx), a slave, finds himself accompanying an unorthodox German bounty hunter named Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson

Directed By: Quentin Tarantino

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: The last job of Calvary Captain Nathan Brittles (John Wayne) before retirement is to soothe relations with the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians after Custer's last... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Joanne Dru, John Agar, Ben Johnson

Directed By: John Ford

Critics Consensus: Johnny Guitar confidently strides through genre conventions, emerging with a brilliant statement that transcends its period setting -- and left an indelible mark.

Synopsis: On the outskirts of town, the hard-nosed Vienna (Joan Crawford) owns a saloon frequented by the undesirables of the region, including Dancin' Kid (Scott Brady)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Joan Crawford, Sterling Hayden, Mercedes McCambridge, Scott Brady

Directed By: Nicholas Ray

Critics Consensus: Clint Eastwood's sophomore outing as director sees him back in the saddle as a mysterious stranger, and the result is one of his most memorable Westerns.

Synopsis: In this Western, a drifter with no name (Clint Eastwood) wanders into a small town, where his gun-slinging abilities are in high demand. When the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Verna Bloom, Marianna Hill, Mitch Ryan

Directed By: Clint Eastwood

Critics Consensus: Wind River lures viewers into a character-driven mystery with smart writing, a strong cast, and a skillfully rendered setting that delivers the bitter chill promised by its title.

Synopsis: Cory Lambert is a wildlife officer who finds the body of an 18-year-old woman on an American Indian reservation in snowy Wyoming. When the autopsy... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Jon Bernthal

Directed By: Taylor Sheridan

Critics Consensus: At once tender and unsentimental, Sweetgrass gracefully captures the beauty and hardships of a dying way of life.

Synopsis: This spare documentary follows a group of shepherds as they guide hundreds of sheep through endless miles of Montana wilderness. Herding the livestock through the... View Full Synopsis

Directed By: Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Illisa Barbash

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: The small town of Bottleneck is under the control of Kent (Brian Donlevy), a power-hungry boss who gets control over the local cattle ranchers by... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James Stewart, Marlene Dietrich, Mischa Auer, Charles Winninger

Directed By: George Marshall

Critics Consensus: An ambitious tall tale that boldly meshes farce with historical tragedy, Little Big Man is both an amusing comedic showcase and a persuasive political statement.

Synopsis: When a curious oral historian (William Hickey) turns up to hear the life story of 121-year-old Jack Crabb (Dustin Hoffman), he can scarcely believe his... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Faye Dunaway, Chief Dan George, Martin Balsam

Directed By: Arthur Penn

Critics Consensus: Sweet Country makes brilliant use of the Australian outback as the setting for a hard-hitting story that satisfies as a character study as well as a sociopolitical statement.

Synopsis: An Aboriginal man from the Northern Territory goes on the run after he kills a white man in self-defence in the 1920s.

Starring: Bryan Brown, Matt Day, Tremayne Doolan, Anni Finsterer

Directed By: Warwick Thornton

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Dan Evans (Van Heflin), a drought-plagued Arizona rancher, volunteers to take captured stagecoach robber and murderer Ben Wade (Glenn Ford) from Bisbee to Contention City,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Van Heflin, Glenn Ford, Felicia Farr, Leora Dana

Directed By: Delmer Daves

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: While filing for a divorce, beautiful ex-stripper Roslyn Taber (Marilyn Monroe) ends up meeting aging cowboy-turned-gambler Gay Langland (Clark Gable) and former World War II... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, Montgomery Clift, Thelma Ritter

Directed By: John Huston

Critics Consensus: The Wild Bunch is Sam Peckinpah's shocking, violent ballad to an old world and a dying genre.

Synopsis: In this gritty Western classic, aging outlaw Pike Bishop (William Holden) prepares to retire after one final robbery. Joined by his gang, which includes Dutch... View Full Synopsis

Starring: William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, Edmond O'Brien

Directed By: Sam Peckinpah

Critics Consensus: The Ballad of Buster Scruggs avoids anthology pitfalls with a consistent collection tied together by the Coen brothers' signature blend of dark drama and black humor.

Synopsis: An anthology of six short films that take place in 19th-century post-Civil War era during the settling of the Old West.

Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, Willie Watson, David Krumholtz, James Franco

Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When John J. Macreedy (Spencer Tracy), a one-armed war veteran, arrives in the small desert town of Black Rock, he's not greeted warmly. Searching for... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Spencer Tracy, Robert Ryan, Anne Francis, Lee Marvin

Directed By: John Sturges

Critics Consensus: Giant earns its imposing name with a towering narrative supported by striking cinematography, big ideas, and powerful work from a trio of legendary Hollywood leads.

Synopsis: Wealthy Texas rancher Bick Benedict (Rock Hudson) shakes things up at home when he returns from a trip to the East Coast with a love... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Carroll Baker

Directed By: George Stevens

Critics Consensus: Major Dundee is a Western-type with big war scenes, shot with bombast typical of Sam Peckinpah.

Synopsis: During the end of the Civil War, Major Dundee guards Confederate prisoners, Union deserters and ordinary hard-bitten criminals in a remote fort. When Apaches attack... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Charlton Heston, Richard Harris, Jim Hutton, James Coburn

Directed By: Sam Peckinpah

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In the American West, Willet Gashade (Warren Oates), a former bounty hunter, and Coley Boyard (Will Hutchins), his dimwitted partner, are approached by a secretive... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Millie Perkins, Jack Nicholson, Will Hutchins, Warren Oates

Directed By: Monte Hellman

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Enigmatic gunslinger Shane rides into a small Wyoming town with hopes of quietly settling down as a farmhand. Taking a job on homesteader Joe Starrett's... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Brandon De Wilde

Directed By: George Stevens

Critics Consensus: A landmark Sergio Leone spaghetti western masterpiece featuring a classic Morricone score.

Synopsis: There's a single piece of land around Flagstone with water on it, and rail baron Morton (Gabriele Ferzetti) aims to have it, knowing the new... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Henry Fonda, Claudia Cardinale, Charles Bronson, Jason Robards

Directed By: Sergio Leone

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Heartless tycoon Bart Jason (Edward Asner) hires a group of thugs to force the MacDonald family out of El Dorado so he can claim their... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, James Caan, Arthur Hunnicutt

Directed By: Howard Hawks

Critics Consensus: Old Yeller is an exemplary coming of age tale, packing an emotional wallop through smart pacing and a keen understanding of the elemental bonding between humanity and their furry best friends.

Synopsis: While Jim Coates (Fess Parker) is off on a cattle drive, his wife, Katie (Dorothy McGuire), and sons, Travis (Tommy Kirk) and Arliss (Kevin Corcoran),... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dorothy McGuire, Fess Parker, Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran

Directed By: Robert Stevenson

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When arrogant and stubborn Civil War hero Lieutenant Colonel Owen Thursday (Henry Fonda) arrives in Arizona with his daughter, Philadelphia (Shirley Temple), to assume command... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Shirley Temple, Pedro Armendáriz

Directed By: John Ford

Critics Consensus: The Rider's hard-hitting drama is only made more effective through writer-director Chloé Zhao's use of untrained actors to tell the movie's fact-based tale.

Synopsis: After a riding accident leaves him unable to compete on the rodeo circuit, a young cowboy searches for a new purpose.

Starring: Brady Jandreau, Tim Jandreau, Lilly Jandreau, Lane Scott

Directed By: Chloé Zhao

Critics Consensus: With Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo as his template, Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars helped define a new era for the Western and usher in its most iconic star, Clint Eastwood.

Synopsis: Wandering gunfighter Joe arrives in the Mexican village of San Miguel in the midst of a power struggle among sheriff John Baxter and the three... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Marianne Koch, Joseph Egger, Wolfgang Lukschy

Directed By: Sergio Leone

Critics Consensus: Bolstered by powerful lead performances from Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, and Tommy Lee Jones, No Country for Old Men finds the Coen brothers spinning cinematic gold out of Cormac McCarthy's grim, darkly funny novel.

Synopsis: While out hunting, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) finds the grisly aftermath of a drug deal. Though he knows better, he cannot resist the cash left... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Woody Harrelson

Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Lin McAdam pursues notorious outlaw Henry Dutch Brown into Dodge City, Kansas. There, in an effort to flush out the criminal, McAdam enters a sharp-shooting... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James Stewart, Shelley Winters, Dan Duryea, Stephen McNally

Directed By: Anthony Mann

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Headstrong Thomas Dunson (John Wayne) starts a thriving Texas cattle ranch with the help of his faithful trail hand, Groot (Walter Brennan), and his protégé,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Walter Brennan, Joanne Dru

Directed By: Howard Hawks

Critics Consensus: The Searchers is an epic John Wayne Western that introduces dark ambivalence to the genre that remains fashionable today.

Synopsis: In this revered Western, Ethan Edwards (John Wayne) returns home to Texas after the Civil War. When members of his brother's family are killed or... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Natalie Wood, Vera Miles

Directed By: John Ford

Critics Consensus: Canny and coolly confident, My Darling Clementine is a definitive dramatization of the Wyatt Earp legend that shoots from the hip and hits its target in breezy style.

Synopsis: In the middle of a long cattle drive, Wyatt Earp (Henry Fonda) and his brothers stop off for a night in the town of Tombstone.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Henry Fonda, Linda Darnell, Victor Mature, Walter Brennan

Directed By: John Ford

Critics Consensus: As both director and star, Clint Eastwood strips away decades of Hollywood varnish applied to the Wild West, and emerges with a series of harshly eloquent statements about the nature of violence.

Synopsis: When prostitute Delilah Fitzgerald (Anna Thomson) is disfigured by a pair of cowboys in Big Whiskey, Wyoming, her fellow brothel workers post a reward for... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris

Directed By: Clint Eastwood

Critics Consensus: Girded by strong performances from Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld, and lifted by some of the Coens' most finely tuned, unaffected work, True Grit is a worthy companion to the Charles Portis book.

Synopsis: After an outlaw named Tom Chaney murders her father, feisty 14-year-old farm girl Mattie Ross hires Rooster Cogburn, a boozy, trigger-happy lawman, to help her... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper

Directed By: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen

Critics Consensus: Hell or High Water offers a solidly crafted, well-acted Western heist thriller that eschews mindless gunplay in favor of confident pacing and full-bodied characters.

Synopsis: Toby is a divorced father who's trying to make a better life for his son. His brother Tanner is an ex-convict with a short temper... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Gil Birmingham

Directed By: David Mackenzie

Critics Consensus: Rio Bravo finds director Howard Hawks -- and his stellar ensemble cast -- working at peak performance, and the end result is a towering classic of the Western genre.

Synopsis: When gunslinger Joe Burdette (Claude Akins) kills a man in a saloon, Sheriff John T. Chance (John Wayne) arrests him with the aid of the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, Angie Dickinson

Directed By: Howard Hawks

Critics Consensus: Typifying the best that the Western genre has to offer, Stagecoach is a rip-roaring adventure given dramatic heft by John Ford's dynamic direction and John Wayne's mesmerizing star turn.

Synopsis: John Ford's landmark Western revolves around an assorted group of colorful passengers aboard the Overland stagecoach bound for Lordsburg, New Mexico, in the 1880s. An... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Wayne, Claire Trevor, Andy Devine, John Carradine

Directed By: John Ford

Critics Consensus: A classic of the Western genre that broke with many of the traditions at the time, High Noon endures -- in no small part thanks to Gary Cooper's defiant, Oscar-winning performance.

Synopsis: Former marshal Will Kane (Gary Cooper) is preparing to leave the small town of Hadleyville, New Mexico, with his new bride, Amy (Grace Kelly), when... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Katy Jurado, Thomas Mitchell

Directed By: Fred Zinnemann

Critics Consensus: Remade but never duplicated, this darkly humorous morality tale represents John Huston at his finest.

Synopsis: In this classic adventure film, two rough-and-tumble wanderers, Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) and Curtin (Tim Holt), meet up with a veteran prospector, Howard (Walter Huston), in... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett

Directed By: John Huston

Critics Consensus: Arguably the greatest of the spaghetti westerns, this epic features a compelling story, memorable performances, breathtaking landscapes, and a haunting score.

Synopsis: In the Southwest during the Civil War, a mysterious stranger, Joe (Clint Eastwood), and a Mexican outlaw, Tuco (Eli Wallach), form an uneasy partnership --... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, Lee Van Cleef, Aldo Giuffré

Directed By: Sergio Leone