When it comes to Westerns, many fans recall the films of Clint Eastwood and Sergio Leone, as well as John Wayne and Sam Peckinpah. These Westerns are memorable for the shootouts, the dramatic soundtracks, the rugged characters, and the elegant cinematography.
However, films such asHell or High Water,3:10 to Yuma,Django Unchained,The Hateful Eight, andThe Revenantare responsible for bringing a resurgence to the Western genre in the 21st Century by depicting dark, gritty stories, along with violent action and intriguing stylistic choices by the filmmakers. Each of these Westerns contains plots involving poverty, slavery, vengeance, and/or greed.
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Hell or High Water
This Western is reminiscent ofa crime drama like Michael Mann’sHeatin terms of depicting the battle between cops and criminals. Toby (Chris Pine) and Tanner Howard (Ben Foster) are brothers who steal money from branches of the Texas Midlands Bank in order to save their family ranch from foreclosure. While these brothers become bank robbers, they have emotional substance behind their actions. Along with saving the ranch, Toby intends to provide financial support for his sons, and Tanner tries to find paradise in order to get away from his life of crime.
Jeff Bridges also stars as veteran Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton, who works alongside his long-time partner Alberto Parker and other Rangers in leading the manhunt to find the Howard brothers. The performances are first-rate, along with a few intense shootouts. The best part of this Western is the relationships (particularly the brotherly love between Toby and Tanner, and the friendship between Hamilton and Parker) because both sides go through the hardships of everyday life. There’s also a great scene between Hamilton and Toby in which enemies show understanding and respect (similar to Pacino and De Niro inHeat).
The Hateful Eight
Quentin Tarantino’s second Western is a whodunit bloodbathin which characters are stuck together for three hours, where they each have their own agenda and don’t trust each other. Samuel L. Jackson and Kurt Russell lead a cast of legendary actors (including those who’ve worked with Tarantino in the past like Michael Madsen and Tim Roth). Jackson portrays a Civil War veteran and bounty hunter named Major Marquis Warren, who catches a ride with another bounty hunter named John “The Hangman” Ruth (Russell), along with his mischievous prisoner Daisy Domergue (a crude Jennifer Jason Leigh), all headed to the same lodge in order to ride out a snowstorm. While Ruth is ordered to take Daisy to hang, she hatches up a plan to escape, and everyone in the lodge tries to figure out who is working with her.
The violence and shootouts are just as bloody and over-the-top asDjango Unchained, providing both laughs and thrills. Warrenoperates like an intelligent detective, capable of noticing everyone’s actions, and delivers an unbelievable monologue to Confederate General Sanford “Sandy” Smithers (Bruce Dern), in which Warren admits to Smithers that he killed and tortured his son for coming after him. The banter between Ruth and Daisy is also wildly entertaining, with both characters exchanging jabs and poisoned coffee. The legendary composer Ennio Morricone delivers another classic score that perfectly sets the mood for a violent Western (including an unused track from John Carpenter’sThe Thing).
The Revenant
This Western finally brought Leonardo DiCaprio his firstOscar win for best actor, which is well-deserved in a performance of tremendous adversity and guts. DiCaprio portrays Hugh Glass, a trader and fur trapper who is left for dead by one of his men named John Fitzgerald (a terrifically villainous Tom Hardy) after suffering heavy wounds from a giant bear attack. Glass goes through mountains, snow, large terrain, and evil armies to seek vengeance on Fitzgerald for killing his son and leaving him behind. Glass' journey is an epic survival story, and along with his quest, he has spiritual visions of his Pawnee wife and son, who he loved most in the world, more so than the wars he’s battled in.
Director Alejandro Iñárritu (who previously won the best director and best picture Oscars forBirdman) directs his film with eye-popping scenery, providing audiences with beautiful, rugged settings in order to lay out Glass' epic journey. The representation of Native American tribes is also displayed, especially through their languages, their wardrobe, and their methods of communication and battle. DiCaprio and Hardy are perfect foes, and have a climactic fight scene that is raw and unrelenting as the intense bear sequence.
3:10 to Yuma
Versatile filmmaker James Mangold directed this Western remake starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, two ofthe best actors of their generation. Crowe portrays outlaw Ben Wade, a fast gunslinger and criminal who will do anything to get what he wants, including money and women, and leads a crew willing to follow his orders. Bale plays Dan Evans, a former soldier who works hard on his farm in order to provide for his wife and two boys. When Dan tackles a high-paying opportunity to help lawmen take Wade to a train headed to prison where he’ll be hanged for his crimes, both protagonists learn a lot about each other on their long ride together.
This is another example of a Western that showcases two opposing men who learn to respect each other because they’ve been through tremendous obstacles. Peter Fonda is also powerful and rugged as a bounty hunter who takes his job seriously, no matter his age or injury. BeforeHell or High Water, Ben Foster starred in this Western as Charlie Prince, a ruthless killer and a loyal confidant of Wade’s. Mangold would go on to directLogan, another Western involving wounded, conflicted men and complex family bonds.
Django Unchained
Quentin Tarantino’s first Western is arguably the best Western of the 21st Century because it has everything: drama, dark comedy, bloody gun battles, friendship, redemption, purely evil villains, anda soundtrack filled with classic tracks. Of course, many spectators would argue that a Western involving slavery is controversial due to the intense nature of the subject, along with the graphic violence and pervasive language. However, while Tarantino understands that his film is a work of fiction, the film manages to reflect on the hardships African Americans went through during a horrific time period in history, and also incorporates the themes of freedom and vengeance within the primary characters.
Leonardo DiCaprio isn’t known for portraying villains, but as slave owner Calvin Candie, he deliversone of the harshest and most self-centered villains in film history, along with Samuel L. Jackson as a version of Uncle Tom who’s impossible not to hate. However, the heart of this film is the friendly bond between Django (Jamie Foxx) and Dr. Schultz (Christoph Waltz), who work together to free Django’s wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington). Django is a slave who’s freed by Schultz since he needs Django’s help in tracking down a trio of brothers who are slave owners on a large plantation. Along the way, Schultz teaches Django not only how to become a bounty hunter, but also how to shoot, defend, and improvise when placed in a difficult position.
These features have taken Westerns to new heights because they tackle serious issues and themes with intensity, along with providing entertaining shootouts and violent action scenes. These Westerns are proof that the genre is still very much alive and relevant today.
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