The ultimate 100 greatest Westerns list according to dry Styx
These are obviously the most fascinating and identifiable of the Westerns. My list will differ from most in that I am more interested in characters, especially supporting characters, in which most of this are stick out films, scenery, story, and the premise that a good story is usually "credible characters in incredible circumstances". I'm not including the comedy Westerns, as I will put them on a "comedy" list. Sorry, Saddles and Cat.
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100 titles
- DirectorCecil B. DeMilleStarsBarbara StanwyckJoel McCreaAkim TamiroffIn 1862, Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads compete westward across the wilderness toward California.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsJoel McCreaRandolph ScottMariette HartleyAn ex-union soldier is hired to transport gold from a mining community through dangerous territory. But what he doesn't realize is that his partner and old friend is plotting to double-cross him.
- DirectorMartin RittStarsPaul NewmanFredric MarchRichard BooneJohn Russell, disdained by his "respectable" fellow stagecoach passengers because he was raised by Native Americans, becomes their only hope for survival when they are set upon by outlaws.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneHenry FondaShirley TempleAt Fort Apache, an honorable and veteran war captain finds conflict when his regime is placed under the command of a young, glory hungry lieutenant colonel with no respect for the local Indian tribe.
- DirectorHenry KingStarsGregory PeckJoan CollinsStephen BoydA man is chasing four outlaws who killed his wife and finds them in a small town's jail, but they escape to Mexico.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneJeffrey HunterVera MilesAn American Civil War veteran embarks on a years-long journey to rescue his niece from the Comanches after the rest of his brother's family is massacred in a raid on their Texas farm.
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsAlan LaddJean ArthurVan HeflinAn ex-gunfighter defends homesteaders in 1889 Wyoming.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsHumphrey BogartWalter HustonTim HoltTwo down-on-their-luck Americans searching for work in 1920s Mexico convince an old prospector to help them mine for gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsHenry FondaDana AndrewsMary Beth HughesWhen a posse captures three men suspected of killing a local farmer, they become strongly divided over whether or not to lynch the men.
- DirectorPhil KarlsonStarsVan HeflinTab HunterKathryn GrantA powerful rancher always protects his wild adult son by paying for damages and bribing witnesses, until his crimes become too serious to rectify.
- DirectorRichard BrooksStarsRobert TaylorStewart GrangerLloyd NolanIn 1883 South Dakota, two buffalo hunters start a personal feud over a captured squaw and a stand-off with a Dakota raiding party over some stolen horses.
- DirectorTed PostStarsClint EastwoodInger StevensPat HingleWhen an innocent man barely survives a lynching, he returns as a lawman determined to bring the vigilantes to justice.
- DirectorHenry LevinStarsGlenn FordWilliam HoldenEllen DrewAt the end of the Civil War, two friends return home to Colorado and one of them has changed and is violent and erratic.
- DirectorAndrew V. McLaglenStarsKirk DouglasRobert MitchumRichard WidmarkIn 1843, a former U.S. Senator leads a wagon train of settlers to Oregon, but his megalomania leads to growing dissatisfaction with his leadership.
- DirectorStuart HeislerStarsGary CooperLoretta YoungWilliam DemarestA good-natured saddle tramp traveling with his sidekick is mistaken for a ruthless outlaw with a price on his head.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsGary CooperGrace KellyThomas MitchellA town Marshal, despite the disagreements of his newlywed bride and the townspeople around him, must face a gang of deadly killers alone at "high noon" when the gang leader, an outlaw he "sent up" years ago, arrives on the noon train.
- DirectorJohn FarrowStarsJohn WayneGeraldine PageWard BondArmy dispatch rider Hondo Lane discovers a woman and young son living in the midst of warring Apaches and becomes their protector.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGary CooperWalter BrennanDoris DavenportJudge Roy Bean, a self-appointed hanging judge in Vinegarroon, Texas, befriends saddle tramp Cole Harden, who opposes Bean's policy against homesteaders.
- DirectorHenry HathawayStarsJohn WayneKim DarbyGlen CampbellA drunken, hard-nosed U.S. Marshal and a Texas Ranger help a stubborn teenager track down her father's murderer in Indian Territory.
- DirectorJesse HibbsStarsAudie MurphyAnne BancroftPat CrowleyAn agent sent from Washington in 1874 takes charge of an Apache reservation and has the oppressive US Army back off, which creates conflicts and causes the Indians to have great respect for him.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsWilliam HoldenEleanor ParkerJohn ForsytheDuring the Civil War, a group of Confederates escapes from the Union POW camp at Fort Bravo but has to contend with the desert, the Mescalero Apaches and the pursuing Union troops.
- DirectorR.G. SpringsteenStarsAudie MurphyDarren McGavinRuta LeeFormer Texas Rangers Sam Ward and Logan Keliher become enemies when Sam turns bank robber and Logan marries Sam's ex-wife.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartArthur KennedyDonald CrispNewcomer Will Lockhart defies the local cattle baron and his sadistic son by working for one of his oldest rivals.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsMarlene DietrichArthur KennedyMel FerrerAfter the murder of his fiancée, a Wyoming ranch hand sets out to find her killer.
- DirectorHenry HathawayStarsDon MurrayDiane VarsiChill WillsAfter ranch hand Tod Lohman accidentally kills the son of a powerful rancher, he panics and flees, but the rancher and his vengeful crew hunt Tod down.