1.  All time great western by John Ford…..Wayne gives us a complex man in a very complex movie.   Some might say dated with the take on the Native Americans, but this is John Ford’s greatest film and is, for me, a masterpiecce.  Wayne’s last frame is the one shot that I consider the greatest ending of a movie, and it is all Wayne and Ford.  Have the film.

2.  Val Kilmer leads a wonderful cast that delivers. An action film that is violent but not gratuitous, for me that is. Look for Billy Bob Thorton in a fine, yet short supporting role. One of the most entertaining westerns of all time. The ending give you goose bumps. Parts of the film are used at the Oklahoma State University football games on the big video board. Val Kilmer’s greatest performance…..have the DVD.  My most watched Western

3.  Best Western genre film by Howard Hawks. The complexity of the characters is what separates this from most films in general. Wayne plays a really bad person, throwing dust to the death of his sweetheart, killing men for his own wants, then burying them with a prayer. Clift, playing a gay cowboy, has never been better. Not only a great western, one of the great films of cinema. Shows that Hawks was not a lessor director with regard to the best (Ford especially) but right up there as one of the greatest ever.

4.  Wayne is great in this 39 classic. One of the best westerns of all time.  Character development might be the best in Western movie history. The list of “A” character actors separates this one from the others.

5.  Peckinpah’s best known masterpiece is a historic motion picture for  how the movie going public accepts the blood and guts the old West…..ultra violent for its day. Each individual character played by a great actor and the film directed by Peck puts it over the top.  Anther film that hits on all levels.

6.  Hits on many genra’s and one of the best films ever made. Could be number one and a top 10 film of any ever made.  Bogart directed by Huston (junior) with Huston (senior) in a supporting role. Oklahoman Tim Holt also supports.  Yes, this one gets the “badges” of an all-time.

7.  Leone’s fine tribute to the old west, shot in Spain. Hank Fonda in only his second role as a western villain. Best close-up shots in this film catagory.  Music by Ennio Moricone is noted here.  Charles Bronson’s best role.

8.  A western art film with Brad Pitt in the role of Jesse James and Casey Affleck as Robert Ford. A major work that some consider too slow-moving. For me, a western of substance. Great supporting cast. And don’t forget Sam Rockwell as Bob Ford’s brother. He has never been better. Have it on Blu-ray. (Maybe the finest western in the past 25 years. I have it as the 2nd best in the genre on my top Western list as of films that I watch over and over. Ranks up there with The Searchers, Tombstone, Red River, and Once Upon A Time in the West as a top shelf movie in this classification. This is an experience that shows that a Western can be made as an art film, which I would say it is. This is a director’s movie, with all the tricks of the trade  used. This is also an actor’s movie, having a lineup of some of the best in cinema at the time it was made. A movie that I can say might be the best of the year, the decade, and the genre, as it ages.

9.   Stewart, Wayne, and Marvin lead a strong cast in another Ford flick. His acting regulars are mostly here. Stewart’s weakness of his character as displayed is exceptional, and Marvin’s evil take  is exploited by Ford to an extreme. As much of a psychological movie as any Ford film.  Ford has done it a gain.

10.  Another Ford flick and Fonda and Mature are exceptional. Would you expect less?  Don’t over look this Earp, Holiday, and Clanton gunfight at the OK Corral.  It is the 2nd best one.  Have the Criterion blue ray.

11.  A movie that I would never forget from my teens. Always a Julie Christie fan, she does her best here and Warren Beaty is also just fine and dandy.  Altman has made a great film.

12.  Costner and Duvall are perfect friends in this fantastic western. The final shootout, shot in actual time, is as good as you get. I like this one better than the more highly rated Eastwood flick “The Unforgiven”, which in itself, is a great film and Oscsr Best Picture winner. Open Range is a don’t miss.  And don’t forget the love story between Charlis and Sue.  It is what makes this one go over the top.  I would rank this one in the greatest westerns of cinema.

13.  A better film than his higher rated Wild Bunch, maybe, it is close. Peckinpah had the honor to direct Randolph Scott and Joel McCray in their final movie. As buddy films go, this one is at the top of the list. Warren Oates is just one of a list of terrific supporting actors in this fine motion picture.

14.  One of my favorite Jimmy Stewart westerns…..Marline Dietrich holds her own in one sexy ground breaking film….highly regarded by critics and well worth a watch….have it on DVD.  It is so fun to view, each and every time

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15.  Another Leone westerns, might be better than any he made.  OK, I love his work in westerns.

16.  Lee Marvin and Burt Lancaster lead a raid into Mexico to rescue a wife of a rich American. On my umpteenth viewing (Aug, 2021), my appreciation on this film continues to grow. Let us begin with the screenplay. One of the best in western movie history as Richard Brooks (director) took the work of Frank O’Rourke’s novel and put the film to life with some all-time lines. Brooks direction is traditional but does not miss a beat. The violent set pieces are perfect. The great Maurice Jarre’s musical score is impeccable. This film could be the best western of the 1960s. Highly recommended.

17.  Alan Ladd in one of the highest rated westerns of all time. Great entertainment and the fight scene between Ladd and Jack Palance can’t be beat. Van Heflin is at his best and Alan Ladd’s performance is perfect……not to heavy and not a pushover. Jean Arthur’s only color film and her last. She too is the loving wife and mon. Jack Palance is evil through and through and the fight set with Ladd is the best of the western genre. Beside a top five western for many, a top 50 American film too.

18.  One of the best flicks of the 50’s…….great cast led by Tracy with Robert Ryan in a juicy role.  Has much with various issues of the time, including racism, criminal activity on a local leadership level, with

19.  Redford and Newman make a most commerical Western that has high production values.  Is a film that hits on all levels, including drama, comedy, and action.  A great watch with Katherine Ross as the female lead.  Raindrops keep falling for this one. Thank you Burt, Hal, and BJ.

20. Quintin Tarantion’s best film?  Might be, technically with the cameras used by him. The use of the wide angle phtography, a score by Ennio Morricone, and a cast of actors at their highest level provide a movie that is crude, vulgar, bold, insulting, wild, and most importantly, viewable. Maybe my most favorite film of 2016 after a year of thinking about it. Even my wife, a woman that does not like cussing, blood and guts, etc, watched it from start to finish without a complaint. It is that good.

21.  Hoffman steals this one and it is a very funny flick. I tend to like Westerns with comedy and this one delivers.  A great movie made by Arthur Penn and staring Dustin Hoffman and Faye Dunaway…….a favorite and highly recommended.  Jack Crabb you couldn’t be any older my man.  Arthur Penn’s other great flick (Bonnie and Clyde).

22.  Director Sturges makes another great Western.  . Loved it as a child and now as an old man.  Wonderful cast and almost as good as the original by the master in Japan. Have the DVD.

23.  A beautiful film in every way. Montana 1925 (New Zealand) never looked so good. Superior film in most every way. Will be in my Top Ten flicks for the year. A best western if there ever was one. Old fashioned and a film that John Ford and Howard Hawks would enjoy to the max. The director was brave enough to let the viewer figure out what was happenings without putting up road signs. I appreciated that. And the acting is as good as it gets.

24.  One of the finest westerns in the past ten years with great acting by all. My best picture for 2016……have the blue ray……