Still unmissable: 10 near-flawless Western films you should catch

Let’s be honest, the Western genre has been around almost as long as the big screen itself, but its character has changed with the times—sometimes for the better, sometimes not. Having survived 123 years since The Great Train Robbery kicked off the whole affair in 1903, Westerns have slowly seeped into almost every other genre, like a stubborn stain you simply cannot scrub out. The cliches—the squinting gunman, the dusty standoff at high noon—are everywhere, even when you least expect it. But what really matters, at least to me, is: does the film actually hold up, and did it push the genre in a new direction? Let’s skip the textbook and get to the actual films that made Westerns what they are, and why any of them deserve a spot on a shortlist (never mind a list as contentious as this one).

Many of the familiar visuals and tropes audiences associate with the Western—those long, tense standoffs and wide, sun-baked vistas—can be traced back to Sergio Leone’s innovations in the 1960s.

If you ask most people to picture a "proper" Western, chances are they’re actually picturing something like Leone’s The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966). That film didn’t just cement the so-called spaghetti Western—complete with Ennio Morricone’s unforgettable score and those sweaty close-ups—but gave every other genre plenty to copy, rip off, or send up in parody. You’ve got Clint Eastwood at his most magnetic, plus two rivals to match, all snarling through a story that looks like pure comfort-food Western but moves with remarkable style.

Neo-Westerns and New Directions

If you think Westerns stopped being relevant in the 1970s, you’ve probably missed out on how modern filmmakers have rebranded the whole thing. Hell or High Water (2016)—down to its last bullet hole—brings it kicking into the modern world. Taylor Sheridan earned himself an Oscar nomination for his script, and rightfully so; you won’t find any romanticising of cowboy hats here. Instead, you get a West gutted by recession and bank foreclosures, with people pushed to their limit (and occasionally past it) just to keep hold of what’s theirs. It's part modern crime thriller, part classic morality play, and the performances are absolutely spot-on.

The 1990s saw their own version of the genre’s comeback in Tombstone (1993), a film so crammed with moustaches and quotable lines that it practically begs to be watched with your dad on a Sunday afternoon. It’s not high art, but it’s brilliant fun, and Val Kilmer’s Doc Holliday is a proper show-stealer—arguably the most entertaining Western character ever committed to film. It’s got action, attitude, and enough camp to ensure it doesn’t take itself too seriously.

A Shift in Heroes

Rewind to the classic era, and you’ll notice the shift in the traditional "hero." Red River (1948) yanked Westerns out of their black-and-white morality. Until then, most Westerns were simple affairs—goodie versus baddie, shootout, fade to black. But swap in John Wayne as a downright ruthless cattle baron and add Howard Hawks’ epic cattle drive sequences, and you suddenly have something closer to character-driven drama. Montgomery Clift’s less-is-more acting style set a new standard, too.

Fast-forward to Unforgiven (1992) and you get Clint Eastwood again, this time older and much grimmer. Forget glory—his character is a burnt-out, arthritic former outlaw, haunted rather than honoured by his past. There’s no cowboy myth-making here; the violence is ugly, the heroism is tainted, and you leave the cinema with any childhood illusion of Western "honour" thoroughly trampled. Not for nothing did it scoop up four Oscars.

Modern Twists and Essential Oddities

Let’s talk about the surprise entries. The Harder They Fall (2021) blasts away dusty stereotypes for something much livelier. Jeymes Samuel pulls from a real history nowhere near as monochrome as older films would admit: an all-Black cast reclaims classic Western tales and infuses them with hip-hop, reggae, and rap—a combo that sounds odd on paper but absolutely works on screen. Meanwhile, Old Henry (2001) slid mostly under the radar but deserves a mention if only for Tim Blake Nelson’s performance as an unassuming farmer who, in the final reel, turns out to be Billy the Kid himself. A cracking final gunfight and a neat twist make this one to seek out if it’s passed you by.

“Tombstone” gave us some of the most quotable lines—and probably the highest on-screen moustache count of the 1990s.

If you want something truly bleak, there’s No Country For Old Men (2007)—a masterclass in nihilism from the Coen brothers. It’s billed as a Western, but strips out the genre’s melodies and heroics for pure, clinical nastiness; Javier Bardem’s Anton Chigurh is an iconic screen villain driven by pure chaos, not money or power. Meanwhile, The Searchers (1956) is still required viewing if you want to see John Wayne at his darkest, playing a man driven by vengeance and obsession rather than any sort of moral code.

• The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966) – Leone’s definitive spaghetti Western
• Hell or High Water (2016) – Modern neo-Western with teeth
• Tombstone (1993) – 90s excess, endlessly quotable
• Red River (1948) – John Wayne’s shift into darker territory
• The Harder They Fall (2021) – All-Black cast, fresh musical approach
• Unforgiven (1992) – Four-time Oscar winner, gritty revisionism
• The Searchers (1956) – John Wayne at his most complex
• No Country For Old Men (2007) – Genre-defying, grim and gripping
• Old Henry (2001) – Little-seen, cleverly plotted slow-burn
• Silverado (1985) – Revival romp with star power and blockbuster flair

When the studios all but abandoned Westerns in the mid-80s, Silverado (1985) showed there was still life in the old dog. Lawrence Kasdan’s adventure had energy, humour, four charismatic leads (including a young Kevin Costner cutting loose for once), and enough rolling landscapes and shootouts to feel both throwback and fresh. It even managed a couple of Oscar nods for its music and sound design.

The genre’s been every shape under the sun by now, but these ten films aren’t just good—they changed the game, sometimes overnight, and sometimes so gradually you only notice decades later. If you want a primer on what a Western can be, this is your checklist.