Posted on 01/11/2010 11:34:55 AM PST by stillafreemind
‘Will Penny’ with Heston Charlton
Not exactly the usual western but really good, IMHO
‘The Mountain Men’ with Charlton Heston and Brian Keith
And ‘Shane’ starring Walter Jack Palance (yes, Walter) and Alan Ladd
I watch these 3 any time they’re on TV.
Silverado and Unforgiven were amazing westerns, as were the Lonsome Dove movies. And of course, Quigley Down Under was a lot of fun.
But you’re right. There simply haven’t been any really good western TV shows for ages...
Big Valley, The Rifleman, Bonanza, and Wild, Wild West ;-) were favorites of mine.
Mark
Western variants Brisco County Jr. and the short-lived Legend were a lot of fun.
Lonesome Dover, especially. One of my all time favorites.
The problem with the modern “Western” story is that they have taken the romance out of them.
I have been on a Zane Grey kick lately (thank you Sherman T. Potter) and note that almost all have a strong romantic plot. The main character is always chasing a girl, or, unnecessarily running from a girl, or avenging a girl. They aren’t vulgar or simple stories.
Modern westerns TEND to be gritty, vulgar, and rather simple. Grey could have a cowboy cuss a blue streak without printing one vulgar word. And you get a GREAT story. You always knew the hero would get the girl he wanted and the bad guy would get caught or gunned down.
Were these stories realistic? No, but, when you go for realistic all you get is the mud and blood. Not very interesting in the long run.
The “social western” of the late sixties - early seventies along with the Sam Peckinpah school of violent realism along with the cocaine-fueled ‘hip’ westerns of the late seventies - early eighties changed the face of western films. There will be no turning that clock back.
Tombstone (1993)
Directed by George P. Cosmatos.
With Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliott.
DiCaprio has become the only actor whose presence in a film will get me out of the house to see it. He’s damn good.
At last someone mentioned Tombstone. This was a kick butt movie and one you can watch no matter how many times you have seen it.
“You tell them the laws coming, you tell them I,m coming and hell is coming with me”.
And when was the last time you heard someone called a curr?
This is what happened to Westerns on TV: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rural_purge
Try the “Firefly” TV series. It’s set in the future but is basically a Western. The creator said he based it on “The Searchers.” If you like “Firefly,” there’s a follow-up movie called “Serenity.”
It was interesting listening to the writer’s interview explaining how he developed that style of dialogue. He said his reading of American newspapers for that period revealed this very heavy, leaden prose. I’m sure you’ve heard the show called “Shakespearean.” Coupled with the constant vulgarities, which are not technically accurate, but give the modern listener the relative level of off-color language.
In other words, they didn’t use the F bomb and other of the worst gutter talk then, but the profanity they did use would SOUND about that dirty to someone in those times as the Deadwood dialogue sounds by modern standards.
I kept scrolling through the comments assuming someone had mentioned Tombstone...
Curr indeed!
Wyatt “I don’t think I’ll let you arrest me today”
Best Val Kilmer role.
a friends last request:
Doc Holliday: What do you want Wyatt?
Wyatt Earp: Just to live a normal life.
Doc Holliday: There is no normal life, Wyatt, there’s just life, ya live it.
Wyatt Earp: I don’t know how.
Doc Holliday: Sure ya do, say goodbye to me, go grab that spirited actress and make her your own. Take that spirit from her and don’t look back. Live every second, live right on through to the end. Live Wyatt, live for me. Wyatt, if you were ever my friend... if ya ever had even the slightest of feelin’ for me, leave now, leave now... please.
Wyatt Earp: Thanks for always being there, Doc.
I’m a Western junkie too. I LOVED Deadwood. I practically cried when the discontinued it so that they could make “John from Cincinnati” which was cancelled after just a few episodes.
“Try the “Firefly” TV series. It’s set in the future but is basically a Western. The creator said he based it on “The Searchers.” If you like “Firefly,” there’s a follow-up movie called “Serenity.” “
Even to the point that some of the weapons were “retro” western-style. A sawed-off Winchester, and a more-or-less LeMat revolver? cool stuff! The Captain Reynolds character dressed Western, as did the Dr.
Nathan Fillion would fit right into many Westerns. Not your typical girlie-man current actor. In some ways he reminds me of Robert Urich, only not as “pretty”. See the character he plays on his current show “Castle” and tell me Urich would not have fit right in.
It’s a darn shame they killed off a couple of main characters in “Serenity”, as it would make it harder to make a sequel.
Serenity, the ‘modern Western’.
Wasn’t Brokeback Mountain a western?
The Italians have been too busy fighting off muzzie invaders to make any more Westerns.
When a country no longer has values, they no longer need defending.
no
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