The MoFo Top 100 Westerns: Countdown

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The Searchers (John Ford, 1956)

No other western that I know of receives such mixed reviews as John Ford's 1956 epic tale of revenge and redemption. The Searchers has been called 'hokey' because of the comic elements...It's been said the movie is all 'over the place' and 'without focus'. It's been labeled 'hateful' and 'bloated'...But I liked it, as it's so much more than meets the eye.

Truly great cinematography isn't just pretty landscapes, it's knowing how to shoot those landscapes and John Ford knew how to shoot a landscape!

What makes the film is the dynamics between the psychological violence of Ethan (John Wayne) and Martin (Jeffery Hunter) on their epic five year man hunt. We don't see the settlers being massacred and we don't see their dead mutilated bodies, we don't need to. What we do see is John Wayne's horrified reaction to what he's witnessed. Ethan has seen something so grisly that he doesn't want the young Martin to see it. That reaction scene is much more effective than a scene of an arrow through a settlers throat. The greatest moment in the film is when John Wayne comes back from a mountain pass after having found the oldest girl dead and violated. His reaction to Jeffery Hunter's question about what he's seen is one of the most emotionally powerful scenes I've watched...and we the viewer don't see a thing. It's John Wayne's that convinces us by his rage at what he had witnessed.

Balancing this violence during the hunt for the younger captive girl, is the scenes of hearth and home which John Ford is so famous for. And that's why we see lighter comic elements, including a wedding party. As that reminds us that life still goes on at home, whilst the two men keep hunting for their adversary abroad. They're missing out on life and love, having traded everything for vengeance.

But what truly makes The Searchers great is the redemption of John Wayne's character. At the start of the film he's so full of hatred towards Native American Indians that his plan is to find the captive settler girl and kill her. In his mind he'll be sparing her from becoming like his hated adversaries. It's a strong performance from John Wayne, one of his best and his character is not likable. In fact Wayne's character is much more the protagonist, than the Indian Chief is...that then makes the final scene so emotional rewarding.






Women will be your undoing, Pépé
Ah, one final addition to the Rectification List. . .

Leaving two more definite additions to my voting list and a surprise addition IF it shows up. Not likely though.
Which, I guess, is the definition of a surprise lol



Movies Watched 69 out of 96 (71.88%)

John Wayne Films: Five
Clint Eastwood Films: One

MY LIST

1. Will Make it
2. Open Range (#36)
3. The Wild Bunch (#9)
4. Dances With Wolves (#7)
5. Will Make it
6. Ride The High Country (#63)
7. The Proposition (#46)
8. High Noon (#6)
9. 3 Bad Men (Tumbleweed Fodder)
10. The Cowboys (#50)
11. The Grey Fox (#66)
12. The Great Silence (#34)
13. The Gunfighter (#40)
14. 3:10 To Yuma '07 (#29)
15. Oxbow Incident (#19)
16. Rio Bravo (#10)
17. True Grit '10 (#22)
18. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (#8)
19. The Quick & The Dead (#42)
20. High Plains Drifter (#31)
21. Might Not Make it
22. The Big Country (#27)
23. Stagecoach (#23)
24. Red River (#56)
25. Dirty Little Billy (#108)

Rectification List (for my own old decrepit noodle)
1. Warlock (#94)
2. Naked Spur (#86)
3. The Great Train Robbery (#60)
4. Winchester '73 (#53)
5. 3:10 To Yuma ['57] (#48)
6. Jeremiah Johnson (#37)[/quote][/quote]
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The Searchers was my #16. While I ranked Rio Bravo higher on the basis of it simply being a good time at the movies, I would say that The Searchers is (in my current - and always subject to change - estimation) the quintessential Wayne film. While I acknowledge the validity of Holden's point about how this doesn't quite go as far with its climax as it could've (and truly excoriated Wayne's persona instead of deconstructing it just enough to impress Cahiers du Cinema), I think it's at least tempered by its iconic denouement where Ethan quite simply can't go home again - not just knowing that a man of war like himself can never truly know the peace of a homestead (already implied in the beginning by the haunted and wistful manner in which he quietly greets his sister-in-law for the first time in years), but also as if he realises just how close he was to killing his own niece purely out of his own hatred for Natives (also established before the events of the story and only exacerbated as the story continues). Going the path of death without redemption like Holden suggested would've been an interesting turn (especially given the iconic star and the time period), but one could also argue the merits of this film really testing an audience's sympathies for Wayne's familiar brand of heroism as it is actively complicated by his character's glaring flaws and daring to give him the happy ending that even he knows he hasn't earned. After all, we've already been over how...problematic the man was in reality so it makes sense that one of the best films to ever feature him would end up exploring that particular aspect (if not too deeply for the audiences of 1956).

I didn't vote for High Noon, Dances with Wolves, or The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance - all films that I've seen once and not recently. High Noon almost made my list (maybe it should've) while the other two I thought were okay but didn't leave a huge impression, though I have been meaning to revisit them because of this list. We'll see if I get around to that any time soon, though.
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The Searchers was my #9, and my favorite John Ford!!

Seen: 36/96
- Slow West (#95)
- The Big Gundown (#85)
- The Furies (#84)
- The Gold Rush (#78)
- The Shooting (#71)
- The Grey Fox (#66)
- The Great Train Robbery (#60)
- Meek’s Cutoff (#58)
- Red River (#56)
- Bone Tomahawk (#54)
- The Cowboys (#50)
- Rango (#41)
- The Gunfighter (#40)
- Open Range (#36)
- Hell or High Water (#35)
- The Great Silence (#34)
- The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (#33)
- Johnny Guitar (#30)
- Tombstone (#28)
- The Revenant (#25)
- Stagecoach (#23)
- True Grit (#22)
- Blazing Saddles (#21)
- The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (#20)
- The Ox-Bow Incident (#19)
- For a Few Dollars More (#18)
- McCabe and Mrs. Miller (#17)
- A Fistful of Dollars (#16)
- The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (#15)
- There Will be Blood (#14)
- Django Unchained (#12)
- The Hateful Eight (#11)
- Rio Bravo (#10)
- The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (#8)
- High Noon (#6)
- The Searchers (#5)

My list:
1. There Will be Blood
5. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
6. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
7. McCabe and Mrs. Miller
8. Blazing Saddles
9. The Searchers
10. Rio Bravo
11. For a Few Dollars More
12. Johnny Guitar
13. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
14. Hell or High Water
16. The Revenant
17. The Lone Ranger
18. A Fistful of Dollars
19. Red River
20. The Gunfighter
21. Bone Tomahawk
22. The Hateful Eight
23. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
24. Stagecoach
25. Django Unchained
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As I said in the past Ford hasn’t really worked for me yet and this is no different.

I would love to revisit it in the future but like I said last post I would like to see more Ford before I dive into rewatches.



As I said in the past Ford hasn’t really worked for me yet and this is no different.

I would love to revisit it in the future but like I said last post I would like to see more Ford before I dive into rewatches.
Do you love any old (1950s or earlier) American films, besides Casablanca? Which I see in your profile. Cool if you don't, but I don't recall you being too fond of the old stuff



The trick is not minding
The searchers was my first John Ford film so many years ago. It left a impact on me. So well down covering one mans quest for vengeance and another who follows to ensure it isn’t at any cost.
Ending is too sudden for my tastes, but it’s still a classic



For a few years I thought I didn't like The Searchers. Any thread about classics you hate I'd say The Searchers. A thread about overrated movies I'd say The Searchers. What a jerk! I watched it again for this countdown and it blew me away!

2. The Searchers (#5)
3. Little Big Man (#39)
4. The Ox-Bow Incident (#19)
5. The Big Country (#27)
6. The Wild Bunch (#9)
7. Shane (#43)
8. McC abe and Mrs. Miller (#17)
9. One-Eyed Jacks (#32)
10. My Darling Clementine (#44)
11. The Shootist (#57)
12. The Man Who Short Liberty Valance (#8)
14. Django Unchained (#12)
15. Dances with Wolves (#7)
16. For a Few Dollars More (#18)
18. Day of the Outlaw (#77)
19. Red River (#56)
21. The Cowboys (#50)
22. High Noon (#6)
23. Open Range (#36)
24. The Furies (#84)
25. Winchester 73 (#53)



For a few years I thought I didn't like The Searchers. Any thread about classics you hate I'd say The Searchers. A thread about overrated movies I'd say The Searchers. What a jerk! I watched it again for this countdown and it blew me away!

2. The Searchers (#5)
3. Little Big Man (#39)
4. The Ox-Bow Incident (#19)
5. The Big Country (#27)
6. The Wild Bunch (#9)
7. Shane (#43)
8. McC abe and Mrs. Miller (#17)
9. One-Eyed Jacks (#32)
10. My Darling Clementine (#44)
11. The Shootist (#57)
12. The Man Who Short Liberty Valance (#8)
14. Django Unchained (#12)
15. Dances with Wolves (#7)
16. For a Few Dollars More (#18)
18. Day of the Outlaw (#77)
19. Red River (#56)
21. The Cowboys (#50)
22. High Noon (#6)
23. Open Range (#36)
24. The Furies (#84)
25. Winchester 73 (#53)
Wow, that’s quite the change! What worked better for you? I still think John Wayne’s character is an irredeemable *******, but I like it for its complex morals and visuals.



I think John Wayne's character in The Searchers gave people of the 1950s hope that a hardened, bigoted man could change and learn acceptances. That was an important message of hope during the beginnings of the civil rights movement. Had John Wayne killed his niece and then was killed by Jeffrey Hunter, no lessons of hope would've been learned.



Wow, that’s quite the change! What worked better for you? I still think John Wayne’s character is an irredeemable *******, but I like it for its complex morals and visuals.
For some reason the first time I watched it I thought it was too comedic. I didn't see that at all this time. I thought everything worked.



I think John Wayne's character in The Searchers gave people of the 1950s hope that a hardened, bigoted man could change and learn acceptances. That was an important message of hope during the beginnings of the civil rights movement. Had John Wayne killed his niece and then was killed by Jeffrey Hunter, no lessons of hope would've been learned.
I see why some people don't like how it ended, and normally I would have liked a grim finale. This time it was perfect for me.



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.
The Searchers is my #16.
In many ways it seems a perfect movie but at least for me, it could be because I've watched it so many times (including Friday). I wouldn't put all of Wayne's personal flaws on the shoulders of the film. It actually went pretty far for its day and besides that, it's powerful, suspenseful and funny ("Boy, watch that knife."). So sit back in your rocking chair, like Old Mose, and enjoy The Searchers.

My List

1. Little Big Man
3. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
4. The Outlaw Josey Wales
5. Dances with Wolves
6. Friendly Persuasion
7. One-Eyed Jacks
8. The Professionals
9. Barbarosa
10. Red River
11. Oklahoma!
12. Hud
13. The Big Country
14. Giant
16. The Searchers
17. Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
19. The Ox-Bow Incident
20. The Ballad of Cable Hogue
22. Support Your Local Sheriff!
23. The Revenant
24. There Will Be Blood
25. High Noon
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I don’t care much for The Searchers and probably never will. It certainly wasn't on my ballot. To me if Wayne’s rage and hatred becomes so nihilistic and ugly that at the end he kills Natalie Wood, which may in turn necessitate Jeffrey Hunter killing him, to me THAT would have been a radical, powerful statement about the hollowness of revenge and the cost of racism and obsession, especially in 1956. Ethan Edwards’ complete 180 degree turn there at the end, I just don’t buy it. However the VistaVision cinematography by Winton C. Hoch is rather wonderful. He also lensed 3 Godfathers, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, and The Quiet Man for Ford and The Green Berets and Jet Pilot with Wayne. I have seen The Searchers a couple times on the big screen primarily to enjoy the visuals.



Oh no you can't have the image conscious John Wayne attempt to kill Natalie Wood! One of the worst endings ever! Right up there with the tacked on ending in Suspicion!

Here's an idea, why don't you have Robert Mitchum play Ethan and Jeffrey Hunter kills him and stands in the doorway at the end of the movie.



Do you love any old (1950s or earlier) American films, besides Casablanca? Which I see in your profile. Cool if you don't, but I don't recall you being too fond of the old stuff
I’m sort of disappointed you don’t know me better than that. I love movies from the beginning of cinema to now. I have many films I love pre-1950.

Sure, I don’t avidly seek them out nor do I usually find as great of enjoyment in older films as I do in movies post 1970 or something like that. Indeed an old black and white film really has to bring something to the table if I were to really love it and not just respect it a lot or like it quite a bit.*

But the two of us also grew up in different times as well as you being quite a lot older than me. I’m still a rookie in this cinema journey tbh.



I’m sort of disappointed you don’t know me better than that. I love movies from the beginning of cinema to now. I have many films I love pre-1950.

Sure, I don’t avidly seek them out nor do I usually find as great of enjoyment in older films as I do in movies post 1970 or something like that. Indeed an old black and white film really has to bring something to the table if I were to really love it and not just respect it a lot or like it quite a bit.*

But the two of us also grew up in different times as well as you being quite a lot older than me. I’m still a rookie in this cinema journey tbh.
I don't really know your movie taste all that well. I don't think you've done a top 100 (either have I) and I don't follow letterboxd. So mostly I know of your movie taste from HoFs, but we haven't been in all that many together. I kinda know what type of films you usually nominate but I don't recall your reactions to any older films. So see you need to join more HoFs!

I consider myself a movie rookie as even though I'm older I never grew up watching films like most of you guys did. I only got into movies like 15-16 years ago. So many film I need to see!



I’m sort of disappointed you don’t know me better than that. I love movies from the beginning of cinema to now. I have many films I love pre-1950.

Sure, I don’t avidly seek them out nor do I usually find as great of enjoyment in older films as I do in movies post 1970 or something like that. Indeed an old black and white film really has to bring something to the table if I were to really love it and not just respect it a lot or like it quite a bit.*

But the two of us also grew up in different times as well as you being quite a lot older than me. I’m still a rookie in this cinema journey tbh.
I'm actually the inverse of you. I'm not exactly old, (I'm 33), but I had older parents and grandparents so I grew up on "Hitchcock Summers," (Summer's where I'd watch Alfred Hitchcock's entire oeuvre), Humphrey Bogart marathons, TCM, the great's from the Silent Comedians like Buster Keaton, Chaplin and the others. So I could always respect a good B&W. I was also really fascinated by film history. The narrative of how film came to be and what led to what all over the world is actually quite fascinating. I also find that if you know this history; as well as some film theory and knowing the "art" of how film is made, what methods are available to film makers at certain time periods, etc. this can help develop your "critical eye" when watching a film from different time periods. As for me, I don't mind myself of more modern films... but I'm definitely more at home with the classics. But that's just me.

----

In a completely different note. John Wayne's run is over... but Eastwood I know for sure has two more...
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-Stan Brakhage



I had The Searchers #18 on my list, but it doesn't mean I necessarily love others on my list more. It's one of those great classics that are so fine to me that I just don't watch them over and over. I like to savor them maybe every other year or so. Everything works in this for me---but especially the much talked about haunting last scene of Wayne standing in the doorway of the cabin, in a tribute pose to his late friend Harry Carey, with the doorway shutting, essentially shutting him out of the proceedings after he rescued Natalie Wood's character. He'll be left to fade with his way of life as far as we know, his services no longer needed. Sad but epic at the same time.

My list so far:
Hombre Me: 13 The list proper: 88
The Naked Spur Me: 25 The list proper: 86
Ride the High Country Me: 10 The list proper: 63
Winchester '73 Me: 20 The list proper: 53
El Dorado Me: 2 The list proper: 47
The Professionals Me: 23 The list proper: 45
Shane Me: 12 The list proper: 43
True Grit Me: 4 The list proper: 38
Open Range Me: 19 The list proper: 36
Tombstone Me: 15 The list proper: 28
The Big Country Me: 9 The list proper: 27
The Magnificent Seven Me: 5 The list proper: 24
For a Few Dollars More Me: 6 The list proper: 18
A Fistful of Dollars Me: 7 The list proper: 16
The Outlaw Josey Wales Me: 1 The list proper: 13
Rio Bravo Me: 17 The list proper: 10
The Wild Bunch Me: 3 The list proper: 9
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance Me: 16 The list proper: 8
The Searchers Me: 18 The List proper: 5
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Of the many John Wayne movies that I watched for this countdown, The Searchers was one of my least favorite movies. The movie was just too violent for me.
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Requiescat in pace Ennio

Damn shame he didn't quite get to see the end of this countdown