The MoFo Top 100 Westerns: Countdown

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Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.
The Revenant is my #23.

Dead Man (Jim Jarmusch, 1995)
; Cult Rating:


Talk about revisionist westerns!! I still don't honestly believe that it's a legit western, but it obviously has to be considered an illegitimate one, if nothing else! Jarmusch brings in drugy effects, self-references which date back to "Popeye" cartoons [Michael Wincott ad-libs beautifully (I believe)], Gary Farmer gives his greatest performance in a "mainstream" (read: bigger, CULTish) flick, Johnny Depp gets blown hither and yon just like the feather in Forrest Gump, only to become a tough S.O.B., Robert Mitchum gets to talk to bears, lies to humans, and ignores men, and Robby Muller gets to try to one-up his Down by Law cinematography - I personally love his work in Honeysuckle Rose. Dead Man is a personal movie and should definitely be seen with the best picture turned on and the sound turned up. I still prefer Jarmusch's Night on Earth and Ghost Dog, but this film's utter surrealism and total wackness (the scene with Iggy Pop and Billy Bob Thornton pretty much defines "out-there" filming technique!) pushes it over the edge for people who are interested in avant-garde westerns.


My List

1. Little Big Man
7. One-Eyed Jacks
8. The Professionals
10. Red River
11. Oklahoma!
12. Hud
13. The Big Country
14. Giant
20. The Ballad of Cable Hogue
22. Support Your Local Sheriff!
23. The Revenant
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While I love The Revenant a fair bit, as stated, I do have my problems with it. The film grew more on me with rewatches and the past problems I had with it felt less glaring.

However, one of my main problems is in fact the “ambitiousness” of it (or perhaps the lack thereof). I hate the word pretentious and would rather not use it, but it feels right here. The dream sequences or whatever don’t feel incorporated enough into the material. It comes off as unnecessary cinematography-porn. I personally don’t think the scenes are that important for this otherwise bare-boned revenge tale. If they really wanted it in there they should have done more with it imo.

One can criticize Malick for his use of it, but at least he’s committed to it. It seems like Iñárritu just saw some of Chivo’s work on Malick’s films and told him “do a little of that thing you do”.



A system of cells interlinked
Yep, as I mentioned, The Revenant would have had another decent helping of points, but I mistakenly thought it wasn't eligible, as I had just quickly scanned the genres listed at the top of its IMDB page. It would have made my top 5, for sure. Amazing stuff.
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Wow that sneaky Innaritu Never heard about Man In The Wilderness but going by the moviestills it's even more ctrl+c - ctrl+v than The Departed/Infernal Affairs.
Both films are based on the story of the real Hugh Glass. I don't think it's really fair to consider The Revenant a remake.



Both films are based on the story of the real Hugh Glass. I don't think it's really fair to consider The Revenant a remake.
True, to be clear I love The Revenant and Tom Hardy. Ranked it at #26 coin toss between Dead Man for the 25 spot. And before I watched about 30+ westerns for this countdown I even had The Revenant in my top 10.



Dead Man was one of the first movies I reviewed here, I gave it a
As much as I like Jim Jarmusch films, I never feel like I'm watching a western when I watch Dead Man. Of course it is a western, it just doesn't feel like it to me.

The Reventant
I liked this one too, though after my initial enthusiasm I've not seen it again. As I remember it was visually stunning, though the action stuff went overboard a bit, much like a James Bond film does. I rated it a



The Revenant I snuck in right before the countdown, and really enjoyed it!!! Wanted to get to Dead Man but I didn't :/

Seen: 19/76
- Slow West (#95)
- The Big Gundown (#85)
- The Furies (#84)
- 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)

My list:
12. Johnny Guitar
14. Hell or High Water
16. The Revenant
19. Red River
20. The Gunfighter
21. Bone Tomahawk
23. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
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I think it's just a question of whether that ambition is being put to worthwhile use rather than being granted respect as a matter of course (much less whether or not it's even realised effectively in the films themselves). Lubezki's a talented cinematographer and all, but I don't think he's put to particularly good use in The Revenant - his work there seems like more of a formal exercise than anything else and suffers for having to repeat itself as much as it does across the film's considerable runtime, which is also too long to accommodate such a simplistic and contrived plot (it borrows from Training Day!). Ambition is good if there's a point behind it, but The Revenant mostly feels like it's ambitious for its own sake and that works against it.
If you don't like the story, therefore the movie, fair enough. To say the cinematography isn't put to good use makes little sense to me. He is making a revenge/wilderness survival film. The cinematography captures the hostility of the wilderness like few movies ever have. The decision to use all natural lighting makes it undeniably beautiful.

My gut tells me most of the flak Innaritu gets comes from the fact that he's not a very humble fellow.
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The Revenant is great, but I didn't feel like I was watching a western. Some people see it differently and I get it.

I've seen Dead Man 2 or 3 times and I really can't stand it. I don't have any personal issues with the actors or director, I just strongly dislike the movie, although I've seen a couple of other movies from the director and I didn't like those either. The things I hate most seem to be things that many others love the most. I don't know anything technically but I know what's appealing to my eyes. Black and white was a great idea for this movie, but it looks to me like an amateur filmmaker couldn't afford a color camera and that he just filmed it in his chum's backyard in Wyoming. I think it looks like crap. I love Neil Young but his score makes me want to smash my head against a brick wall. It gives me anxiety until I can't stand it anymore. It reminds me of the opening riff for the theme of Jackass, and it pains me to compare it to something that's so much better. The only movie I hate more is Once Upon a Time in America, which actually made me feel offended. My dream movie would be to combine the two movies and just have all of the characters shoot each other in the face during the opening credits. Dead Man not making the top 10 is great feeling for me.

I watched Slow West and it was a big surprise. It shouldn't have been given who recommended it but apparently I never learn. It was terrific. It has a poetic way about it and it looks damn good. I really loved the finale which is about 15 minutes long. The whole movie doesn't reach an hour and 20 minutes so that finale takes up a fair chunk of the entire thing. Glad I got to see it.



I liked The Revenant better when it was Man in the Wilderness.

The Revenant

Man in the Wilderness
Ugh, not me. Some of the imagery with the ship is cool and I always like John Huston in front of the camera, but there are about sixty Westerns from the '70s I would recommend before that one. And I think The Revenant is wonderful.

But to each their own.

Man in the Wilderness received zero votes.

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All good people are asleep and dreaming.
Ugh, not me. Some of the imagery with the ship is cool and I always like John Huston in front of the camera, but there are about sixty Westerns from the '70s I would recommend before that one. And I think The Revenant is wonderful.

But to each their own.

Man in the Wilderness received zero votes.

That trailer certainly didn't help my argument.



Women will be your undoing, Pépé
The Big Country was on my list. Just watched it for the second time this year and it's pretty great.

I never loved Tombstone as much as other guys my age did. It's fine but nothing more. All it showing up does is remind me that one of my top five Westerns didn't even make the 100. Bummer. Quaid will always be the superior Holliday, Costner the superior Earp.
F@CK YES!
F@CK YES, F@CK YES, F@@@@CK YES!!!!!
Damn! Brave words right there!
And I will HAPPILY back him up on them!



I do agree that Dennis Quaid gave the definitive Method performance of Holliday in Kasdan's film, and it's too bad that one is so less seen, if only for that reason alone. Out of all the movie versions of the man so far his is the only one that actually seems to be on the verge of death by tuberculosis. Kirk Douglas and Victor Mature look like Olympic athletes. Kilmer's Doc often seems he has wandered in from another movie, but it is fitfully amusing.
That's the way I've always felt as well - obviously after my remarks, but Quaid is the more realistic of them all. Kilmer IS colorful and I do enjoy him, but for my money -- Quaid. ANNND Costner as Wyatt as well.
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Women will be your undoing, Pépé
I thought it was too vague for anyone to get. Evidently Burl Ives liked it too.

From IMDb

During the first season The Ren & Stimpy Show (1991) episode "Stimpy's Invention" featured a record, "Happy Happy Joy Joy," which contained a variety of spoken-word segments meant to parody some of Ives' albums from the 1960s. When Ives saw the episode, he contacted Ren and Stimpy Show creator John Kricfalusi and said that he would have been willing to do the voice over work for it.

The Big Country is #5 on my list.
That song actually popped into my head when the scene came along and I got all "Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy" discovering WHERE the reference came from. LOL



We've gone on holiday by mistake
To be fair I'm not sure I've ever sat and watched Wyatt Earp start to finish, only catching parts here and there and I'm probably guilty of being dismissive, thinking "what's this weird imitation of my beloved Tombstone?".
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To be fair I'm not sure I've ever sat and watched Wyatt Earp start to finish, only catching parts here and there and I'm probably guilty of being dismissive, thinking "what's this weird imitation of my beloved Tombstone?".
Same here, and i'm sort of on a Western genre break, but reading 3 F@CK Yess's by Ed makes me want to watch it right now



We've gone on holiday by mistake
Same here, and i'm sort of on a Western genre break, but reading 3 F@CK Yess's by Ed makes me want to watch it right now
Yea that's what I'm thinking. I'm gonna have to watch it with an open mind.



To be fair I'm not sure I've ever sat and watched Wyatt Earp start to finish, only catching parts here and there and I'm probably guilty of being dismissive, thinking "what's this weird imitation of my beloved Tombstone?".
I've seen Wyatt Earp, Dennis Quaid was pretty great as Doc Holiday. But the way Kevin Costner played the younger Wyatt Earp was way too dappy-sappy-happy. That Costner goofiness quality worked for Dances With Wolves but the first segment of Wyatt Earp kinda blew IMO.



Women will be your undoing, Pépé
Wyatt Earp IS my favorite of the list of films centering on Earp. It's a long 'un at 3h, 11m; but then Kasdan gives us the life of, not just the OK Corral and the vengeance run afterward. You learn of his youth, his first marriage, the time spent hunting buffalo and a number of sheriff jobs in various towns including Dodge. This also includes James Earp (the unknown brother that other films skip out on since he didn't join in on the sheriff side of the Earp business ventures; as well the wives of his three brothers; Virgil, Morgan and James.
It's a bigger, more fleshed out story and done very, very well.
It is not flashy or action-packed, though when it happens, the action is exceedingly well. The story and depth of characters is reminiscent to the older style of westerns while still bringing a more realistic representation of said characters, using modern style of film-making.

Like others, I'm heart-broken it won't be making it, I'm even MORE heart-broken I was unable to place a film I love and have loved seen again again on my List, regardless.



Women will be your undoing, Pépé
I've seen Wyatt Earp, Dennis Quaid was pretty great as Doc Holiday. But the way Kevin Costner played the younger Wyatt Earp was way too dappy-sappy-happy. That Costner goofiness quality worked for Dances With Wolves but the first segment of Wyatt Earp kinda blew IMO.
I get that.
For me, we get to see Wyatt BEFORE he became so hard-nosed and a no-nonsense law enforcer. So, yeah, he'd be a little more affable in his younger days and I've enjoyed seeing that transition from youthful hope to the callous realist of a man toughen and bruised by life.



Know about Dead Man but haven't seen yet. Will rectify.
The Revenant is a super movie but not in my Top 25 of Favorite Westerns. Still, DiCaprio was awesome, as was Tom Hardy, who can do just about anything with a role and come out looking great. Both films are not on my list.
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