This loose adaptation of “Oil!” by Upton Sinclair centers around the ambitious and greedy Daniel Plainview played by the incomparable Daniel Day-Lewis.
The film brings together the clashes of business and region and business, sanity, and madness into one explosive world. This truly one of the greatest western films in recent cinema history.
Fort Apache (John Ford, 1948)
A typical John Ford portrayal "xenophobic" portrayals of Native Americans. It was 1948, after all. At least we get to see how frontier tradesmen illegally sold weapons and toxic whiskey to the Native Americans.
The final act shows how terrible the decision results in the senseless deaths of men on both sides. A classic and genre-defining film nonetheless.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (John Ford, 1962)
In keeping with the John Ford films, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance tells the story of a skilled gunman and the power of the mythical hero.
It Ford's purest expression of the Old West and a film fit for the quintessential John Wayne character,
Back to the Future Part III (Robert Zemeckis, 1990)
This third installment of the beloved trilogy acts as a hilarious commentary on the sometimes absurd genre. The film features a comical standoff between Doc, Marty, and the most Yosemite Sam'd member of the Tannen clan.
There's no shortage of gags here, especially in the first act. A lot of kicking up dust and a lot of "horsin' around"!
McCabe & Mrs. Miller (Robert Altman, 1971)
One of the more unconventionally flavored western films out there, Robert Altman's great western feat follows a fast-talking gambler named John McCabe (Warren Beatty.)
Unfortaunegly for John, while he wins over the residents, the sharp Constance Miller sees right through him.