The Top Westerns
List of the best westerns(both film & tv) ever made. In no particular order except for the top three witch all tied for first place.
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- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneJeffrey HunterVera MilesAn American Civil War veteran embarks on a years-long journey to rescue his niece from the Comanches after the rest of his brother's family is massacred in a raid on their Texas farm.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsWilliam HoldenErnest BorgnineRobert RyanAn aging group of outlaws look for one last big score as the "traditional" American West is disappearing around them.
- StarsRobert DuvallTommy Lee JonesDanny GloverTwo former Texas Rangers renew their spirit of adventure as they and several other residents of a small Texas town join a cattle drive to the Montana Territory.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsGary CooperGrace KellyThomas MitchellA town Marshal, despite the disagreements of his newlywed bride and the townspeople around him, must face a gang of deadly killers alone at "high noon" when the gang leader, an outlaw he "sent up" years ago, arrives on the noon train.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodGene HackmanMorgan FreemanRetired Old West gunslinger William Munny reluctantly takes on one last job, with the help of his old partner Ned Logan and a young man, The "Schofield Kid."
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodSondra LockeChief Dan GeorgeMissouri farmer Josey Wales joins a Confederate guerrilla unit and winds up on the run from the Union soldiers who murdered his family.
- DirectorHoward HawksArthur RossonStarsJohn WayneMontgomery CliftJoanne DruDunson leads a cattle drive, the culmination of over 14 years of work, to its destination in Missouri. But his tyrannical behavior along the way causes a mutiny, led by his adopted son.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsHenry FondaDana AndrewsMary Beth HughesWhen a posse captures three men suspected of killing a local farmer, they become strongly divided over whether or not to lynch the men.
- DirectorGeorge Roy HillStarsPaul NewmanRobert RedfordKatharine RossIn 1890s Wyoming, Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid lead a band of outlaws. When a train robbery goes wrong, they find themselves on the run with a posse hard on their heels. After considering their options, they escape to South America.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsYul BrynnerSteve McQueenCharles BronsonSeven gunfighters are hired by Mexican peasants to liberate their village from oppressive bandits.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneClaire TrevorAndy DevineA group of people traveling on a stagecoach find their journey complicated by the threat of Geronimo and learn something about each other in the process.
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsClint EastwoodGian Maria VolontèMarianne KochA wandering gunfighter plays two rival families against each other in a town torn apart by greed, pride, and revenge.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsJoel McCreaRandolph ScottMariette HartleyAn ex-union soldier is hired to transport gold from a mining community through dangerous territory. But what he doesn't realize is that his partner and old friend is plotting to double-cross him.
- DirectorDelmer DavesStarsJames StewartJeff ChandlerDebra PagetTom Jeffords tries to make peace between settlers and Apaches in Arizona territory.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneHenry FondaShirley TempleAt Fort Apache, an honorable and veteran war captain finds conflict when his regime is placed under the command of a young, glory hungry lieutenant colonel with no respect for the local Indian tribe.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneJoanne DruJohn AgarCaptain Nathan Brittles, on the eve of retirement, takes out a last patrol to stop an impending massive Indian attack. Encumbered by women who must be evacuated, Brittles finds his mission imperiled.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartArthur KennedyDonald CrispNewcomer Will Lockhart defies the local cattle baron and his sadistic son by working for one of his oldest rivals.
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsClint EastwoodEli WallachLee Van CleefA bounty hunting scam joins two men in an uneasy alliance against a third in a race to find a fortune in gold buried in a remote cemetery.
- DirectorMartin RittStarsPaul NewmanFredric MarchRichard BooneJohn Russell, disdained by his "respectable" fellow stagecoach passengers because he was raised by Native Americans, becomes their only hope for survival when they are set upon by outlaws.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsWarren BeattyJulie ChristieRene AuberjonoisA gambler and a prostitute become business partners in a remote Old West mining town, and their enterprise thrives until a large corporation arrives on the scene.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartJanet LeighRobert RyanA bounty hunter trying to bring a murderer to justice is forced to accept the help of two less-than-trustworthy strangers.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsBurt LancasterKirk DouglasRhonda FlemingLawman Wyatt Earp and outlaw Doc Holliday form an unlikely alliance which culminates in their participation in the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsBurt LancasterJean PetersJohn McIntireRefusing to let himself be re-settled on a Florida reservation, Massai, an Apache warrior, escapes his captors and returns to his homeland to become a peaceful farmer.
- DirectorGeorge P. CosmatosKevin JarreStarsKurt RussellVal KilmerSam ElliottA successful lawman's plans to retire anonymously in Tombstone, Arizona are disrupted by the kind of outlaws he was famous for eliminating.
- DirectorEthan CoenJoel CoenStarsJeff BridgesMatt DamonHailee SteinfeldA stubborn teenager enlists the help of a tough U.S. Marshal to track down her father's murderer.
- DirectorHenry HathawayStarsJohn WayneKim DarbyGlen CampbellA drunken, hard-nosed U.S. Marshal and a Texas Ranger help a stubborn teenager track down her father's murderer in Indian Territory.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJames StewartJohn WayneVera MilesA senator returns to a Western town for the funeral of an old friend and tells the story of his origins.
- DirectorDon SiegelStarsJohn WayneLauren BacallRon HowardA dying gunfighter spends his last days looking for a way to die with a minimum of pain and a maximum of dignity.
- DirectorHenry KingStarsGregory PeckHelen WestcottMillard MitchellNotorious gunfighter Jimmy Ringo rides into town to find his true love, who doesn't want to see him. He hasn't come looking for trouble, but trouble finds him around every corner.
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsHenry FondaCharles BronsonClaudia CardinaleA mysterious stranger with a harmonica joins forces with a notorious desperado to protect a beautiful widow from a ruthless assassin working for the railroad.
- DirectorKevin CostnerStarsKevin CostnerMary McDonnellGraham GreeneLieutenant John Dunbar, assigned to a remote western Civil War outpost, finds himself engaging with a neighbouring Sioux settlement, causing him to question his own purpose.
- DirectorTed PostStarsClint EastwoodInger StevensPat HingleWhen an innocent man barely survives a lynching, he returns as a lawman determined to bring the vigilantes to justice.
- DirectorKevin CostnerStarsKevin CostnerRobert DuvallDiego LunaA former gunslinger is forced to take up arms again when he and his cattle crew are threatened by a corrupt lawman.
- DirectorEthan CoenJoel CoenStarsTommy Lee JonesJavier BardemJosh BrolinViolence and mayhem ensue after a hunter stumbles upon the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong and over two million dollars in cash near the Rio Grande.
- DirectorTommy Lee JonesStarsTommy Lee JonesTerry KinneyFrances McDormandAn aging cowboy must choose between his desire to remain free and the responsibilities of maintaining a family.
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsClint EastwoodLee Van CleefGian Maria VolontèTwo bounty hunters with the same intentions team up to track down a gang of outlaws led by a psychotic Mexican bandit, who is plotting an audacious bank robbery.
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsAlan LaddJean ArthurVan HeflinA weary gunfighter in 1880s Wyoming begins to envision a quieter life after befriending a homestead family with a young son who idolizes him, but a smoldering range war forces him to act.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsGary CooperBurt LancasterDenise DarcelDuring the Mexican Rebellion of 1866, an unsavory group of American adventurers are hired by the forces of Emporer Maximilian to escort a countess to Vera Cruz.
- DirectorDavid MillerStarsKirk DouglasGena RowlandsWalter MatthauA fiercely independent cowboy gets himself locked up in prison to escape with an old friend.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartShelley WintersDan DuryeaA cowboy's obsession with a stolen rifle leads to a bullet-ridden odyssey through the American West.
- DirectorTom GriesStarsCharlton HestonJoan HackettDonald PleasenceAging cowboy Will Penny gets a line camp job on a large cattle spread and finds his isolated cabin is already occupied by an abandoned woman traveler and her young son.
- DirectorLawrence KasdanStarsKevin KlineScott GlennKevin CostnerA misfit bunch of friends comes together to right the injustices which exist in a small town.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsRichard WidmarkCarroll BakerKarl MaldenThe Cheyenne, tired of broken U.S. government promises, head for their ancestral lands but a sympathetic cavalry officer is tasked to bring them back to their reservation.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsJames StewartRock HudsonArthur KennedyWhen a town boss confiscates homesteaders' supplies after gold is discovered nearby, a tough cowboy risks his life to try and get it to them.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsJames CoburnKris KristoffersonRichard JaeckelPat Garrett is hired as a lawman on behalf of a group of wealthy New Mexico cattle barons to bring down his old friend Billy the Kid.
- DirectorMark RydellStarsJohn WayneRoscoe Lee BrowneBruce DernRancher Wil Andersen is forced to hire inexperienced boys as cowhands in order to get his herd to market on time but the rough drive is full of dangers and a gang of cattle rustlers is trailing them.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGary CooperWalter BrennanDoris DavenportJudge Roy Bean, a self-appointed hanging judge in Vinegarroon, Texas, befriends saddle tramp Cole Harden, who opposes Bean's policy against homesteaders.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsJason PatricGene HackmanRobert DuvallThe story of the Apache chief and his armed resistance to the U.S. Government's subjugation of his people.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsDavid CarradineStacy KeachDennis QuaidThe origins, exploits and the ultimate fate of the Jesse James gang is told in a sympathetic portrayal of the bank robbers made up of brothers who begin their legendary bank raids because of revenge.
- DirectorMel BrooksStarsCleavon LittleGene WilderSlim PickensIn order to ruin a western town, a corrupt politician appoints a black Sheriff, who promptly becomes his most formidable adversary.
- DirectorRichard BrooksStarsBurt LancasterLee MarvinRobert RyanAn arrogant Texas millionaire hires four adventurers to rescue his kidnapped wife from a notorious Mexican bandit.
- DirectorDelmer DavesStarsGlenn FordVan HeflinFelicia FarrBroke small-time rancher Dan Evans is hired by the stagecoach line to put big-time captured outlaw leader Ben Wade on the 3:10 train to Yuma but Wade's gang tries to free him.
- DirectorJames MangoldStarsRussell CroweChristian BaleBen FosterA small-time rancher agrees to hold a captured outlaw who's awaiting a train to go to court in Yuma. A battle of wills ensues as the outlaw tries to psych out the rancher.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodVerna BloomMarianna HillA gun-fighting stranger comes to the small settlement of Lago and is hired to bring the townsfolk together in an attempt to hold off three outlaws who are on their way.
- DirectorSydney PollackStarsRobert RedfordWill GeerDelle BoltonA mountain man who wishes to live the life of a hermit becomes the unwilling object of a long vendetta by the Crow tribe and proves to be a match for their warriors in single combat on the early frontier.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsCharlton HestonRichard HarrisJim HuttonIn 1864, due to frequent Apache raids from Mexico into the U.S., a Union officer decides to illegally cross the border and destroy the Apache, using a mixed army of Union troops, Confederate POWs, civilian mercenaries, and scouts.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGregory PeckJean SimmonsCarroll BakerA New England sea captain in the 1880s arrives at his fiancée's sprawling Texas ranch, where he becomes embroiled in a feud between two families over a valuable patch of land.
- DirectorBudd BoetticherStarsRandolph ScottGail RussellLee MarvinA former sheriff blames himself for his wife's death during a Wells Fargo robbery and vows to track down and kill the seven men responsible.
- DirectorBudd BoetticherStarsRandolph ScottJohn CarrollKaren SteeleBart Allison and sidekick Sam arrive in the town of Sundown on the wedding day of town boss Tate Kimbrough, whom Allison blames for his wife's death years earlier.
- DirectorBudd BoetticherStarsRandolph ScottRichard BooneMaureen O'SullivanAn independent former ranch foreman is kidnapped along with an heiress, who is being held for ransom by trio of ruthless outlaws.
- DirectorRichard BrooksStarsGene HackmanCandice BergenJames CoburnA pair of ex-Rough Riders, a former prostitute, a gunfighter, an aging cowboy and an English gentleman enter a 700-mile horse race through the Southwest desert in 1908.
- StarsRobert DuvallThomas Haden ChurchGreta ScacchiA veteran cowboy and his nephew save five Chinese girls from prostitution while trekking from Oregon to Wyoming.
- DirectorJohn FordHenry HathawayGeorge MarshallStarsJames StewartJohn WayneGregory PeckA family saga covering several decades of Westward expansion in the 19th century, including the Gold Rush, the Civil War, and the building of the railroads.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsJohn WayneDean MartinRicky NelsonA small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a disabled man, a drunk, and a young gunfighter in his efforts to hold in jail the brother of the local bad guy.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsGary CooperJulie LondonLee J. CobbA reformed outlaw becomes stranded after an aborted train robbery with two other passengers and is forced to rejoin his old outlaw band.
- DirectorHoward HawksStarsJohn WayneRobert MitchumJames CaanCole Thornton, a gunfighter for hire, joins forces with old friend, Sheriff J.P. Hara. Together with an old Indian fighter and a gambler, they help a rancher and his family fight a rival rancher who's trying to steal their water.
- DirectorMario Van PeeblesStarsMario Van PeeblesStephen BaldwinCharles LaneIn 1898 Cuba, five Buffalo Soldiers find a gold cache, desert and return to America where they help defend a black town from the KKK, all the while trying to avoid capture by lawmen and military authorities alike.
- DirectorChristopher CainStarsEmilio EstevezKiefer SutherlandLou Diamond PhillipsA group of young gunmen, led by Billy the Kid, become deputies to avenge the murder of the rancher who became their benefactor. But when Billy takes their authority too far, they become the hunted.
- DirectorGeoff MurphyStarsEmilio EstevezKiefer SutherlandLou Diamond PhillipsBilly the Kid and his band of outlaws are pursued across New Mexico territory by Sheriff Pat Garrett, whom the young gunslingers must face-off with if they are to reach the safety of the border.
- StarsGary ColeRosanna ArquetteStanley AndersonThe story of George Custer, Crazy Horse and the events prior to the battle of the Little Bighorn, told from the different perspectives of two women.
- DirectorHenry HathawayStarsSteve McQueenKarl MaldenBrian KeithA half-American Indian and half-white teenager evolves into a hardened killer as he tracks down his parents' murderers.
- DirectorArthur PennStarsPaul NewmanLita MilanJohn DehnerAfter his employer is murdered by rival cattlemen, a troubled and uneducated young cowboy vows revenge on the murderers.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsWarren OatesIsela VegaRobert WebberAn American barroom pianist and his prostitute girlfriend go on a trip through the Mexican underworld to collect the bounty on the head of a dead gigolo.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsSteve McQueenRobert PrestonIda LupinoAce Bonner returns to Arizona several years after he abandoned his family, Junior Bonner is a wild young man. Against the typical rodeo championship, family drama erupts.
- DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsRichard WidmarkHenry FondaAnthony QuinnA famous gunman becomes the marshal of Warlock to end a gang's rampages, but is met with some opposition by a former gang member turned deputy sheriff who wants to follow only legal methods.
- DirectorRussell RouseStarsGlenn FordJeanne CrainBroderick CrawfordIn the western frontier town of Cross Creek, storekeeper George Temple is a polite and soft spoken man with a secret past. When 3 bank robbers on the lam stop in town to change horses, George's past comes back to haunt him.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsRobert TaylorDenise DarcelHope EmersonA trail guide escorts a group of women from Chicago to California to marry men that have recently begun settling there.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsRobert TaylorRichard WidmarkPatricia OwensMarshal Jake Wade aids outlaw Clint Hollister escape jail but Clint wants to know where Wade hid an old hold-up loot taken while both men were outlaws in the same gang.
- DirectorCecil B. DeMilleStarsBarbara StanwyckJoel McCreaAkim TamiroffIn 1862, Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads compete westward across the wilderness toward California.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsRobert MitchumBarbara Bel GeddesRobert PrestonUnemployed cowhand Jim Garry is hired by his dishonest friend Tate Riling as muscle in a dispute between homesteaders and cattleman John Lufton.
- StarsSidney PoitierMichael MoriartyJoanna GoingGypsy Smith, is a gunfighter and a bounty hunter. When he leads the U.S. Army into a Cheyenne camp to capture a suspected Indian renegade, a long train of events begins that finally lead to that "good day to die". White Wolf, only a child, is one of the few survivors of the massacre of his tribe that day, and Gypsy brings him to live with the Maxwell family, where he grows up not fully Indian, and not really white, but a bit too close to Rachel, the Maxwell daughter. Gypsy now reappears, leading a group of Black settlers from the post-Civil War South to start a new life in a town of their own - Freedom in the Oklahoma Territory, its first black settlement. White Wolf (or Corby as a "white" name) is now with his people, but all of these parts come back together in conflict, violence, loss, and Pyrric triumph.
- DirectorRichard LangStarsCharlton HestonBrian KeithVictoria RacimoA pair of grizzled frontiersmen fight Indians, guzzle liquor and steal squaws in their search for a legendary valley 'so full of beaver that they jump right into your traps' in this fanciful adventure.
- DirectorJoseph L. MankiewiczStarsKirk DouglasHenry FondaHume CronynA charming but totally ruthless criminal is sent to a remote Arizona prison. He enlists the help of his cellmates in an escape attempt with the promise of sharing his hidden loot.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsJason RobardsStella StevensDavid WarnerA hobo accidentally stumbles onto a water spring, and creates a profitable way station in the middle of the desert.
- DirectorMateo GilStarsSam ShepardEduardo NoriegaStephen ReaIn Bolivia, Butch Cassidy (now calling himself James Blackthorn) pines for one last sight of home, an adventure that aligns him with a young robber and makes the duo a target for gangs and lawmen alike.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsErrol FlynnOlivia de HavillandAnn SheridanA Texas cattle agent witnesses first hand, the brutal lawlessness of Dodge City and takes the job of sheriff to clean the town up.
- DirectorRaoul WalshStarsErrol FlynnOlivia de HavillandArthur KennedyA highly fictionalized account of the life of George Armstrong Custer from his arrival at West Point in 1857 to his death at the battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsWilliam HoldenEleanor ParkerJohn ForsytheDuring the Civil War, a group of Confederates escapes from the Union POW camp at Fort Bravo but has to contend with the desert, the Mescalero Apaches and the pursuing Union troops.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsRichard BooneStuart WhitmanAnthony FranciosaA former Confederate officer and a Mexican try to prevent a former Confederate colonel from selling stolen rifles to renegade Apaches in Mexico.
- DirectorOtto PremingerJean NegulescoStarsRobert MitchumMarilyn MonroeRory CalhounThe titular river unites a farmer recently released from prison, his young son, and an ambitious saloon singer. In order to survive, each must be purged of anger, and each must learn to understand and care for the others.
- DirectorMichael WinnerStarsBurt LancasterRobert RyanLee J. CobbA lawman from Bannock arrives in Sabbath to arrest all the cattlemen whose wild celebration the year before resulted in the accidental death of an old man.
- DirectorJohn FarrowStarsJohn WayneGeraldine PageWard BondArmy dispatch rider Hondo Lane discovers a woman and young son living in the midst of warring Apaches and becomes their protector.
- DirectorReynaldo VillalobosStarsSam ElliottKatharine RossBarry CorbinA tough cowboy facing some trouble crosses paths with a lonely woman living in the middle of nowhere.
- DirectorWilliam WiardStarsSteve McQueenLinda EvansRichard FarnsworthAn ex-army scout is hired by ranchers to kill cattle rustlers but he gets into trouble with the corrupt local officials when he's suspected of killing a boy.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsPaul NewmanJoel GreyKevin McCarthyA cynical Buffalo Bill hires Sitting Bull to exploit him and add his credibility to the distorted view of history presented in his Wild West Show.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsPaul NewmanAva GardnerRoy JensonIn Vinegaroon, Texas, former outlaw Roy Bean appoints himself the judge for the region and dispenses his brand of justice as he sees fit.
- DirectorAnthony MannStarsHenry FondaAnthony PerkinsBetsy PalmerA cynical former sheriff turned bounty hunter helps a young, recently appointed acting sheriff with his advice, his experience and his gun.
- DirectorRichard ThorpeStarsGlenn FordAngie DickinsonChad EverettA deadly gunslinger travels to a town to shoot it out with a famed gunslinger turned lawman in a small town.
- DirectorBudd BoetticherStarsRandolph ScottKaren SteelePernell RobertsA bounty hunter (Randolph Scott) escorts a killer (James Best) to be tried for murder, but allows the man's outlaw brother (Lee Van Cleef) to catch up with them to have a showdown over a previous shocking murder.
- DirectorAbraham PolonskyStarsRobert RedfordKatharine RossRobert BlakeIn 1909, when young Paiute Indian Willie Boy returns to his California reservation to be with Lola, whose father disapproves of him, a killing in self defense takes place, triggering a massive man hunt for Willie.