subject: Western Movies [print this page] The image of Clint Eastwood riding on his horse with a Stetson hat atop his head flashes in front of the eyes when you think of - western movies. The term 'western' was first used for a film genre in July 1912. This genre of movies depicts stories set in the second half of the 19th century in the American Old West.
Western movies usually show how difficult and hard life was for families living in the 'Wild West'. There would be battle between natives and the Administration or between ranch (farm) owners and farmers. Quite often one gets to see ranchers being threatened by the onset of the Industrial Revolution. Although these films were associated with a particular time and period in American history, yet, these themes were produced and enjoyed all across the world.
The main character of these movies is a cowboy, gunfighter or a bounty hunter who wears hats, carries revolvers and travels from one dusty town to another on a sturdy horse. The protagonist wanders from place to place on his steed fighting villains, yet he follows a code of honour. His aim is to protect the weak and rescue damsels in distress.
The scenes show harsh wilderness and in almost all western movies, a small town is shown where life revolves around a saloon. This saloon is the heart of the town and every character gathers there for drinking, socializing, gambling and meeting women. The scenes are usually set in lonely isolated forts, ranch houses, isolated homestead, the saloon, jail, small-town, main street, or small frontier towns that are forming at the edge of civilization.
Some typical elements in a western include hostile elements, guns and gunfights, violence and human massacres, horses, train and train robberies, bank robberies, shoot-outs and showdowns, outlaws and sheriffs, cattle drives, stampedes, barroom brawls, breathtaking settings and barren landscapes, and distinctive western clothing such as denim, jeans and boots.
In the beginning, western movies were shot in film studios but later on barren lands of Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah, were used as locations. Some films were also shot at real ranches belonging to various rich businessmen.
Although, the early western movies were about good winning over evil and men (cowboys) fighting for a good cause, later on some comedies and hard-core action packed films were also made to keep the interest of the viewers alive.
Western movies have also been called horse opera or the cowboy picture. This genre portrayed America's past, glorifying the past-fading values and aspirations of the by-gone age of the West. During the years, westerns have been re-defined, re-invented, expanded, dismissed and re-discovered
The first Western film was "The Great Train Robbery", a silent film which was released in 1903 starring Billy Bronco Anderson. After the popularity of this movie, 'westerns' became a rage in America and John Wayne became the leading star of these films. Westerns are extremely popular with those audience who love adventure and larger than life heroes.
'The Great Train Robbery', 'The Lone Ranger', "the Good the Bad the Ugly', 'Stagecoach', 'Dirty Harry' and 'The Alamo' are some historical westerns. The success of these western movies goes to dashing cowboys like John Wayne, Gary Cooper and Clint Eastwood. "Howdy"
