The Western, which has dazzled audiences of all ages for decades about adventures in the Wild West and the challenges of Frontier life, is one of the most beloved of all film genres. But it is not just credited to American filmmakers, lest we forget the incredible additions that come from Europe – and most especially from Italy – in the form of the typically much more unhinged, less censored, and highly stylized Spaghetti Western. Together, these two enormous categories have proffered forth innumerable classics that continue to be celebrated today.
Update August 6, 2023: This list has been updated Mona Bassil to include even more underrated Westerns that are worth checking out.
Films like The Searchers, True Grit, Rio Bravo, and Tombstone represent some of the best of the Hollywood Western, while titles like The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, Django, and Once Upon a Time in the West embody the Spaghetti Western craze. But what about the Westerns that didn't get as much commercial attention as those particular movies? Here is a non-exhaustive list of lesser-known Westerns that are just as good as the classics and deserve more love.
17 A Reason to Live, A Reason to Die (1972)
A Reason to Live, A Reason to Die is a Spaghetti Western starring two Hollywood legends: James Coburn and Telly Savalas. It’s essentially a Civil War spin on the classic World War II action flick The Dirty Dozen, following Coburn’s attempts to rally a rag-tag group of prisoners together in order to carry out a dangerous mission. The action is grand and explosive, the direction is stylish, and the acting is superb across the board, as an incredible supporting cast brings to life the colorful team of convicts.
16 Major Dundee (1965)
Major Dundee is one of Hollywood icon Sam Peckinpah’s earliest films and follows a Union Major’s attempts to maintain control over a fort full of Confederate prisoners-of-war and dangerous deserters at the end of the American Civil War. Things get complicated for the Major when an army of Apaches attacks the fort and kidnaps a group of children, prompting him to build a team out of the criminals he was guarding to go out on a rescue mission.
While the film is one of Peckinpah’s least personal works, it still manages to explore a number of the themes typical of his later roles, including his signature brand of melancholic machismo. Charlton Heston leads the star-studded cast, which also includes Richard Harris, Ben Johnson, Jim Hutton, and James Coburn.
15 The Bravados (1958)
The Bravados is a classic Western that doesn’t crop up in “best of” lists nearly as often as it should. It stars genre mainstay Gregory Peck as Jim Douglass, a man anxious to see the thugs responsible for his wife’s death hanged. On the day of the hanging, the dangerous death-row convicts escape, prompting Jim to put together a posse to hunt them down. The film then shifts from being a very typical studio Western flick to a surprisingly dark tale of bloodthirsty revenge. The ever-charismatic Peck turns in a terrific performance as a broken man who has put all of his hopes and dreams of finding peace into his quest for revenge.
14 100 Rifles (1969)
100 Rifles is an action-packed Western about a crook, played by Burt Reynolds, whose attempt to rob a bank ends in a run to Mexico with a hard-nosed sheriff, portrayed by Jim Brown, hot on his trail. Once in Mexico, the cop and robber find themselves in the middle of a war between the Mexican government and the Yaqui tribe. The action heats up even further when a tenacious freedom fighter, played by the sculptural Raquel Welch, becomes romantically involved with the lawman. One of the most boisterous of all the Hollywood Westerns and easily one of Welch’s best films, 100 Rifles is an exhilarating blast of Wild West action that deserves more recognition.
13 The Eagle and the Hawk (1950)
Co-written and directed by Lewis R. Foster, The Eagle and the Hawk spans politics, romance, and adventure, features many twists and turns, and stars Rhonda Fleming, John Payne, Dennis O'Keefe, Thomas Gomez, and Frank Faylen. It follows a Texas Ranger and a Union Army spy investigating the theft of guns and ammunition. Their mission takes a different turn at the Rio Grande, where they encounter an armed woman with a stuck wagon.
12 Django the Bastard (1969)
One of many unauthorized Django sequels to follow in the wake of Sergio Corbucci’s 1966 muddy masterpiece, Django, the Bastard is an underrated Spaghetti Western by Sergio Garrone about a Union soldier (Anthony Steffen) who was once thought dead (and maybe was dead but resurrected as a vengeful ghost) hunting down a group of men who betrayed him during the American Civil War. The film is notable for its spooky atmosphere, which is highly uncharacteristic of a Western.
According to the Spaghetti Western Database, “There's some good style to this movie, and some excellent cinematography at times. Django is presented in an almost supernatural and rather sinister way." While the film doesn’t soar quite as high as the original installment, it nevertheless delivers an interesting horror-Western combo that should be seen by more.
11 The Long Riders (1980)
One of cult director Walter Hill’s best films, The Long Riders, is a late-era Western about the infamous outlaw Jesse James and his gang. This relatively unknown gem features a cast made up of brothers portraying brothers, including James and Stacy Keach as the James brothers; David, Keith, and Robert Carradine as the Younger brothers; Dennis and Randy Quaid as the Miller brothers; and Christopher and Nicholas Guest as the Ford brothers. It’s an exciting title full of riveting action, courtesy of one of the most underrated action directors of all time.
10 Ride Lonesome (1959)
Ride Lonesome is a classic Randolph Scott Western about a bounty hunter traveling across the West to California with a prisoner in tow. Directed by low-budget extraordinaire Budd Boetticher, the film is both action-packed and utterly gorgeous to dissect, and the acting is stellar all around. In addition to Scott and Western legend Lee Van Cleef, the cast is rounded out by James Coburn in his film debut.
9 Adiós, Sabata (1970)
Directed by Gianfranco Parolini, scored by Bruno Nicolai, and set in an unstable Mexico under Emperor Maximilian, Adiós, Sabata features Yul Brynner as the titular Sabata/Indio Black, who finds himself helping revolutionaries steal a wagon of gold; Gérard Herter as the evil, monocle-wearing Austrian Colonel Skimmel; Dean Reed as the double-crossing artist Ballantine; and Sal Borgese as the mute Septiembre, who prefers shooting cannonballs from his feet rather than wield a boring gun.
8 The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970)
Another one by Sam Peckinpah, The Ballad of Cable Hogue, is a comedy Western about a man who starts a business selling water to the stagecoaches passing near his isolated home in the desert. The film stars Jason Robards, David Warner, and Stella Stevens and features both great performances and clever, if atypical for the genre, writing. Unlike most of Peckinpah’s work, the film is very understated and doesn't offer much in the way of gun duels or action set-pieces. Make no mistake, however, the film is a Western movie through and through.
7 10,000 Dollars for a Massacre (1967)
Directed by Romolo Guerrieri and starring Gary Hudson, Loredana Nusciak, and Fernando Sancho, 10,000 Dollars for a Massacre is an underrated Spaghetti Western about a bounty hunter who winds up working with his targeted crook to increase the payout. Its highly unique premise is highlighted by the film’s twisted sense of humor, grim atmosphere, and loads of stylish action scenes. The explosive gun battles and incredibly intense pistol duels are right up there with the best of the genre, and the score is a classic in and of itself. The film is yet another Django “sequel” and should be essential viewing for fans of the genre.
6 Face to Face (1967)
Co-written and helmed by Sergio Sollima, Face to Face follows the retired and rigid university professor Brad Fletcher, played by For a Few Dollars More's antagonist Gian Maria Volonté, who finds himself saving the life of Solomon Beauregard Bennet (Tomas Milian), the wanted criminal who has taken him hostage. It is a tale of double-crossing gunmen, redemption, and gratitude, where innocents always find themselves caught in the crossfire of greedy criminals.
Per the Spaghetti Western Database, "The writing and acting were much better than most of what is usually seen in the genre. Volonté, in particular, did a fantastic, nuanced job as Fletcher, a total 360 from his over-the-top acting in other Westerns. Milian was good too, keeping his acting within the realm of believability, not jumping into the over-the-top histrionics he is sometimes known to do. The dialogue was uncharacteristically eloquent and poetic in many parts of this film, giving it a substance and depth that is sorely lacking in many of the genre's films."
5 My Name Is Nobody (1973)
Directed by Tonino Valerii and based on a plot by Sergio Leone, the late Spaghetti Western My Name Is Nobody features Terence Hill as a young, insanely talented shooter who manipulates the aging and renowned gunslinger Jack Beauregard (Henry Fonda) into a monumental showdown with the Wild Bunch, an infamous gang of 150 criminals. Besides the two leads' memorable performances, look out for the striking Ennio Morricone theme that samples Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries.
4 The Great Silence (1968)
One of the grimmest and most slow-paced Spaghetti Westerns ever made, The Great Silence is still lesser known among non-Spaghetti Western aficionados than it should be. Set in snow-drenched landscapes, for a change, it is about a mute gunman, nicknamed Silence, who sticks up for a group of refugees targeted by bounty hunters. Directed by Django creator Sergio Corbucci, the film is surreal, political, and undeniably one of the best of its kind.
3 Four of the Apocalypse (1975)
Although Lucio Fulci is better known to most Italian cinema buffs as the king of giallo and gory cult horror, his Four of the Apocalypse is a grim take on the Spaghetti West and is considered one of his best films. It follows four small-time convicts who attempt to make their way through the frontier while both the law and a sadistic killer hunt them down. The film is equal parts shocking, humorous, and, perhaps most surprising of all, quite humanist in its portrayal of four browbeaten thieves who form an ersatz family in the Wild West. If you’re a Spaghetti Western fan, and you haven’t seen Four of the Apocalypse, do yourself a favor and check it out!
2 Massacre Time (1966)
Massacre Time, also known in Italy as The Colt Sang Death, and it was... Massacre Time, and in the US as The Brute and the Beast, is yet another violent and underrated gem by Fulci. It stars Franco Nero as Tom Corbett, a gold prospector who is asked to urgently come back home by his anxious friend; George Hilton as Jeff, his drunken and grief-stricken half-brother, who somehow manages to maintain his reputation of an unbeatable gunslinger; Giuseppe Addobbati as the ruthless landlord and town leader Jason Scott; and Nino Castelnuovo a Junior Scott, the latter’s sadistic and greedy son who enjoys wielding his whip a little too much.
1 Ulzana’s Raid (1972)
Ulzana’s Raid is yet another underrated Western about a group of US cavalry on the hunt for a dangerous Apache warrior and his legendary war party. The group is led by a grizzled tracker named McIntosh, played by Burt Lancaster in one of his best roles, who has a deep understanding of and respect for his enemy. Also starring is Bruce Davison, playing a young, rage-filled lieutenant who wants nothing more than to destroy every last vestige of the Native American peoples of the frontier.
The film is a powerful allegory of the futility of war and is unflinching in its portrayal of the brutal and hateful capabilities of men pushed beyond their limits in a situation that is bigger than them and far beyond their control. As Empire Online puts it, “As in many 1970s Westerns, there’s a Vietnam parallel floating about in the ‘lost patrol’ storyline. Ulzana’s vision of well-intentioned but ignorant American military engagement with a violent culture in an alien landscape remains unsettlingly relevant.” Ulzana’s Raid is a truly prescient and important Western that should be far better known than it presently is.