ArizonaRealCountry.com 41 February 2019 1. Once upon a Time in the West, 2. The Wild Bunch, 3. The Searchers, 4. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, 5. McCabe and Mrs. Miller, 6. Unforgiven, 7. High Noon, 8. Red River, 9. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Bob Ford, 10. Rancho Notorious. Now you may be scratching your head at a few of the films listed. Each one is a very well made film and a critical winner, but we must take into consideration that this list was made by a newsgroup with progressive and somewhat revisionist thinking. No problem with that, just using it to make a point. From beginning to end of the list you’ll find that it’s a tally filled with depressive elements. Each film shows an unglamorized view of at least one facet of real west legend while flaying many aspects of the genre. In other words, I would place a bet that none of the people who voted on the list are huge western fans. Now let’s take a look at a list put together by a regular theater-going public: 1. The Searchers, 2. The Wild Bunch, 3. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, 4. Unforgiven, 5. Shane, 6. Once Upon a Time in the West, 7. Stagecoach, 8. High Noon, 9. Red River, 10. The Magnificent Seven. While both lists have six films in common, the second list shows a set of ten very popular westerns that not only are crowd pleasers but critical hits as well; and each one is definitely filled with western clichés. On February 2nd, from 11 to noon, my next Western Spirit, Scottsdale’s Museum of the West series “American West in Film and Television” will be on the subject of finding the perfect top ten westerns. The audience and I will attempt to put together a perfect top ten western film list. Will we succeed? Come join us and find out. What do you really enjoy seeing in your westerns… and then again…what are the things you don’t want to see? Like the “so- called” professional film critic do you dissect each scene…the directing, lighting, and editing, along with critiquing each performance, the costumes, and continuity; or, like most western movie lovers, do you have certain expectations of your shoot-‘em-ups? What the critics may call “clichés.” As fans of the western genre we demand fisticuffs, shootouts, horseback riding, sometimes a bit of humor, and finally a certain comeuppance; maybe in the hero’s favor, maybe not. If these are the aspects of your favorite westerns, then you indeed expect to see the cursed “C” word…clichés. In the past, the point has been made that whether you’re a tough movie critic or a theater going western film lover, the perfect top ten list would be like expecting conservatives and liberals to agree on anything. A few lists are defined due to a certain group’s personal or political agenda. For example, an iconoclast leaning survey listed the following as their Top Ten Westerns: By Charlie LeSueur Charlie LeSueur, AZ’s Official Western Film Historian. Encore Fellow @ Western Spirit, Scottsdale’s Museum of the West. azfilmhistorian@gmail.com, silverscreencowboyz.com IN SEARCH OF A PERFECT Top 10 Western Film List Clockwise from top: McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971) a revisionist western of it's time; Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) This Italian production starred Henry Fonda as a vicious killer and made Charles Bronson an international star; High Noon (1952) This classic was controversial at time of release; The Wild Bunch (1969) forced the western genre to grow-up; Rancho Notorious (1952) An unusual film noir western starring Marlene Dietrich. MARK YOUR CALENDAR! February 2nd from 11am-Noon Join Charlie LeSueur at his next Western Spirit, Scottsdale's Museum of the West series "American West in Film and Television" and put together a perfect top 10 westerns list!