Westerns

Although western films were in their prime during the 1950s and 60s, they are still around today. They are not as popular now as they were when actors such as John Wayne were alive, but nevertheless westerns, in many ways have influenced the American cinema.

I am going to talk about two westerns; The Searchers, which is one of the most classic westerns ever made which influenced many directors in the making of their movies, and Django Unchained, the most recent popular western in America.

The Searchers directed by John Ford (1956) has all the aspects of a great western; the wild west, a young girl getting captured by Indians, and of course a gallant cowboy played by none other than John Wayne. The film is about a civil war veteran, Ethan Edwards (Wayne) who comes home to Texas after fighting for the confederacy. He believes he will settle down with his family until his young niece, Debbie, is captured by Indians. Edwards, who has a prejudice toward the Indians, spends years and years using his logic, skills, instinct and incredible bravery searching for Debbie. However his reasons for finding her soon become jaded as his prejudice for the Indian tribe begins to pass to Debbie as well.

The Searchers set the tone for what is expected in a western. The film did not lack action, drama, or violence which many westerns have followed. Directors have been influenced by the story, drama and filmmaking techniques in the film, including Martin Scorsese and the making of his film Taxi Driver. 

Django Unchained is a 2012 western directed by Quentin Tarantino.While the film is extremely different from The Searchers, it has some similar characteristics, and has the same dynamics of a classic western.

Django takes place before the civil war. The story involves a freed slave, Django,  (Jamie Foxx) who allies with a bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz) all in an attempt to find his wife, who he was separated from when they were sold to different owners.

Django, although different from The Searchers and any other classic western, shares many of the same characteristics. There is a gallant hero who fights through trials and tribulations for a noble cause. He encounters enemy after enemy and beats them all. There is violence (much more violence than any other western I have ever seen) that sets the drama, tone and dynamic of the film. In many ways, Django was influenced by The Searchers. 

A western captures the spirit and the struggle of the time. Western heroes are cowboys, bounty hunters, or gunslingers. Both The Searchers and Django Unchained meet this criteria, but come across in two extremely different lights. The experience of watching the films contrast, but that is only indicative of the era they were made.

Overall The Searchers is a better western than Django. While the latter may be considered more entertaining to watch, the former is a masterpiece. It was the first of its kind to create a film with such a profound influence on future movies.

Westerns have influenced the American cinema from the beginning. The difference between two western films from two different eras show how much the genre has changed, but also how much they have stayed the same.