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Contemporary Western

December 12, 2023

Contemporary Western is a sub-genre of the Western genre that includes contemporary settings and uses Old West themes, archetypes, and motifs, such as a rebellious antihero, open plains and desert landscapes, or gunfights. This sub-genre includes the post-Western, neo-Western, and urban Western genres that include "the cowboy cult" in a modern setting that involves the audience's feelings and understanding of Western movies.[1] A neo-Western can be said to use Western themes set in the present day.[2]: 62  According to Stephen Teo in Eastern Westerns: Film and Genre Outside and Inside Hollywood, there is little difference between the neo-Western and post-Western, and the terms may often be used interchangeably.[3]: 96 

Development edit

As early as 1929, there was talk about the need for change in western films in order to stay relevant in then-modern America (“Tom Mix, Hoot Gibson and Ken Maynard must swap horses for aeroplanes or go to the old actors’ home.”). However, the rise of the contemporary western is credited to two specific reasons: 1) contemporary setting enabled the use of a higher number of potential plot-ideas, which "included everything from modern crooks and evil Nazis to high-tech cars and machine guns"; 2) Gene Autry, a famous western film star, was also a famous singer and performer. In order to use his reputation as much as possible, Republic Pictures decided that is was the best for Autry to play himself, thus moving the films from the Old West into a contemporary setting. Some earlier actors, such as Ken Maynard and Hoot Gibson, sometimes starred in the films featuring modern setting, but Autry was the first actor that starred in such films on a regular basis.[4]: 109  Autry's films were also described as "crime dramas in contemporary western setting".[5]: 100 

Other early examples of the genre were films starring Roy Rogers which included contemporary settings with heavy reliance on traditional western characters and imagery, such as Silver Spurs (1943). His films made after 1947 are described as "almost without exception, modern-day adventure films set in the American west".[6]: 90, 153  Republic Pictures, which distributed a significant number of Autry's and Rogers's films, soon specialized in the contemporary Western subgenre, an example of which is also Paramount's Texas Rangers Ride Again (1940).[6]: 153 

Beginning in the postwar era, radio dramas such as Tales of the Texas Rangers (1950–1952), with Joel McCrea, a contemporary detective drama set in Texas, featured many of the characteristics of traditional Westerns.[7] In this period, post-Western precursors to the modern neo-Western films began to appear. This includes films such as Nicholas Ray's The Lusty Men (1952) and John Sturges's Bad Day at Black Rock (1955).[8]: 56  Examples of the modern "first phase" of neo-Westerns include films such as Lonely Are the Brave (1962) and Hud (1963).[8]: 324  The popularity of the subgenre has been resurgent since the release of Joel and Ethan Coen's No Country for Old Men (2007).[9]

The subgenre can also be seen in television in shows such as Breaking Bad. According to Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, "After the first Breaking Bad episode, it started to dawn on me that we could be making a contemporary Western. So you see scenes that are like gunfighters squaring off, like Clint Eastwood and Lee van Cleef—we have Walt and others like that."[10]

Many space Westerns and science fiction Westerns can be classed within the neo-Western genre, particularly if the science fiction elements are of secondary importance to the Western characteristics of the plotlines. Some well-known examples include the original TV series Star Trek (1966–1969) and the Joss Whedon film Serenity (2005).[11] Other kinds of science fiction Westerns, such as the film Mad Max (1979), have also become popular.

Neo-Westerns - setting, motif and themes edit

Some neo-Westerns still take place in the American West and reveal the progression of the Old West mentality into the late 20th and early 21st centuries. This subgenre often features Old West-type characters struggling with displacement in a "civilized" world that rejects their "outdated" brand of justice. However, the contemporary Western need not be limited to the traditional American West setting. Coogan's Bluff and Midnight Cowboy are examples of urban Westerns set in New York City.[1]: 148–149  The neo-Western television series Justified is set in Eastern Kentucky.[12]

The neo-Western has three identifying themes. First is the lack of rules, with morals guided by the character's or audience's instincts of right and wrong rather than by governance. The second is characters searching for justice. The third theme, characters feeling remorse, connects the neo-Western to the broader Western genre, reinforcing a universal theme that consequences come with actions.[9] Other conventions of the genre include "virility and thus patriarchal rights... secured through public performances of competence; and competence, in turn, is measured and proven in (successful) acts of violence."[13] Taylor Sheridan's filmography includes many examples of what being a neo-Western means.[9]

List of contemporary Westerns edit

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

This list is not exhaustive. It includes major films and television labelled contemporary Western, neo-Western, post-Western, or urban Western. The list highlights the media released to illustrate the development of the concept over time.

Films edit

Television edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b French, Philip (2005). Westerns : aspects of a movie genre ; and, Westerns revisited. Manchester: Carcanet. p. 84. ISBN 1-85754-747-0. OCLC 57484960.
  2. ^ Broughton, Lee (2016-09-19). Critical Perspectives on the Western: From A Fistful of Dollars to Django Unchained. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4422-7243-9.
  3. ^ Teo, Stephen (2017). Eastern westerns : film and genre outside and inside Hollywood. Abingdon, Oxon. ISBN 978-1-317-59226-6. OCLC 968926905.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ^ a b Aquila, Richard (2015). The Sagebrush Trail: Western Movies and Twentieth-Century America. University of Arizona Press. ISBN 9780816531547.
  5. ^ Lusted, David (2003). The Western. Pearson/Longman. ISBN 9780582437364.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Wilt, David A. (1991). Hardboiled in Hollywood. Bowling Green State University Popular Press. ISBN 9780879725259.
  7. ^ Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. pp. 652–653. ISBN 0-19-507678-8.
  8. ^ a b Campbell, Neil (2013). Post-westerns : cinema, region, West. Lincoln. ISBN 978-1-4619-3720-3. OCLC 856584709.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  9. ^ a b c Teti, Julia (January 2, 2018). . The Playlist. Archived from the original on 2020-04-12. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
  10. ^ . News. United States: Local iQ. 2013-03-27. Archived from the original on 2013-04-03. Retrieved 2013-05-31.
  11. ^ Lynley (May 11, 2017). "Westerns, Anti-Westerns, and Neo-Westerns". Slap Happy Larry. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  12. ^ Hale, Mike (January 19, 2015). "A Wry Comedy of Manners in Kentucky Coal Country". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 13, 2023. another gun-happy neo-western, 'Justified' has been true to its Elmore Leonard roots
  13. ^ a b Redding, Aurthur (2016-02-16). "Built Ford Tough: The Sincerity of John Ford and the Persistence of the American Western". In Stoddart, Scott F. (ed.). The New Western: Critical Essays on the Genre Since 9/11. McFarland & Company. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-7864-7928-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  14. ^ Grieve, Laura (August 16, 2023). "Western Round Up: "B" Movie Sampler – Vol.2". Classic Movie Hub.
  15. ^ Tucker, David C. (2018). Gale Storm: A Biography and Career Record. McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers. ISBN 9781476671772.
  16. ^ The New Movies. National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. 1947.
  17. ^ "Springtime in the Sierras (1947)". 10 March 2018.
  18. ^ McVeigh, Stephen (2007). The American Western. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2140-8.
  19. ^ Umland, Rebecca (2016). Outlaw Heroes as Liminal Figures of Film. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-1-4766-2351-1.
  20. ^ a b c Hughes, Howard (2007-10-24). Stagecoach to Tombstone: The Filmgoers' Guide to the Great Westerns. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-0-85773-046-6.
  21. ^ a b c d e f Sherlock, Ben (November 10, 2019). "10 Smartest Neo-Westerns To Watch If You Like No Country For Old Men". Screen Rant. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  22. ^ Pierce-Bohen, Kayleena (January 12, 2023). "The Old Way Is Nicolas Cage's First Western". Screen Rant.
  23. ^ Murray, Noel (December 17, 2021). "With '1883,' Taylor Sheridan Expands His Western Empire". New York Times. Retrieved January 31, 2023. Before Taylor Sheridan became the Academy Award-nominated screenwriter of the 2016 neo-western "Hell or High Water"...
  24. ^ Matheson, Sue (2020-07-31). Women in the Western. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-1-4744-4416-3.
  25. ^ Johnson, Jon (2019-04-19). "'To Hell and Gone': A modern Spaghetti Western that's a pleasure to devour". The Gila Herald. Retrieved 2023-06-21.
  26. ^ Cotter, Padraig (January 7, 2023). "Clint Eastwood's Movie Wish Could Break An Incredible Director Record". Screen Rant.
  27. ^ Young, Kai (January 29, 2023). "Nope's Oscar Snub Makes The Movie's Plot Mirror A Real-Life Issue". Screen Rant.

December 12, 2023
contemporary, western, genre, western, genre, that, includes, contemporary, settings, uses, west, themes, archetypes, motifs, such, rebellious, antihero, open, plains, desert, landscapes, gunfights, this, genre, includes, post, western, western, urban, western. Contemporary Western is a sub genre of the Western genre that includes contemporary settings and uses Old West themes archetypes and motifs such as a rebellious antihero open plains and desert landscapes or gunfights This sub genre includes the post Western neo Western and urban Western genres that include the cowboy cult in a modern setting that involves the audience s feelings and understanding of Western movies 1 A neo Western can be said to use Western themes set in the present day 2 62 According to Stephen Teo in Eastern Westerns Film and Genre Outside and Inside Hollywood there is little difference between the neo Western and post Western and the terms may often be used interchangeably 3 96 Contents 1 Development 2 Neo Westerns setting motif and themes 3 List of contemporary Westerns 3 1 Films 3 2 Television 4 ReferencesDevelopment editAs early as 1929 there was talk about the need for change in western films in order to stay relevant in then modern America Tom Mix Hoot Gibson and Ken Maynard must swap horses for aeroplanes or go to the old actors home However the rise of the contemporary western is credited to two specific reasons 1 contemporary setting enabled the use of a higher number of potential plot ideas which included everything from modern crooks and evil Nazis to high tech cars and machine guns 2 Gene Autry a famous western film star was also a famous singer and performer In order to use his reputation as much as possible Republic Pictures decided that is was the best for Autry to play himself thus moving the films from the Old West into a contemporary setting Some earlier actors such as Ken Maynard and Hoot Gibson sometimes starred in the films featuring modern setting but Autry was the first actor that starred in such films on a regular basis 4 109 Autry s films were also described as crime dramas in contemporary western setting 5 100 Other early examples of the genre were films starring Roy Rogers which included contemporary settings with heavy reliance on traditional western characters and imagery such as Silver Spurs 1943 His films made after 1947 are described as almost without exception modern day adventure films set in the American west 6 90 153 Republic Pictures which distributed a significant number of Autry s and Rogers s films soon specialized in the contemporary Western subgenre an example of which is also Paramount s Texas Rangers Ride Again 1940 6 153 Beginning in the postwar era radio dramas such as Tales of the Texas Rangers 1950 1952 with Joel McCrea a contemporary detective drama set in Texas featured many of the characteristics of traditional Westerns 7 In this period post Western precursors to the modern neo Western films began to appear This includes films such as Nicholas Ray s The Lusty Men 1952 and John Sturges s Bad Day at Black Rock 1955 8 56 Examples of the modern first phase of neo Westerns include films such as Lonely Are the Brave 1962 and Hud 1963 8 324 The popularity of the subgenre has been resurgent since the release of Joel and Ethan Coen s No Country for Old Men 2007 9 The subgenre can also be seen in television in shows such as Breaking Bad According to Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan After the first Breaking Bad episode it started to dawn on me that we could be making a contemporary Western So you see scenes that are like gunfighters squaring off like Clint Eastwood and Lee van Cleef we have Walt and others like that 10 Many space Westerns and science fiction Westerns can be classed within the neo Western genre particularly if the science fiction elements are of secondary importance to the Western characteristics of the plotlines Some well known examples include the original TV series Star Trek 1966 1969 and the Joss Whedon film Serenity 2005 11 Other kinds of science fiction Westerns such as the film Mad Max 1979 have also become popular Neo Westerns setting motif and themes editSome neo Westerns still take place in the American West and reveal the progression of the Old West mentality into the late 20th and early 21st centuries This subgenre often features Old West type characters struggling with displacement in a civilized world that rejects their outdated brand of justice However the contemporary Western need not be limited to the traditional American West setting Coogan s Bluff and Midnight Cowboy are examples of urban Westerns set in New York City 1 148 149 The neo Western television series Justified is set in Eastern Kentucky 12 The neo Western has three identifying themes First is the lack of rules with morals guided by the character s or audience s instincts of right and wrong rather than by governance The second is characters searching for justice The third theme characters feeling remorse connects the neo Western to the broader Western genre reinforcing a universal theme that consequences come with actions 9 Other conventions of the genre include virility and thus patriarchal rights secured through public performances of competence and competence in turn is measured and proven in successful acts of violence 13 Taylor Sheridan s filmography includes many examples of what being a neo Western means 9 List of contemporary Westerns editThis is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources This list is not exhaustive It includes major films and television labelled contemporary Western neo Western post Western or urban Western The list highlights the media released to illustrate the development of the concept over time Films edit Hidden Valley 1932 14 Thunder Over Texas 1934 Under Western Stars 1938 4 114 Texas Rangers Ride Again 1940 15 58 Man from Cheyenne 1942 6 23 Silver Spurs 1943 6 153 Bells of San Angelo 1947 16 19 Springtime in the Sierras 1947 17 North of the Great Divide 1950 6 90 Heart of the Rockies 1951 6 90 South of Caliente 1951 6 90 Pals of the Golden West 1951 6 91 Lonely are the Brave 1962 Midnight Cowboy 1969 Dirty Harry 1971 18 181 19 5 The Getaway 1972 20 Junior Bonner 1972 20 J W Coop 1972 Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia 1974 20 Hearts of the West 1975 Assault on Precinct 13 1976 21 Comes a Horseman 1978 Lone Wolf McQuade 1983 Flashpoint 1984 Extreme Prejudice 1987 Road House 1989 El Mariachi 1992 21 Red Rock West 1993 22 Desperado 1995 Once Upon a Time in Mexico 2003 Lone Star 1996 The Way of the Gun 2000 Down in the Valley 2005 Kill Bill Volume 2 2004 The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada 2005 Brokeback Mountain 2005 21 Don t Come Knocking 2005 No Country for Old Men 2007 Gran Torino 2008 13 17 18 Crazy Heart 2009 Out of the Furnace 2013 Mystery Road 2013 The Rover 2014 Blood Father 2016 Hell or High Water 2016 23 21 Wind River 2017 21 24 Logan 2017 21 To Hell and Gone 2019 25 Cry Macho 2021 26 The Last Victim 2021 Nope 2022 27 Television edit Cade s County 1971 1972 Walker Texas Ranger 1993 2001 Breaking Bad 2008 2013 Sons of Anarchy 2008 2014 Justified 2010 2015 Longmire 2012 2017 Better Call Saul 2015 2022 Mystery Road 2018 present Yellowstone 2018 present Too Old to Die Young 2019 Walker 2021 present Joe Pickett 2021 2023 Outer Range 2022 present Dark Winds 2022 present Justified City Primeval 2023 References edit a b French Philip 2005 Westerns aspects of a movie genre and Westerns revisited Manchester Carcanet p 84 ISBN 1 85754 747 0 OCLC 57484960 Broughton Lee 2016 09 19 Critical Perspectives on the Western From A Fistful of Dollars to Django Unchained Rowman amp Littlefield ISBN 978 1 4422 7243 9 Teo Stephen 2017 Eastern westerns film and genre outside and inside Hollywood Abingdon Oxon ISBN 978 1 317 59226 6 OCLC 968926905 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link a b Aquila Richard 2015 The Sagebrush Trail Western Movies and Twentieth Century America University of Arizona Press ISBN 9780816531547 Lusted David 2003 The Western Pearson Longman ISBN 9780582437364 a b c d e f g h Wilt David A 1991 Hardboiled in Hollywood Bowling Green State University Popular Press ISBN 9780879725259 Dunning John 1998 On the Air The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio Oxford University Press pp 652 653 ISBN 0 19 507678 8 a b Campbell Neil 2013 Post westerns cinema region West Lincoln ISBN 978 1 4619 3720 3 OCLC 856584709 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link a b c Teti Julia January 2 2018 How Taylor Sheridan s Films Define The Neo Western The Playlist Archived from the original on 2020 04 12 Retrieved 2020 04 12 Contemporary Western An interview with Vince Gilligan News United States Local iQ 2013 03 27 Archived from the original on 2013 04 03 Retrieved 2013 05 31 Lynley May 11 2017 Westerns Anti Westerns and Neo Westerns Slap Happy Larry Retrieved 2022 11 10 Hale Mike January 19 2015 A Wry Comedy of Manners in Kentucky Coal Country The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 13 2023 another gun happy neo western Justified has been true to its Elmore Leonard roots a b Redding Aurthur 2016 02 16 Built Ford Tough The Sincerity of John Ford and the Persistence of the American Western In Stoddart Scott F ed The New Western Critical Essays on the Genre Since 9 11 McFarland amp Company p 17 ISBN 978 0 7864 7928 3 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint date and year link Grieve Laura August 16 2023 Western Round Up B Movie Sampler Vol 2 Classic Movie Hub Tucker David C 2018 Gale Storm A Biography and Career Record McFarland Incorporated Publishers ISBN 9781476671772 The New Movies National Board of Review of Motion Pictures 1947 Springtime in the Sierras 1947 10 March 2018 McVeigh Stephen 2007 The American Western Edinburgh University Press ISBN 978 0 7486 2140 8 Umland Rebecca 2016 Outlaw Heroes as Liminal Figures of Film McFarland amp Company ISBN 978 1 4766 2351 1 a b c Hughes Howard 2007 10 24 Stagecoach to Tombstone The Filmgoers Guide to the Great Westerns Bloomsbury Publishing ISBN 978 0 85773 046 6 a b c d e f Sherlock Ben November 10 2019 10 Smartest Neo Westerns To Watch If You Like No Country For Old Men Screen Rant Retrieved January 31 2023 Pierce Bohen Kayleena January 12 2023 The Old Way Is Nicolas Cage s First Western Screen Rant Murray Noel December 17 2021 With 1883 Taylor Sheridan Expands His Western Empire New York Times Retrieved January 31 2023 Before Taylor Sheridan became the Academy Award nominated screenwriter of the 2016 neo western Hell or High Water Matheson Sue 2020 07 31 Women in the Western Edinburgh University Press ISBN 978 1 4744 4416 3 Johnson Jon 2019 04 19 To Hell and Gone A modern Spaghetti Western that s a pleasure to devour The Gila Herald Retrieved 2023 06 21 Cotter Padraig January 7 2023 Clint Eastwood s Movie Wish Could Break An Incredible Director Record Screen Rant Young Kai January 29 2023 Nope s Oscar Snub Makes The Movie s Plot Mirror A Real Life Issue Screen Rant Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Contemporary Western amp oldid 1187697811, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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