Top 25 1970's Westerns
by the_beer_hunter | created - 29 Feb 2012 | updated - 11 Jun 2018 | Public- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. The Hired Hand (1971)
R | 90 min | Drama, Western
Harry returns home to his wife and farm after drifting with his friend Arch and has to make a difficult decision regarding his loyalties.
Director: Peter Fonda | Stars: Peter Fonda, Warren Oates, Verna Bloom, Robert Pratt
Votes: 3,793
2. McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
R | 120 min | Drama, Western
A gambler and a prostitute become business partners in a remote Old West mining town, and their enterprise thrives until a large corporation arrives on the scene.
Director: Robert Altman | Stars: Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, Rene Auberjonois, William Devane
Votes: 27,658 | Gross: $8.20M
3. Jeremiah Johnson (1972)
GP | 108 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
A mountain man who wishes to live the life of a hermit becomes the unwilling object of a long vendetta by the Crow tribe and proves to be a match for their warriors in single combat on the early frontier.
Director: Sydney Pollack | Stars: Robert Redford, Will Geer, Delle Bolton, Josh Albee
Votes: 34,992 | Gross: $47.74M
4. Bad Company (1972)
PG | 93 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
A God-fearing Ohio boy dodging the Civil War draft arrives in St. Joseph, MO where he joins up with a hardscrabble group of like runaways heading west
Director: Robert Benton | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Barry Brown, Jim Davis, David Huddleston
Votes: 4,603
5. Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973)
R | 122 min | Biography, Drama, Western
Pat Garrett is hired as a lawman on behalf of a group of wealthy New Mexico cattle barons to bring down his old friend Billy the Kid.
Director: Sam Peckinpah | Stars: James Coburn, Kris Kristofferson, Richard Jaeckel, Katy Jurado
Votes: 21,093 | Gross: $0.95M
6. Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson (1976)
PG | 123 min | Comedy, Drama, Western
A cynical Buffalo Bill hires Sitting Bull to exploit him and add his credibility to the distorted view of history presented in his Wild West Show.
Director: Robert Altman | Stars: Paul Newman, Joel Grey, Kevin McCarthy, Harvey Keitel
Votes: 5,294
7. Man in the Wilderness (1971)
GP | 104 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
Left for dead after a bear attack, a fur-trapper recuperates and pursues his former companions through dangerous Indian territory.
Director: Richard C. Sarafian | Stars: Richard Harris, John Huston, Henry Wilcoxon, Percy Herbert
Votes: 3,477
8. The Shootist (1976)
PG | 100 min | Drama, Romance, Western
A dying gunfighter spends his last days looking for a way to die with a minimum of pain and a maximum of dignity.
Director: Don Siegel | Stars: John Wayne, Lauren Bacall, Ron Howard, James Stewart
Votes: 26,833
9. Heartland (1979)
PG | 96 min | Drama, Western
A widow with a young daughter travels to a ranch in Wyoming to manage the household of a rancher. After a while the man and woman develop a relationship that leads to a marriage. But life in the harsh place takes its toll.
Director: Richard Pearce | Stars: Rip Torn, Conchata Ferrell, Barry Primus, Megan Folsom
Votes: 1,242
10. El Topo (1970)
Not Rated | 125 min | Drama, Western
A mysterious black-clad gunfighter wanders a mystical Western landscape encountering multiple bizarre characters.
Director: Alejandro Jodorowsky | Stars: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Brontis Jodorowsky, José Legarreta, Alfonso Arau
Votes: 31,396 | Gross: $0.04M
11. Kid Blue (1973)
PG | 100 min | Comedy, Crime, Western
At the turn of the century, with the Old West fading away, Texas train robber Kid Blue goes straight and takes a factory job but old habits die hard.
Director: James Frawley | Stars: Dennis Hopper, Warren Oates, Peter Boyle, Ben Johnson
Votes: 812
12. Ulzana's Raid (1972)
R | 103 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
After fierce war chief Ulzana and a small war party jump the reservation bent on murder and terror, an inexperienced young lieutenant is assigned to track him down.
Director: Robert Aldrich | Stars: Burt Lancaster, Bruce Davison, Jorge Luke, Richard Jaeckel
Votes: 6,481
13. Lawman (1971)
R | 99 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
A lawman from Bannock arrives in Sabbath to arrest all the cattlemen whose wild celebration the year before resulted in the accidental death of an old man.
Director: Michael Winner | Stars: Burt Lancaster, Robert Ryan, Lee J. Cobb, Robert Duvall
Votes: 5,905 | Gross: $5.94M
14. Posse (1975)
PG | 92 min | Western
An unscrupulous politico marshal and his deputies chase a gang of train robbers whose leader proves that every man has his price.
Director: Kirk Douglas | Stars: Kirk Douglas, Bruce Dern, Bo Hopkins, James Stacy
Votes: 2,450 | Gross: $0.21M
15. The Cowboys (1972)
GP | 134 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
Rancher Wil Andersen is forced to hire inexperienced boys as cowhands in order to get his herd to market on time but the rough drive is full of dangers and a gang of cattle rustlers is trailing them.
Director: Mark Rydell | Stars: John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce Dern, Colleen Dewhurst
Votes: 15,862 | Gross: $16.35M
16. The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
PG | 135 min | Western
Missouri farmer Josey Wales joins a Confederate guerrilla unit and winds up on the run from the Union soldiers who murdered his family.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Chief Dan George, Bill McKinney
Votes: 79,865 | Gross: $31.80M
17. The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972)
PG | 120 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
In Vinegaroon, Texas, former outlaw Roy Bean appoints himself the judge for the region and dispenses his brand of justice as he sees fit.
Director: John Huston | Stars: Paul Newman, Ava Gardner, Roy Jenson, Gary Combs
Votes: 9,337 | Gross: $16.53M
18. Chato's Land (1972)
PG | 100 min | Drama, Western
In 1870s New Mexico, a half-breed kills a bigoted sheriff in self-defense but the posse that eventually hunts him finds itself in dangerous territory.
Director: Michael Winner | Stars: Charles Bronson, Jack Palance, James Whitmore, Simon Oakland
Votes: 6,265 | Gross: $0.42M
19. Dirty Little Billy (1972)
R | 93 min | Biography, Drama, Western
A more realistic, based-on-reality, unsensationalistic portrayal of the gritty early years of one of the most famous Wild West outlaws in history, Billy the Kid.
Director: Stan Dragoti | Stars: Michael J. Pollard, Richard Evans, Lee Purcell, Charles Aidman
Votes: 607 | Gross: $0.21M
20. Rancho Deluxe (1975)
R | 93 min | Comedy, Romance, Western
Two drifters, of widely varying backgrounds, rustle cattle and try to avoid being caught in contemporary Montana.
Director: Frank Perry | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Sam Waterston, Elizabeth Ashley, Clifton James
Votes: 2,152
21. The Hunting Party (1971)
R | 111 min | Action, Drama, Western
A ruthless rancher and his gang use extremely long range rifles to kill the men who kidnapped his infidel wife.
Director: Don Medford | Stars: Oliver Reed, Candice Bergen, Gene Hackman, Simon Oakland
Votes: 3,420
22. Duck, You Sucker! (1971)
PG | 138 min | Drama, War, Western
A low-life bandit and an I.R.A. explosives expert rebel against the government and become heroes of the Mexican Revolution.
Director: Sergio Leone | Stars: Rod Steiger, James Coburn, Romolo Valli, Maria Monti
Votes: 37,510 | Gross: $0.70M
23. The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid (1972)
PG | 91 min | Drama, Western
The gangs of Jesse James and Cole Younger join forces for a bungled robbery of the bank in Northfield, Minnesota.
Director: Philip Kaufman | Stars: Cliff Robertson, Robert Duvall, Luke Askew, R.G. Armstrong
Votes: 2,391 | Gross: $0.14M
24. A Man Called Horse (1970)
R | 114 min | Adventure, Drama, Western
In 1825, an English aristocrat is captured by Native Americans. He lives with them and begins to understand their way of life. Eventually, he is accepted as part of the tribe and aspires to become their leader.
Director: Elliot Silverstein | Stars: Richard Harris, Judith Anderson, Jean Gascon, Manu Tupou
Votes: 9,363 | Gross: $1.94M
25. Monte Walsh (1970)
PG-13 | 106 min | Western
An aging cowboy realizes that the West he knew and loved will soon be no more--and that there will be no room for him, either.
Director: William A. Fraker | Stars: Lee Marvin, Jeanne Moreau, Jack Palance, Mitchell Ryan
Votes: 3,035
Tell Your Friends