by John Devera

Created on: August 21, 2008

The Western is the truly most significant film genre created in America. Its requirements are simple: 1) It must in some way depict the Western states of the United States, 2) It must be a period piece depicting the nineteenth century. Given that we have the singing cowboy Western, the cowboy and indian Western, the spaghetti Western, the Comedy Western, the socially conscious Western and even the contemporary Western. So how should one choose the best of the best? Well, there are certain elements that make a Western film great: an exciting and memorable plot, formidable acting prowess, beautiful cinematography and brilliant direction. Now it's easier to weed out the best from the rest. Here are the best Western movies ever made.

5. Unforgiven, directed by Clint Eastwood, 1992. Eastwood cut his teeth on Westerns before he became famous as Dirty Harry. Don't neglect to catch him crooning "I Talk to the Trees," in Paint Your Wagon. But after a long and glorious career as an actor, the man decided to produce, direct and star in a film about an aging gunfighter who decides to take up an offer of lots of money to avenge the horrible attack that scars a prostitute. Morgan Freeman joins him. They are confronted with a brutally law-an-order sheriff played by Gene Hackman. This is a film about redemption, sacrifice, integrity, and justice. Eastwood's reverberating line, "Deserve's got nothing to do with it," is one of the finest moments in film history, destined to be placed right next to, "You've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?" Four Academy Awards, including a Best Picture, grace this film.

4. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, directed by Sergio Leone, 1966. You really can't talk for very long about Westerns without mentioning Sergio Leone, the king supreme of the spaghetti western. These films out of Italy were generally pretty bad, but this film was art. Quentin Tarantino calls it the finest directed film of all time. It is about three men searching for treasure, but they each have only a part of the information they need to get it. Eli Wallach's character, "The Ugly," Tuco, is really the star of this film. We discover all about him. Clint Eastwood's, "The Good," Blondie, and Lee Van Cleef's, "The Bad," Angel Eyes, are both mysteries. Leone gives us an exciting story, amazing action and some of the best movie cinematography ever seen.

3. The Magnificent Seven, directed by John Sturges, 1960. This famous film is a really entertaining

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