by Ted Sherman

Created on: September 20, 2008

Best Western movies of all time, according to this old fan, were made at least a generation ago, long before anyone worried about bigotry, sociological considerations and, quite frankly, deep thinking about being deep. Although many thinkers since have found hidden political agendas in some of the Westerns, I just like to sit back and enjoy them for what they are: great entertainment.

1. High Noon (1952) is considered the one of best Westerns ever for several reasons. First, it stars the lank, craggy Gary Cooper in the sunset of his long career, and his quietly brave Marshal Will Kane is a masterpiece of casting and acting. Additionally, the story line, which actually is a morality tale, is so starkly simple, the viewer can't help following every dramatic step.

The marshal, hero of the town for cleaning it up, is told that his deadly enemy, Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald) is on his way with three gunmen to kill Kane. The marshal and his new bride, Amy Fowler (Grace Kelly) leave on their honeymoon, but Kane feels he must return to face the bad guys. When Kane goes to his deputy and various man of the town asking for help, each turns him down for fear of being killed with him.

There's an hour or more of Kane pacing, tense waiting and ticking of the clock until Miller and his gang arrive on the noon train. The film ends with a ferocious gunfight. Kane manages to kill two of the gunmen, but as he's being cornered in a store, the third is suddenly shot in the back. It was Kane's loyal wife, Amy, who did it, but Frank Miller grabs her and threatens to kill Amy if Kane doesn't stand and be shot. She breaks free and kills Miller.

Then, as the townspeople come running to praise Kane, he glares at them in disgust, grinds his marshal's badge in the dust and rides off with his loving wife.

2. Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) is not really a western in the usual cowboy shoot-'em-up sense, although there is enough gunplay to satisfy the rabid western fan. It is the tale of three down-and-out prospectors in the early 20th Century who find gold in Mexico's Sierra Madre Mountains.

The scruffy anti-hero is Fred C. Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart), a blustering tramp who teams up with old-timer Howard (Walter Houston) and young friend, Bob Curtin (Tim Holt). After heavy work on the mountain and fighting off bandits, they agree to divide the gold into three equal shares. However, Fred's normally suspicious mind slips into paranoia, and while Howard is on a medical mission to a nearby Indian

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