The Western

I bought a DVD set (legally) at the mall, where all our worldly needs are satisfied. It contained three movies starring John Wayne namely: Rio Grande, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and The Sons of Katie Elder. Sadly, it did not have Wayne's breakout movie Stagecoach but I figure its a nice set for my small collection of westerns besides the Dollars trilogy.

I like westerns. It's one of my favorite genres. What I like about westerns is the recurring theme of adventure. Set usually during the frontier era of America from 1840 to 1890, the western rose to prominence with the film, The Great Train Robbery and had its golden age in the 1930s. Even before the moving pictures, there were already many legends and tales about frontier life. Think Wild Bill Hickok. The west was a large and untamed land. Many young men and women rode west, as the saying goes, to seek fame and fortune. It's the perfect setting for great stories. It captures the unique spirit of the American's rugged individualism, where a man goes and makes something of himself, tame the land and carve his own path in the world.

Another recurring theme in westerns is the concept of law and order. The frontier was beyond the reach of governments in the cities and urbanized areas. It's the story of the pistol, lawmen and bandits. Westerns touch on the deeper issues on the need for order versus what seems to be the innate brutality and evil of man. It was the law of man versus the law of survival of the fittest. Westerns were almost always simple stories of good versus evil with shades of grey here and there. It was human drama set in the amazing landscapes of America. (or Italy if you know what I mean) It also introduced or popularized many characters and devices that are a staple even until today. The lone gunman, the outlaw, arming the villagers, daring heists, the sharpshooter, the fastest gun in the west etc. Westerns had many breathtaking musical scores as well.

Sometimes, I wish I was a cowboy. I really do.