Western backdrop

Western movies

Tales of the American frontier, outlaws, and lawmen, set against the rugged backdrop of the Wild West.

Subgenres include: Classic Western, Revisionist Western, Spaghetti Western.

First Cow

1. First Cow

Drama Western Historical Drama Revisionist Western
7.1
20202h 2min

Overview

In the 1820s, a taciturn loner and skilled cook travels west to Oregon Territory, where he meets a Chinese immigrant also seeking his fortune. Soon the two team up on a dangerous scheme to steal milk from the wealthy landowner’s prized Jersey cow – the first, and only, in the territory.

Themes

Secrecy and deception, Frontier class tension, Immigrant aspiration and risk, Craft-based livelihood, Mutual reliance under pressure, Wealth and crime dynamics

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

True History of the Kelly Gang

2. True History of the Kelly Gang

Crime Drama Western Thriller Organized Crime
6.0
20192h 5min

Overview

Set against the badlands of Australia where the English rule with a bloody fist and the Irish endure, Ned Kelly discovers he comes from a line of Irish rebels — an uncompromising army of cross dressing bandits immortalised for terrorising their oppressors back in Ireland. Fuelled by the unfair arrest of his mother, Kelly recruits a wild bunch of warriors to plot one of the most audacious attacks of anarchy and rebellion the country has ever seen.

Themes

Colonial oppression, Bushranger identity, Cross dressing resistance, Irish rebels solidarity, Enduring loyalty under pressure, Australian bush setting

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Bacurau

3. Bacurau

Mystery Western Thriller Revisionist Western Political Thriller
7.3
20192h 11min

Overview

Bacurau, a small town in the Brazilian sertão, mourns the loss of its matriarch, Carmelita, who lived to be 94. Days later, its inhabitants notice that their community has vanished from most maps.

Themes

Autonomy under pressure, Grassroots resistance, Water-rights conflict, Transsexuality and autonomy, Colonialism and resource control, Backcountry isolation

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Deadwood: The Movie

4. Deadwood: The Movie

Western Drama Modern Western Historical Drama
7.3
20191h 50min

Overview

Follow the 10-year reunion of the Deadwood camp to celebrate South Dakota's statehood. Former rivalries are reignited, alliances are tested and old wounds are reopened, as all are left to navigate the inevitable changes that modernity and time have wrought.

Themes

Loyalty under pressure, Deception and influence, Violence as negotiation, Land investment leverage, Frontier authority vs capital, Rivalries reemerge

Available on

Amazon Video
HBO Max
HBO Max Amazon Channel
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Never Grow Old

5. Never Grow Old

Western Revisionist Western
6.0
20191h 41min

Overview

An Irish undertaker profits when outlaws take over a peaceful town, but his own family come under threat as the death toll increases dramatically.

Themes

Outsider vs community, Greed and violence, Religion and control, Frontier lawlessness, Moral policing, Family under siege

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Kid

6. The Kid

Western Drama Action Modern Western Historical Drama
5.9
20191h 40min

Overview

New Mexico Territory, 1880. Rio Cutler and his older sister Sara must abandon their home after an unfortunate event happens. In their desperate flee to Santa Fe, they cross paths with the infamous outlaw Billy the Kid and his gang, who are ruthlessly pursued by a posse led by Sheriff Pat Garret.

Themes

"movie: the kid. genres: western, Drama, Action, Western, Drama, Action main themes: sheriff, Based on true story, Posse, Sheriff, Based on true story, Posse full keywords list: sheriff, Based on true story, Posse, Outlaw gang, 19th century, Pat garrett, New mexico territory, Brother sister relationship. concept analysis: the film explores the themes of familial loyalty and the quest for redemption in a harsh and unforgiving world. it highlights the struggle between good and evil within individuals, Emphasizing that even in the face of trauma, Hope and resilience can prevail."

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

7. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Western Comedy Drama Music Mystery
7.2
20182h 12min

Overview

Vignettes weaving together the stories of six individuals in the old West at the end of the Civil War. Following the tales of a sharp-shooting songster, a wannabe bank robber, two weary traveling performers, a lone gold prospector, a woman traveling the West to an uncertain future, and a motley crew of strangers undertaking a carriage ride.

Themes

Economic precarity, Frontier precariousness, Loyalty and debt, Spectacle for profit, Mass entertainment ethics, Fate and chance

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Nightingale

8. The Nightingale

Drama Thriller Western Historical Drama Revenge Thriller
7.3
20182h 16min

Overview

In 1825, Clare, a 21-year-old Irish convict, chases a British soldier through the rugged Tasmanian wilderness, bent on revenge for a terrible act of violence he committed against her family. She enlists the services of an Aboriginal tracker who is also marked by trauma from his own violence-filled past.

Themes

Trauma and resilience, Cross-cultural alliance, Colonial violence, Frontier brutality and survival, Gendered oppression

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Sisters Brothers

9. The Sisters Brothers

Western Drama Comedy Revisionist Western Historical Drama
6.9
20182h 1min

Overview

Oregon, 1851. Hermann Kermit Warm, a chemist and aspiring gold prospector, keeps a profitable secret that the Commodore wants to know, so he sends the Sisters brothers, two notorious assassins, to capture him on his way to California.

Themes

Loyalty under pressure, Betrayal and deception, Wealth and violence, Power dynamics and alliance, Frontier survival ethics

Available on

Apple TV
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Overview

Lizzy is a tough, resourceful frontierswoman settling a remote stretch of land on the 19th-century American frontier. Isolated from civilization in a desolate wilderness where the wind never stops howling, she begins to sense a sinister presence that seems to be borne of the land itself, and when a newlywed couple arrive at a nearby homestead, their presence amplifies Lizzy's fears, setting into motion a shocking chain of events.

Themes

"movie: the wind. genres: horror, Mystery, Western, Horror, Mystery, Western main themes: based on novel or book, Isolation, Pregnancy, Based on novel or book, Isolation, Pregnancy full keywords list: based on novel or book, Isolation, Pregnancy, Paranoia, Supernatural, Frontier, Remake, Madness, Reverend, Still birth, 19th century, Plains, Prairie madness. concept analysis: the film explores the psychological impacts of isolation and the descent into madness that can occur when fear and jealousy take hold. it serves as a commentary on the human psyche's vulnerability in the face of overwhelming loneliness and supernatural dread."

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.