Revisionist Western backdrop

Revisionist Western movies

Westerns that challenge the myth: moral ambiguity, violence consequences, and critique of conquest and power.

The Sisters Brothers

11. The Sisters Brothers

Western Drama Comedy Revisionist Western Historical Drama
6.9

20182h 1min

France, Spain

Director: Jacques Audiard

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.

Llewelyn Moss stumbles upon dead bodies, $2 million and a hoard of heroin in a Texas desert, but methodical killer Anton Chigurh comes looking for it, with local sheriff Ed Tom Bell hot on his trail. The roles of prey and predator blur as the violent pursuit of money and justice collide.

Themes

Fate vs choice, Money as motive, Moral ambiguity of justice, Violence and inevitability, Solitary pursuit vs institutions

Available on

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

Brimstone

13. Brimstone

Thriller Western Drama Revenge Thriller Revisionist Western
7.0

20162h 28min

Belgium, France

Director: Martin Koolhoven

In the menacing inferno of the old North-American West, Liz is a genuine survivor who is hunted by a vengeful preacher for a crime she didn’t commit.

Themes

Trauma and resilience, Silence and communication, Gendered violence and exploitation, Religious coercion and violence, Survival under persecution, Retributive justice

Available on

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

Bone Tomahawk

14. Bone Tomahawk

Western Horror Drama Revisionist Western Folk Horror
7.1

20152h 13min

United States, United Kingdom

Director: S. Craig Zahler

During a shootout in a saloon, Sheriff Hunt injures a suspicious stranger. The doctor's assistant, wife of the local foreman, tends to him in prison. That night, the town is attacked and they both disappear—only the arrow of a cannibal tribe is found. Hunt and a few of his men go in search of the prisoner and the foreman's wife.

Themes

Trust under threat, Survival under siege, Violence as necessity, Frontier lawlessness, Cultural collision, Grit under isolation

Available on

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

The Magnificent Seven

15. The Magnificent Seven

Adventure Action Western Epic Action Revisionist Western
6.9

20162h 12min

United States

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Looking to mine for gold, greedy industrialist Bartholomew Bogue seizes control of the Old West town of Rose Creek. With their lives in jeopardy, Emma Cullen and other desperate residents turn to bounty hunter Sam Chisolm for help. Chisolm recruits an eclectic group of gunslingers to take on Bogue and his ruthless henchmen. With a deadly showdown on the horizon, the seven mercenaries soon find themselves fighting for more than just money once the bullets start to fly.

Themes

Loyalty under pressure, Power and exploitation, Frontier justice under siege, Greed vs community, Collective defense dynamics, Moral ambiguity under violence

Available on

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

True Grit

16. True Grit

Drama Adventure Western Revisionist Western Adventure Epic
7.6

20101h 50min

United States

Director: Joel Coen

Following the murder of her father by a hired hand, a 14-year-old farm girl sets out to capture the killer. To aid her, she hires the toughest U.S. Marshal she can find—a man with 'true grit'—Reuben J. 'Rooster' Cogburn.

Themes

Loss and resilience, Legacy and memory, Betrayal and shifting loyalties, Brittle alliances under pressure, Frontier justice dynamics, Alcoholism and decision making

Available on

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

El Infierno

17. El Infierno

Action Crime Western Comedy Drama
7.6

20102h 28min

Mexico

Director: Luis Estrada

After being deported back to Mexico, a man has no choice but to join the vicious drug cartel that has corrupted his hometown in order to survive.

Themes

Loyalty under duress, Deception within criminal networks, Cycles of violence, Family obligation under crime, Corruption and power, Survival in a border town

Available on

Amazon Video
fuboTV
YouTube
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Slow West

18. Slow West

Western Drama Thriller Adventure Romance
6.9

20151h 24min

Australia, New Zealand

Director: John Maclean

In the Old West, a 17-year-old Scottish boy teams up with a mysterious gunman to find the woman with whom he is infatuated.

Themes

Deception and disguise, Isolation and belonging, Loyalty under threat, Frontier violence, Pursuit and protection of loved ones, Vengeance and its costs

Available on

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

Lawless

19. Lawless

Crime Drama Western Organized Crime Historical Drama
7.2

20121h 55min

United States

Director: John Hillcoat

In 1931, the Bondurant brothers of Franklin County, Virginia, run a multipurpose backwoods establishment that hides their true business — bootlegging. Middle brother Forrest is the brain of the operation; older Howard is the brawn, and younger Jack, the lookout. Though the local police have taken bribes and left the brothers alone, a violent war erupts when a sadistic lawman from Chicago arrives and tries to shut down the Bondurants operation.

Themes

Loyalty under pressure, Violence as control, Corruption and bribery, Prohibition era crime, Front business deception, Transition to legitimacy

Available on

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

Rango

20. Rango

Animation Comedy Family Western Adventure
7.3

20111h 52min

United States, United Kingdom

Director: Gore Verbinski

When Rango, a lost family pet, accidentally winds up in the gritty, gun-slinging town of Dirt, the less-than-courageous lizard suddenly finds he stands out. Welcomed as the last hope the town has been waiting for, new Sheriff Rango is forced to play his new role to the hilt.

Themes

Deception and manipulation, Resource scarcity dynamics, Outsider adaptation, Performative leadership, Communal vigilance, Frontier justice and authority, Water politics

Available on

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