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The Greatest Westerns Ever Made, According to IMDb Ratings

The Greatest Westerns Ever Made, According to IMDb Ratings

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The Western is one of the all-time classic film genres and one that perhaps hasn’t gotten its fair due in recent years. From the earliest days of film straight through the Golden Age of Hollywood and into the 1970s, the Western was one of the most popular types of film to hit the silver screen, and even though the rate at which they’re being made has slowed down considerably since then, the best-rated Westerns of all time encompass ones from the 1930s straight through to the modern era.

The greatest Westerns of all time are also up there with the greatest films of all time, period. Unlike other genres, however, all great Westerns tend to have some hallmarks and common characteristics. The iconic landscape of the American West is usually a character unto itself, playing a crucial role in establishing the atmosphere and mood of the film. There’s great cinematography and visual storytelling, usually involving sweeping vistas and intense close-ups. Well-developed characters, whether they’re heroic cowboys, ruthless outlaws, or complex antiheroes, drive the narrative and create the film’s emotional core. The lines between right and wrong might be blurred, with the characters navigating a morally ambiguous world. There’s also no shortage of action and adventure, with gunfights, showdowns, and maybe a chase on horseback or two. With all of these elements combined, there’s no mystery as to why the Old West is the setting for so many great films.

To compile a list of the top-rated Westerns of all time, 24/7 Tempo analyzed comprehensive user rating data from IMDb, with movies ranked according to their current average rating on the platform.

These films might all be as different as can be, but they’re all truly great Westerns. And if you’re looking for another classic genre, these are the greatest spy movies of all time.

20. Stagecoach (1939)

Source: Courtesy of United Artists

Source: Courtesy of United Artists
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: John Wayne, Claire Trevor, Andy Devine

19. Tombstone (1993)

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliott

18. The Searchers (1956)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles

17. The Hateful Eight (2015)

Source: Courtesy of The Weinstein Company

Source: Courtesy of The Weinstein Company
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh

16. The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Chief Dan George

15. Red River (1948)

Source: Courtesy of United Artists

Source: Courtesy of United Artists
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Joanne Dru

14. A Fistful of Dollars (1964)

Source: Courtesy of United Artists

Source: Courtesy of United Artists
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.9 out of 10
  • Main cast: Clint Eastwood, Gian Maria Volontè, Marianne Koch

13. The Wild Bunch (1969)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros./Seven Arts

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros./Seven Arts
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.9 out of 10
  • Main cast: William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan

12. The Big Country (1958)

Source: Courtesy of United Artists

Source: Courtesy of United Artists
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 7.9 out of 10
  • Main cast: Gregory Peck, Jean Simmons, Carroll Baker

11. The Ox-Bow Incident (1942)

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews, Mary Beth Hughes

10. Dances with Wolves (1990)

Source: Courtesy of Orion Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Orion Pictures
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene

9. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox

Source: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Katharine Ross

8. Rio Bravo (1959)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8 out of 10
  • Main cast: John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson

7. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.1 out of 10
  • Main cast: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles

6. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.2 out of 10
  • Main cast: Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt

5. Unforgiven (1992)

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Source: Courtesy of Warner Bros.
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.2 out of 10
  • Main cast: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman

4. For a Few Dollars More (1965)

Source: Courtesy of United Artists

Source: Courtesy of United Artists
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.2 out of 10
  • Main cast: Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Gian Maria Volontè

3. Django Unchained (2012)

Source: Courtesy of The Weinstein Company

Source: Courtesy of The Weinstein Company
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.5 out of 10
  • Main cast: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio

2. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Source: Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.5 out of 10
  • Main cast: Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Claudia Cardinale

1. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)

Source: Courtesy of United Artists

Source: Courtesy of United Artists
  • Avg. IMDb rating: 8.8 out of 10
  • Main cast: Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, Lee Van Cleef

If modern movies are more your thing, here are the 40 best modern Westerns.

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