This article contains discussions of violence and assault.
Western movies have a reputation for featuring gun-slinging heroes and the triumph of good versus evil, but there are many additions to the genre that are much darker than viewers realize. Though violence and gore are two common elements in grim films that break out of the traditional Western formulas, there are many ways for a movie to earn the title of “messed up.” Almost all of these projects are deeply critical of the Western genre and use their uncomfortable and bleak narratives to question the idealism and celebration of individuality at the heart of so many Western movies.
You are watching: 10 Most Messed Up Westerns Ever Made
In sharp contrast to feel-good Western movies that don’t get too violent, these films are blood-soaked and brutal, leaving the audience shocked and sometimes a little bit sick to their stomach. However, it’s not always the intention of the filmmakers to leave the viewer astounded. More often, the ultimate goal of these films is to make us think about what the Western genre is for and how violence is used differently onscreen. Whether the controversies surrounding some of these movies were a product of their time or an enduring factor, they all make an impact and spark conversation.
10
Bone Tomahawk (2015)
Directed by S. Craig Zahler
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Bone Tomahawk
Not Rated
Western
Adventure
Documentary
Horror
Thriller
30
8.6/10
Release Date
October 23, 2015
Runtime
132 minutes
Cast
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-
Patrick Wilson
-
Kurt Russell
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One of the best cannibal movies of all time, Bone Tomahawk is a grotesque film that leans into the inherently troubling nature of its story. Though the film takes its time establishing the story and the characters’ world, once it gets to the meat of the violence and narrative, the tense atmosphere becomes a constant aspect of the movie. Starring Kurt Russell and Patrick Wilson as two men who fall into the hands of a band of isolated cannibals, Bone Tomahawk puts their characters through a lot.
As much a horror movie as it is a Western, Bone Tomahawk doesn’t have the typical heroic archetypes or shootouts that typically define the genre.
As much a horror movie as it is a Western, Bone Tomahawk doesn’t have the typical heroic archetypes or shootouts that typically define the genre. The violence and gore are up close and personal in Bone Tomahawk, making it difficult to watch and impossible to look away from. Bone Tomahawk drew some criticism for the level of violence shown onscreen, but overall, it’s considered a cohesive project that shines thanks to the performances and attention to detail in the world-building.
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Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
Bone Tomahawk (2015) |
91% |
74% |
9
High Plains Drifter (1973)
Directed by Clint Eastwood
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High Plains Drifter
R
Western
Release Date
April 6, 1973
Runtime
105 Minutes
Cast
See All
-
Clint Eastwood
-
Verna Bloom
-
Mariana Hill
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Clint Eastwood is known for playing sweeping heroes and morally ambiguous gunslingers, but in High Plains Drifter, there’s little question that he portrays a terrifying villain. His character, The Stranger, is a notorious figure in Western history, as he’s not elevated to the point of messiah or hero by the film because of his brutal actions. However, High Plains Drifter doesn’t truly punish him either. The film uses The Stranger as a tool to discuss the pitfalls of the genre.
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Eastwood directed High Plains Drifter and starred in it, which demonstrates the filmmaker’s depth of understanding of the Western genre. It’s clear in High Plains Drifter that he’s already critical of the concept of the lonely hero tumbling into town to get the girl and save the day. Through the visual language of the story, the audience is meant to understand that while the people The Stranger is fighting against aren’t in the right, neither is The Stranger. There are no heroes in High Plains Drifter.
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Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
High Plains Drifter (1973) |
94% |
86% |
8
Soldier Blue (1970)
Directed by Ralph Nelson
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Soldier Blue
R
Western
Action
Drama
Release Date
August 12, 1970
Runtime
112 minutes
Cast
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-
Candice Bergen
Kathy Maribel Lee, ‘Cresta’
-
Peter Strauss
Honus Gent
-
Donald Pleasence
Isaac Q. Cumber
-
John Anderson
Col. Iverson
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When watching Soldier Blue today, it’s easy to draw comparisons between the Western narrative and the contemporaneous issues of the Vietnam War. It’s a controversial piece of cinema history, as it’s deeply critical of the heroic concept of the American West that the U.S. media often portrays, as well as the horrible and violent treatment of Indigenous Americans. However, at the same time, Soldier Blue showcases brutal and graphic acts of violence, particularly against the very groups of people it’s supposedly trying to uplift and support.
The result is a clumsy attempt at cultural and political critique of the past and present that’s best remembered for its shocking gore rather than its messaging.
The result is a clumsy attempt at cultural and political critique of the past and present that’s best remembered for its shocking gore rather than its messaging. Though the fact that Soldier Blue was so cutting in its discussion of Western themes and American idealism makes it ahead of its time, its tactics are difficult to stomach. Almost every major conflict and source of action in the story is the result of extreme violence against Indigenous Americans.
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Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
Soldier Blue (1970) |
38% |
71% |
7
The Proposition (2005)
Directed by John Hillcoat
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The Proposition
R
Crime
Drama
Western
10/10
Release Date
September 12, 2005
Runtime
104 Minutes
Cast
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-
Guy Pearce
-
Ray Winstone
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Guy Pearce gives an arresting performance in The Proposition, an Australian Western that questions the importance of family and duty. His character, Charlie, is forced to turn one of his brothers into the law in exchange for the other’s life, and at first, this choice seems simple. However, his journey quickly becomes much more complicated, as he finds his older brother in a comprising and dangerous position and realizes that there are different kinds of outlaws and that his moral line might not be the same as his brother’s.
Largely considered one of the strongest Western movies of the 21st century, The Proposition doesn’t give the audience a clear hero or stand-in. For a movie so readily grim and violent, The Proposition received almost universal praise because it deals with these aspects of the story with so much nuance. Even when the narrative grows uncomfortable and difficult to watch, there’s never a sense that The Proposition is being gratuitous or trying to shock the viewer.
|
Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
The Proposition (2005) |
86% |
85% |
6
El Topo (1970)
Directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky
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El Topo
Western
Release Date
December 18, 1970
Runtime
124 Minutes
Cast
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-
Alejandro Jodorowsky
-
Brontis Jodorowsky
-
Mara Lorenzio
-
David Silva
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At once deeply spiritual and sadistically amoral, El Topo is demonstrative of the contradictions and over-the-top imagery that would come to define Alejandro Jodorowsky as a filmmaker. Also known for The Holy Mountain, one of the most visually stunning fantasy movies of all time, Jodorowsky would always be interested in the juxtaposition of the holy and transcendental with the basest and most brutal acts human beings are capable of. Following the central character on his quest, El Topo has never ceased sparking conversation.
This makes the film a true product of his vision, which is clearly in conversation with many surrealist and uncomfortable elements.
Jodorowsky stars as the titular character, El Topo, and wrote the film. This makes the film a true product of his vision, which is clearly in conversation with many surrealist and uncomfortable elements. There are acts of sexual and physical violence throughout El Topo that serve the larger purpose of the story, but they tread a fine line and can easily be interpreted as shock and brutality for the sake of it. However, this is where Jodorowsky was the most comfortable as a filmmaker and helped cement the movie’s longevity.
|
Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
El Topo (1970) |
80% |
84% |
5
Cut-Throats Nine (1972)
Directed by Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent
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The Wild Bunch
R
Action
Drama
Western
Release Date
June 18, 1969
Runtime
135 Minutes
Cast
See All
-
William Holden
-
Ernest Borgnine
-
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Robert Ryan
-
Edmond O’Brien
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One of the many Spaghetti Western movies with horror elements, Cut-Throats Nine, doesn’t hold back from its grim and gritty motifs. Cut-Throats Nine came out when Spaghetti Westerns were at the height of their popularity, but Joaquín Luis Romero Marchent’s wasn’t the standard fare that audiences were used to. Unlike some of the most prominent installments of the genre, like the Dollars Trilogy, Cut-Throats Nine doesn’t give the viewer many characters to root for and fosters an enduring sense of terror and tension.
One of the words that comes up most often when discussing Cut-Throats Nine is bleak, as it follows a wagon train carrying a group of terrifying criminals who are essentially set free and begin to terrorize their captors. However, even the most vicious moments in Cut-Throats Nine are colored by the clever stylistic choices that help demonstrate the larger conversations of the Spaghetti Western. Though there’s more to Cut-Throats Nine than meets the eye, the movie can also easily be enjoyed as a blood-splattered thriller that captures the audience’s attention.
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Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
Cut-Throats Nine (1972) |
N/A |
53% |
4
The Wild Bunch (1969)
Directed by Sam Peckinpah
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The Wild Bunch
R
Action
Drama
Western
Release Date
June 18, 1969
Runtime
135 Minutes
Cast
See All
-
William Holden
-
Ernest Borgnine
-
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Robert Ryan
-
Edmond O’Brien
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Sam Peckinpah’s seminal Western classic, The Wild Bunch, might be considered mandatory viewing for Western fans, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have some messed up moments. By today’s standards, The Wild Bunch‘s violence and unabashed cruelty might not seem as controversial. However, at the time of its release, the movie sparked a lot of conversation about the use of brutality onscreen. In some ways, The Wild Bunch acts as a precursor for self-aware Westerns like Unforgiven, as the film tackles the struggles of older outlaws who can’t understand the world.
By the end of the story, The Wild Bunch has justified its overt violence through the complexities of its message.
The Wild Bunch is a great example of how a Western can tackle relevant themes of violence and make its characters unlikeable while still aging well. Though the men the film focuses on are unscrupulous in their attempts to find their place in the world and satisfy their greed, it’s compelling to watch how far they’ll go to achieve these fading dreams. By the end of the story, The Wild Bunch has justified its overt violence through the complexities of its message.
|
Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
The Wild Bunch (1969) |
91% |
90% |
3
Brimstone (2016)
Directed by Martin Koolhoven
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Brimstone
R
Western
Mystery
Thriller
Drama
Release Date
March 12, 2016
Runtime
148 minutes
Cast
See All
-
Dakota Fanning
Liz
-
Guy Pearce
The Reverend
-
Carice van Houten
Anna
-
Kit Harington
Samuel
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Brimstone unfolds in four different sections out of chronological order, slowly revealing to the audience the depth of the twisted story. Dakota Fanning leads the cast as Liz, a young woman terrorized by a cruel and vicious Reverend, played by Guy Pearce. It’s a sadistic story that only becomes more gruesome as the plot progresses and the viewer pieces together the different parts of Liz’s life that led her to be pursued and tormented by the Reverend as she tries to establish a safe and normal life.
Filled with violence and many taboo subjects like incest, Brimstone draws out the narrative and forces the audience to sit with the horrible imagery onscreen, even when it begins to be too much to bear. At times, the twists and turns of Brimstone border on completely unbelievable, but the movie continuously anchors itself in the brutal physicality of the story’s beats. As a character, Liz is abused and put through true torture, making it easy to call Brimstone an exploitation film.
|
Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
Brimstone (2016) |
45% |
54% |
2
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)
Directed by William A. Wellman
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The Ox-Bow Incident
Drama
Western
Release Date
May 21, 1943
Runtime
75 Minutes
Cast
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-
Henry Fonda
-
Dana Andrews
-
Mary Beth Hughes
-
Anthony Quinn
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Even though The Ox-Bow Incident is an earlier addition to the Western genre, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a clear and harsh message about its themes. The Ox-Bow Incident demonstrates the power and terror of mob mentality and how these instances of people taking their law into their own hands are driven by discrimination and fear. Throughout the film, the viewer hopes that the characters might come to their senses and be shaken from the terror of their actions, but The Ox-Bow Incident doesn’t pull any punches.
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Though plenty of Western movies haven’t stood the test of time, these films have retained their status as great Oscar-nominated movies.
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Starring Henry Fonda, Dana Andrews, and Harry Morgan, three prominent stars of the time, The Ox-Bow Incident is a stark, tense drama that has none of the thrilling excitement typically used to balance these complex and upsetting themes. It’s hard to watch The Ox-Bow Incident at times, but it’s easy to respect that film for the stance it takes and the fact that a film this unabashedly critical of the Western genre was made. The slow pace and continuous emotional appeals from the characters make the killings at the heart of the story all the more impactful.
|
Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943) |
92% |
91% |
1
The Power Of The Dog (2021)
Directed by Jane Campion
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The Power of the Dog
R
Western
Drama
8/10
7.7/10
Release Date
November 17, 2021
Runtime
126 minutes
Cast
See All
-
Frances Conroy
-
Jesse Plemons
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There are far too few Western movies directed by women, but Jane Campion helmed one of the best contemporary additions to the genre released in the 2020s. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Jesse Plemons, and Kirsten Dunst, the ensemble cast does a tremendous job carrying the harrowing story at the heart of The Power of the Dog. While Western films have long been interrogating the issues of individualism and the effects of being forced to adhere to traditional and often toxic standards of masculinity, The Power of the Dog goes even further.
Just when the viewer starts to believe that the characters might be letting their guards down and accepting the contrasting facets of their identities, this hopeful future comes crashing down with a vengeance. Deeply in conversation with the repressive nature of the so-called wild and free American West, The Power of the Dog questions what the Western genre tells us about ourselves and how damaging it is to suffocate aspects of yourself and others.
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Title |
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|
The Power of the Dog (2021) |
94% |
76% |
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Category: Entertainment