John Carpenter is a big fan of Westerns and once listed his ten favorites. While Carpenter grew up loving horror and sci-fi, he was also a devotee of Westerns. On more than one occasion, he claimed he became a filmmaker to direct Westerns, but by the time he broke through in the '70s, the genre had all but died. Instead, he infused his own work with influences from the genre. Assault On Precinct 13 remade Rio Bravo, in essence, which was a seminal film for Carpenter.
Escape From New York's outlaw Snake Plisskin (Kurt Russell) would be at home in any number of Spaghetti Westerns, while Vampires and Ghosts Of Mars are "Oaters" in all but name. Sadly, Carpenter himself never made a Western despite his love for them. He developed numerous screenplays like El Diablo to direct. That one didn't happen as it was deemed too expensive in the early '80s, but it was later produced by other filmmakers as a TV movie. He also circled Tombstone and the historical Western The Bloody Benders, the latter of which was never produced.
1. Rio Bravo (1959)
Rio Bravo is a favorite of Tarantino and many other filmmakers, and it's little wonder it's Carpenter's personal favorite. He labeled it to Neon Magazine (via Reddit) "The greatest Western ever made," and states the central theme is about a man - Dean Martin's Dude - reclaiming his self-respect. Rio Bravo was produced as a rebuttal to High Noon, which Wayne and director Howard Hawks hated. The influence of Rio Bravo is all over Carpenter's career, from its dialogue right down to the morality of its heroes. Carpenter's worldview as a director is a little bleaker than Hawks, but there's a filmmaking kinship between them.
2. Once Upon A Time In The West (1968)
The next entry on John Carpenter's favorite Westerns is Sergio Leone's Sergio Leone movie's art direction and the use of star Charles Bronson's "rugged" face. The film itself is littered with iconic sequences and lines, including the famed introduction to Bronson's "Harmonica" at a train station. For fans of the genre, Once Upon A Time In The West - which future horror master Dario Argento co-wrote - is a must-watch.
3. The Searchers (1956)
Searchers - which was one of Wayne's own favorites - and that while it's about the myth of the West, it also explores the darkness and racism of that period. Says the director, "It's so much of the American character. We're a******* and we don't apologize for it."
4. Red River (1948)
Another Hawks' Western, Red River details the tension that brews between a ruthless cattle baron (John Wayne) and his crew during a cattle drive. Red River is considered another classic by the director and features one of Wayne's most complex characters. Carpenter praises Wayne's work as the borderline evil protagonist Dunson, who makes life hell for everyone. Carpenter also dubs Red River a "Greek tragedy" of sorts and likens the story's grueling cattle drive to working on a movie.
5. The Wild Bunch (1968)
Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch is one of the most nihilistic Westerns ever produced, and follows a gang of aging bandits as they realize the old west - and their way of life - is rapidly coming to an end. The Wild Bunch's - which Mel Gibson might remake - use of violence and slow motion revolutionized the genre, and in a strange meta twist, appeared to mark the end of the Western's former dominance. It's an amazing piece of work, with Carpenter seeing it as a "highly romantic movie," even if there's not a common reading. The central gang might be thieves but their loyalty to one another is just about their only real redeeming feature.
6. Stagecoach (1939)
John Ford's Stagecoach was the movie that made Wayne a movie star, after years of tolling on low-budget b-movies. Stagecoach is more of an ensemble, where a disparate group of characters bond in the titular stagecoach while riding through dangerous territory. While quite dated to modern eyes, Stagecoach was nonetheless a landmark for the genre and is regarded as a turning point for the genre. Carpenter states of Wayne's own favorite film Stagecoach that it's "corny, fun, old-fashioned movie-making." The film was remade twice; there's a 1966 movie starring Ann-Margret and Bing Crosby, and a 1986 TV movie with Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson in the Wayne role.
7. How The West Was Won (1962)
How The West Was Won is a Western epic with an impressive cast to match, including Wayne, James Stewart, Gregory Peck and Debbie Reynolds. The film is set across different decades, with each covering a key chapter in American history like the Civil War or the construction of the railroads. How The West Was Won also boasted three different filmmakers, including Ford, George Marshall and Henry Hathaway. The film was both a commercial and critical smash in 1962, with Carpenter stating How The West Was Won is a "stunner" and praising its climactic train sequence.
8. The Naked Spur (1953)
One of the more obscure outings on John Carpenter's favorite movie Westerns list is 1953's The Naked Spur, starring James Stewart and Janet Leigh (mother of Halloween star Jamie Lee Curtis). The Naked Spur sees Stewart's bounty hunter chasing a wanted killer (Robert Ryan), with the film being one of helmer Anthony Mann's best. Carpenter claims The Naked Spur is a "flawed" film but loves how it allows Stewart - well-known for playing kind-heated characters - to be a "totally weird, screwed up guy." It also appears to have sparked his interest in anti-heroes; "Heroes playing bad men - that's interesting."
9. North To Alaska (1960)
Another Wayne/Hathaway collaboration, though North To Alaska is more of a comedy. The story involves the gold rush in Alaska, but there are plenty of rom-com antics too. North To Alaska is something of a guilty pleasure for Halloween movie director Carpenter, who claims to have "... no artistic reason to put this in" his ranking. He just feels the whole film is a "hoot" despite the fact everybody - including Wayne - "overacts." He also points to the brief moment Wayne lost his toupee on camera during a fight scene.
10. True Grit (1969)
True Grit's Rooster Cogburn is arguably Wayne's most famous character and the only one he played more than once. It also won the actor his only Academy Award, with the story following the alcoholic U.S. Marshal Cogburn as he helps a teenage girl find her father's killer. The Coen Brothers' True Grit remake is arguably the superior version, but the 1969 adaptation is still one of Wayne's best. It's deserving of its spot on John Carpenter's Favorites Westerns, who while offering some critiques, summarises with "You can't help but love it."
