No Country for Old Tropes: On Genre Subversion in the Western

Say you’ve never heard of a film. You might ask, “What kind of movie is it?” In other words, “What’s the genre?” The genre of a film tends to tell us what we should expect. A comedy movie will make us laugh, a horror movie will scare us, and so on and so forth. But what happens when a filmmaker decides to intentionally go against the norms of a genre? In this debut episode of Genre Subversion, we look at how filmmakers flip the long-established expectations of the Western genre.

But what exactly defines a Western? A traditional Western is often set in the late 19th century and features a cowboy, sheriff, or some other gun-wielding hero. Taking place in the American West, the hero usually defends the frontier from an emerging danger. But perhaps more significantly, classic Westerns were supposed to embody American ideals.

Films known as Revisionist Westerns began to emerge in the 1960s. These films used the genre to critique the American ideals that were so heavily supported in older, more traditional Westerns. Revisionist Westerns remain very popular today, and always undertake a rather scathing examination of America’s past. This video focuses on how three Revisionist Westerns subvert genre, and leverage our expectations to create a lasting impact.

Learn about other subversions of the Western with our video The Weird and Wild Western. Plus, check out our videos on “Unforgiven”and the sounds of Clint Eastwood, and find out how many genres are in “Kill Bill.”

[jayfolk]

I like Sicario, Hell or High Water, & Wind River for my neo-western craving.

[paulinaenck]

The Sisters Brothers is a fascinating recent subversion of the Western. Brilliant performances and a great storyline

[Pyro-Moloch]

Unforgiven is one of my all-time favourites. A true masterpiece.

[RockSmithStudio]

Excellent breakdown of the western genre!

[ratsalad]

wish I'd watched this when i was studying for my film paper in college haha. great video!

[mafiadabest]

Deadman with Johnny Depp is by far one of the strangest experiences I've ever had while watching a movie. What a surreal depiction of the wild west.

[SirBlackReeds]

Funny thing, Brokeback Mountain can easily be described as "a story about two guys unapologetically cheating on their wives for twenty years."

[foxb]

I've been planning on making a western short

[xlovis]

I would it like to watch a video about Michael Fassbender or the movie Steve Jobs!

[Infamous]

Not a Bad Video. Just wish it was longer.

[st_orlie]

Putting up high noon when saying that traditional westerns end with a glamorized shootout was a joke right?

[DuinHark]

Saying that these films are revisionism is a mistake. I would say they are subvertive.

[ShakinJonny]

A western is a movie that takes place in the 1800.
Cowboys and indians.
Colts and Winchesters.
Horses and stagecoaches.
Stetsons and locomotives.
Ect.
Brokeback mountain and no country for old men, are not Westerns. They take place in the mosern times, when cars and planes where invented.

[Glory_inthe_rd]

You make sure you speak for yourself and quit including all of the United States when you say that people don't believe in certain ideals anymore maybe when you referring to students at Berkeley

[Glory_inthe_rd]

Buddy Brokeback Mountain that's not a western type movie they just happened to be wearing cowboy hats LOL do you understand now the hateful eight that is a western type and I'm shocked you do not have it on here if you do I haven't seen it yet at 3 minutes but I think you're confusing people just wearing cowboy hats with it trying to be a western movie LOL