western — i luv cinema

A Western Perspective (The Ox Bow Incident)

Yesterday I tweeted about the Ox Bow Incident. A couple of days prior I had been on the phone with my brother – we started out by discussing our reactions to the latest installment of True Blood. At some point, the conversation moved to Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven (1992); how we got there I cannot tell you. My brother was marvelling at the allegory conveyed in this modern masterpiece. In his estimation this was a film that broke the standard conventions of what people traditionally think about the “wild” West; especially its mythic standing portrayed over the years on the silver screen.

It was at this moment that I took the opportunity to tell him, that while I am no expert on the genre, throughout cinematic history, turning the myth of the American West on its head is not totally a new idea. I first started talking about The Searchers (1956), but soon moved on to my favorite Western, 1943′s The Ox Bow Incident. It is a very intimate film, not something one finds in a traditional Western. Based on a novel of the same name, it is a moving story of what happens when one’s conscience yields to mob rule and the actions that mob (posse) fly in the face of reason, logic and justice.

I do not want to reveal the details of the plot because I want you to experience the film as I did – a lovely wonderful surprise on a random weekend afternoon. I assure you if you have not seen it, it will leave you thoroughly satisfied.

*The Ox Bow Incident is playing Sunday, September 5, 2010 (12:00 Noon) at the Film Society of Lincoln Center.

A Straightforward, Nuts and Bolts Western

This weekend I was reminded about what a film, simple film Appaloosa is. The plot synopsis is simple enough – two lawmen (Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris) are protecting a town from the corrupting force of a rancher (Jeremy Irons). Add a little spice in the female form of Renee Zellwegger and you have a motion picture that instantly reminds me of Saturday morning Westerns, that were predominantly produced during the 1940′s and 1950′s. Of course the elements and violence have been updated to suit modern sensibilities, but does not distract the viewer from the core plot. Appaloosa‘s primary themes were of friendship, love and sacrifice. The presentation is very unfussy and beautifully shot.

Generally I do not consider myself a great fan of westerns; in fact many of the westerns that I like (The Ox Bow Incident [1943], Unforgiven [1992], The Searchers [1956] and High Noon [1952]), use the western setting as a storytelling device to inform its audience of aspects of the human condition. I suspect if I am to study the genre at length, I would find many more examples of “Western as Allegory” than I initially envisioned.

Appaloosa is currently running on all the HBO Channels.