7 Underrated Western Movies Streaming Right Now
Westerns have been a part of cinema since the very beginning. They boomed in the '40s, then grew again in the '60s with Spaghetti Westerns, like the Dollars trilogy, restocking the fire. Today, they continue to be pop culture mainstays, with neo-Westerns becoming the new thing in recent years. But like any genre, some certified hits get buried among the masses.
And believe me, not every Western needs to have John Wayne or Clint Eastwood in it to be good, although there is, of course, a Clint Eastwood Western on this list. If you think you've seen every good out there, here are seven underrated Westerns to try. Watch them now on HBO Max, Plex, and more.
Clint Eastwood might be the King of Westerns, but Two Mules for Sister Sara remains a highly underrated entry in a filmography stacked with more popular titles like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), Hang' Em High (1968), and The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), to name a few. Shirley MacLaine stars alongside him, and together, the two screen icons ooze chemistry.
The movie kicks off with Eastwood's former soldier saving MacLaine's nun from a group of bandits. What follows is a delightful blend of action, humor, and the usual Western tropes. But really, it's MacLaine and Eastwood's oddball dynamic that makes Two Mules for Sister Sara so memorable. If you prefer Westerns that are a bit more lighthearted, you'll love this one.
Releasing the same year as Two Mules for Sister Sara, Little Big Man trades Clint Eastwood for another big name of the era: Dustin Hoffman. Here, Hoffman plays Jack Crabb, a white man raised by a Cheyenne tribe who must navigate living between two worlds, particularly when the United States Cavalry starts attacking the Cheyenne people.
Western fans know the genre's complicated history with properly representing and portraying Native Americans, which is one of the reasons Little Big Man remains so important despite its relatively obscure status. Not only did it shine a spotlight on the unfair and often brutal treatment of Native people, but it also maintains a strong anti-war message—fitting for the Vietnam War era it was released in. Chief Dan George, who plays Old Lodge Skins, also became the first Indigenous North American to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Sick of traditional Westerns? Want something unique? Look no further than Near Dark. Kathryn Bigelow's horror-Western follows a group of drifter vampires and the human who gets entangled with them. Horror fans have likely heard of Near Dark, but those less familiar with the genre might've missed this one, despite having big names like Bill Paxton and Lance Henriksen attached. (And seriously, Paxton is so good in this!)
If you want traditional cowboy fare, you won't find that here. Instead, Near Dark teeters on neo-Western territory, delivering a fun blend of genres with decent gore and even a little romance. In some ways, it has a The Lost Boys (1987) vibe, just swap out leather-clad punks for leather-clad outlaws.
From web-slinging superheroes to levitating deadites, there isn't a genre Sam Raimi can't do. The Quick and the Dead is the director's jump into Westerns—and it doesn't disappoint. Once a box-office flop, this action-packed movie became a cult favorite and, more recently, has been reappraised by mainstream audiences.
Sharon Stone stars as a gunslinger whose main goal is to seek revenge for her father's death by entering a high-stakes, shoot-to-kill duel put on by a small town's outlaw mayor (Gene Hackman). Like much of Raimi's work, things get a little campy, but that's all part of the charm. If you want something fun, unique, and weird, The Quick and the Dead is your best bet.
Listen, hi! Hello! If you're squeamish, consider skipping Bone Tomahawk because what starts as a slow-burn, character-driven Western takes a very violent turn about midway through. For horror fans, that's not a bad thing, but I promise even the most hardened watchers might be peeping through splayed fingers when Kurt Russell and his posse finally encounter the cannibals they've been tracking down.
Still, Bone Tomahawk is one heck of a watch. The film spends a large chunk of its two-hour and 13-minute runtime ensuring you get to know these characters before they fall apart. You'll be rooting for them. You'll be crying for them, and you'll most definitely fall in love with (most of) them.
Real talk: The Ballad of Lefty Brown is one of the more divisive entries on this list. While some people dig A24's trademark unique signature, others felt the movie was too slow and perhaps a tad too cliché. Regardless of where you fall, few can argue with its uniqueness. Instead of focusing on the main cowboy, The Ballad of Lefty Brown puts the spotlight on the sidekick. In this case, the titular Lefty.
Bill Pullman plays the part wonderfully, as his character sets his sights on the outlaws who murdered his friend. As far as Westerns go, The Ballad of Lefty Brown checks all the boxes, from gorgeous yet desolate prairies to saloons and plenty of gun-slinging action. If you want something modern but with a classic feel, give this one a shot.
Like Near Dark and Bone Tomahawk, The Wind also jaunts into horror-Western territory. Less cowboys and horses and more prairie supernatural nightmare, what makes the film so unique is its setting: the middle of nowhere New Mexico. Here, a small family is trying to start their life on the frontier. When the husband leaves for town, the wife begins to suspect something sinister lurks in the vast openness… or is it just "prairie madness?"
Again, this isn't for audiences craving a traditional Western. Instead, it will appeal more to fans of slow-burn historical horror. Think The Witch (2015) or The Lighthouse (2019), but in a frontier setting. Despite the open setting, The Wind is somehow one of the most claustrophobic movies you'll ever see.
