Highest-Rated Movies about 'Traditional Western'

Three Godfathers (1936), Wagon Master (1950), Thunder Pass (1954), The Comancheros (1961), Fort Dobbs (1958), The Cowboy and the Senorita (1944), Cowboy Serenade (1942), Sioux City Sue (1946) ... Let's take a look at the ranked list of the best Traditional Western movies.

#16. The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County (1969)

Storyline: Charley (Dan Blocker) is the kindly but simple-minded blacksmith who sends a year's earnings back East for a mail-order bride. When he and the town turn out for the woman's arrival at the train station, he is embarrassed when she never appears. The saddened giant plans to leave town. The townspeople recruit the new saloon-girl Sadie (Nanette Fabray) to pose as the bride-to-be so the residents will retain the services of the blacksmith. Jim Backus is the Sheriff who runs for Mayor. Wally Cox plays Mr. Bester, the henpecked husband of his harridan wife (Marge Champion). Mickey Rooney, Stubby Kaye, Iron Eyes Cody, and Jack Cassidy appeared in this western comedy.

Plot Keywords: western, comedy, american film, 1960s, rural life, gold rush, slapstick ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#17. Kit Carson (1940)

Storyline: Trapper Kit Carson and his band of men join John C. Fremont on his way to California. Enroute they are subjected to Indian attacks that are propagated by the Mexican Government, that does not want the contingency to reach California. Once in California, Fremont and Carson initiate a campaign to free the state from Mexican control.—Buxx Banner <buxx572@aol.com>

Plot Keywords: western, adventure, historical, biographical, action, american west, exploration ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#18. Honor of the Range (1934)

Storyline: After Sheriff Ken puts money in the safe, his brother Clem gives Rawhide the combination. With the money gone the disgruntled townsmen make Boots Sheriff and lock up Ken. Clem, now a prisoner of Rawhide, has a change of heart and sends Ken a message with the outlaw's location. Ken escapes by impersonating the saloon entertainer and rides for the hangout.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, black and white, classic film, gunfight, revenge, justice, outlaw ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#19. Melody Trail (1935)

Storyline: After Gene has his watch stolen by the Gypsy he takes a job on the Thomas ranch. Thomas' dog has brought home the cradle with the Gypsy's baby and when the Gypsy retrieves his baby, Gene thinks he is a kidnaper. But as he chases after him he now sees that Thomas' cattle are being rustled.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, musical, romance, comedy, singing, country music, adventure ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#20. Riders of the Purple Sage (1925)

Storyline: When Lew Walters and his three henchmen kidnap Millie and her child, her brother Jim Carson sets out to find her. Now known as Jim Lassiter, he kills the three henchman. In Cottonwood County he joins up with rancher Jane Witherspoon in her fight against the rustling Riders of the Purple Sage. The crooked County Judge is Dyer, who unknown to Lassiter is really Lew Walters.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, silent film, classic film, revenge, romance, wilderness, american west ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#21. Come On, Rangers (1938)

Storyline: When the Texas rangers are disbanded, outlaws move in. Ex-Ranger Roy joins the Cavalry but deserts when the Calvalry is unable to stop the outlaws and his brother is killed. Ex-Senator Harvey has organized the State Patrol and Roy soon learns it's a protection racket with those not joining burned out or murdered.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, action, adventure, gunfight, texas, bounty hunter, justice ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#22. Melody Ranch (1940)

Storyline: With a longer-than-usual running time on original release and booked and sold to the exhibitors as a "Gene Autry Special", which Republic would do once a year from 1939-1943 in order to get higher rates than on the regular series entries from the theatre owners. Hey, Jimmy Durante and Ann Miler cost more than Smiley Burnette and June Storey. This "special",(which alternates between tongue-in-cheek and for-real and hard to distinguish which is which since there was very little for-real in most of the fantasy-land settings Autry's Republic films were laid in), finds Gene returning to his hometown of Torpedo as guest of honor at the Frontier Days Celebraion, Once there, he encounters his childhood enemies, the Wildhack brothers (Barton MacLane, Joe Sawyer and Horace MacMahon in pecking order), now the local gangsters (and playing it with relish.) The Wildhacks own a saloon next door to the school, and when their shooting and brawling endangers the safety of the children, Gene protests and threatens to expose them during his next radio broadcast. The Wildhacks stop the broadcast and beat Gene up. Gene, humiliated because Hollywood life has softened him to the extent that he can't hold his own against three assailants, decides to remain in Torpedo and get into shape again. He is encouraged by his friend Cornelius J. "Corney" Courtney, and also by Pop Laramie, owner and operator of the local version of the "Toonerville Trolley." Since Gene refuses to return to Hollywood, his radio show now originates from Torpedo. Julie Sheldon, a débutante with theatrical aspirations, sees Gene in his natural setting, and begins to take an interest in the cowboy she formerly scorned. Gene avenges himself against the Wildhacks by rounding them up, whipping them single-handed and forcing them to sing on his broadcast. Enraged, the brothers are determined to "get" Gene. He, in turn, runs for sheriff so he will be in position to clean up the Wildhack political machine and use can be made of the "Vote For Autry" song. During the battles that ensue, one of Gene's friends is killed. Gene finally obtains evidence which labels the Wildhacks as killers.—Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Plot Keywords: western, musical, comedy, romance, country music, classic film, black and white ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#23. Gunfighters (1947)

Storyline: Gunfighter "Brazos" Kane lays aside his guns "forever" when he is forced to shoot his best friend, and decides to join another friend, Bob Tyrell, as a cowhand on the Inskip ranch. Upon arriving there he finds the bullet-riddled body of his friend. He carries the body to the Banner ranch, the largest in the territory, and is accused by Banner of murdering Tyrell; Banner orders Deputy Sheriff Bill Yount, who is in Banner's pay, to arrest Kane. But Kane has the sympathy of Banner's daughter, Jane, who notifies Inskip of Kane's plight, and Inskip arrives in time to prevent a lynching. Sheriff Kiscade dismisses the murder charge for lack of evidence. Brazos then sets out to find the killer of his friend. Bess Bannister, Jane's sister, is in love with the Banner ranch foreman, Bard Macky, and knowing that Bard killed Tyrell and that Kane will track him down, then hampers Kane's mission somewhat by pretending to be in love with him.—Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Plot Keywords: western, gunfight, revenge, black and white, classic, american film, 1940s ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#24. King of the Cowboys (1943)

Storyline: The Governor sends Roy to help bring in a gang of saboteurs. Roy joins a traveling show and soon learns the saboteurs communicate during Maurice's mind reading act that uses a hidden receiver. But Maurice is on to Roy. Roy narrowly escapes when Maurice leaves him tied up in a warehouse they are blowing up. But Maurice then kills a man and blames Roy who now finds himself in jail.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, musical, american film, 1940s, black and white, country music, action ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#25. Across the Wide Missouri (1951)

Storyline: In the 1830's beaver trapper Flint Mitchell and other white men hunt and trap in the then unnamed territories of Montana and Idaho. Flint marries a Blackfoot woman as a way to gain entrance into her people's rich lands, but finds she means more to him than a ticket to good beaver habitat.—Ron Kerrigan <mvg@whidbey.com>

Plot Keywords: western, adventure, historical, american frontier, 19th century, wilderness survival, exploration ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#26. Sundown Saunders (1936)

Storyline: Jim "Sundown" Saunders (Bob Steele) wins $250 in a horse race with Lewis (Hal Price) and, instead of money, Lewis gives him a deed to a 640-acre ranch in the Panamint.Sundown and his pal Smokey (Milburn Morante) head for the ranch and encounter Dad Preston (Jack Rockwell) and his daughter Bess (Catherine Cotter), and discover that the Prestons have plans to buy the ranch from Taggart (Ed Cassidy), posing as a government land agent. Taggart hires Jack Mace (Charles King) to pick a saloon fight with Sundown and, when the fight is stopped, the two decide to finish it out on the trail.Taggart follows and after Sundown whups up on Mace and rides off, Taggart shoots Mace in the back. Mace is found by a passer-by and taken to town, where Sheriff Baker (Earl Dwire) concludes the unconsious man was shot by Sundown, and calls for his arrest. Taggart meets Preston and Bess at the ranch and Preston hands over the purchase money. Later, Taggart ambushes Preston and steals his wallet to get the fake deed back. Taggart,whose busy day has only begun, meets with bandit leader Burke (Edmund Cobb) and they go to his hotel room and plan a bank raid for the next day. Meanwhile, Mace, before dying, tells the Sheriff that Sundown wasn't the man who shot him, so Sundown and the Sheriff are outside the window and overhear the robbery plans. Preston, found by Smokey and Sundown, voices his suspicions of Taggart as being his assailant. After Sundown, the Sheriff and a town-raised posse stop Burke and his bandits from robbing the bank, the ever-busy and never-say-die Taggart kidnaps Bess and takes of with her in a wagon. Sundown is in pursuit.—Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Plot Keywords: western, black and white, 1930s, revenge, gunfight, desert, bounty hunter ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#27. The Texas Rangers (1951)

Storyline: It's 1874 and the Texas Rangers have been reorganized. But Sam Bass has assembled a group of notorious outlaws into a gang the Rangers are unable to cope with. So the Ranger Major releases two men from prison who are familiar with the movements and locations used by Bass and his men and sends them out to find him.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, black and white, historical, action, adventure, crime, law enforcement ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#28. Panhandle (1948)

Storyline: John Sands (Rod Cameron), formerly a Texas marshal whose talents with guns caused the law to turn against him,is a fugitive in Mexico, when he learns from "Dusty" Stewart (Cathy Downs)that his brother in the Texas panhandle, Billy Sands (John C. Champion), her fiancé and crusading newspaperman, his been mysteriously murdered in Sentinel, Texas. Despite the price on his head, Sands comes north to the panhandle to find his brother's killer.—Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Plot Keywords: western, black and white, 1940s, american film, gunfight, revenge, texas ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#29. Stars Over Texas (1946)

Storyline: When Eddie and his pals deliver cattle to the Lawrence ranch, they run into trouble with Ringo Evans and his gang. Ringo's men are rustling cattle and attempting to kill the foreman. Seeing the resemblance between the foreman and his pal Waco, Eddie has Waco impersonate the foreman. They then find proof that Evans is behimd the rustling but find themselves greatly outnumbered when the gang attacks.—Maurice VanAuken <mvanauken@a1access.net>

Plot Keywords: western, classic film, black and white, 1940s, texas, gunfight, country music ...

Movie Details Click Here !

#30. Winds of the Wasteland (1936)

Storyline: The Pony Express days are coming to an end, with riders John Blair (John Wayne) and his friend Larry Adams (Lane Chandler), both about 75 pounds too heavy for the original job description, out of a job. They pay Cal Drake (Douglas Cosgrove) of Buchanan City a big price for the Crescent City line and equipment, and arrive there to find it is a ghost mining town and has only two residents: eccentric, self-proclaimed Mayor "Rocky" O'Brien (Lew Kelly) and Dr. William Forsythe (Sam Flint). With the arrival from back east of Barbara Forsythe (Phyllis Fraser), the doctor's daughter and Ginger Rogers lookalike, O'Brien happily changes the blackboard population sign from two to five. John determines to get even and operate the line anyway, after vacating a resident skunk from the stagecoach. On his first run into Buchanan City John learns of a coach race to be staged (fastest team to win a $25,000 government mail contract) and he signs up. A telegraph crew, drinking unknowingly of a poisoned well, are saved by John's timely arrival on the scene,and agree to run their line through Crescent City if John can get laborers.He takes them from Buchanan City, leaving it nearly deserted and O'Brien wearing out his chalk changing the population sign upwardly in Crescent City.Drake decides to get rid of John by hiring him, for $1,000, to drive a gold shipment to Sacramento, and ambushing him. John evades the ambush by taking another route and returns to collect his thousand dollars at gunpoint. As the race for the mail contract starts, Drake and his henchmen throw many obstacles in John's way.—Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Plot Keywords: western, classic film, black and white, 1930s, action, adventure, gunfight ...

Movie Details Click Here !