Abstract
This paper discusses the evolution and success of the western genre of filmmaking. It discusses Andre Bazin's "The Western: Or the American Film Par Excellence" in which he analyzes this genre. It describes Bazin's arguments, as well as his comparison of the western to the courtly romances of the medieval era in their focus on the chaste woman and his comparison of them to the Russian revolutionary genre.

From the Paper
"To Bazin, the only other modern epic cinema was the Russian revolutionary genre, which had some parallels to the western: both showed a new society undergoing its tumultuous birth pangs, imposing a new order and morality upon a vast canvas of human activity during a fleeting historical moment. Bazin concludes that, like the mythologized history of the Russian revolution, the story of the American west would have been relegated to much lesser international prominence were it not for the power of the moving image to universalize human experience."

Tags:epic, cinema, historical

Abstract
This paper analyzes the western movie genre. The paper specifically examines John Belton's theories in relation to how nature and the main character are engaged in mythological opposition using the 1953 movie "Shane." The paper describes the movie and discusses how the various scenes add to the theme of mythical opposition.

From the Paper
"Every good western movie has a final showdown. The final showdown symbolizes the final battle between the two opposing forces of the movie. In this case the Ryker gang symbolizes chaos and stands in the way of the march of civilization. The Ryker gang is as untamed as the forces of nature. In the final showdown of Shane the Ryker gang and the homesteaders Knight in shining armor come face to face. The scene takes place in a saloon and Shane is at first outnumbered. He stands very little chance of success, yet it feels compelled to continue because he feels that he must win this one for the homesteaders. The Ryker gang cannot prevail and continue with their reign of terror. Shame faces an enemy of mythological proportions and yet somehow manages to overcome them in the final scene."

Tags:showdown, civilization, cowboys, heroes

Abstract
The paper discusses how the noir style of film and the western genre film share some similarities which unify the films in these categories more than they divide them. The paper describes how the styles of cinematography would seem to suggest that there could be no overlap in these genres; the settings of the western and the film noir are not simply disparate, they are opposite. The paper explains that they are, however, used to a similar effect in that they manipulate the sense of security experienced by the viewer.

From the Paper
"It could be argued that stylistically there are not too many genres more diametrically opposed than those of the western and the film noir. The first genre takes place in a rural setting, the second in an urban one. The western genre takes place in an arid climate, while the film noir is characterized by rain and wetness. Both genres, however, have "man's men" as heroes and, generally, strong women as heroines. The style of storytelling is often the same, with characters often reaching conclusions that are not ultimately satisfying. It is true, in fact, that film scholars have already linked the two genres together in naming the western films that were made in the 1940s "Cold War Westerns" or "noir Westerns" (Tyler 178)."

Tags:noir, western, film

Abstract
This paper explains that Kevin Costner's "Dances with Wolves" is a western film popular in the late twentieth century; however, Costner's image of the Sioux tribe as being highly acculturated is a different interpretation of this genre. In this film, the author relates, Costner joins the Sioux tribe instead of being a supporter of the Manifest Destiny and civilizing the tribe to western standards. The paper asserts that, whereas Costner showed the Sioux tribe members as possessing a great amount of intelligence and organizational skills, he did not demonstrate their expression of any kind of feelings.

From the Paper
"Costner managed to make an extraordinary Western in an era when such films are a thing of the past. Dunbar is presented as a man that loves life and all the good things about it. He expresses a sentiment of extreme pride when he prefers to die rather than have his leg amputated. Most people have returned to their homes after the war with the desire to have a normal life and a well-paid job. Dunbar, in contrast, chooses to remain in the military to protect an abandoned U.S. garrison on the western frontier. Total isolation does not seem strange to Dunbar and he immediately adapts to life in solitude, interacting only with Cisco, his horse, and Two Socks, his wolf."

Tags:rules clashes, lakota language, nature expressionless

Abstract
This paper analyzes the two films and discusses their significance in the genre of Western films. Today, the classic Western is a film out of style, but these two films live on as classics, generally because they deviate from the traditional Western model. They portray the characters three dimensionally, and the violence as real and devastating. The underlying theme and message is that violence is unnecessary and useless, and it can ruin the lives of those who use it.

From the Paper
""Shane" does not rely on elaborate sets and costuming to get its message across to viewers. One reviewer called the sets "spartan" and the language of the film "laconic." The characters of this film make it the classic it has become. From the opening scene, when Shane rides down into a valley with a massive chain of mountains behind him, the viewer understands his character is larger than life, and it is right that he came down from the "mountaintops" to save the struggling family in the valley."

Tags:violence, movie, character

Abstract
This paper consist of four parts, each exploring a different genre of film. The first section gives a summary and analysis o fAndre Bazin's "The Western." This is followed by a comparative profile of the gangster and the Western hero. Next, the paper discusses a summary of film noir as an Intellectual Category. Finally, the paper analyzes an article entitled "Three Critical Approaches to The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum" by Volker Schlondorff and Margarethe Von Trotta.

From the Paper
"Summary of Andre Bazin's "The Western: Or the American Film Par Excellence" (1953) Bazin states that the western is the only genre whose origins can be traced to the start of cinema, and which is still thriving to this day. He admits that the quality of westerns may legitimately be disputable, but that the success of the genre has been steady and thus a measure of its health (Bazin 74). Bazin recognizes that the western genre, like all others, is subject to natural evolution and outside influences including various social dynamics, though he qualifies this admission by stating that such..."

Tags:film, analysis, theory

Abstract
This paper examines the way in which "Goodbye Pork Pie" reflects the social and political climate of New Zealand in the 1970s. The author investigate the "Kiwi" culture as portrayed through the film. The author writes that New Zealand is presented as distinctive through iconographical features of the culture and countryside through which the journey takes place, as well as the time period. Women are sidelined as the narrative is engineered around the comradery of two kiwi 'blokes', John and Jerry. Furthermore, the paper describes that the film criticizes the right-wing government of its time and focuses on two antiheroes.

From the Paper
"Goodbye Pork Pie, directed by Geoff Murphy, and released in Cannes in 1980, is a distinctively New Zealand interpretation of the popular American road movie: a derivative of the buddy-western genre. The buddies, John and Jerry, are propelled by circumstance into a chance meeting and a consequential life of running from authority that seems to have nothing else to do, but to pursue (and pursue?) a little stolen yellow mini."

Tags:1970s, antiheroes, authority, buddy, caricature, climate, counter, culture, episodic, fantasy, film, gender, genre, geoff, goodbye, history, journey, murphy, political, pork, regional, rejection, road, social, trip, western

Abstract
The paper notes that Akira Kurosawa's great epic film, "Seven Samurai" (1954), is considered by many people to be the greatest film ever made. On the other hand, the paper relates that there are mixed opinions about the American Western genre of movies, as epitomized by classics such as "Stage Coach" (1939), "Fort Apache" (1958), "High Noon" (1952) and the "Magnificent Seven" (1960). However, the paper highlights the similarities and common themes, such as the theme of brave, obsessive fighting men.

From the Paper
"Akira Kurosawa's great epic film, "Seven Samurai" (1954), is considered by many people to be the greatest film ever made. On the other hand, there are mixed opinions about the American Western genre of movies, as epitomized by classics such as "Stage Coach" (1939), "Fort Apache" (1958), "High Noon" (1952) and the "Magnificent Seven" (1960). However, it is clear that there are some similarities and common themes, such as the theme of brave, obsessive fighting men. Moreover, there was a definite cross-fertilization effect, such that a comparison between the American Western genre and "Seven Samurai" is instructive, and lends further insight..."

Tags:westerns, samurai, kurosawa

Abstract
The writer asserts that the strength of the film "High Noon" is the way in which it takes the simple and makes it complex. The themes in the film seem obvious - good vs. evil, strength of the individual to overcome all odds - but Zinnemann subtly adds elements of gray to give the film more depth. The paper shows how this added depth allows the film to explore fundamental truths.

From the Paper
"The American identity is represented in High Noon through the similar themes that make the Western genre: empowerment of the individual, nature vs. development, freedom. One of the key ideas that makes us American is the idea of being able to start over or anew; that we can always go back, move forward, or just go somewhere else - physically or psychologically to make life better or start fresh. It's a theme that runs through American literature as well as American film. Jay Gatsby is an example of psychologically being able to start over in one of the greatest works of Am. Lit. Or, as Belton states, Fenimore Cooper shows this through his Natty Bumppo character and Bumppo's choice to leave his civilized world in order to embrace the natural world and culture of his Native American friend Chingachgook in his Leather Stalkings tales series."

Tags:Cooper, film, western, genre, individual, strength

Abstract
This paper considers the role of the hero in the film genre known as the Western. In particular, the paper considers the persona of Sheriff Wyatt Earp and the cinematographic techniques used to depict him. The paper describes how Wyatt Earp's face is always well lit around the eyes and mouth but the remainder is in heavy shadow. This pattern of lighting is consistent across scenes in the film "My Darling Clementine."

From the Paper
"If we begin with the first appearances of Sheriff Wyatt Earp, one point will be striking to any person with the most rudimentary observation skills. His face is always well lit around the eyes and mouth but the remainder is in heavy shadow. This pattern of lighting is consistent across scenes. Meanwhile, near the beginning of My Darling Clementine, there is a young angelic type of character associating with other dark and shady individuals. AS events unfold, this young man whose face is full-lit and appears to be filled with innocence has been murdered. The audience discovers that the young man is Wyatt Earp's younger brother James."

Tags:hero, leader, risk