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If you want to get a feel for what cinema was like in a given year, looking at that year's best picture nominees would seem to be a good place to start. After all, only between five and 10 movies have received such a distinction annually, and since people voting work in the entertainment industry themselves, it's understandable they'd choose the cream of the crop, right?

Wrong!

It shouldn't be hard to find at least five amazing films each year, yet every so often, the Academy honors something that wasn't a hit with critics or audiences. People are quick to point out the worst Oscar best picture winners ever, like "Crash" and "Green Book," but when you expand that to nominees, you really wind up with some dreck (with a couple even taking home the big prize). For this list, we took the worst 10 films ever nominated based on their critics' Rotten Tomatoes scores.

Robert De Niro won his second Oscar in 1981 for playing a boxing champ in Raging Bull. And now he has been chosen as the acting champ when it comes to Academy Awards.

His performance for the Martin Scorsese film from 1980 has been voted the greatest Oscar Best Actor winner ever, according to a Gold Derby ballot cast by 21 of our film experts, critics, and editors, who ranked all 97 male leading actors.

Anthony Hopkins finished second for The Silence of the Lambs (1991), with Marlon Brando following in third for The Godfather (1972). Daniel Day-Lewis for There Will Be Blood (2007), and Gregory Peck for To Kill a Mockingbird (1961) rounded out the top five.

At the bottom of the list of the Best Actor winners is Warner Baxter for In Old Arizona (1928). George Arliss in Disraeli (1929), Lionel Barrymore for A Free Soul (1930), Paul Lukas for Watch on the Rhine (1942), and Paul Muni for The Story of Louis Pasteur...

Robert De Niro won his second Oscar in 1981 for playing a boxing champ in Raging Bull. And now he has been chosen as the champ of all actors.

His performance for the Martin Scorsese film from 1980 has been voted the greatest Oscar Best Actor winner ever, according to a Gold Derby ballot cast by 21 of our film experts, critics, and editors, who ranked all 97 male leading actors.

Anthony Hopkins ranked second for The Silence of the Lambs (1991), with Marlon Brando following in third for The Godfather (1972). Daniel Day-Lewis for There Will Be Blood (2007), and Gregory Peck for To Kill a Mockingbird (1961) rounded out the top five.

At the bottom of the list of the Best Actor winners is Warner Baxter for In Old Arizona (1928). Just above that film performance in the rankings are George Arliss in Disraeli (1929), Lionel Barrymore for A Free Soul (1930), Paul Lukas for Watch on the Rhine...

In the year without a frontrunner, the doors are still wide open. I’m predicting three films will tie for the most nominations with 10 each: “Conclave,” “Emilia Pérez” and “Wicked.”

Jacques Audiard’s crime musical “Emilia Pérez” is poised to dominate, and if it can tack on a tech nom or two, the Netflix film could become the most nominated non-English-language film in history, surpassing “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” (2000) and “Roma” (2018). The streamer’s primary awards pony could potentially go even further. On an ideal nomination day, if it lands nods in all of its “on the bubble” categories — such as cinematography, sound, and two extra bids for supporting actress (Selena Gomez) and original song — it could secure 14 nominations, tying with “All About Eve” (1950), “Titanic” (1997), and “La La Land” (2016) as the most-nominated films of all time. Notably, “La La Land,” also a musical, is the only one to lose the best picture.

Exclusive: Early one morning up in Haddon Hall, a grand Tudor hall in Derbyshire, England, this corpulent, menacing-looking man swathed in a richly brocaded tunic trimmed with fur shuffled over to have a chat with filmmaker Karim Aïnouz and the Oscar-winning actor Alicia Vikander.

I had no idea who he was.

We were on the set of Firebrand, about Henry VIII’s marriage — his sixth and final one — to Katherine Parr.

Jude Law was supposed to join them. “Where is he?” I asked Gabby Tana, Firebrand’s producer.

“He’s in front of you talking to Karim,” Tana responded.

“That’s Jude Law?” I blurted.

Jude Law is bemused when I recount the story

He’s calling me from New York, and when he realizes that I’m in Beverly Hills, his voice breaks as he mentions that he’s been in touch with friends “who have lost everything” in...

John Wayne was nominated for an Oscar three times across his 50-year career, but he only walked home with one. Wayne starred in around 80 Westerns, so his defining image in pop culture is as a macho, no-nonsense cowboy. This gives a limited view of his range because while he often played variations on the same character, he delivered some layered performances too. The Searchers is Wayne's best and darkest work, while he's genuinely charming in the romantic drama The Quiet Man. Still, Wayne rarely got much respect from the Academy Awards.

Many of the John Wayne/John Ford movie collaborations received great reviews, but somehow, none of the star's Oscar nods came from those films. Wayne also picked up several awards on behalf of other performers, including Gary Cooper for High Noon; this is a little bizarre in hindsight, as Wayne deeply hated High Noon and its moral message. The...

When John Wayne named his personal favorite top five out of the movies he’d starred in, he left out the classic that finally earned him an Academy Award: 1969’s True Grit. Over the course of his legendary, decades-long film career, Wayne starred in some truly great movies. He starred in hits like Big Jake and El Dorado and appeared alongside fellow screen legends in the sprawling ensembles of classic epics like The Longest Day and How the West Was Won.

So, when Wayne was asked to name the best movies he’d starred in, he had a lot of gems to choose from. Wayne co-starred with Jimmy Stewart in the character-driven western drama The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. He made Rio Bravo, one of the greatest hangout movies ever made, as a response to the cowardice displayed by Gary Cooper in High Noon. But surprisingly, when Wayne named his top five,...

Gary Cooper is one of the most enduring and beloved figures in Western cinema, carving out a tenured career that saw him reach the pinnacle of the genre. He was best known for playing heroic roles that are morally complex, which added grandeur and dignity to the roles he portrayed and the films he starred in. Gary Cooper's films highlighted the intricacies of the Western lifestyle on the American frontier, and he cemented his status as a true icon in cinema.

Cooper was an extraordinary acting talent who also starred in many different genres of films, but his most famous works were iconic Westerns like High Noon and The Hanging Tree. His quiet vulnerability and ability to display a vast range of emotions in characters who would usually be played as black-and-white roles, influenced the next generation of both actors and filmmakers. His Westerns have gone down in cinematic history...

Firecreek made it possible for audiences to see what it would have been like had High Noon been a James Stewart Western. Easily one of the most iconic Westerns of all time, High Noon is Gary Cooper's best-known work in Hollywood. Released in 1952, High Noon starred Cooper and Grace Kelly in a Western tale that wound up with a slew of Academy Award nominations and wins.

Directed by Fred Zinnemann, High Noon received praise for its unique take on the Western formula. In the movie, Cooper plays married town marshal Will Kane, who realizes that he's completely on his own against a gang of outlaws. Will's story sees him try to rally the townspeople to help, but his neighbors and friends aren't willing to take a stand. It's a darker look at the setting than many Western movies of the 1950s provided, but the arc it offered to its...

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In the history of the Academy Awards, only 17 Westerns have ever been nominated for Best Picture. A brief list of the nominees: "In Old Arizona" (1928), "Cimarron" (1931), "Viva Villa!" (1934), "Stagecoach" (1939), "The Ox-Bow Incident" (1943), "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" (1948), "High Noon" (1952), "Shane" (1953), "How the West Was Won" (1963), "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969), "Dances with Wolves" (1990), "Unforgiven" (1992), "No Country for Old Men" (2007), "True Grit" (2010), "Django Unchained" (2012), "Hell or High Water" (2016), and "The Power of the Dog" (2021).

Others may be on the border of the genre, like, say, "Brokeback Mountain" or "The Revenant," but the above 17 are indisputable.

The first of those 17 films to win Best Picture was Wesley Ruggles' American history epic "Cimarron," one of the highest-reviewed films of its day. Variety's 1931 review of the film praised it as one of the modern age's great spectacles, a pinnacle of pop filmmaking.

For film fans, the next best thing to actually watching movies is talking about movies. There's not much in this life that's better than having a great conversation about the films that move us, exasperate us, confuse us, and change us. This is probably why we love when celebrities get asked about their own favorite movies, whether they're listing their Letterboxd top four or gushing about their five favorites to Rotten Tomatoes. It's simple: we learn more about people, and love them more, when we get to see them light up talking about the movies they love. Esteemed actor Morgan Freeman has shared his five favorite films with Rotten Tomatoes twice now, and his choices are wide-ranging and unexpected.

The first time the Oscar-winning star of such films as "Million Dollar Baby," "The Dark Knight," and "Driving Miss Daisy" was asked about his all-time favorite movies, in 2011, he dropped a...

The director of Rio Lobo was deeply unhappy with his final John Wayne movie - and wasn't above pointing the blame elsewhere. Rio Bravo was John Wayne's angry response to High Noon because, despite this Gary Cooper Western being acclaimed upon release, Wayne and director Howard Hawks despised its politics. Rio Bravo has celebrity fans like Quentin Tarantino and John Carpenter and is now just as well regarded as High Noon. The film wasn't intended to lead to a trilogy of movies either, but Wayne and Hawks kept going back to the same well.

The Rio Bravo movie trilogy is an unofficial one, since the three films aren't direct sequels. Instead, they remix the same themes, characters and scenarios, often involving a heroic figure played by Wayne being besieged by killers in an isolated town. The final entry Rio Lobo landed with a thud in 1970, receiving tepid reviews and bombing financially.

Westerns have one of the deepest and more storied cinematic histories of any genre, producing timeless classics that can be endlessly rewatched. Tales of old-school frontier conflicts, visuals of dusty landscapes, and a catalog of the best Western villains, heroes, and morally complex characters who envelop the ideals of the old West. Over time, filmmakers seek to make use of these tried and tested tropes and plot remakes of some old favorites to put a fresh spin or new idea on a traditional story.

It's these overarching themes that make Western filmmakers have a penchant for remakes, with films like Stagecoach and 3:10 to Yuma providing perfect narratives and premises to build and create a fresh perspective and feel. From robberies and character studies to showdowns and revenge, adding new techniques, advances in technology, and modern filming and production practices to use in works that pay tribute but also differentiate themselves from the original classics.

Clint Eastwood might've appeared in 14 films after "Unforgiven" but his Oscar-winning directorial effort really does feel like a fond farewell to the genre that defined his career in front of the camera. For many, his stint as Will Munny, a worn down gunman making one last stand, sits as one of his finest and he could've hung up his acting hat for good there and then in one of the best Western movies of all time. For his co-star, Morgan Freeman, though, there's an earlier role rooted in Eastwood's time in the Old West that outshines even that.

Speaking to Rotten Tomatoes in 2023, the five-time Oscar nominee (one of which he won for his performance in Eastwood's "Million Dollar Baby"), was asked about his favorite films. Of his five truly fascinating choices, one of them was Eastwood's own cold-blooded 1976 cowboy movie "The Outlaw Josey Wales." The film saw Easwood play the titular character,...

John Ford's success at the Oscars speaks to the director's reputation as one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. Over the course of his long career in the industry, Ford worked with many of the most prominent actors in Hollywood from the 1920s to 1960s, pumping out a long list of memorable hits at the box office. Many were born from his collaborations with John Wayne, but it's important to note that his own directorial style, not necessarily Wayne or any other actor, that made Ford the Hollywood legend he is today.

Ford's work represents a very distinctive version of America, and his films often centered on specific themes and genres. Ford is well known for making Westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, among many others. John Ford was also well known for having served in World War II and for...

While the legal aspects of Suits were a large part of the TV show's long-running success, the characters and their dynamics remain one of the most important parts. Mike Ross, played by Patrick J. Adams, might have started out as the show's protagonist, but his relationship with Harvey, Gabriel Macht, is what won fans over. Harvey was the seasoned and brilliant lawyer who took Mike under his wing because he saw his potential from the beginning. Though they didn't always see eye to eye, Harvey was Mike's best friend and a driving force behind the series' impact.

While there are plenty of harsh realities about Harvey Specter's characters in Suits, like his questionable treatment of women and the lengths he'll go to win a case, Harvey's evolution as a character is also what makes him special. He remains the stone-cold shark he's always been in the courtroom, but time...

Oscar-winning actress Grace Kelly made just a handful of movies before transforming from a Hollywood princess into a real life one following her marriage to Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956. Let’s take a look back in the photo gallery above of all 11 of her films, ranked worst to best.

Kelly got her start performing onstage and in television before being drafted by Hollywood to appear in Henry Hathaway‘s ripped-from-the-headlines nail-biter “Fourteen Hours” (1951) when she was just 22-years-old. The next year found her starring as the concerned wife to an imperiled town marshal (Gary Cooper) in Fred Zinnemann‘s landmark western “High Noon” (1952).

She got her first Oscar nomination as Best Supporting Actress for John Ford‘s adventure yarn “Mogambo” (1953), playing one of two love interests (along with Ava Gardner) to big game hunter Clark Gable. The next year, Kelly upset frontrunner Judy Garland, who made a massive comeback...

The classic 1990s Western Tombstone is rated R, but why did it get that rating, and how does it compare to older classic Westerns? There are plenty of examples of R-rated Westerns, and some of the best Western movies ever are rated-r. However, there are also quite a few Westerns, especially from the 1960s and earlier, that are nowhere near as violent or mature. Westerns can vary in their ratings and maturity levels just as much as any other genre, from kids movies like Rango to ultra-violent films like Django Unchained, so the reason Tombstone is rated-r isn't immediately obvious.

Since Tombstone tells the true story of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, it had to include some of the real-life deaths that happened at the time. It also came after Westerns became unpopular in Hollywood, so there was some pressure to give the...

Western movies have long been built on repeated tropes that define the genre. As the exciting stories of how cowboys, bandits, and outlaws make their way through a lawless life across the Wild West frontier, many tropes and cliches have reappeared time and time again to the point that they become readily associated with the genre itself. These tropes helped create a cinematic language for Western movies and helped them stand apart from other types of genre films.

Many of the best Western movies ever made were packed with tropes and cliches of the genre. The acclaimed collaborations of icons like John Wayne and John Ford would not have been possible without the foundations of the Western genre and the tropes and clichs that it embodied. From over-the-top brawls in dusty saloons to lone gunmen facing off against ruthless crooks in a lawless town, these tropes helped define Westerns.

A...

Lyon’s Lumière festival screened a fascinating footnote to the great duo’s career: Behold a Pale Horse, an adaptation of Emeric Pressburger’s novel by Fred Zinnemann

The Lumière festival in Lyon in south-east France – the home of 19th-century movie inventor-pioneers Auguste and Louis Lumière – always serves up mouthwatering classic films on the big screen. This is true once again this year, with a retrospective season of works by Fred Zinnemann, famously the director of High Noon and From Here to Eternity.

In one of its most interesting films, the festival also provided what could be the last remaining underexamined footnote in the history of the great Powell/Pressburger partnership that gave us Black Narcissus, The Red Shoes and The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp.

The opening scene of Tombstone is a classic Western moment, and it dispelled a rumor that was circling about the genre in the 1990s. Westerns are among the most iconic and oldest movies in cinema history, but they haven't always been the most popular. From the mid-1970s through the 1980s, and again in the early 2000s, Westerns became a niche genre that was mostly outshone by other films. As a result, there were some common misconceptions about Westerns in the 1990s, and Tombstone undid one of them in its opening moments.

Tombstone starts with a recap of some of the history of the Arizona territory around 1880, then quickly transitions into a classic shootout scene. The main antagonists of the film, Tombstone's Cowboys gang, which was inspired by a real-life group of outlaws, then wander into a Mexican wedding, seeking retribution for the local law enforcement killing two of their members.

John Wayne and Clint Eastwood are arguably the two biggest western movie stars, but they made very different westerns and had very strong opinions about each others films. Throughout Hollywoods storied history with the western, plenty of iconic actors have put their stamp on the genre Henry Fonda, Gary Cooper, James Stewart, Lee Van Cleef, Glenn Ford, Charles Bronson, Lee Marvin, the list goes on but Wayne and Eastwood are the two actors that defined the genre. And not only that, they each defined completely different eras of the genre.

Like Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger or Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel, Wayne and Eastwood had one of the most famous celebrity feuds in Hollywood history. But Wayne and Eastwoods feud wasnt based on any personal differences; it was based on their ideological differences and their vastly dissimilar approaches to the Western genre. Wayne and Eastwood both played gunslinging cowboys in classic Westerns,...

While the late actor may not be one of the most recognized in Hollywood, the best Christian Oliver movies and TV shows reveal the underappreciated depth of his talent. Born in Germany in 1972, Christian Oliver tragically passed away along with his two daughters in a plane crash in the Caribbean in early 2024. His career was still incredibly active at the time of his passing, and from his earliest appearances in movies like The Baby-Sitters Club through to TV thrillers like 2020's Hunters, he showcased a versatility few actors can match.

German actor Christian Oliver starred alongside an incredible number of Hollywood A-Listers including Tom Cruise, George Clooney, and Cate Blanchett. He was a reliable and dependable talent, adding a level of authenticity to any movie or TV show he starred in, whether it was a central role, a minor character, or even simply additional voice-work to add immersion to a scene.

The Story: On Io, Jupiter’s moon, miners have begun randomly committing suicide in gruesome ways. This is chalked out to their grueling working conditions, but the outpost’s new marshal, William O’Niel (Sean Connery) becomes convinced something else is afoot. Soon, he discovers the deadly truth, that the miners are being given stimulants with the nasty side effect that they cause psychosis. His pursuit of the truth lands him on the hit list of the outpost’s general director, Sheppard (Peter Boyle), who hires professional hit men to deal with the pesky marshal. Knowing that skilled gunmen are on the way, and without anyone to turn to, O’Niel waits to face the men alone.

The Players: Starring: Sean Connery, Peter Boyle, and Frances Sternhagen. Music by Jerry Goldsmith. Directed by Peter Hyams.

I wanted to do a Western. Everybody said, ‘You can’t do a Western; Westerns are...

Outland was Sean Connery's attempt at High Noon in outer space, but it failed to meet the high standard set by the classic Western film. Initially a box office failure, Outland has gained a cult classic status years later, known for its impressive visual effects. Despite mixed critical reception, Sean Connery's role as Marshal William T. O'Niel in Outland remains memorable to fans of the sci-fi thriller.

The cult classic Sean Connery movie Outland was the legendary actor's version of one of the greatest Western films ever made. Released in 1981, Outland is a science fiction thriller film written and directed by Peter Hyams, who's also known for his other sci-fi works such as Timecop (1994), 2010 (1984), and The Relic (1997). Connery stars in Outland alongside Peter Boyle, Frances Sternhagen, and Clarke Peters.

Connery is best known for portraying James Bond in several films such as Dr. No (1962), From Russia with Love (1963), and...

One of cinema’s earliest pioneers, Oscar winner Cecil B. DeMille helmed 70 films throughout the silent and sound era. He made his mark in a number of genres, but was most famous for his spectacularly mounted biblical epics. Let’s take a look back at 20 of his greatest movies, ranked worst to best.

Born in 1881, DeMille made his directorial debut with “The Squaw Man” (1914), a story he remade in 1918 and 1931. He made dozens of silent films, including the ambitious biblical stories “The Ten Commandments” (1923) and “The King of Kings” (1927). He entered into the sound era with ease, earning his first Oscar nomination in Best Picture for the Claudette Colbert-headlined version of “Cleopatra” (1934).

After a series of box office smashes, he took home the Best Picture prize for his big top melodrama “The Greatest Show on Earth” (1952), which also brought him his only nomination in Best Director. Even at the time,...

Jay Kanter, the high-powered Hollywood agent who represented Marlon Brando, Grace Kelly and Marilyn Monroe and served as the inspiration for Jack Lemmon’s character in the classic Billy Wilder film The Apartment, died Tuesday. He was 97.

Kanter died at his home in Beverly Hills, a spokesperson for the Independent Artist Group announced. His son Adam Kanter is a partner at Iag.

A favorite of mighty Music Corporation of America mogul Lew Wasserman, Kanter also spent seven years in England in the 1960s greenlighting European movies for Universal, produced films including the Elizabeth Taylor-starring X, Y and Zee (1972) and had a long business relationship with Alan Ladd Jr. at Fox and MGM.

When Brando was slumming around Paris after breaking out on Broadway in Streetcar Named Desire in the late 1940s, Kanter‚ then an McA junior agent, received a call from producer Stanley Kramer saying he wanted to hire...

Western sequels, like The Lost City of Gold, can expand upon the original with epic narratives and iconic stars. Films like Return of the Seven may not bring back all original cast members but still capture the magic of the original. Classics like Trinity Is Still My Name prove that Western sequels can balance comedy and action for a successful franchise.

Although there have been countless great Western movies over the years, this was not a genre well-known for boasting a lot of fantastic sequels. Whether it's because the nature of cowboys, gunslingers, and outlaws usually led to an early grave or because some of the best Westerns were based on fact, its rare to find a truly must-watch Western sequel. However, there were a select few Western sequels that lovers of the genre absolutely must check out that lived up to or even improved upon the original movie or source material.

Wayne disliked Eastwood's High Plains Drifter for glorifying violence and straying from traditional Westerns. The feud arose from contrasting views on Westerns: Wayne romanticized, while Eastwood told grittier stories. Wayne rejected a role opposite Eastwood in The Hostiles due to personal issues, not the film's premise.

Clint Eastwood's High Plains Drifter angered John Wayne so much that he wrote Eastwood a letter about it. Eastwood was an up-and-coming Western star during the early 1960s, which should have made him the natural successor to Wayne, who had been acting since the 1930s. Wayne had first made a name for himself in 1939's Stagecoach, and he resented the darker turn Westerns were taking when Eastwood came along, especially the gritty spaghetti Westerns Clint Eastwood was famous for, such as the Dollar Trilogy.

John Wayne was critical of much of the Western genre by the late 1960s. He turned down the...

John Wayne's rejection of Lonesome Dove may have cost him a final classic, proving he should have accepted it. Wayne's refusal led to the acclaimed Lonesome Dove miniseries, featuring a stellar cast and emotional storytelling. Despite the decline of Westerns in the 1980s, Lonesome Dove became a standout, influencing a comeback in the genre.

The most acclaimed Western of the 1980s only came to pass because John Wayne originally turned it down. When Heaven's Gate bombed it killed Westerns during the 1980s, with the Michael Cimino epic barely taking in $4 million against its $44 million budget (via The Numbers). Of course, the genre had been fading with audiences for some time. Westerns used to be one of the biggest genres in Hollywood, but by the 1960s, younger audiences began to find them old-fashioned.

Clint Eastwood outings like A Fistful of Dollars or Hang 'Em High offered darker, more cynical takes that connected with audiences,...

Oi there, listen up! Amazon Prime Video’s list of new releases for June 2024 includes another season of its biggest, bloodiest hit.

The Boys season 4 premieres its first three episodes on Thursday, June 13. Based on the trailers, The Boys is really leaning into the political side of its social satire with a presidential election underway and Homelander on trial for the small matter of killing a guy last season. The season will continue to air on Thursdays, culminating with the finale on July 18.

Amazon is really leaning into its sports offerings this month as well. Fans will get to watch the New York Yankees, the WNBA, and the Nwsl several times throughout June. That’s in addition to a couple of sports docs: Power of the Dream on June 18 and Federer: Twelve Final Days on June 20.

But if you’re looking for something even more explosive than Homelander and Roger Federer,...

Actress Carrie Fisher became a global icon when she played Princess Leia Organa in Star Wars. The actress was twenty-one when the film was released and it immediately launched her into worldwide fame as the film became a phenomenon. Princess Leia was considered to be one of the best female characters in sci-fi.

Fisher was reportedly cast in the role of Leia after George Lucas considered multiple actresses. The late star was only one-film-old at the time and had only been in a couple of stage shows. According to an old interview with Fisher from 1977, Lucas chose her because she fulfilled one particular quality of the character that he had written.

Carrie Fisher Was Cast As Princess Leia Due To One Condition Carrie Fisher in Star Wars: A New Hope | Credits: Lucasfilm Ltd./20th Century Fox

Late actress Carrie Fisher played Princess Leia Organa, the sister of Luke Skywalker and...

The Hollywood Blacklist ruined dozens of lives. United States-based artists who were sympathetic to, or even curious about, communism were demonized as traitors to their country and, due to hysterical pressure from The House Committee on Un-American Activities (aka Huac), banned from working in the industry. Disgraced and unemployed, blacklisted individuals were forced to leave the country if they wanted to continue working or, if they could not afford to relocate, find a line of work where being an alleged communist wasn't frowned upon. This latter option was, of course, dismally unlikely. The mental and financial burden of being completely shunned from one's industry was so unbearable that it led actor Philip Loeb to die by suicide.

This put Hollywood at war against itself. Anyone suspected of having communist ties was pressured to come clean and, if they wanted to continue working, name names (a cowardly practice savaged by films...

Gary Cooper was a two-time Oscar winner who starred in dozens of movies before his death in 1961, but how many of those titles remain classics? Let’s take a look back at 15 of his greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Born in 1901, Cooper got his start in silent movies, most notably the aerial drama “Wings” (1927), which won the very first Academy Award as Best Picture. He would collect his own statuette as Best Actor for another WWI film: the biographical drama “Sergeant York” (1941). Directed by Howard Hawks, it helped create Cooper’s screen persona of an ordinary man capable of extraordinary courage in the face of adversity.

He won a second Best Actor trophy for playing a similar character in Fred Zinnemann‘s western “High Noon” (1952), which cast him as a retired marshal who must stand up to a gang of killers arriving on the noon train. Cooper earned additional nominations for similarly idealistic,...

Obviously it wasn’t by design, but the early-1950s renewal of the western genre, aided in large part by the success of Winchester ’73, which heralded a career second act for both its director, Anthony Mann, and its star, James Stewart, was answered in other quarters of the industry by multiple endeavors to take the once disreputable genre, previously dismissed as Roy Rogers/Saturday-matinee bunkum, all the way into the hallowed halls of state-sanctioned, capital-a art. And, as it happened, the two westerns that made a big runner-up showing at the 1952 and 1953 Oscars, High Noon and Shane, respectively, also served, by virtue of holding what wide swaths of the future cinephile demographic would come to view as Vichy letters of transit, as high-value targets for skeptics of the official cultural narrative.

These auteurist critics and film buffs, whose philosophy acquired definite contours some 10-odd years later, observed a different watershed moment: Rio Bravo.

Short Western movies under 90 minutes packed intense action, suspense, and powerful themes into limited runtimes. Films like Bad Day at Black Rock and Three Hours to Kill showcased the genre in its purest form with excellent pacing. Even at under 90 minutes long, Western classics like High Noon and Westworld tackled serious subjects and had a lasting impact.

While its always fun to take in an incredible Western movie about cowboys, gunslingers, and outlaws, not everybody has the time for a three-hour epic and would much rather enjoy shorter movies under 90 minutes long. Western runtimes, along with most other genres, have become much longer over the past few decades, but during the genre's heyday, it was much more common to find short Western adventures that did not take up the entire evening. With excellent pacing, plenty of action, and just as much shooting and fighting, shorter Western movies packed a lot into their restricted runtimes.

John Wayne passed on 1952 classic High Noon, as he hated the script's blacklisting subtext. High Noon netted star Gary Cooper an Oscar, which Wayne later collected on his friend's behalf. Wayne didn't win his own Oscar until 1970, for playing Rooster Cogburn in True Grit.

John Wayne turned down one of the best Westerns of the 1950s for political reasons, and practically gifted Gary Cooper an Oscar as a result. Following his breakout role in John Ford's classic Stagecoach, Wayne became one of Hollywood's biggest names. He cycled through many genres during his decades-long career, from romantic dramas (The Quiet Man) to hard-nosed cop thrillers (McQ). Of course, John Wayne having fronted 80 Westerns sees him permanently linked to the genre.

Wayne made an almost embarrassing number of classics in the genre. The Searchers is considered by Spielberg and Scorsese to be the best American Western ever, while Rio Bravo was...

The following contains spoilers for Shogun episode 7

Shogun episode 7's betrayal drew comparisons to GoT's Red Wedding, but a show co-creator explains it was actually inspired by The Empire Strikes Back. Toranaga's Crimson Sky plan was stopped by Saeki's treason and Council of Regents alliance, leaving Toranaga facing surrender. The sense of dread in the episode is also likened to the classic Western High Noon.

Comparisons between Shogun episode 7's shocking betrayal and Game of Thrones' infamous Red Wedding scene are addressed by a series co-creator. Toranaga's Crimson Sky plan was left in shambles after his half-brother Saeki revealed himself to be a traitor who had secretly allied himself with the Council of Regents, leaving Toranaga's encamped army surrounded and Toranaga facing the prospect of surrender. So stunning was Saeki's betrayal that the episode has drawn comparisons to the Red Wedding, the unforgettable GoT moment when Lord Walder Frey...

Justified: City Primeval brings back old characters and introduces new ones in a gripping story set in Detroit. The miniseries is based on Elmore Leonard's City Primeval: High Noon in Detroit and blends Western and city noir elements. The impressive cast, including Timothy Olyphant, Boyd Holbrook, and Aunjanue Ellis, contribute to the success of Justified: City Primeval.

Justified: City Primeval is the long-anticipated 2023 follow-up to the original FX Justified series, and it sees the return of a few old characters as well as the introduction of many new ones. The original Justified ran for six seasons, from 2010-2015, and in 2022, it was announced that the beloved characters of Harlan County would be going to Detroit for an eight-episode miniseries. Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens left the Appalachian Mountains for Miami sometime in the interim but finds himself now in Detroit, helping the local police with a manhunt.

For the most part,...

Some Western sequels surpassed the originals, like in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy, standing the test of time. Others, like High Noon, Part II & Return of the Seven, failed to live up to the originals, disappointing audiences. Planned sequels, like Wind River: The Next Chapter & Horizon: An American Saga, aim to continue the stories of iconic Westerns.

It’s not incredibly common for Western movies to receive sequels, which was likely because most of them end in a shootout with the majority of the characters meeting their demise. However, there were a select few that, due to their popularity or narrative needs, were lucky enough to garner a follow-up. When looking at Western movies that received sequels, the most noticeable aspect was the sheer variety in quality, as some could be far superior to the original and others struggled to justify their existence.

Some Western sequels were entirely disposal...

1950s was a Golden Age for Westerns, featuring iconic films with strong social messages & ensemble casts. Westerns served as Blockbuster tentpoles with mass appeal, capturing the post-wwii era's fascination with American Cowboys. Films like "Giant," "Shane," & "High Noon" set the standard for character-driven narratives & memorable visuals in 1950s Westerns.

The most famous Western movies may not have originated from the 1950s, but the decade was actually something of a Golden Age for the genre, with some of the most triumphant films set in the American West filmed and released within the time period. When Westerns come to mind, images of John Wayne's most influential films or Clint Eastwood's Dollars trilogy are the first thing conjured by the imaginations of most, by far the most iconic voices to inhabit the genre. However, their most famous work spanned the 70s and 60s, pre-dated by a marvelously strong age for the Western.

Kevin Costner's Horizon: An American Saga promises to be a groundbreaking modern Western franchise with the first two films releasing in 2024. The ambitious project marks Costner's return to the director's chair and aims to capture the essence of classic American Western films. While the Western genre has seen exceptional additions since Costner's Dances with Wolves, Horizon is expected to set a new standard for modern Westerns.

Kevin Costner's highly anticipated historical epic Horizon: An American Saga looks to be a landmark film in the modern Western genre. The classic Western used to be one of the most beloved and reliable movies in Hollywood, particularly from 1940 to 1960 in what is considered the Golden Age of the Western genre. Some of the best Westerns ever made came out of this era, such as The Searchers (1956), High Noon (1952), Rio Bravo (1959), and The Magnificent Seven (1960).

Costner's plan to create at least four Horizon movies is an ambitious effort,...

Even though some western movies have won Best Picture at the Oscars, they are rare compared to non-western films. Western films often lose out to films from more Academy-friendly genres when it comes to the Best Picture category. Despite their cinematic excellence, western movies face an uphill battle in gaining recognition and prestigious awards at the Academy Awards.

The Academy looks down on the western genre; some western masterpieces have lost out on Best Picture in favor of lesser non-western movies. Like science fiction and horror, the western genre hasn’t always had the easiest time at the Academy Awards. Even when the western dominated Hollywood filmmaking and all the biggest movie stars and filmmakers were flocking to the genre, it was tough for a western to earn any Academy Award nominations. And if a western movie has miraculously earned an Oscar nod, it’s rare that it actually takes home the prestigious prize.

It’s a location that looks like a movie set from classic Westerns: For his third Louis Vuitton Men’s presentation, Pharrell Williams staged the French brand’s Fall Winter 2024 runway show at the Jardin d’Acclimatation in the Bois de Boulogne, just behind the fashion label’s headquarters.

In a show called “Paris, Virginia” — Williams was born in Virginia — models playied the part of cowboys parading in front of a huge screen where the striking scenery of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains, those of Montana, the Dakotas, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico was projected. At one point, snow even fell on the guests in the room.

Previewing the runway show during Paris Fashion Week was a short film created by Bafic with Ron Husband — one of the world’s most influential cartoonists on the Walt Disney Animation Studios production team (The Lion King, The Little Mermaid) — filmed while drawing a sketch of a cowboy.

John Wayne believed that High Noon was "un-American" due to its protagonist's disrespect towards law enforcement and its apparently communist sensibilities, which clashed with Wayne's conservative ideals. Despite Wayne's criticisms, High Noon was praised by critics, winning four Oscars and forever changing the traditional Western genre. Wayne responded to High Noon with Rio Bravo, which undermined any hint of communistic ideals and promoted classic ideals of the American individual.

One John Wayne quote captures his sentiments toward one of the most revolutionary Western movies ever made. Wayne is one of the most famous Western stars of the 20th century and is largely responsible for shaping the genre in the American film industry and beyond. Wayne starred in several groundbreaking Western movies himself including John Ford's breakthrough hits Stagecoach (1939) and The Searchers (1956). Wayne could have starred in any Western movie he wanted to but famously passed on Fred Zinneman's High Noon,...

Casey Kramer, the longtime actress and daughter of legendary director Stanley Kramer died on December 24, according to her sister Kat Kramer. She was 67.

Casey Kramer’s film and TV career spanned four decades, consisting of mostly smaller parts on shows like Falcon Crest, McBride, Criminal Minds, Dexter, Southland, The Young and the Restless, Transparent, Behind the Candelabra, Lethal Weapon and Baskets.

Her filmography begins with her father’s final film, The Runner Stumbles in 1979, which starred Dick Van Dyke and Kathleen Quinlan and featured sister Kat, as well. Her more recent films include Mississippi Requiem in 2018 and 2020’s Darkness in Tenement 45.

Her mother, Anne P. Kramer, was her father’s second wife. They were married from 1950 until their 1963, when they divorced.

During that time Stanley Kramer directed The Defiant Ones, On the Beach, Inherit the Wind, Judgement at Nuremberg and It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad Mad World. His other films include Ship Of Fools,...

Casey Kramer, an actress and the oldest daughter of late producer-director Stanley Kramer, died on Christmas Eve of natural causes at her home in Chicago, her sister Kat Kramer announced. She was 67.

A longtime member of The Actors Studio, Casey Kramer made her big-screen debut in the Dick Van Dyke-starring The Runner Stumbles (1979), directed by her dad.

She went on to appear on television on Falcon Crest, Criminal Minds, The Young and the Restless, Dexter, Southland, Behind the Candelabra, Transparent and Baskets and in the recent films Mississippi Requiem (2018) and Darkness in Tenement 45 (2020).

She also was active in Los Angeles theater as an actress and director.

Casey Lise Kramer was born in Los Angeles on Dec. 28, 1955. Her mother was the late Anne Pearce, a writer and film executive who was Stanley’s second wife. They were married from 1950 until their 1963 divorce.

Stanley Kramer, the nine-time Oscar nominee and Irving...

Daryl McCormack as Colman and Ruth Wilson as Lorna in ‘The Woman in the Wall’ (Photo Credit: Chris Barr / BBC / Showtime)

Paramount+’s January 2024 lineup includes the series premiere of Sexy Beast, a prequel to the critically acclaimed, award-winning drama released in 2000 and starring Sir Ben Kingsley and Ray Winstone. The streaming service’s also kicking off the new year with the debut of The Woman in the Wall, a six-episode series starring Ruth Wilson (His Dark Materials) and Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters).

June Carter Cash is the focus of June, a feature-length documentary directed by Emmy Award-winner Kristen Vaurio (Going Clear: Scientology & The Prison of Belief) arriving on January 16. January 2024 also sees the return of SkyMed, a medical drama set in the world of medics and pilots who fly air ambulances in Canada, for its second season.

Coming to Paramount+ on January 1

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Clockwise from top left: Moon (courtesy Liberty Films UK), Die Hard (courtesy 20th Century Studios), The Iron Giant (courtesy Warner Bros.), The Truman Show (courtesy Paramount Pictures) Graphic: The A.V. Club YouTube offers a veritable treasure trove of free movies ready to watch at your convenience. Comedies, dramas, hidden gems,...

Clockwise from top left: Moon (courtesy Liberty Films UK), Die Hard (courtesy 20th Century Studios), The Iron Giant (courtesy Warner Bros.), The Truman Show (courtesy Paramount Pictures)Graphic: The A.V. Club

YouTube offers a veritable treasure trove of free movies ready to watch at your convenience. Comedies, dramas, hidden gems,...