#92 - Shane (1953, George Stevens)

I watched this one in conjunction with an article I read for a class about structuralism in the western film. Shane was used as the example of the "classic classic western," that exemplifies the genre's conventions to a T. For younger audiences, westerns are often the hardest genre to fully absorb aside from the Leone and Peckinpah anti-westerns. It all comes down to how we view westward expansion in a post-'60s politically correct worldview. It's hard to take Indians as villains and lone gunslingers as heroes, at least not without reservations.

As my blog has shown, I've been watching a lot of the classics of the genre, mainly Ford but I've also begun checking out some Anthony Mann pictures lately too. While I consider myself a fan of westerns these days, I still wasn't too pumped about Shane. Every time I've seen clips from it it seems to be a particularly conservative look at the west and hero worship. But upon seeing it for myself, Shane is not only top-notch genre filmmaking, but a wonderful reflection on how we watch westerns. Joey is every member of the audience watching Shane fight Starrett, shoot up the Riker gang and save the town. And then two hours later he is gone forever, just as we get to know him.

new #100: The Young Girls of Rochefort