The Missouri Breaks
Released in 1976 and set in late 19th century Montana, The Missouri Breaks was directed by New Hollywood’s most underappreciated director, Arthur Penn. Penn gave the film a tremendous look and feel, but the reason to queue this particular Revisionist Western is its 3 great performances:
Jack Nicholson plays the leader of a gang of rustlers. He poses as a small-time farmer in order to get revenge on the wealthy rancher that killed his friend. Nicholson has all the fire and wild-eyed unpredictability that you would expect (see: Five Easy Pieces, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest) and creates a Western anti-hero who is unsympathetic, unethical, and overwhelmed.
Marlon Brando plays Robert E. Lee Clayton, an eccentric (read: Fabulous!) regulator who uses unconventional style and brutal justice to deal with Nicholson and his gang. If Brando was trying to make this character as anti-Western as possible he succeeded. This is one of Brando’s last half-sane performances and despite the fact that he refused to be directed, read his lines off of cue cards, and invented a character that seems unreal, Robert E. Lee Clayton is captivating and the Brando’s erratic performance really works.
Harry Dean Stanton plays Cal, Nicholson’s closest friend. Harry Dean Stanton is hands down the best supporting actor a film could ever ask for and this movie is a great display of his scene stealing presence. Check his Wikipedia page and you will find this quote from Roger Ebert: “No movie featuring either Harry Dean Stanton or M. Emmet Walsh in a supporting role can be altogether bad.” I would add my own quote: “A better than average Western starring two eccentrics can gain a great deal of authenticity and stability from a Harry Dean Stanton performance.”
And, you’ll notice a young Randy Quaid in a supporting role.
Rancho Deluxe
Released in 1975 and set in contemporary Montana, this film breaks all the rules of the Western Genre.
Jeff Bridges (the Dude) and Sam Waterston (that dude from Law & Order) star as modern rustlers who ride their pickup truck into ranch land, use rifles to kill cattle, and implement a chainsaw to butcher the meat which they then trade in place of their rent.
The two are rebels without a cause; Bridges’ character comes from a wealthy family and he is running away from expectations and a life that bored him; Waterston is a Native American who has no expectations or ambitions to worry about.
Slim Pickens plays a crafty regulator who pretends to be senile and incompetent and, like Brando’s character from Missouri Breaks, he is more interested in the sport of his job than he is in serving his employer.
This film is irreverent and unconventional. There are bar scenes with early video games, 70’s sex scenes, and a live musical performance from Jimmy Buffett (who contributed music that really fits the mood of the film).
And, Harry Dean Stanton gives a strong supporting performance.
McCabe & Mrs. Miller
Robert Altman’s 1971 naturalistic film is the perfect example of the Anti-Western.
Warren Beatty stars as McCabe, a smart but unethical opportunist gambler who opens up a brothel in a growing mining town. Julie Christie plays Mrs. Miller, a madam who becomes McCabe’s business partner and love interest.
Altman and his cinematographer, Vilmos Zsigmond, employed lens filters that created a distinctive look which in itself makes the film worth watching; the performances are strong; Leonard Cohen provided music for the score; and this film breaks all of the John Wayne Film archetypes: McCabe is an opportunist who is afraid to fight and who dies without glory. Mrs. Miller is an outcast and an addict who is distinctly lacking in virtue.
Like the previous two suggestions, this film was not a critical or financial success. All 3 are subversive, experimental, and far more interesting than the average New Release.
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