Your 5 favorite Westerns on blu from BEFORE 1980

[benbess]

In 1980, the epic Western "Heaven's Gate" was a notorious box-office bomb that some said had killed the Western. As Mark Twain once said: "The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated." But it's true that only one or two traditional Westerns a year are usually released these days. Compare that with the dozen or more Westerns released each year during the genre's peak in the 1950s:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...950%E2%80%9354

Anyway, what are your top five favorite Westerns from BEFORE 1980 that are available on blu-ray? PLEASE GIVE A ONE LINE EXPLANATION OF WHY YOU PICKED EACH OF YOUR FIVE FILMS.

Here are mine:

1. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly (1966)
A surreal twist on the Western that seems part David Lean, part spaghetti. The best music ever written for any Western is found here imho in Ennio Morricone's mind-blowing and iconic score.

2. Shane (1953)
Slow and poignant Technicolor epic directed by George Stevens, and starring Alan Ladd, Jean Arthur, Van Heflin, Jack Palance, and Brandon deWilde.

3. The Big Country(1958)
The Ben-Hur of Westerns? Anyway, it was directed by William Wyler and stars Charleton Heston and Gregory Peck

4. How the West Was Won (1962)
The only Cinerama Western ever made looks magnificent on blu-ray, and has an all-star cast. Outstanding score by Alfred Newman.

5. The Searchers (1956)
Beautiful VistaVision film directed by John Ford. John Wayne's character is racist, but part of the point of this film is that he's somewhat able to overcome that.

Bonus question. What are the top-3 Westerns BEFORE 1980 that you'd like to see on blu-ray?

Here are mine:

1. She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1948)
Magnificent Technicolor Western starring John Wayne and directed by John Ford.

2. The Plainsman (1936)
DeMille epic with compelling role for Gary Cooper.

3. Broken Arrow (1950)
Jimmy Stewart stars in one of the first Westerns to portray "Indians" sympathetically. Beautiful Technicolor film.