Westerns are the original action movies, and even in the 1950s and ’60s, they captivated audiences with stories of gunslinging cowboys, saloons, and sheriffs. These types of movies are notorious for having iconic opening scenes, and we’ve compiled a list of the 18 best opening sequences from the wild, wild West.
A Sky Full of Stars For a Roof
This Italian Spaghetti Western movie is a classic, and its opening scene brings us straight into a dramatic shootout. Within the first few seconds of this film, we see a passing stagecoach hijacked by a crazed killer and his gang of bandits who are intent on settling some old scores.
The opening sequence of this film has been hailed as one of the best of any Western movie ever. The audience is thrust straight into a high-speed chase that sees a posse of gunslinging outlaws pursue a stagecoach through the dusty desert mountains on horseback. The ruthless villains slaughter everyone on board the coach, including a priest and a woman, and they show no mercy even when one passenger begs for his life.
Hell or High Water, 2016
Chris Pine and Ben Foster take us on a rollercoaster ride right from the first few seconds of this movie. This film opens with a tense, robbery scene that pulls audiences straight into the Western world of drama, and fugitives.
The Great Silence
The first thing we see in this film’s opening scene is the vague silhouette of a man draped in a black cloak, traveling on horseback through a snow blizzard. Unbeknownst to the rider, bounty hunters are waiting for him, watching him with their guns at the ready.
As the camera zooms in on the mysterious rider, he’s revealed to be the famous actor from the time, Jean Louis Trintignant, who is playing a mute gunslinger called Silence. A flock of birds disturbed by the bounty hunters flew overhead, alerting the mute man to their presence. A shootout unfolds, and suddenly, all of the bounty hunters lie dead as Silence kills all of the men who are lurking in the shadows.
Wind River, 2017
Categorized as a neo-western, the opening sequence of this film is powerful, shocking, and emotive. The words “Inspired by actual events” flash up on the screen before audiences witness harrowing scenes of a young girl, visibly upset, running through a snow-covered landscape at night.
The scene pulls audiences in and communicates the girls’ grief and pain, with audiences eager to learn what has happened.
Django Unchained
Within the first few seconds, we see Jamie Foxx’s character, Django, walking through the desert in chains while his overbearing white slave masters travel on horseback.
The opening sequence continues as Dr King Schultz, a German bounty hunter, arrives and murders the slave master, which sets Django free. Django then begins training under Dr Schultz with the hope of freeing his wife from a brutal plantation owner in Mississippi. Directed by Quentin Tarantino, this movie highlights the harsh reality that slaves had to endure, and as the story unfolds, so does a high level of violence.
A Fist Full of Dollars
This movie was Clint Eastwood’s big break into the Western genre. The film opens with quite a violent scene that sees a young child being bullied and harassed by some sinister-looking characters.
Clint Eastwood plays wandering gunslinger Joe, who stumbles upon a Mexican town, San Miguel, amid a power struggle between two rival families. Eastwood’s character plays a shroud game of manipulation, which sees him play the two families off against each other. Cue many dramatic shootouts, some tumbleweeds, desert dust, and the best Western music you’ll ever hear by Ennio Morricone.
Unforgiven
A violent and disturbing opening scene to this movie shows Quick Mike slashing a prostitute’s face with a knife for mocking his genitalia. In retaliation, her fellow brothel workers place a bounty on the cowboy’s head as they want him dead.
This movie was Clint Eastwood’s last Western, but he might have saved the best for last as the film has been acclaimed as the best of his career. Eastwood plays an old gunslinger, William Munny, who is about to hang up his hat and retire, but he reluctantly decides to take on one last job.
No Country for Old Men
To set a precedent for the tone of the rest of this movie, it opens with an extremely violent, and graphic murder scene.
A criminal who has been detained manages to use his handcuffs to strangle the Sheriff to death, which means that from 40 seconds into the start of this film, audiences get a clue of what they are in for.
Rio Bravo
This stunning opening scene sees the legendary Dean Martin and John Wayne both involved in a fight in a saloon where one man is shot dead.
Audiences are entertained right from the very start of this film as the opening scene starts with all the essential ingredients for a great Western movie: a saloon, a drunkard, guns, and murder. Dean Martin plays the town drunk dude whom a wealthy man is bullying; John Wayne, who plays the Sheriff, intervenes but is knocked unconscious, one man dies, and a fight breaks out. This is all within the first 60 seconds; no one has spoken yet.
The Searchers
Another classic Western film by John Wayne, this movie’s opening sequence is nothing short of iconic, so much so that it has been copied multiple times.
We see John Wayne returning to his family homestead across the dusty desert on horseback. His entire family comes out to meet him, and even the dog is glad to see him. The scene gives return of the lone-ranger vibes and was replicated in 2009 in Inglorious Bastards.
The Wild Bunch
A “Wild bunch” of men ride into town on horseback, armed with guns as locals stand by and watch. The men then proceed to rob a bank using force and threatening to kill the staff.
The scene cuts to some children that are torturing a scorpion, and taking pleasure in setting it on fire. This a prelude to some of the cruel behavior that audiences can expect to witness in this portrayal of the wild, wild, west.
High Noon
Starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly, the opening sequence and everything about this movie is the stuff of Hollywood legends.
Opening to the award-winning song “Do Not Forsake Me My Darling,” we watch a series of men on horseback riding across open fields. They form a group and then ride into town together. It soon becomes clear that the men’s intentions are less than pure.
Shane
Taking us back to 1953, Shane is one of the ultimate original Western movies. The opening scene sees the credits rolling by, across views of a homestead amidst idyllic, luscious countryside.
Traditional Western music plays as a cowboy rides into view on horseback. The music, plus the technicolor visuals give the opening sequence of this film a serious nostalgic, and iconic presence.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
This movie opens to only the sound of a project running as the audience watches a black and white film of Paul Newman as the famous train robber, Butch Cassidy.
This movie’s filming, scripting, and production were way ahead of its time. The opening sequence builds suspense and intrigue in the audience as the words “Most of what follows is true” flash up on the screen. The cinematography, the sepia-toned projector shots, and some stimulating music all evoke deep curiosity in viewers.
Red River
Starring the legend that is John Wayne, this is an epic Western movie. As a stagecoach pulls into town, a masked man behind the driver sticks a gun in his back and says “Not a move Yankee!”.
In the distance a steam train approaches, the tension in the scene builds, and then a gang of men jump from the back of the wagon and a robbery unfolds, the sound of gunshots, and horses panicking fills the air.
Once Upon a Time in the West
This is an epic opening scene and easily the best of all time. It opens to the sound of a man playing the harmonica, and as a train pulls off, it reveals three armed men waiting for him. A Mexican stand-off situation develops, and it’s clear that whoever can pull their gun the fastest wins.
Audiences are instantly captivated from the start of this movie. It ticks all of the boxes of a classic Western and has a shootout in the desert within the first 60 seconds.
For a Few Dollars More
The movie opens with a train full of passengers, one of whom hides his face behind a Bible. The mysterious passenger asks when the train will stop at Tucumcari, and when he is advised that the train does not stop there, the man reveals himself to be Col. Douglas Mortimer (Lee Van Cleef), a notorious bounty hunter.
Van Cleef threatens the conductor to stop the train, and an epic story of adventure unfolds as Col. teams up with Clint Eastwood, another bounty hunter, to track down a psychotic Mexican killer. If that’s not a good movie plot, then we don’t know what is.
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
With one of the most famous movie titles, probably ever, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly has a legendary opening scene.
Three rouged cowboys ambush a saloon, there’s a shoot-out, a man escapes through the window shattering glass, and the three cowboys lie dead on the floor. Cue the most famous music in the entire history of the Western movie genre.
