Worst Western film from the year you were born

- Director: Malcolm St. Clair
- IMDb user rating: 4.1
- Votes: 327
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1930: 5

Starring Joan Crawford, Johnny Mack Brown, and Ricardo Cortez, "Montana Moon" is a musical Western film responsible for introducing the singing cowboy to the screen. In the film, a wealthy flapper marries a cowboy. After a bout of marital indiscretion leads the new groom to become violent, his bride leaves him and heads across the country on a train from Montana to New York. Partway through her journey, she's kidnapped by a band of thieves, whose leader turns out to be none other than her estranged husband in disguise, ready to drag her back to Montana to begin their life again. The film has clear overtones of sexism (not surprising by today's standards for something released in 1930), which may be one reason viewers today don't respond kindly to it.

- Directors: Howard Higgin, Tom Buckingham
- IMDb user rating: 5.3
- Votes: 504
- Runtime: 79 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1931: 5

"The Painted Desert" marks Clark Gable's first substantial role, and a pre-"Hopalong Cassidy" role for William Boyd. According to most fans, those are the only positive aspects of the film, which tells the story of two men who find an abandoned infant and clash over who's to be the father. Not a very well-known movie, poor script-writing is generally to blame for the commercial and critical failure of "The Painted Desert."

- Director: Mack V. Wright
- IMDb user rating: 5.5
- Votes: 492
- Runtime: 58 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1932: 5

"Haunted Gold" feels like an extended, live-action version of a "Scooby Doo" episode. After receiving a mysterious letter prompting them to come to a ghost town in order to search for gold in an abandoned mine, John Wayne and Sheila Terry's characters are assisted by a phantom as they race a gang of outlaws to find the treasure. The film has become a campy favorite with modern audiences in recent years, but critics still refuse to give it their seal of approval.

- Director: Mack V. Wright
- IMDb user rating: 5.3
- Votes: 418
- Runtime: 57 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1933: 7

The last of John Wayne's Westerns for Warner Bros, "The Man from Monterey" is based on the real-life requirement for Spanish landowners in California to register their land with the state before a set deadline, lest the land becomes public property. Villainous individuals, both fictitious and real, would often try to trick or deter these landowners from registering their properties, claiming the land for themselves. Low production values, a poor-quality script, and a dull storyline are viewers' most common complaints against this 1933 Western.

- Director: Robert N. Bradbury
- IMDb user rating: 5.1
- Votes: 741
- Runtime: 59 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1934: 11

While John Wayne eventually became a Western movie superstar, many of his earlier offerings, including "The Lawless Frontier," were relatively awful. This flick tells the story of a cowboy who seeks revenge on an outlaw who killed his parents. There are plenty of chase scenes and fight sequences, but the flick's sub-par editing largely prevents it from being an enjoyable watch.

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- Director: Robert N. Bradbury
- IMDb user rating: 5.1
- Votes: 356
- Runtime: 53 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1935: 11

Another John Wayne vehicle, "Lawless Range" has the legendary actor investigating cattle rustling in an attempt to locate a family friend who disappeared in the midst of a series of burglaries. Eventually, he takes down the band of villains, who as always, are lead by a duplicitous citizen. Fans cite the predictable and formulaic storyline of this film as one of the main reasons it underperforms.

- Director: Joseph Kane
- IMDb user rating: 6.0
- Votes: 312
- Runtime: 54 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1936: 9

One IMDb reviewer called "King of the Pecos" "bland," and another, "uninspired." In this flick, John Wayne is not only a gun-toting, horse-riding cowboy setting out to avenge the death of his parents by taking down an evil cattle baron, he's also a lawyer. Slightly slower-paced than a traditional John Wayne film, this one lacked the action necessary to make it a decent Western.

- Director: Charles Barton
- IMDb user rating: 5.7
- Votes: 709
- Runtime: 59 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1937: 5

There's a love story at the heart of "Born to the West," which stands in stark contrast to the revenge stories that typically lie at the core of Westerns. Based on a novel by prolific Western writer Zane Grey, the plot is generally applauded, but the film's low budget still lands it among the worst movies released in 1937.

- Director: Sam Newfield
- IMDb user rating: 3.5
- Votes: 1,400
- Runtime: 62 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1938: 8

Included in the 1978 book, "The Fifty Worst Film of All Time (And How They Got That Way)," "The Terror of Tiny Town" is truly atrocious. The cast is composed of the munchkins from "The Wizard of Oz" (filmed the same year), and the film was Columbia's attempt to capitalize on the press they were getting for their use of little people. "The Terror of Tiny Town" is poorly acted, with a ludicrous storyline—an all-around C-flick at best.

- Director: George Sherman
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 350
- Runtime: 57 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1939: 15

John Wayne's big break came with the release of "Stagecoach" in 1939, after which his films tended to be more commercially and critically successful. He was still contractually obligated, however, to finish this final "Three Mesquiteers" film, released just months after "Stagecoach." "New Frontier" tells the story of how the Mesquiteers save the citizens of New Hope Valley from falling prey to a bad real estate deal. The result was a film just as dull and poorly written as it sounds.

- Director: George B. Seitz
- IMDb user rating: 6.3
- Votes: 335
- Runtime: 97 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1940: 16

A fictional telling of real-life frontiersman Kit Carson's life story, 1940 Western "Kit Carson" faces scrutiny amongst viewers for the liberties it takes, as well as its treatment of Native Americans. Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels (aka The Lone Ranger and Tonto) both appear in this film, albeit not as their classic characters.

- Directors: David Miller, Frank Borzage
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 804
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1941: 9

Another fictional telling of a real-life character, the 1941 version of "Billy the Kid" is perhaps the version that is loosest with the facts. Set in New Mexico in 1880, Billy sets out to avenge the death of Eric Keating, his former boss and role model, at expense of his relationship with life-long friend Jim Sherwood. The 1941 "Billy the Kid" is actually a remake of a 1930 original, which was received much more favorably. This one was a complete flop with audiences, earning a domestic gross that barely surpassed the budget.

- Director: William C. McGann
- IMDb user rating: 6.4
- Votes: 984
- Runtime: 88 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1942: 5

In "In Old California," John Wayne plays a Boston-born druggist who moves to the Wild West to set up shop, only to find himself framed by a local villain, who accuses him of selling poisoned medicine. Fans rate the movie poorly in large part because they don't find Wayne's role "macho enough." By 1942, Wayne had established himself as a real "man's man" and dedicated gunslinger, so to see him in a role this different from his normal persona left many scratching their heads (and searching for other Westerns to watch).

- Directors: Howard Hughes, Howard Hawks
- IMDb user rating: 5.5
- Votes: 3,522
- Runtime: 116 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1943: 6

"The Outlaw" had all the makings of a great Western: genre favorites Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, and Pat Garrett, a gorgeous love interest, as well as tons of horse chases and quick-draw shootouts. In the end, it just came out campy and, according to one viewer, "weird." Part of this may be due to the massive cuts and changes to the story director Howard Hughes had to make in order to ensure the final product passed censorship boards.

- Director: William A. Seiter
- IMDb user rating: 5.4
- Votes: 298
- Runtime: 83 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1944: 5

One of the few Western musicals on the list, "Belle of the Yukon" is set during the Canadian gold rush. A reformed convict turned saloon owner, Honest John is tempted to get caught up in a scam that would result in a lot of that gold ending up in his bank account. Meanwhile, his girlfriend, performer Belle de Valle, attempts to keep him on the straight and narrow. Fans are generally turned off by the movie's tired plot that at times seems like an afterthought compared with the grand musical numbers.

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- Director: Joseph Kane
- IMDb user rating: 6.1
- Votes: 1,130
- Runtime: 82 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1945: 5

A dull leading lady, convoluted plot, and low budget effects ruin what could have otherwise been a pretty entertaining Western. John Wayne stars alongside Vera Ralston in "Dakota" as a young, newly married gambler who gets caught up with two crooked businessmen attempting to control the town of Fargo. He wins in the end, of course, but fans who make it through the 82-minute runtime do not.

- Director: Tim Whelan
- IMDb user rating: 6.3
- Votes: 522
- Runtime: 97 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1946: 11

Grossing $4 million, nearly seven times the film's original budget of $600,000, "Badman's Territory" did well for itself despite its designation as the worst Western movie of 1946. The movie's concept is exciting enough: Sheriff Mark Rowley, played by Randolph Scott, finds himself in an annexed Indian territory where the law has no authority, running around with criminals like Jesse James and the James Boys. However, that's essentially where the plot ends. While the film has some great dialogue and famous faces, the lack of an easy-to-follow story has many viewers giving it low ratings.

- Director: William Witney
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 265
- Runtime: 78 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1947: 14

In "Bells of San Angelo" Roy Rogers is a border agent investigating suspicious deaths and potentially fraudulent silver mining on the Texas-Mexico border. Reviewers, even self-declared Roy Rogers aficionados, feel that a weak script, bad acting, and childish absurdities (like a dog who takes down a bad guy) make this the weakest Western of 1947.

- Director: Robert L. Lippert
- IMDb user rating: 2.0
- Votes: 521
- Runtime: 84 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1948: 21

A movie that most viewers agree starts off weak and never fully develops, "Last of the Wild Horses" tells the story of a cowboy, played by James Ellison, who is framed for a murder he didn't commit and must prove his innocence before losing his life. One of the lowest-rated movies on this list, "Last of the Wild Horses" might be one of the worst Westerns of all time.

- Director: Edwin L. Marin
- IMDb user rating: 5.9
- Votes: 469
- Runtime: 95 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1949: 16

Randolph Scott is at it again in "Canadian Pacific" as a surveyor for the Canadian Pacific Railroad who must fight fur traders and Native Americans for ownership of a vital pass through the Canadian Rockies that's needed to complete the railroad. In a rare move, producers employed Yiskabee and Stony Sioux tribe members to play the Native Americans (instead of white actors). However, the casting choice didn't fully satisfy viewers' need for accuracy: Many report disliking the film because of how far it strays from the history of the Canadian Pacific Railroad development.

- Director: Edwin L. Marin
- IMDb user rating: 6.0
- Votes: 505
- Runtime: 81 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1950: 22

John Wayne was the face of most of the "worst Westerns" of the 1930s, just as Randolph Scott was the face of the "worst Westerns" of the late '40s and early '50s. In "The Cariboo Trail," he plays a want-to-be rancher who sets out to claim a piece of land in the interior of British Columbia. While his luck is poor at first, things begin to turn around for him when he finds gold. Nothing about the film is very exciting, but it's the poor Cinecolor photography, which makes sections of the movie almost impossible to see, that really upsets passionate Western audiences.

- Director: Harold F. Kress
- IMDb user rating: 3.7
- Votes: 878
- Runtime: 68 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1951: 15

"The Painted Hills" was MGM's last Lassie movie, and by far its worst. The dog-centric Western didn't even garner a review in The New York Times (the only in the series). Viewers report the flick feeling "like a shell of a movie," and "one of the most forgettable movies [they've] ever seen."

- Director: Felix E. Feist
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 1,247
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1952: 17

Kirk Douglas acted in "The Big Trees" for free in order to end his contract with Warner Bros., and it shows. Douglas plays a conniving timber baron who wants to chop down a swath of giant sequoia trees in order to make millions. Meanwhile, a Quaker colony has set up a homestead in the area, and is bent on doing everything they can to keep Douglas at bay. A poor script and underdeveloped storyline keep this movie from being the hit it could have been.

- Director: Ray Nazarro
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 536
- Runtime: 73 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1953: 24

Sterling Hayden has his work cut out for him in "Kansas Pacific," trying to outsmart southern saboteurs in order to bring the railroad through Kansas and into the frontier, while simultaneously romancing the foreman's daughter. In the end, it may have been too much for him to juggle, as this 1953 Western is often criticized as being cookie-cutter and "banal."

- Director: Sidney Salkow
- IMDb user rating: 5.7
- Votes: 503
- Runtime: 105 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1954: 21

Set in the lead up to the Battle of Little Bighorn, "Sitting Bull" shows Maj. Parrish, played by Dale Robertson, attempting to prevent bloodshed by arranging a meeting between Sioux Chief Sitting Bull and President Grant. Unfortunately for him, evil Gen. Custer foils his plans, forcing the Sioux to react with violence, and resulting in Parrish being court-martialed. Intended as a historical epic, this film misses the mark, and is often criticized for how contrary to reality its events are.

- Director: Roger Corman
- IMDb user rating: 4.6
- Votes: 614
- Runtime: 78 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1955: 24

Shortly before winning her Oscar for "Written on the Wind," Dorothy Malone played the love interest in "Five Guns West." The movie has a convoluted plot: Five criminals set to be hanged are pardoned after they join the Confederate army, then tasked with retrieving a shipment of stolen gold. Along the way, they take Malone's character as a hostage, and she's only saved after one of the men in the gang is revealed to be a planted Confederate officer. Made over nine days on a minuscule budget, viewers mock the worst Western of 1955 for its preposterous plot.

- Director: Roger Corman
- IMDb user rating: 3.2
- Votes: 1,288
- Runtime: 83 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1956: 28

"Gunslinger" is a rare Western flick, in that it's lead by a female character (played by Beverly Garland). Rose Hood takes over as marshall after her husband is killed, and sets out to avenge his death. Little does she know there's a price on her head, and that new-to-town man she's crushing on may actually be hired to kill her. While most viewers agree that "Gunslinger" is laughable, it seems to have landed itself firmly in the "so bad it's good" category, and most Western-lovers do in fact have a soft spot for it.

- Director: Roy Rowland
- IMDb user rating: 6.2
- Votes: 582
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1957: 17

In this 1957 romp, Stewart Granger plays a reformed gunslinger who's attempting to settle down to ranch life. The town isn't keen to have him back, until Granger's character saves their land from a cattleman who's threatening to run 20,000 cattle through it all, which would effectively ruin everything. "Gun Glory" has been called tedious and tiresome, and one especially disgusted viewer even said that most high school theatrical productions are better put-together than this horrible old Western.

- Director: Raoul Walsh
- IMDb user rating: 6.1
- Votes: 863
- Runtime: 103 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1958: 19

"The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw" follows a proper Englishman who unwittingly stops an Indian attack on a stagecoach before being appointed sheriff of a small frontier town. While the plot is clearly nonsensical, and some viewers don't appreciate the humor, many agree that this is a "so bad it's good" flick perfect for a family movie night.

- Director: Edward Dein
- IMDb user rating: 6.1
- Votes: 642
- Runtime: 79 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1959: 18

New-to-town gunslinger Drake Robey has an aversion to sunlight, and all the young women in town have been mysteriously dying, so it's up to preacher Dan Young to save the town and his girlfriend (played by Kathleen Crowley). While many viewers appreciate the imaginative twists in "Curse of the Undead," nearly all agree that the story was poorly handled, and didn't do enough to blend the two genres.

- Director: George Cukor
- IMDb user rating: 6.1
- Votes: 1,067
- Runtime: 100 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1960: 11

Sophia Loren and Anthony Quinn lead The Great Healy Dramatic and Concert Co., a traveling theater group in "Heller in Pink Tights." Chased by creditors and involved with gunslingers, the company lives right on the edge, as does the film. Viewers bemoan Loren's performance and the film's "shallow" storyline, and in the end, these non-Western actors simply can't bring this Western home.

- Director: Joseph M. Newman
- IMDb user rating: 6.0
- Votes: 635
- Runtime: 97 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1961: 8

The combined forces of up-and-comers George Hamilton, Richard Chamberlain, and Duane Eddy, prolific director Joseph Newman and accomplished screenwriter James Warner Bellah weren't enough to make "A Thunder of Drums" a success. The flick follows a bitter veteran captain, an argumentative young lieutenant, and a band of renegade Indians whose actions will test them both, and lost an estimated $42,000 at the box office. The formulaic plot does nothing new, and limited action sequences make this a less-enjoyable Western.

- Director: Russ Meyer
- IMDb user rating: 4.2
- Votes: 554
- Runtime: 65 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1962: 7

In case the title didn't tip you off to the fact that "Wild Gals of the Naked West" is not your average Western movie, this is in fact, a nudie film. Intended to be a spoof of classic Western films, the story here is told in flashbacks and peppered with lame jokes. Bottom line: most viewers agree that it's just horrible.

- Director: Robert Aldrich
- IMDb user rating: 5.6
- Votes: 2,730
- Runtime: 124 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1963: 5

"4 for Texas" is a Western comedy film starring Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin as two sharpshooters both vying for $100,000 (and defending it from would-be-robbers). In the end, they team up and use the money to open a casino, hoping to multiply their cash, only to find that the bullets and schemers follow. A Rat Pack film, this movie was intended mainly as a publicity vehicle for the two celebrities, and as a result, lacks a decent storyline or the artistry that would make it a great watch.

- Director: Sidney Salkow
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 578
- Runtime: 87 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1964: 10

A low budget doesn't always mean that a movie is going to be bad, but in the case of "The Quick Gun," it certainly does. Audie Murphy plays a disgraced gunslinger returning to his former town in order to claim his father's ranch. On the way, he runs into his old gang and uncovers their plot to rob the bank in the town he's heading toward. The film's action sequences are weak, possibly because the budget didn't allow for enough money to be spent on them to make them exciting. Many reviewers cite this as their #1 reason for disliking the film.

- Director: Norman Taurog
- IMDb user rating: 5.9
- Votes: 1,223
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1965: 11

At the height of his fame, Elvis had his pick of projects, including the 1965 flop "Tickle Me." In it, the rock 'n' roll legend plays a singing cowboy hired as a stable hand at a luxury ranch frequented by rich and famous socialites. He falls in love with a fitness trainer, and has to defend her from a gang who's after the gold her grandfather left behind. A cult classic among Elvis fans, those who aren't fans of The King bemoan the dull storyline and the weak acting chops of the films' stars.

- Director: William Beaudine
- IMDb user rating: 3.0
- Votes: 1,419
- Runtime: 88 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1966: 16

In "Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter," the legendary outlaw, played by John Lupton, takes shelter in the barn of Maria Frankenstein, who then proceeds to change James' wounded companion, Hal, into a killer zombie. Billed as "the terror shock show of the West," most fans find the movie "unintentionally hilarious" and an entertaining camp-fest, but it certainly lacks the requirements to ever be considered a "great Western."

- Directors: Phil Karlson, Roger Corman
- IMDb user rating: 5.4
- Votes: 681
- Runtime: 88 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1967: 16

Harrison Ford's first credited film role was in the 1967 Western dud, "A Time for Killing." The movie follows a group of Confederate prisoners of war who've escaped the union camp they've been held in. While making for the Mexico border, they're tracked by Union troops. Meanwhile, neither group knows that the war is over, and peace has been declared. The film's ending is underwhelming, and the acting and editing are both mediocre at best, leaving IMDb users to determine this to be the worst Western of 1967.

- Director: Peter Tewksbury
- IMDb user rating: 4.8
- Votes: 974
- Runtime: 102 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1968: 15

"Tickle Me" wasn't Elvis Presley's only foray into the world of Western films. In 1968, he starred in "Stay Away, Joe" as a mixed-race Navajo Indian rodeo champion who returns to the reservation to raise cattle and bolster his community's standing. Panned by critics for its awful script, the movie performed decently (the 65th-highest grossing film in the U.S. that year) thanks to its legendary star.

- Director: Burt Kennedy
- IMDb user rating: 5.7
- Votes: 904
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1969: 18

Robert Mitchum plays a peace-loving man who becomes a deputy marshall in order to avenge the death of his son in "Young Billy Young." While it's not an exceptionally bad story (albeit a little formulaic) most viewers were disappointed by how unsatisfying and dull the finished product was, especially compared to Westerns like "True Grit" and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" that came out the same year.

- Director: Burt Kennedy
- IMDb user rating: 5.2
- Votes: 752
- Runtime: 91 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1970: 14

Like Elvis, Frank Sinatra is another Hollywood character you probably wouldn't have expected to make a host of Western films, but "Dirty Dingus Magee" is his second on this list. Sinatra plays Dirty Dingus Magee, who stirs up trouble and heroism alongside his sometimes-rival, sometimes-friend Hoke Birdsill, played by George Kennedy. The film has some incredibly dirty jokes for 1970, but many reviewers find the movie to be a poor attempt at a comedy rather than a genuinely humorous flick.

- Director: Sam Wanamaker
- IMDb user rating: 5.6
- Votes: 898
- Runtime: 101 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1971: 17

Leonard Nimoy of "Star Trek" fame plays a bounty hunter tracking an outlaw named Catlow, and the $2 million worth of gold he's stolen, as he makes his way through Apache territory to the Mexico border. Based on a novel of the same name by Louis L'Amour, the screenplay just doesn't do the story justice. While the acting, especially Nimoy's, is great, the storyline is simply too weak to make this film worth watching.

- Director: Stuart Rosenberg
- IMDb user rating: 5.5
- Votes: 1,311
- Runtime: 102 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1972: 16

Paul Newman, who'd had wild success as the titular character in "Cool Hand Luke" a few years prior, tried to replicate his performance in "Pocket Money." Broke and in debt, with a STD-inflicted horse he can't get out of quarantine, Newman's character Jim Kane teams up with his old pal Leonard, played by Lee Marvin, to purchase some cattle and change his fortune. Before long, he's accidentally gotten himself wrapped up in some shady business. IMDb reviewers complain that the movie seems confused, lacks a clear point or direction, and coasts on its star power rather than trying to innovate.

- Directors: Barry Shear, Samuel Fuller
- IMDb user rating: 5.7
- Votes: 630
- Runtime: 110 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1973: 10

An oddly violent Western, "The Deadly Trackers" was disliked by almost everyone connected to the project. Set in Mexico, it tells the story of a Texas sheriff named Kilpatrick, who seeks revenge after an outlaw, played by Rod Taylor, kills his wife and son. Kilpatrick teams up with a Mexican policeman who's also after the outlaw, and the two must overcome their desire for justice and revenge in order to get the job done. "The Deadly Trackers" faced tons of on-set drama, and production was even shut down for a time. The behind-the-scenes mess is apparent on-screen, and when it finally hit theaters, the Los Angeles Times dubbed it "the worst film released this year."

- Director: Antonio Margheriti
- IMDb user rating: 5.9
- Votes: 683
- Runtime: 107 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1974: 7

"Blood Money," more commonly called "The Stranger and the Gunfighter," stars Lo Lieh as a martial artist who joins forces with classic Western gunslinger Lee Van Cleef. Together, they follow a treasure map left behind by Lieh's character's uncle, which should lead them to ancient buried treasure. A true spaghetti Western, the film has its funny moments, but overall is a mediocre and forgettable mix of two genres.

- Director: Antonio Margheriti
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 898
- Runtime: 103 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1975: 9

The New York Times' review of "Take a Hard Ride" attested that the film, "...goes on and on—it lurches, really—in little fits and starts of inspiration from dimly remembered earlier movies." It's a black Western about an honest cowboy, played by Jim Brown, and his companions, a gambler and an Indian, who take $86,000 across miles of dangerous land to their former employer's widow in Mexico. The movie is pretty standard, but ultimately it lacks the seamlessness and story depth to make it worth watching.

- Director: Melvin Frank
- IMDb user rating: 5.7
- Votes: 1,473
- Runtime: 103 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1976: 9

A card shark (George Segal) and a hustler (Goldie Hawn) walk into a bar, steal $40,000 from a bunch of outlaws, and then fall in love in "The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox." Goldie Hawn is the high point of this romp, and was nominated for a Golden Globe (losing to Faye Dunaway). Aside from her performance, the Western comedy has some funny moments, and the slapstick is as good as any other comedy released that year. Nevertheless, viewers are consistently unsatisfied with the ending, which just sort of peters out without providing any resolution.

- Director: Joseph Manduke
- IMDb user rating: 5.0
- Votes: 417
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1977: 5

"Vengeance" was only awarded a theatrical release thanks to its teen star, one of the biggest of the 1970s, Leif Garrett. Garrett plays teenager Tom, who sees both of his parents killed by a band of Mexican outlaws. In typical vengeance adventure form, Garrett sets out for revenge, receiving help along the way from a prospector (Jim Brown) who was robbed by the same outlaws. Reviewers tend to be turned off by the gruesomeness of the subject matter, as well as a tired plot that doesn't seek to do anything new.

- Directors: John Fabian, D**k Robinson, George Lauris
- IMDb user rating: 4.4
- Votes: 353
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1978: 5

Loosely based on real life, "Buffalo Rider" attempts to tell a heart-warming story about Jake Jones, who finds and rescues a buffalo that's about to be eaten by a pack of coyotes. Jones names the buffalo, and saddle-breaks him, then proceeds to ride him around the West doing all sorts of heroic acts. There's not really a plot to this 90-minute film, but there are plenty of confusing (and seemingly unrelated) animal and nature shots mixed in among the half-hearted attempts at a storyline.

- Director: Hal Needham
- IMDb user rating: 5.4
- Votes: 5,835
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1979: 7

Kirk Douglas and Arnold Schwarzenegger play opposite each other in this oddball Western flick about a convicted felon who agrees to steal a bunch of money for a crooked banker in order to avoid the hangman's noose. Viewers consistently compare the flick to a "Looney Toons" episode, as this is essentially a real-life version of the classic TV show. The perfect family film, "The Villain" was never an awards contender, but has developed a bit of a cult following over the years.

- Director: Clint Eastwood
- IMDb user rating: 6.1
- Votes: 9,693
- Runtime: 116 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1980: 7

One of Clint Eastwood's personal favorites, "Bronco Billy" follows his titular character as he tries to save his traveling Wild West show that's on the verge of bankruptcy with the help of his unlucky new assistant, played by Sondra Locke. Eastwood also directed the movie, which earned a a little more than $24 million in the box office, making it a commercial success. Many reviewers actually consider "Bronco Billy" an underrated classic, but those who don't enjoy the movie feel it wasn't worthy of Eastwood's talent, a "pointless piece of fluff," and a "misfire."

- Director: William A. Fraker
- IMDb user rating: 5.0
- Votes: 1,610
- Runtime: 98 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1981: 5

In this retelling of the Lone Ranger myth, Klinton Spilsbury plays the masked hero who's dedicated his life to fighting crime alongside his Comanche friend Tonto (Michael Horse). Casting two unknowns to carry such a famous story may not have been the best call, as most viewers report the movie feels "dull and slow."

- Director: William Dear
- IMDb user rating: 5.4
- Votes: 1,783
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1982: 5

Another failed crossover attempt, "Timerider: The Adventure of Lyle Swann" is part-action movie, part-sci-fi and part-old Western. Motorbike racer Lyle Swann winds up in a time travel research testing site, and accidentally teleports himself to the Wild West in the mid-1800s. The time travel aspect of the plot doesn't seem thought through, which leaves the story feeling muddled and confusing more often than not. There's a level of 1980's corniness that just can't be overlooked.

- Director: John Hough
- IMDb user rating: 5.7
- Votes: 480
- Runtime: 86 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1983: 5

Richard Harris and Michael Beck lead the cast and set the tone in "Triumphs of a Man Called Horse," a sequel to the much better-received "A Man Called Horse," released in 1970. Man Called Horse has lived with the Sioux tribe for 30 years when gold is discovered on their land. As white settlers and prospectors pour in, it's up to him to keep the tribe calm and convince them to not give in to a manufactured war that would strip them of their land. T.V. Guide called this "anything but a triumph."

- Director: Matt Cimber
- IMDb user rating: 4.2
- Votes: 270
- Runtime: 102 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1984: 5

Blue-eyed blonde Yellow Hair (along with her companion, The Pecos Kid) is after a trove of Mayan gold in "Yellow Hair and the Fortress of Gold." In the nearly two-hour run time, Yellow Hair fights off an army of Mexican soldiers, a band of outlaws, and a tribe of bloodthirsty Aztecs almost single-handedly in order to claim the gold. Bad acting, poor writing, trite slapstick bits, and way too many slow-motion sequences make this by far the worst Western of 1984.

- Director: Conrad E. Palmisano
- IMDb user rating: 3.8
- Votes: 260
- Runtime: 77 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1985: 5

Set 200 years in the future on an outer realm planet, Proxima Centauri 3, "Space Rage" is far from your average Wild West film. Richard Farnsworth, a retired colonel, and John Laughlin, a bounty hunter, must team up to keep Michael Pare, an insane bank robber, from escaping his exile and wreaking havoc on their universe. The movie is one of those low-budget escapades you'd expect to see on late-night TV.

- Director: Jim McCullough Sr.
- IMDb user rating: 4.5
- Votes: 239
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1986: 5

In most Westerns, when a ranger is sent out on a mission, his goal is to catch a bank robber or avenge a murder. In this case, he's after a tiny alien who may or may not be bad. While "The Aurora Encounter" itself is a disaster for a number of reasons, it does hold some cultural significance as the last film appearance of George "Spanky" McFarland of "Little Rascals" fame. Mickey Hays, a progeria patient who played the alien, actually got his part through the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

- Director: Alex Cox
- IMDb user rating: 6.6
- Votes: 2,923
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1987: 5

Filmed almost entirely in Nicaragua, "Walker" attempts to tell the true story of William Walker (Ed Harris), a 19th-century mercenary who became the president of the Latin American country. While critics panned the movie, reviewers across the board seem to agree that there's something great about it, giving it potential to become a cult classic.

- Director(s): Charles B. Pierce
- IMDb user rating: 2.2
- Votes: 275
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1988: 5

Nearly half of the IMDb users who reviewed this movie gave it a 1 out of 10, owing to poor acting, a confusing lack of storyline, and cringe-worthy butchered English. "Hawken's Breed" follows Hawken, played by Peter Fonda, as he wanders around the country having repeated run-ins with a young Shawnee woman named Spirit. There are hired killers, a racist landowner, an evil fur trader, and more rogue Indians than one can count. Nevertheless, no amount of over-the-top villains can save this movie from being the worst Western of the 1980s.

- Director: Peter Masterson
- IMDb user rating: 3.2
- Votes: 637
- Runtime: 91 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1989: 5

The cast of "Blood Red," lead by Oscar-winner Julia Roberts, and Oscar nominees Eric Roberts, Burt Young, Dennis Hopper, and Giancarlo Giannini, is outstanding. However, these five powerhouse actors still aren't enough to save the story of a Sicilian family who immigrated to California in order to run a vineyard, and now must contend with a cruel and powerful landowner. The script is bad, the story is routine, and more than one reviewer reported turning off the film before it was over.

- Director: Wayne Coe
- IMDb user rating: 5.4
- Votes: 817
- Runtime: 86 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1990: 5

If you got a kick out of telling horror stories around the campfire during your summer camp years, then this is the perfect movie for you. "Grim Prairie Tales" has a fairly simple plot: A young clerk heads across the country to be reunited with his wife. He and a cynical bounty hunter share a campfire, and the four creepiest stories they know. Fans seem to like the concept of the film, which stars James Earl Jones, but critics across the board agree that it shouldn't really qualify as a Western film at all. Psychological thriller may be a more apt classification.

- Director: James W. Roberson
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 181
- Runtime: 88 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1991: 5

"The Giant of Thunder Mountain" would probably be better-classified as a children's or family movie than a Western. While it is set in the West, the story about a little girl (Noley Thornton) who befriends the local recluse giant (Richard Kiel) has little in common with any of the other Westerns on this list. Only bringing in $126,911 at the box office, Tampa Bay Times bemoaned its "stultifyingly simplistic story" and "stilted dialogue," while calling the acting  "below community players' level."

- Director: Isaac Florentine
- IMDb user rating: 3.8
- Votes: 178
- Runtime: 86 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1992: 5

For better or worse, the early '90s didn't see a lot of stereotypical Westerns. Take, for example, "Desert Kickboxer," which follows a young Native American kickboxer named Hawk who uses his skills to help save a brother and sister who are being pursued by a drug lord. With some of the worst acting the screen has ever seen, there are very few things that could redeem this cheesy Western.

- Director: Gus Van Sant
- IMDb user rating: 4.3
- Votes: 6,680
- Runtime: 95 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1993: 7

Based on a novel by Tom Robbins, and starring Uma Thurman, John Hurt, Rain Phoenix, Keanu Reeves, Angie Dickinson, Carol Kane, and Roseanne Barr, you might imagine that "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" was a huge commercial success. You couldn't be further from the truth. With a box office gross of $1.71 million (nearly a quarter of what it cost to produce), it seems that fans just couldn't see past the ludicrous story of a woman born with giant thumbs who becomes a feminine hygiene spray model.

- Director: David Lister
- IMDb user rating: 2.0
- Votes: 630
- Runtime: 96 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1994: 13

Finally, a '90s Western that keeps with the traditions of typical Western films. "Trigger Fast" tells the story of a woman struggling to keep her ranch from being taken by a greedy land baron, and the various men that come to her assistance. The oversized cast of characters and dozens of intertwining storylines kept the film from reaching its full potential.

- Director: Peter Hewitt
- IMDb user rating: 5.6
- Votes: 8,880
- Runtime: 97 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1995: 10

A re-telling of "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" starring '90s teenage heartthrobs Jonathan Taylor Thomas and Brad Renfro, this is another family movie that gets lumped into the Westerns category. When you look at the film through that lens, it's really not that bad—a little cheesy and a loose adaptation at best, but decent. The only thing reviewers complain about is the production value, which is sub-par for a Disney film.

- Director: Phillippe Mora
- IMDb user rating: 3.7
- Votes: 488
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1996: 4

Set in outer space, in a moon colony on the fictional Asteroid 13, "Precious Find" follows the classic Western trope of the race for newly discovered gold, and the one villain who sets out to claim it all as his own. Most IMDb viewers classify this one as "a poor effort," citing things like low budget, stiff acting, poor dialogue, and cheesy effects as making it not worth your time to watch.

- Director: Fred Olen Ray
- IMDb user rating: 4.9
- Votes: 464
- Runtime: 91 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1997: 2

"The Shooter" also follows a familiar Western trope: A gunslinger wanders into a small Wild West town, and sets out to save it from the greedy evil family that runs it. Then comes the twist: The hero is captured, beaten, and left for dead—only to be saved by a prostitute who also suffered at the hand of the family. Called an "amateurish attempt," it seems that most fans were turned off by the twist, preferring instead the typical heroism of the Western genre.

- Director: Christopher Guest
- IMDb user rating: 5.8
- Votes: 14,448
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1998: 5

Chris Farley and Matthew Perry helm this comedy that follows Lewis and Clark's rival adventurers, Bartholomew Hunt and Leslie Edwards, as they race them across the country. The flick is pretty uneven—hilarious moments followed by dull drags—and the humor will only tickle a certain kind of audience. In the end, this lead it to gross only one-fifth of its production costs. It's fared better since becoming a bit of a cult classic, as the lore around Farley's work has grown. Sadly, the comedian and actor passed away five months before the release of "Almost Heroes."

- Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
- IMDb user rating: 4.9
- Votes: 143,198
- Runtime: 106 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 1999: 5

Will Smith seems like the most unlikely Western star ever, but in "Wild Wild West" he plays a gunslinger tasked with saving the country from villainous inventor Dr. Loveless. Spun off of a TV series of the same name, many fans felt as if the movie were a cheap, unloving knockoff of the original, and boycotted it as such.

- Director: Rune Bendixen
- IMDb user rating: 2.5
- Votes: 384
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2000: 5

A peaceful wanderer who's fascinated with bullfighting, Jack's world is turned upside down when he finds himself implicated in the death of a crime boss's daughter. The storyline in "Bullfighter" is hard to follow, at times becoming totally incomprehensible, the acting is bad (even Willem Dafoe's bit part did not impress), and several IMDb users claim that this is the worst movie they've ever seen.

- Director: Jesús Franco
- IMDb user rating: 2.8
- Votes: 166
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2001: 5

In "Vampire Junction" a local journalist goes to a small Western town to investigate a story and uncovers the fact that it's been taken over by vampires. The plot never develops, which results in a lot of strangely sexual scenes that carry no real purpose and bad acting that has no clear direction.

- Director: Alex Erkiletian
- IMDb user rating: 5.2
- Votes: 189
- Runtime: 100 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2002: 5

In "Legend of the Phantom Rider" a man with a distinctly disfigured face named Blade murders Sarah's husband and son. No one will help her exact her revenge until an ancient reincarnated spirit, in the form of a silent gunfighter named Pelgidium, comes to town. As far as fantasy Western's go, this one is not all that bad, but the plot has more holes than a slice of Swiss cheese and the sluggish acting of the leads does nothing to help take your mind off of them.

- Director: Jean-Claude La Marre
- IMDb user rating: 2.3
- Votes: 927
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2003: 5

Fans seem most thrown off by "Gang of Roses" because it makes a weak attempt at fitting snugly into the Western genre. The dialogue is thoroughly modern and there are one too many group hugs for a Western adventure flick. Starring celebrities like Lil' Kim, Macy Grey, Stacey Dash, and Bobby Brown the film follows a group of bank robbers who come out of retirement to help one of their own.

- Directors: Will Finn, John Sanford
- IMDb user rating: 5.4
- Votes: 17,368
- Runtime: 76 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2004: 5

Animated talking animals set out to save their farm by taking down a conniving cattle rustler who seeks to buy it unfairly in this Disney classic. Among others, Roseanne Barr, Steve Buscemi, Carole Cook, Judi Dench, and Cuba Gooding Jr. lend their voices to the farm animals, which, at one point, Disney claimed would be the last hand-drawn characters they'd ever produce. Flubbing at the box office, "Home on the Range" never recovered its reputation.

- Director: Jean-Claude La Marre
- IMDb user rating: 2.3
- Votes: 1,647
- Runtime: 85 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2005: 5

Across the board, most IMDb reviewers say they dislike "Brothers in Arms" because of the "unbelievable premise" that black and white citizens would have socialized or spoken to each other in the real Wild West. While historically, that may be true, it doesn't seem to be an implausible premise for a "hip-hop Western" that follows the two most wanted cowboys in the Wild West as they team up for one last big robbery.

- Director: Gerald Nott
- IMDb user rating: 2.7
- Votes: 1,269
- Runtime: 80 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2006: 5

If you thought vampires in Westerns were bad, wait until you see zombies in Westerns. In "The Quick and the Undead" a virus has infected three-fourths of the world turning them into the walking dead, leaving a group of bounty hunters as the world's only hope. The cheap special effects, poor cinematography, and lifeless acting lead IMDb users to give this "zombie fan flick" a 2.7 rating.

- Director: Albert Pyun
- IMDb user rating: 5.2
- Votes: 1,184
- Runtime: 84 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2007: 6

Officially classified as a horror Western film, "Left for Dead" follows a posse of wronged and vengeful women as they chase down a wanted man and get trapped in a remote town by a vengeful demon. Users scoff at it for its hackish script, bad acting, and visual gimmicks as well as its own overblown sense of importance.

- Director: Glen Pitre
- IMDb user rating: 5.0
- Votes: 782
- Runtime: 112 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2008: 5

Loosely based on the Thibodaux massacre in 1887, "The Man Who Came Back" follows overseer Paxton (played by Eric Braeden) who stands up for the striking slaves, gets beaten within inches of his life, and then comes back for revenge. While the plot summary makes the movie sound as though it should be a winner, a weak script does nothing for the story and the over-the-top violence acts as the nail in the coffin.

- Director: Robert Conway
- IMDb user rating: 3.8
- Votes: 510
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2009: 5

A small town on the Mexico border, Redemption is the place for outlaws and convicts who seek to live outside the arm of the law. Former cattle rustler Frank Harden seeks to live among his own there until he witnesses a crime so horrible it essentially converts him into the law. Unfortunately for "Redemption" the film had not one redeeming factor, and unlike for Frank Harden, there's no way to right the horrible wrong.

- Directors: Stars: Jasen Wade, Angélica Celaya, Shannon Whirry, Ariel Myers
- IMDb user rating: 2.6
- Votes: 294
- Runtime: 94 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2010: 5

Johnny West is an actor trying to make it in the Western genre. When a new management team takes over the studio/amusement park he works for and turns it into a "fright fest" to celebrate Halloween, he has some serious suspicions, which turn out to be warranted when finds himself facing off with vampires. Viewers lament the half-baked plot of "Cowboys vs. Vampires" as well as the poor editing and the lack of action sequences.

- Director: Christopher Forbes
- IMDb user rating: 2.2
- Votes: 438
- Runtime: 95 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2011: 5

Western audiences were ecstatic when a new Michael Madsen (a veteran of the genre) film was released in 2011. They expected great things from "A Cold Day in Hell," but instead received a film full of bad acting, silly fight sequences, and bad camera work. The movie tells the story of William Drayton, a legendary gunman in 1887, who is fighting against a tycoon who plans on running a railroad straight through his town and dozens of others.

- Director: Andrew Goth
- IMDb user rating: 3.6
- Votes: 6,728
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2012: 5

Yet another attempt to mash up Western and horror films, "Gallowwalkers" follows Aman (Wesley Snipes) a cursed gunslinger whose victims return to life after being shot, and Fabulos (Riley Smith) who Aman recruits to help deal with the growing gang of the walking dead. During the middle of the shoot, Snipes was indicted on a series of tax evasion charges, and his ensuing legal troubles threw the shoot into chaos. This might be part of the reason the plot and editing seem so jumbled and frenzied resulting in a 3.6 out of 10 rating on IMDb.

- Director: Rene Perez
- IMDb user rating: 2.0
- Votes: 299
- Runtime: 80 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2013: 5

The year is 1854, a lone alien scout lands in the Wild West gathering information and preparing to call an invasion force. Luckily, a cowboy, who's running from bounty hunters, is willing to stand against the alien determining the fate of the world in the process. His diary will also help determine the fate of the world 200 years in the future. One review accurately called out the over-dramatic acting, thin storyline, and fake, repetitive fight scenes as the condemning factors of the movie.

- Director: Pablo Fendrik
- IMDb user rating: 5.1
- Votes: 685
- Runtime: 101 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2014: 6

Most of the Westerns on this list have been set in the American West or the wilds of Canada; "Ardor" is set in the Argentinian rainforest. Kai, mysterious and silent, emerges from the Amazon river in order to save Vania, a local, and to stop Tarquinho and his brothers from their monstrous plot of deforestation. Reviewers report not being able to really tap into the story, which is what drove most of them to vote it the worst Western of 2014.

- Director: Timothy Woodward Jr.
- IMDb user rating: 4.2
- Votes: 1,790
- Runtime: 84 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2015: 12

A modern Western, "4Got10" opens with Brian Barnes (Johnny Messner) waking up wounded in the desert surrounded by eight dead bodies, 4 million dollars, and pounds of cocaine. He finds himself pursued by a drug lord, DEA agent, and a corrupt local sheriff, all after him for different reasons. While the story sounds enjoyable enough, "4Got10" is clearly a B-movie with a repetitive, and at times dull, plot, hack acting, and a mediocre ending.

- Director: Danny Roew
- IMDb user rating: 3.2
- Votes: 1,089
- Runtime: 89 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2016: 8

The first post-apocalyptic Western, "Dead 7" follows a group of classic gunslingers as they attempt to end a zombie plague. Starring Nick Carter, Joey Fatone, A.J. McLean, Chris Kirkpatrick, and Howie Dorough, the film is perfect for '90s boy lovers, but few other viewers appreciate it thanks to its poor screenplay and "avert your eyes" acting.

- Director: Ted Geoghegan
- IMDb user rating: 4.5
- Votes: 901
- Runtime: 91 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2017: 10

Set towards the end of the War of 1812, "Mohawk" follows a Mohawk woman and her two lovers as they seek revenge on the American soldiers who have been terrorizing their tribe. Full of blood, gore, and historical anachronisms, the movie feels cheaply made with cheap acting to match.

- Director: Michael Steves
- IMDb user rating: 4.5
- Votes: 451
- Runtime: 90 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2018: 5

One-dimensional characters, a bad plot, and a complete lack of thrills ruin this recent attempt at Western horror. "West of Hell" follows a gunslinger, a vengeful ex-slave, and a runaway as they board a train headed out of town, only to find that it's haunted. Their fight against the sinister force is as reported to be boring.

- Director: Wes Miller
- IMDb user rating: 4.1
- Votes: 751
- Runtime: 106 minutes
- Total movies analyzed from 2019: 8

"Hell on the Border" tells the true story of the first Black American deputy U.S. Marshall, Bass Reeves. While the tale is genuinely interesting, full of action, adventure, and root-for-the-underdog moments, the film was widely panned by critics who felt it grossly underserved its story and hero. Where the film had the opportunity to amplified this little-known hero and defining cultural moment, it was instead generic and poorly acted.