There are many elements that differentiate a movie from a neo-Western, and the writer-director Taylor Sheridan exemplifies why we're so enamored with the neo-Western genre. Many of his iconic TV shows, like with viewers everywhere, and for good reason. With explosive drama, morally ambiguous characters, and a good balance of love and criticism of the Western genre, Sheridan has been making quite a name for himself in this niche of film and television.

While Taylor Sheridan has many movies similar to Yellowstone, and the director has helped push the neo-Western genre forward, there are plenty of films worth watching that aren't Sheridan's work. and bring it back to the forefront of the cultural conversation. Many of these great neo-Westerns are critically acclaimed and award-winning, but that's not the only reason they've stood the test of time. Like Sheridan's TV series, these are films that immerse the audience in the world from the very beginning and incorporate many exciting twists and turns.

The Coen Brothers' masterpiece, No Country For Old Men, is a terrifying addition to the neo-Western genre as a non-horror movie that's scarier than any horror film. A large part of the successful build of tension and fear in No Country For Old Men is thanks to the performance by Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh. A truly chilling villain, and unforgettable, if bloody.

which was notable since so many iconic pictures were up for the award that year. However, based on the longevity of the project, it's not surprising that No Country For Old Men was so instantly recognized as a classic. It's undeniable that Sheridan was inspired by films like No Country For Old Men, as it's impacted almost every addition to the neo-Western genre since it premiered.

One of the best neo-Western movies ever made, Paris, Texas, owes a lot of its gravitas and iconic legacy to the script, co-written by L.M. Kit Carson, Sam Shepard, and Walter Donohue. However, the director, Wim Wenders, is to thank for the gorgeous aesthetic and patient pacing of Paris, Texas. after destroying himself and his family. It's an emotionally devastating film, but it's impossible not to become invested in the story.

allowing it to age well and still hold a place among the most iconic stories about the American West. The slow, expansive shots of the landscape and Travis' muteness for most of the movie allow the deeper themes to come to the forefront and force the viewer to be an active participant in the project. The destruction of the family unit throughout Paris, Texas, and the eventual reconciliation of mother and son is an interesting take on traditional American values, which Sheridan also explores.

The director of Desperado, with the actor returning for the third installment of Rodriguez's Mexico Trilogy, Once Upon a Time in Mexico. Also featuring Salma Hayek in the performance that showcased her talents on an international level, Desperado benefits from the chemistry between Hayek and Banderas. Full of massive shootouts and tense violence, Desperado is an iconic addition to the neo-Western genre.

Known for the graphic nature of the fight sequences, Desperado more than earns this reputation, as Rodriguez's vision for the action scenes comes through with perfect clarity. The visuals of Desperado are consistently praised, with the over-the-top story earning more appreciation from critics and audiences over time. While Desperado doesn't take itself as seriously as works by Sheridan, they both have a sense of humor and play with the concept of the Western in the scripts.

Directed by and starring the iconic Tommy Lee Jones, Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada grapples with the tensions around the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas. In the film, a Border Patrol officer, Mike Norton (Barry Pepper), murders the titular Melquiades Estrada, and Jones' character, Pete Perkins, forces him to bring the body back to Estrada's home in Mexico. Along the way,

It's an interesting spin on both the Western and an intense iteration of the road movie, as The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada is unafraid to examine the brutality and prejudice of Norton. In Sheridan's TV shows, and using it to harm others. As the film progresses, Norton is rubbed raw by his encounters until he reaches the source of his humanity and cruelty.

The star-studded cast of The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford gives tremendous weight and excitement to the tense atmosphere of the film. Based on the novel by Ron Hansen, It's clear that the director, Andrew Dominik, was deeply inspired by the classic Westerns that explore the legacy of the American West through larger-than-life historical figures.

The Western epic struggled to find an audience when it was first released. This could have been because 2007 was such a big year for neo-Westerns, with No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood released the same year. However, time has been kind to The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, as the movie has developed a cult following. The deliberate pace and anxiety-inducing moments are similar to Sheridan's style.

The 2007 television film Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee isn't a perfect exploration of this fraught period of U.S. history, but it does provide some insights into this time. not just the parts that are easily digestible. Throughout the narrative, major issues, like the U.S. government's violent suppression and displacement of Indigenous Americans, are discussed.

There are many amazing movies by Indigenous North Americans that deserve far more recognition in both film and television. The director of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Yves Simoneau, isn't Indigenous, but similarly to Sheridan, he attempts to interweave the stories of Indigenous people into his works. Watching projects like Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee is

Since Sheridan is often defined by the intensity and violence of his works, it's easy to forget that many of his shows featured unabashedly romantic elements. Crazy Hearts does a great job of mimicking this balance of love and vulnerability with sadness and the struggle to recover from past wounds. The protagonist, His relationship with Jean (Maggie Gyllenhaal) is a catalyst for Otis to get his life together.

The bittersweet tone and conclusion of Crazy Hearts are in line with the tone of the movie and imbue the project with a deep sense of realism. Drawing parallels to classic works like A Star is Born and tackling the complex relationship between art and celebrity, Crazy Hearts is a moving tale that will tug at your heartstrings. The musical elements of Crazy Hearts are some of the best parts, building empathy for the characters through the beautiful songs.

As much a crime thriller as it is a neo-Western, as they go on a murder spree across the Western U.S. Inspired by real crime sprees of the late 1950s and early 1960s, Badlands uses this intensely violent narrative to showcase the discontentment and anxieties of this generation. Terrence Malick's direction highlights the natural landscape and the juxtaposition between beauty and cruelty onscreen.

Sheridan is also interested in the way the land and the people on it interact, especially how horrible acts can accompany such gorgeous visual language. from Bonnie and Clyde to Natural Born Killers. However, Badlands stands out because of its stark depictions of the way Holly and Kit are portrayed. They're simultaneously failed by their environment and experience but also are culpable for their actions.

in There Will Be Blood takes the already fantastic script and expert direction and takes the movie to another level. Hailed as Paul Thomas Anderson's magnum opus, There Will Be Blood interrogates capitalistic desire. It tracks the dangerous path greed takes a person through the life of Daniel Plainview. The unhinged antihero at the heart of There Will Be Blood is similar to many of Sheridan's protagonists.

Sheridan delves deep into the psyches of men driven to violence and unbelievable acts through their desire for power and their idea of what a man should be. This is what happens to Plainview in There Will Be Blood, with Paul Dano's incredible performance that serves as a foil and a mirror to Plainview. Both There Will Be Blood and Sheridan's shows are interested in the legacy and history of American capitalism and devastation.

and an extreme example of the conflict between humanity and its environment. Loosely based on the true story of Hugh Glass, The Revenant is as much a survival story as it is a neo-Western, with much of the narrative following Glass' attempts to make it out of the woods alive after being brutally mauled by a bear. Like a classic Sheridan project, The Revenant doesn't shy away from showcasing violence.

Sheridan tackles the relationships between people and the land many times over throughout his work, especially when it comes to people's reliance on Earth's resources. Though DiCaprio's Hugh Glass is part of the fur trade, this isn't a far cry from the squabbles over oil and farmland that can be seen throughout the different shows in the Yellowstone franchise. are often engaged with this dynamic of humans trying to tame the wilderness, but Sheridan and The Revenant are also interested in how people became untamed.