Best Westerns: A List of Lists
The greatest oaters according to critics, filmmakers, and… As dedicated readers will know, Jeff Arnold didn’t particularly go for ‘best-of’ or ‘favourites’ lists until the very end. If you haven’t already, please check out his nephew’s lovely tribute to Jeff, which includes the list Jeff shared with him at his request: a top 10 hastily […]
Ride the High Country (Reel West) by Robert Nott
In 2023, the University of New Mexico Press launched a series of newly-written books covering the (noble) genre of Western cinema. Branded as Reel West, the series explores “individual Western films across the whole history of the canon, from early and classic Westerns to revisionist and spaghetti Westerns”. Jeff has posted about the initial two […]
The Westerns of Samuel Fuller
Cult director Samuel Fuller was not one of the more prolific exponents of our noble genre – he directed just four big-screen Westerns. But he was a significant one. His Western output is distinctive – and divisive. Fans include filmmakers from Godard and Wenders to Scorsese and Tarantino. Detractors include our own Jeff Arnold, who […]
Duel At Apache Wells (Republic, 1957)
This post is part of Legends of Western Cinema Week 2024, hosted by the fine folks at Along the Brandywine Hamlette’s Soliloquy Meanwhile, in Rivendell… While Duel at Apache Wells is *not* a Legend of Western Cinema, its cast includes a stalwart and, yes, Legend of Western Cinema (and Television): Jim Davis. Davis, as noted by […]
Jeff Arnold: The Man in the White Hat
A remembrance from a member of Jeff’s family To all the e-pards and westernistas out there, a very warm “Hello”. My name is James and I am Jeff’s nephew. He kindly mentioned me a few times in these pages when reviewing films or books I had bought him for a birthday or Christmas. […]
Shall We Gather at the River?
Readers of Jeff Arnold’s West received the news this week that we’d all been dreading. Jeff Arnold passed away on 5th June, just two weeks after announcing his terminal diagnosis. Thank you to Bernard Graf for sharing the […]
Jeff Arnold’s West Rides On…
Dear e-pards (as Jeff would say), Jeff Arnold referring to ‘The Big C’ seemed apt to some of his blog’s loyal readers. No less a Western luminary than John Wayne reputedly coined the term during his own battle with the disease. But Jeff posting about his own inoperable diagnosis was a shock to all his […]