The Western as Commentary about Decaying Values Essay

The Western as Commentary about Decaying Values The Western, as a genre, is subversive of the values that its Christian characters possess. Western films frequently depict social depravity in terms of the mythology that developed during westward expansion. The mythology was inspired by the threat of the frontier wilderness to Puritan culture. In order to preserve their society, some Puritans departed from their ideal Christian lives. Western films portray compromises that cultures make of the values that they define themselves by in order to protect the integrity of their other values. A contemporary Western, Open Range, which Kevin Costner stars in and directed, released in 1995, deals with a†¦show more content†¦He tells Boss one evening, â€Å"My first skirmish was pretty much like hunting in them woods with my friends. We just sat up in some trees and they came marching right at us. Must’ve been a hundred of them lying dead when the smoke cleared; went around and shot the rest who weren’t.† Charley had joined Boss to leave his dismal past behind him. Baxter’s threat, however, forces both men to evaluate their situation and to decide how to approach it. An important theme in Open Range is that violence is best avoided when it’s possible to, but that sometimes people must do what is ethical and violence is inevitable. Boss and Charley both know that to take Button to the town’s doctor mean that Baxter will try to kill them. They also know that, ethically and as his friends, they owe Button whatever help they can find, and so they decide to take the risk of visiting the doctor. A noticeable role inversion occurs following Charley’s story about his past as a solider. Once the inevitability of confrontation is known, his superior skill and experience in gunfights projects him as the leader. He explains, â€Å"I got no problem killing, Boss, never have.† Charley becomes like Daniel Boone, the adventurous frontiersman and hunter hero of 18th and 19th century Kentucky, and Boss like Boone’s companion, faithful and capable, but reliant on Charley for guidance. The situation forces both men intoShow MoreRelatedCormac McCarthys No Country for Old Men Essay921 Words   |  4 PagesVet, Llewellyn Moss, who levels best with the audience. Playing the wild card of the three, Brolin delivers a human centre to the film; the man most identifiable with, even as the odds steepen against him. As the minutes fly by, unnerving notions about the determined yet futile attempts of humankind to guide their obdurate fate – that serves as an unwelcome side-dish to the sachet – becomes increasingly clear. 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