Top 20 BEST Western Movie Duels [2024]

[@chrispopsjunior8978]

The finale of The Good The Bad and the Ugly is the greatest showdown on film, perfection

[@elmud]

I love how Lee Van Cleef is all over the video 🖤

[@jason_eh]

So good! SO underrated! One of the best of all time!

[@patedge5599]

Lee Van Cleef, was one of the best good guy, bad guy, movie Cowboys of all time😊😊

[@WalterFuchs-dh5zn]

@@jason_eh gibt es auch vielleicht eine deutsche Übersetzung??

[@johndonovan6336]

Including way back in High Noon.

[@sadrialsk4185]

Lee Van Cleef the true king

[@ЛаврентийПавлович-щ3и]

Absolute 1st place support! The Good, bad and the ugly --- The best Western of all time!!

[@patedge5599]

The Good, bad and the ugly😊😊😅

[@47minsway9]

A few dollars more.... love the end when Lee Van Cleef touches his and says to Clint Eastwood, "maybe next time", always gets me a little emotional 😢

[@kzmaven7478]

Gripping, emotional, ending to a superb movie.

[@matthalpin1981]

'A Fistful of Dollars' and 'Once Upon a Time in the West' - Both movies have an opening duel as good as its climactic duel.

[@AnthonyTobyEllenor-pi4jq]

In all the years of looking at KZbin and ,''best of something'', this is the first time I absolutely agree with a list ! well done !

[@TRTMN-vs3ew]

Silverado is a loveletter to the western genre. The final duel is a highlight for me because it reconstructs showdowns like this by having the two opponents be friends who, knowing this is their final meeting, settle on giving each other a fair chance. They both know one of them ain't walking away, and would rather face each other directly rather than run or shoot the other in the back. A simple but plausible reason for why a showdown like this could work in fiction.

[@citiestoash]

All of these shootouts work in fiction because it’s fiction. I don’t understand people who can’t grasp the idea that things don’t have to be realistic in fiction. If you want a plausible reason, watch a documentary

[@Voxguitarsrock]

Rooster Cogburn and Ned Pepper in the meadow scene was pretty epic as well.

[@misstlc7136]

My choice!❤❤❤

[@archstanton6102]

So 20% of them contain Lee Van Cleef. Outstanding.

[@christianellegaard7120]

And quite a few had Ennio Morricone building the tension.

[@sgray001]

Matthew Quigley: "I said; _I never had much use for one._ Never said I didn't know how to use it."

[@joelmbaumgartner]

Fantastic line from a criminally underrated movie.

[@jefflebowski3784]

Solid list. One of my favorites is the shootout between Nobody (Terence Hill) and Jack Beauregard (Henry Fonda) in My Name Is Nobody. I loved the quick reference to The Good, the Bad and the Weird.

[@thomasdesulme797]

💯💯💯

[@jeffgaboury3157]

Excellent list and I love the order. The three-way standoff from Good the Bad and the Ugly is deservedly in number 1 spot. Well done!

[@fitless]

It has no real climax, it has no revelation, it is no mistery solved. Yess, deservedly😂

[@kimberlyjacobsen4148]

But 3 people is not a duel .. It’s a Truel

[@jeffgaboury3157]

@@kimberlyjacobsen4148 LOL New word! Awesome!!!

[@williamcarter361]

The Outlaw Josey Wales, when he says to the four Union soldiers, “Are you gonna pull them pistols or whistle Dixie”.

[@michaelinsc9724]

Absolutely!

[@jonathanmann5227]

One of the best lines ever.

[@jonathanmann5227]

@@williamcarter361 also from the outlaw, get ready little lady hell is coming to breakfast

[@ktswandering]

One of the BEST westerns of all time!

[@hawkeyepierce59]

....and what happened...💥

[@vickdisco]

Thank you for mentioning The Big Country. Such an underrated western, and one of my favorites.

[@Sodom1611]

"Lee Van Cleef" even his name itself a legend

[@MH77391]

Enjoyed this.Lee van Cleefs in a huge number of them. He's even in High Noon!!

[@hannibalheyes339]

And "The man who Shot Liberty Valance"

[@MH77391]

Thats right!​@@hannibalheyes339

[@stevemcnary7963]

You missed the opening shootout at the train station at the start of Once Upon A Time In The West

[@ComeAndTakeItTX1835]

That’s my number 1

[@antoniocenteno1483]

I think the rule is one duel per movie lol. I don´t blame him, this video could easily be 20 showdowns all directed by Sergio Leone.

[@grahamtowers5513]

You brought 2 horses too many

[@korvstopparen]

​@@grahamtowers5513that is one of my favorite lines in any movie

[@dougupah8778]

@@ComeAndTakeItTX1835 same here.

[@woytektwardy]

“You brought two too many” - such a great twist!

[@drizzle952]

There's a few good "duel" scenes in a western that no one ever seems to mention. "Lawman" with Burt Lancaster is, in my opinion, an excellent movie. Well worth watching if you haven't seen it..... Nice video. 👍

[@maureencora1]

That & Burt Lancaster vs Gary Cooper in Vera Cruz.

[@RabbiSteve1]

An excellent list and I would proudly include and all of you these on any list of mine. Well done, sir!

[@CapitaineNautilus]

For "Once upon a time", I would have chosen the initial scene, at the railway station. That one is really epic.

[@thomasdesulme797]

💯💯💯

[@thomasdesulme797]

“…two horse too many!”

[@Tikki-cy1wk]

OUATITW should have been number 1

[@CapitaineNautilus]

@ Their faces when he says that!

[@willgoss4483]

The Wild Bunch (1969) The greatest shootout in cinema history🤠

[@MorganWaterson-f7d]

The director's cut is excruciatingly long lol and just brilliant. There is no Western like it.

[@hawkeyepierce59]

@@MorganWaterson-f7d Uncle Sam wants YOU....

[@johndonovan6336]

Jack Beauregard vs the Wild Bunch had a higher body count.

[@zackeryparkerson]

The duel at the end of TGTBTU is my favorite movie moment, period. Love it.

[@Ridesmule]

One thing that kind of spoils a lot of otherwise great movies is when someone is shot and goes flying 8 feet through the air backwards. That is so ridiculously overdone, it simply NEVER happens in reality. Just silly, overdone nonsense. Dynamite maby, gunshot never.

[@williamplayfair9670]

@@RidesmuleYes, that has always bothered me as well!

[@hawkeyepierce59]

​@@Ridesmule....yep....but it looks good....😁

[@354Entertainment]

That is a very good list. My is vey similar. Place 1. is always TGTBTU and there will ever be!

[@bobsacamano8187]

Quigley down under doesn’t get enough credit, great dual at the end.

[@Luckyrider1958]

I've run that scene in super slow motion just to see if Selleck REALLY Got off those 3 shots and it wasn't Hollywood "trickery" and sound dubbing etc.. ... NOPE.. he actually did it!!

[@Devypocalypse]

Honourable mention to 'The Great Silence'. That subversion and complete shocker of an ending is insane.

[@matthalpin1981]

I will have to watch that one and see how it unfolds.

[@Cenriquezm]

@@matthalpin1981 My dude, get out of here and watch it, or you're gonna get spoiled!

[@matthalpin1981]

@@Cenriquezm It is on a long list of westerns I have heard of all my life but never got around to watching. I only just finished 'Death Rides a Horse' after hearing of it for 20 years. So many classics. So little time. LOL

[@Cenriquezm]

@@matthalpin1981 Well, The Great Silence is typically considered the best non-Leone spaghetti western, so you probably have it somewhere at the top of your list of must watches. It even has a great Morricone soundtrack!

[@Devypocalypse]

@@matthalpin1981 go watch it ASAP. It is a masterpiece that defies convention on so many levels, from its setting, the role of the main character, inter racial relationships, the main ending, just don't hesitate, bump it straight to the top of the list. It was years ahead in so many ways. That film is epic, plus it also has a killer Morricone score.

[@lincolneagle]

Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday should have won an Oscar. His portrayal of Doc Holliday was great! I don’t think anyone’s done it better.

[@Onthemove6801]

@lincolneagle Up there with the best acting of all time. 100% Oscar material.

[@HartmutJagerArt]

Have you seen Kirk Douglas in 'Gunfight at the OK Coral'?

[@chrishampton8842]

The last shoot out in Pale Rider is epic but I think you got this right

[@ONEFATE9]

"Long walk? " "Yep."

[@patmctallica3522]

Eli Wallach should have received an oscar for his performance!

You are right except for the openning scene of One upon a time at the train station, it should have been at least in the ten position !

[@ColoradoYinz]

The “thumbnail “ with the missing middle finger tip - the outstanding Lee Van Cleef

[@geraldmartin7703]

Lost it building a play house for his nephew.

[@sagranpillay6907]

Personally I think the railway scene in Once Upon A Time In The West Is the best. The noise of the windmill & you brought one horse to many is etched in my memory. Nothing better.

[@andrewraymond5942]

Very interesting list and well-chosen. Some others than stand out for me: Ride the High Country; Warlock; The Tin Star; Hombre, and The Culpepper Cattle Company.

[@jatal4891]

Yeah man, Hombre

[@duggy889]

So many of my favorite movies !!! Thank You !!

[@RodneyGuitarsplat]

Awesome Choices, I've seen more than half of them. Thanks

[@bradpatten8690]

Great video!

[@Thehistory-lover]

Lee van cliff, what a man he was❤🎯

[@rontrisel7797]

Said I never had much use for one…never said I couldn’t use it

[@crumbadventures]

Open Range is one of my absolute favorites

[@seeratlasdtyria4584]

you nailed it dude 👍

[@edzombie78]

For a few dollars more will always be the greatest Western ever made IMO

[@kzmaven7478]

It's my favorite of the 3 "Dollars" movies - and I loved the TGTBTU. The hidden revenge motivation that LVC harbored as Colonel Mortimer really drove him.

[@johnnydirect7815]

All-time greatest is the opening gunfight scene in Once Upon a Time in the West.

[@mudcatjones9366]

Another that could have made the list is " The Fastest Gun Alive" (1955) with Glenn Ford and Broderick Crawford.

[@ronpatton9424]

The final shootout in "The Wild Bunch "

[@hoestermeloe]

Excellent. But not a duel.

[@jimdallura6263]

One many probably don’t know of is Paul Newman in the movie Hombre. Two good shoot outs and an excellent movie.

[@joemonco7921]

The Mercenary (1968) - Tony Musante vs Jack Palance; Seven Men from Now - Randolph Scott vs Lee Marvin; The Shootist (1976) - John Wayne vs four in the saloon; Trinity Is Still My Name (1971) - Terence Hill vs Antonio Monselesan.

[@GreatAmericanWesterns]

Pretty good list. You got it right with number 1 though.

[@nahkohese555]

Rio Bravo - The scene in front of the hotel when the 3 gunmen get the drop on John Wayne, then Ricky Nelson walks out, acting like he doesn't know what's going on, tosses John Wayne his rifle, then draws his own guns and shoots 2 of the 3 while it's still in the air.

[@ChrisDeichmiller]

Well done!

[@enricoferro6419]

Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone they were incredible

[@mattstewart5712]

Appaloosa had a couple of really good shootouts

[@ristosiasanis8241]

The Magnificent Seven. When Britt (James Colburn) tells the railroader.."You lost". And at the end, when a dying bandit Calvera says to Chris (Yul Brenner), "You came back..for a place like this. Why?"

[@almcdermid9669]

Great list, especially the Lee Van Cleff entries. A lot of good shoot outs in Wyatt Earp, especially the one with a pool ball. 😂 Have you seen The Gunfight (1971), starring Kirk Douglas and Johnny Cash?

[@TheMeanGreenGoblin]

Damn good list, man.

[@christophecamus3295]

❤❤❤❤great video thanks ❤❤❤❤

[@kayecollado4908]

I will have to check out The Big Gundown. Back the the day, I purchased the Man With No Name flicks on DVD, and they survived the big sell-off after the internet and streaming became a thing. Great cinema.

[@rickydeanlovett]

Excellent 🎉

[@rossramsay6995]

True Grit show down should be on this list

[@almcdermid9669]

The final shootout in Pale Rider. And while there's no actual shootout in Hign Plains Drifter, there is a lot of great gun play.

[@azohundred1353]

My Personal Top 20 (In Order of Film Release): 1. Stagecoach (1939) - John Wayne [Ringo] vs. Tom Tyler (Luke Plummer) & Plummer Brothers 2. Red River (1948) - John Wayne (Thomas Dunson) vs. Montgomery Clift (Matt Garth) 3. Winchester '73 (1950) - Jimmy Stewart (Lin McAdam) vs. Stephan McNally (Matthew McAdam) 4. High Noon (1952) - Gary Cooper (Will Kane) vs. Ian MacDonald (Frank Miller) 5. Shane (1953) - Alan Ladd (Shane) vs. Jack Palance (Jack Wilson) 6. Seven Men From Now (1956) - Randolph Scott (Ben Stride) vs. Lee Marvin (Bill Masters) 7. Man Of The West (1958) - Gary Cooper (Link Jones) vs. Lee J. Cobb (Dock Tobin) 8. Ride Lonesome (1959) - Randolph Scott (Ben Brigade) vs. Lee Van Cleef (Frank) 9. Rio Bravo (1959) - John Wayne (John T. Chance) & Ricky Nelson (Colorado Ryan) vs. 3 of Nathan Burdette's Outlaws 10. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) - John Wayne (Tom Doniphon) & Jimmy Stewart (Ransom Stoddard) vs. Lee Marvin (Liberty Valance) 11. Ride The High Country (1962) - Randolph Scott (Gil Westrum) & Joel McCrea (Steve Judd) vs. The Hammond Brothers 12. A Fistful Of Dollars (1964) - Clint Eastwood (Man With No Name) vs. Gian Maria Valonté (Ramón Rojo) 13. For A Few Dollars More (1965) - Lee Van Cleef (Colonel Douglas Mortimer) vs. Gian Maria Valonté (El Indio) 14. The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly (1966) - Clint Eastwood (Man With No Name) vs. Lee Van Cleef (Angel Eyes) vs. Eli Wallach (Tuco) 15. Once Upon A Time In The West (1968) - Charles Bronson (Harmonica) vs. Henry Fonda (Frank) 16. True Grit (1969) - John Wayne (Rooster Cogburn) vs. Robert Duvall (Ned Pepper) & 3 Outlaws 17. High Plains Drifter (1973) - Clint Eastwood (The Stranger) vs. Geoffrey Lewis (Stacey Bridges) 18. The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) - Clint Eastwood (Josey Wales) vs. 4 Union Soldiers 19. Pale Rider (1985) - Clint Eastwood (The Preacher) vs. John Russell (Marshal Stockburn) 20. Open Range (2003) - Kevin Costner (Charley Waite) vs. Kim Coates (Butler) I think these all qualify as Duels as opposed to all-out shootouts, if that's the criteria set for this list. They're all great duels from classics of the genre.

[@karelmacura8564]

The Searchers (1956) -John Wayne - this is my favorite in first place

[@jamesmurphy4021]

What about 3.10 to Yuma with Russell Crow !!! - and the Glen Ford version before that !!

[@hawkeyepierce59]

@@azohundred1353 "Open Range" is on top 5 on my list...

[@johndonovan6336]

Major (Beau Brummell) vs Moses (Tullio Moneta) in "Three Bullets For A Long Gun."

[@philiphoward4350]

The best of all time, well at least up till now, the greatest is without doubt The Wild Bunch. While all the others mentioned are great and amongst my favourites, the climactic showdown in the Bunch blows every thing else out of the water even when played back at slow, slow motion if you can stand it!. Westerns, the greatest art form invented by man since Homers Odyssey and then some. I was very privileged to be in some of them , shooting guns and riding horses all day and getting paid for it. Happy days!

[@joelewis9627]

Orgulloso que en mi país España, en una comarca burgalesa al norte...se haya rodado el duelo del oeste más legendario de todos los tiempos.

[@alfredofernandez6402]

Lee Van Cleef and Clint Eastwood, the best of all time.

[@hardingdies7811]

And the real underappreciated star of this list is . . . LEE VAN CLEEF! Without him, you'd have to go looking - and isn't it interesting that the only time John Wayne appears is as a hidden shooter. Although his portrayal in "The Shootist" (especially as a man dying of cancer, which he was personally at the time) was very poignant. My personal #1 is the Quigley scene - in Cowboy Action Shooting I'm known as a fast lever action shooter - but I also know my SA Rugers.

[@JH-so5kt]

Nice list, but I feel like The Last Sunset (1961) was a huge omission. That influenced the duel in OUATITW. Great channel, keep it up.

[@johnnycash1762]

Excelente selección !! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@oab1598]

Excellent list! However, I believe the showdown between Paco and Curly in *The Mercenary* (1968) deserves a spot in the top 5 best western duels, not to mention it features one of Ennio Morricone's greatest scores. The *Vera Cruz* (1954) showdown certainly merits a place in the top 10 or 15. Additionally, coming from left field, Bob Hope's duel in *The Paleface* (1948) was truly hilarious and undoubtedly warrants inclusion on this list.

[@geraldmartin7703]

The duel in The Mercenary is a deliberate parody of Sergio Leone. Director Corbucci was Leone's co-director in previous westerns. Look for the "His Master's Voice" banner above the arena. Plus the clown makeup and, of course, Morricone's music. No use for the movie-- but that duel... . ... .

[@ristosiasanis8241]

Two scenes/lines from "Vera Cruz" that I have always loved: When Cooper says to Lancaster, about why the captain of the soldiers is trying to kill him, and Lancaster (who sold him the horse) tells him "Why not, that's his horse your riding". And at the ball where the mercenaries are brought to eat, Lancaster grabs a bottle of wine and starts to drink when one of the Spanish soldiers says to him, "Be careful, senor, you might get some down your mouth". Then Lancaster gives that "Lancaster slow-breaking-smile" and reaches and snaps his cigarette holder in half. I always thought this movie (For its time: 1954) was hugely underrated. Noted others that were in that movie, Charles Bronson, Ernest Borgnine, Cesar Romero and Jack Elam.

[@lahdahnowens7490]

1. Once Upon a Time in the West 2. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly 3. The Magnificent Seven 4. High Plains Drifter❤

[@holymackenaw]

This hand with the missing part of the finger... My favorite movie of all time.

[@oobrocks]

Trivia: the last hour of the film High Noon, the film’s clock matches the run time of the movie (bravo Film makers 🎉)

[@JFinSD2]

Glad 2 see the Quigley down under final gunfight made the list.

[@garyfleming5156]

My favourite is in the movie "WARLOCK". Henry Fonda faces his friend Anthony Quinn. Fonda wins the duel but one is left knowing that Quinn deliberately shot at his hat to miss and was clearly quicker. The emotion showed by Fonda afterwards for the loss of his friend was pure vintage.

[@JustWesterns]

What do you think is the best Western duel of all time?

[@oobrocks]

U have it

[@jimtruscott5670]

Shane vs Wilson.

[@fitless]

It is a poor list, man. Go back and do your studies.

[@cag1763]

Wrong

[@claytonwright2416]

I'd definitely watch and subscribe to these kinds of channels if I got to have the viewing pleasure of hearing and watching the scene itself. I don't want needless commentary on everything. I can figure it out for myself, thank you.

[@robertboyle2573]

I would have put Mortimer versus Indio at number one.

[@franklaufkoetter2133]

I definitely would add the showdown in "Valdez is coming"

[@MiniGunDad]

Great selection of the greatest westerns - TY. However the ending scene in The Shootist should be in amongst this collection IMO.

[@cag1763]

Darn,that was a great one

[@teodorocobadelapena9982]

Also Ride the high Country, Duel at OK corral, Wild Bunch, Winchester 73

[@Erik_m509]

Missed the final duel between Clint Eastwood and John Russell in Pale Rider

[@chrishampton8842]

Yes, a great one

[@themoviesite]

Remake of Shane. Girl instead of boy.

[@JayAr709]

HOMBRE by Elmore Leonard Cicero Grimes: “Well now, what do you suppose hell is going to be like?” John Russell: “We all die. It’s just a question of when.”

[@guilhermerosenvald4083]

Don't forget 'Appaloosa' 🤠

[@hughmcneillie743]

Shane is good for the sound effects in the final gun fight.

[@stephen1991]

And to think Clint Eastwood is still with us.

[@kanwarjitsidhu8678]

Buster Scrubbs duels were gr8 too

[@vadymp.4386]

I would add "3:10 to Uma" the shooting after the release of the main villan

[@patedge5599]

The best ever showdown scene was at the end of 3:10 to Yuma. You are correct my friend.

[@pierredumonteil1976]

The first duel at the train station in once upon the west is, for me better.

[@heavystarch100]

That thumbnail is Lee VanCleef! I recognize that missing finger tip!!

[@nyomandante5249]

Pale Rider is one of my fav duels

[@chrisbrass8930]

I admit, I found it fitting that Unforgiven and Shane was back to back in your listing, although I think I would have had them a little higher, but that's more about personal preferences than anything else. However I must admit that I'm more than a little disappointment that the final shootout in the movie Unforsaken didn't even make the list. I think that Keefer Sutherland's ability to end the much anticipated shootout before it even begins to be quite gratifying

[@VFRSTREETFIGHTER]

I'm disappointed The Wild Bunch's final shootout wasn't included.

[@chrisneumann8177]

It wasn't a duel.

[@VFRSTREETFIGHTER]

​@@chrisneumann8177 Neither was his Young Guns 2 pick.

[@VFRSTREETFIGHTER]

@@chrisneumann8177 Also neither was Open Range

[@chrisneumann8177]

@VFRSTREETFIGHTER you're right. I replied to the comment before I finished the video. There are a lot of "duels" in this video about duels that aren't duels.

[@JohanPatert]

Everybody that loves westerns should watch: Old Henry!!! Trust me its the best in years

[@dougupah8778]

Absolutely

[@JohanPatert]

@ american primeval on netflix was also very good

[@michaeldonlon4312]

Recently watched and enjoyed “Old Henry”. Not on the caliber of “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly “. But definitely note worthy shootout.

[@punky58640]

Even though I am OK with Shane at number 8, for ,my money, I think it was the best gunfight to climax a movie in film history! The whole movie had been building up to this showdown and the tension was unreal. The dialogue was awesome: Shane (Alan Ladd) : " So youre Jack Wilson" Wilson ( Jack Palance) ; "Whats that mean to you Shane?" Shane : " Ive heard about you" Wison : "what have you heard Shane?" Shane : " Ive heard youre a low down Yankee liar" Wison : " Prove it"

[@HawklordLI]

I just loved Kevin Costner's 13 shot revolver.

[@Yoop88]

Val Kilmer deserved an Oscar for Doc Holliday in Tombstone.

[@melyaydinselimov]

Good, bad and ugly is great western movie 🐎👏Clint Eastwood is the best western actor🙌🤠

[@andreasadler85]

Honorable mentions: - The Mercenary - Cemetery without Crosses - Dead Men Ride - A Stranger in Town

[@antoniocenteno1483]

Initially i thought this list was correct, but eventually i could thought of oher 20 duesl, and then 20 more. The list is still correct, don´t get me wrong, specially the top numbers. What i mean to tell is westerns are just so awesome i guess

[@johnbyrne4438]

"You gonna pull them pistols, or whistle Dixie?"

[@patedge5599]

The best ever showdown scene was at the end of 3:10 to Yuma.

[@kirbymarchbarcena]

We rarely get decent western stories nowadays

[@billhamilton7524]

It would be hard to match ,,probably impossible