Western Film - Comparison of Shane and Pale Rider. hese classic western films, made decades apart, tell practically the same story. What is fascinating in the comparison of these two films is that the similarities between them are offset by the distinc

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A mysterious horseman appears from nowhere and befriends the decent, hard-working people

of a small, remote town in the old west. On the run from an unhappy past - all we ever learn is that he’s been a gunfighter and he wants to get out of the business of killing. He befriends a family; a woman, a man and a child; who take him in and offer him honest work – the new life away from his dark past that he has been longing for. He develops special bonds with each family member; the respect of the man, the adoration of the woman, the awe of the child. Further; he shares his wisdom and values with their entire community – explaining that if they stick together and stand for what they believe in; they can live the lives they want. As the story continues, our hero turns out to be the answer to the good people’s prayers; as he defends their helpless community from a predatory capitalist looking to take away their homes and way of life. Circumstance and loyalty ultimately draw our hero back to his bad old ways. He is involved in a barroom brawl and a climactic shootout, where he overcomes the adversaries of his new friends. Having rediscovered his inner-demons and used them to save the day, our hero rides off into the sunset by his lonesome self.

The films Shane and Pale Rider can both be summarised by this exact same synopsis. These

classic western films, made decades apart, tell practically the same story. What is fascinating in the

comparison of these two films is that the similarities between them are offset by the distinct differences; many of which are related to the times in which they were made. Having been made in 1953 (Shane) and 1985 (Pale Rider); the makers of each film used significantly different gender roles for some of the major characters in the story to appeal to different audiences, and had access to very different technologies to create their films. The result of these differences is a wonderful contrast between the films, counterbalancing their similarities, and making each film a classic unto itself.

Both Shane and Pale Rider are classified as Western films. Each film contains a multitude of

elements typical to the Western film genre. The Western film genre can be described as a fiction genre devoted to telling stories usually set in the Western United States during the period from about 1860 to 1890.

“The central plot of the western film… is normally rooted in archetypal conflict - good vs. bad,

virtue vs. evil, white hat vs. black hat, man vs. man…”1

1 Tim Dirks, Western Films, http://www.filmsite.org/westernfilms.html. Viewed 18th August 2007.

“Typical elements in westerns include hostile elements… guns and gun fights (sometimes on

horseback), violence… horses, trains… shoot-outs… barroom brawls… and distinctive western clothing (denim, jeans, boots, etc).”2  

All of the elements mentioned in these descriptions of the Western film genre can be found in Shane and Pale Rider. Each is set in the Western United States in the late 1800s and tells a tale of good versus bad. In both movies this presents not only in the struggle between the underdog and the entrepreneur as the threat of the onset of the industrial revolution and the pressures exerted by big business set the scenario of the tale, but between the moralistic and didactic hero who battles with the amoral assassin in each films climax.

Both Shane and Pale Rider have a setting typical to the Western genre – the expansive, untamed American frontier; the borderline between civilization and the wilderness. Specific settings for these two movies include the isolated ranch houses of the good townspeople, where they live and work

the land for their livelihood; contrasted with the saloon in the small-town main street where the ‘bad

men’ spend most of their time, drinking and plotting against the townspeople.

The main character in Shane and Pale Rider presents as the archetypal Western hero – a masculine, maverick character possessing independence; courage and an honourable attitude, not to mention expert physical skills including gun-play and horse handling. In opposition to the hero in both films there are two forms of ‘bad man’. First, a callous and greedy character who lives in the town and is

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looking to overtake the livelihoods and homes of the good townspeople. In his employ is the second

bad man – a notorious, cruel gun-fighter hired to intimidate the townspeople into following the first bad

man’s rules; under pain of injury or death.

The plot line in both Shane and Pale Rider is extremely similar. This plot line is also very typical

to the Western genre. But the difference is in the telling. In the film Shane, the characters are typically

good or bad. Shane is a character in control of his demons; he has even created moral lessons from

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