Film

A Million Ways to Die in the West

Seth MacFarlane's Western comedy casts him as a timid farmer who finds courage (and romance) when a beautiful stranger arrives in town. It's broad, profane, and committed to the bit—a parody that loves the genre it's mocking. For viewers who want their Westerns funny and their jokes explicit.

TMDb rating3.0

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Blazing Saddles1974

Mel Brooks's Western parody that walks the same irreverent line: absurd, offensive, and genuinely clever about deconstructing the genre's tropes and racial mythology.

But The humour is deliberately provocative in ways that haven't aged smoothly; some scenes feel more interested in shock than comedy.

Blazing Saddles poster

Deadwood2004

A Western that's equally cynical about frontier life but trades MacFarlane's cartoon violence for literary dialogue and moral complexity. Still profane, still darkly comic, genuinely brilliant.

But It's slow-burn and demanding. No pratfalls here—you need to follow the intricate politics and genuinely disturbing brutality.

Deadwood poster

The Quick and the Dead1995

A stylish, kinetic Western gunfight movie with Sam Raimi's theatrical direction and a cast having enormous fun. Sharon Stone versus Gene Hackman and Leonardo DiCaprio.

But It's more interested in visual flair than plot coherence. The story is thin and gets thinner as it goes.

The Quick and the Dead poster

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Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

Both take a familiar genre framework and flip it inside-out through comedy; both are comedies that care more about the joke than sentiment.

A horror-comedy that subverts genre expectations by making the "hillbilly killers" the sympathetic heroes. Uses the same energetic irreverence as MacFarlane's approach but to genuinely clever structural ends.

But The premise is more interesting than the execution. Once you understand the reversal, the film doesn't have much else to say.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil poster
More like this (8)

Support Your Local Sheriff!1969

James Garner in a breezy, clever Western comedy that proves the formula works when executed with wit. Sharp writing, genuine laughs, and real affection for the genre.

But It's from 1969, and the pacing is gentler than modern comedy. Some jokes land soft now.

Support Your Local Sheriff! poster

Johnny Guitar1954

A bizarre, genuinely surreal Western where Joan Crawford runs a saloon and Joan Crawford wants a showdown. It's psychosexual, camp, and absolutely singular.

But It's a genuinely strange film that prioritizes mood and symbolism over plot or sense. Patience required.

Johnny Guitar poster

Funny Ha Ha2003

A mumblecore comedy about a recent college grad drifting through life. The comedy is observational and awkward in ways that feel truer to how people actually talk.

But There's almost no plot. If you need clear narrative momentum and traditional structure, this will feel like nothing's happening.

Funny Ha Ha poster

Reno 911!: Miami2007

A mockumentary comedy that commits fully to absurdist humour and character-based jokes. Fast-paced, ridiculous, and genuinely inventive in its irreverence.

But The humour is scattershot. When a joke doesn't land, there's another one coming in three seconds whether you're ready or not.

Reno 911!: Miami poster

Rustlers' Rhapsody1985

A weird, little-known Western parody with Tom Berenger that's sincere about both the genre and the comedy. Smarter than it has any right to be.

But It's obscure for a reason. The tone is uneven and the budget shows; some of the jokes don't quite connect.

Rustlers' Rhapsody poster

The Ballad of Little Jo1993

A revisionist Western that uses dark humour to tell a story of a woman passing as a man on the frontier. Genuinely moving and quietly funny.

But It's a serious film that uses humour as seasoning, not the main course. Some will find it too melancholic for what they're after.

The Ballad of Little Jo poster

Viva2008

Both feature fish-out-of-water protagonists learning courage through connection; both use humour to soften character vulnerability.

Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck's character-driven indie about a former Cuban boxer finding her way in New York. It's warm, funny, and structurally unconventional in how it finds drama in small moments.

But It's deliberately small and meditative. There's no plot momentum, which will feel like stagnation if you're used to conventional storytelling.

Viva poster

¡Three Amigos!1986

Both are comedies that prioritize character-based humour and silliness over narrative cohesion; both commit to the bit even when the bit goes nowhere.

Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, and Martin Short as unemployed actors mistaken for heroes in a Mexican village. Absurdist, anarchic comedy that knows how ridiculous it is and loves it anyway.

But It's shaggy and episodic. If you need tight plotting and consistent tone, the film's willingness to derail itself for a joke will feel undisciplined.

¡Three Amigos! poster

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