The Ballad of Little Jo

If you liked this

McCabe & Mrs. Miller1971

Robert Altman's messy, muddy Western where capitalism and community collide. Like Little Jo, it sees the frontier not as mythology but as economic struggle, with characters trying to carve out space in an indifferent world.

But Shot through with period-appropriate cynicism and ambiguity about whether anyone wins. Not a traditional hero's journey.

Johnny Guitar1954

Joan Crawford commands a saloon in this bizarre, gender-bending Western where power and desire refuse easy categorization. A woman at the center of a story that doesn't know what to do with her presence—in the best way.

But The plot is genuinely strange and the gender politics, while radical for 1954, feel dated in specific ways. It's an acquired taste.

The Power of the Dog2021

Jane Campion's Western about masculinity performed and concealed, set in 1920s Montana. Slow-burn psychological tension about what men pretend to be and who pays the cost. Benedict Cumberbatch is unsettling as hell.

But Very slow. The payoff requires patience and a second viewing to fully land. Some may find it glacial rather than suspenseful.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Ballad of Little Jo

Cast

• 
  Suzy AmisJo Monaghan
• 
  Bo HopkinsFrank Badger
• 
  Ian McKellenPercy Corcoran
• D
  David ChungTinman Wong
• 
  Heather GrahamMary Addie
• 
  René AuberjonoisStreight Hollander
• 
  Carrie SnodgressRuth Badger
• 
  Anthony HealdHenry Grey
• 
  Melissa LeoBeatrice Grey
• 
  Sam RobardsJasper Hill
• O
  Olinda TurturroElvira
• 
  Ruth MaleczechShopkeeper

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