According to Clint Eastwood, it is his favorite western by the public: “when people talk to me in the street, it’s about this film”

Clint Eastwood is adamant: if he relies on the public stopping him to talk to him about his films, his favorite western by the public is without a doubt Josey Wales, outlaw. Released in 1976, it is interpreted and directed by the actor, and tells the story of Wales’ revenge, and his pursuit of Captain Terrill who murdered his wife and son.

“It still holds up”

With his priceless and always much too modest hindsight, Clint Eastwood declared to Empire in 2017 (via Filmstarts) :

When people stop me on the street, it’s often about Josey Wales. They seem to like that movie. I rented it recently, it’s still going strong.

And that’s an understatement! Because if Josey Wales, outlaw is not the best-known western of Clint Eastwood – nor the most broadcast on TV – it is one of his greatest films as a director. Rated 3.8 out of 5 on AlloCiné, this story of revenge actually hides a much deeper subtext:

“You should be able to read the movies, I guess, read what you see, and [Josey Wales] was made during the Vietnam era. I saw it as an allegory, but it was also about the Civil War, one of the bloodiest and most impactful in American history, because it was between Americans. It was about a man who was disappointed by that.”

Exclusion, the strength of community and the “ruthless” aspect of the American West are also themes of the film, countering the reactionary image often associated with Eastwood.

The “Eastwood Rule”

Warner Bros.

If Josey Wales is as Eastwood had originally imagined, it is at the cost of firing the original director he had chosen, Philip Kaufman (The Legend of Jesse James). After his ouster, Clint immediately offered to take his place and see the film through to completion.

For this, the Directors Guild of America fined Eastwood (and Warner Studios) $60,000 for violating the guild’s rules. Since this incident, it has been formally written in the texts that an actor or producer cannot take over the direction of a film after having fired the initial director. This is called the “Eastwood rule”.