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Time Out recently released a ranking of the 50 greatest westerns ever made. Dead Man, the 1995 Jim Jarmusch western starring Johnny Depp, is the lone '90s film to crack the top 10.
The genre saw a brief resurgence early in the decade. Dances with Wolves and Unforgiven both won Best Picture during that stretch.
That momentum faded fast. By the time Dead Man arrived, Westerns were no longer enjoying the same mainstream popularity.
Westerns remain one of America's most enduring film genres. Filmmakers keep returning to it, even after critics declare it dead.
Time Out ranked Dead Man at No. 6, the only film from the 1990s to reach that high.
How Dead Man Cracked Time Out's List of Greatest Westerns
Dead Man follows William Blake, a mild-mannered accountant played by Depp. He travels west for a job that no longer exists.
After a shooting leaves him wounded and wanted, he goes on the run. His guide is Nobody, a Native American outcast who believes Blake is a reincarnated poet.
Time Out called it the "bleakest film" on its list. The outlet praised Jarmusch's poetic take on death throughout the film. The publication compared the film's structure to an epic poem rather than a standard western plot. It drew comparisons to Chaucer, Poe and Tarkovsky's Andrei Rublev.
The publication also highlighted Gary Farmer's performance as Nobody, who guides Blake through his final days.
Dead Man struggled on release. It ran on a budget near $9 million and made back only a fraction of that at the box office.
Reviews were mixed at the time, including a notable pan from Roger Ebert. Decades later, critical opinion shifted.
Dead Man is now viewed as one of Jarmusch's defining works. Time Out's ranking reflects that turnaround.
