The Great Train Robbery, directed by Edwin S. Porter in 1903, used split-screen cinematography for the first time in under eight minutes, producing an editing method full of movement and tension. Quick drawing was a frequent method of filming Westerns during the silent era, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, with scenes such as cowboys playing cards and drinking being filmed on site. The disparities in sentiments between whites and Native Americans are major story components in the genre. The topics of interracial marriage and peace frequently represent their sentiments. Although many scenes in Westerns indicate the end of the Indians' way of life by displaying their melancholy backs and regretful farewells, such as a moment in Comata where an Indian stands alone and gazes into the distance. There are also a handful of Westerns in which actual American historical persons play the film characters, such as The Adventures of Buffalo Bill (White, 10–12).

With the end of WWII and the start of a new life, many situations in Westerns began to take on a tongue-in-cheek tone. High Noon, directed by Fred Zinnemann in 1952, was the most famous anti-Western of its day, with reviewers focusing on Gary Cooper's character ripping off his badge at the end of the film and dropping it to the ground before taking off in the dust with Grace Kelly. The film was shot in real time and rejects many of the norms of the time's Westerns; for example, its rebellion against typical Westerns stems from a religious setting difference.

The 1960s were one of the most competitive years in American film and television, and Westerns appeared to be in decline. Changes in technology, evolving opinions of individuals of different generations, and the tendency of younger filmmakers to employ different types of stories to tell and break out of the initial restrictions of the Western have all hampered older filmmaking. When a wave of Spaghetti Westerns began rolling out, including Italian director Sergio Leone's famous trilogy, the genre declined as it lost its romanticism and action-oriented rhythms, instead focusing on atmosphere and the psychological expression of its characters. The popularity of these films fell as they abandoned romanticism and action-oriented rhythms in favour of ambiance and psychological manifestations of the characters, resulting in the demise of the American Western (Kroon, ???). In 1969, however, American Westerns were changed forever by three films. True Grit, which launched John Wayne's career, as well as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Wild Bunch, which turned the Western genre on its head by further challenging established genre norms (Kroon ???).