The Searchers-Opening Scene

The opening scene of 'The Searchers' is iconic, as it literally opens the door for the audience into a classic western setting, in which the film is located. The bright blue sky with the dark brown canyons is typical of 'the West'. However the fact that we, as an audience, have to travel through a vessel (the house) in order to reach this western setting, makes the whole western experience feel more fabricated and fictional than perhaps other western films do. In 1956, the audience was encouraged to leave the stress of Cold War and the pressures of the 'Red Scare' and 'McCarthyism', and enter this world of 'Cowboys and Indians' in a similar way to how more contemporary science-fiction films attempt to do. The key difference between the two genres however, is that westerns are saturated in real and fairly controversial history, whereas sci-fi films are often more obviously fictional stories. The use of the house in 'The Searchers' therefore has far more gravitas, as it is crucial in defining the film as a work of fiction and not an historical piece of film, or not wholly historical overall.

As the scene progresses, the silhouette of the woman walks outside onto the porch of her house and the camera follows her, displaying a clearer shot of her surroundings. It is significant having a female character in this scene, as it typifies the attitudes towards gender at the time (in which the film was initially set: 1868). As seen in 'Little House on the Prairie', the women were often expected to remain in the home and wait for their husband to return from hunting or excursions. In this shot, there is definitely a sense of eagerness emitted from the woman, as she gazes out onto the horizon, as if to see if anyone was out there. The wooden pillar that she is leaning on is also important, as it signifies the alleged fragility of women at the time and how she needed something to support her, while the men were away.

The two male characters in the scene both represent and question dominant myths of the 'American West'.


The first shot of a male character falls into the stereotype of western films. Ethan is shown riding a horse, wearing a 'cowboy hat', through the desert, towards the audience (in a point of view shot from the perspective of the female character). Due to the setting and the fact that Ethan is a solitary figure amongst the 'sublime' landscape, reinforces the stereotypical profile of cowboys in western films. This shot also hints at later developments in the plot of the film with the American Indian-style piece of fabric in the foreground. As shown in an earlier shot, this is right outside the house and may be a trophy of a previous victory against the American Indians, suggesting there has been and may still be conflict later in the film. This also adds to the stereotypical nature of this western, as American Indians are often portrayed as the villains, or at least sub-villains of the heroic cowboy figures in these films.

The second male character in the scene is portrayed differently from Ethan and can be justifiably compared with the female character. This shot depicts both the male and female staring out at the western landscape and noticing Ethan approaching their house. He appears to be healthy and relatively intelligent, as he thoughtfully scours what is ahead of him. However, there isn't the same level of interest or awe that can be ascertained from the shot of Ethan. This is predominantly due to the fact that he has his house and wife that embodies the background of the shot, which quells any mysteriousness about the character. This mysteriousness is present in the shot of Ethan, and is typical of a western film, as the audience does not know where Ethan has come from, due to the landscape from which he has travelled.

Overall, this scene mixes typical representations of the dominant myths of the 'American West', with some aspects that challenge and question the 'typical' American western film,

Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy2-abqR8B4