Day of the Outlaw

Day of the Outlaw is a rare Western film that was highly criticized upon its release. Considering the steps women had made in the last two films we watched, Roster Cogburn and The Ballad of Little Jo, it was surprising to see how women were treated in this film. While in these two movies women were running around tricking men, owning their own businesses, and playing alpha-characters they have taken steps back towards films we saw in the beginning of the year where they were simply there for the man’s convenience.

In Day of the Outlaw, women are seen as objects that can be used at the man’s disposal. On the dance floor, women are seen dancing against their will with men. With men fondling all over them it is clear that they are no longer in a position of power. Women are often shown cleaning or making food for men showing that they have lost all the power that they held in the previous two movies.

This step backwards in the women’s movement in Western films is an interesting contrast to the actual women’s movement during the late 1950’s. This film will certainly be an interesting component into our upcoming paper with women being the predominant “other” in the western.