In a movie landscape full of gritty gunslingers and dusty doom,
Support Your Local Sheriff! sneaks in like a laid-back drifter,
cracks a few jokes, and somehow walks off with classic status. The 1969
Western comedy, starring James Garner, doesn’t shoot for operatic grandeur;
it aims for charm, parody, and pure fun and, more than 50 years later,
it’s still quietly winning.
But where does Support Your Local Sheriff! actually rank among
Westerns and Western comedies? Is it just a pleasant relic, or a film that
deserves a regular spot near the top of “best Western comedies” lists?
Let’s saddle up and look at how critics, fans, and film historians rate it
and why so many people will still tell you, with a grin, to “support your
local sheriff.”
Meet “Support Your Local Sheriff!”
A quick overview of the film
Support Your Local Sheriff! is a 1969 American comedy Western
directed by Burt Kennedy and written by William Bowers. It stars
James Garner as Jason McCullough, a casually brilliant drifter who stops in
the boom town of Calendar, Colorado, on his way to Australia. The town has
struck gold literally, in a grave and descended into chaos, with the
powerful Danby family bullying everyone in sight. Jason takes the sheriff’s
job mostly for the paycheck and uses brains, bluffing, and deadpan humor to
bring order to town.
Alongside Garner, the film features Joan Hackett as the adorably
hot-headed Prudy Perkins, Walter Brennan as cantankerous clan patriarch
Pa Danby, and Jack Elam as Jake, the “town character” who becomes Jason’s
reluctant deputy. The movie was shot on a modest budget (around $750,000)
and ended up a box-office success, ranking among the top-grossing U.S.
films of 1969 and spawning a spiritual follow-up,
Support Your Local Gunfighter, in 1971.
A loving parody of classic Westerns
The film openly spoofs traditional Western tropes: the mysterious stranger
who rides into town, the corrupt local power, the fearful townsfolk, the
last-stand showdown. Critics and historians have noted how it playfully
pokes at earlier classics like High Noon, Rio Bravo,
Red River, and Winchester ’73, while clearly loving the
genre it teases.
This tone affectionate but irreverent is a big reason
Support Your Local Sheriff! holds up. It isn’t trying to blow up
the Western the way Blazing Saddles later would; it’s more like a
gentle roast delivered by a good friend who knows every in-joke.
Critical Rankings: From Sitcom Jab to Cult Classic
Early mixed reviews
When the movie was released, not every critic was impressed. Roger Ebert,
for example, dismissed it as a “lousy TV situation comedy dragged out to
feature length,” criticizing its simple staging and TV-style gags.
Some reviewers saw it as lightweight entertainment, especially in an era
when Hollywood was leaning into more daring and experimental films.
Yet even early on, other critics praised the script’s humor and Garner’s
easy charisma, highlighting how the film gently satirized Western
conventions while still delivering a satisfying story. Over time, that
positive view has only grown.
Modern critic scores and lists
Today, Support Your Local Sheriff! carries a solid critical
reputation. On Rotten Tomatoes, it sits at around 80% on the Tomatometer
based on critic reviews, with modern writers calling it an “absolutely
riotous Western” and praising Garner’s “easy-going straight man” delivery
and the script’s sly wit.
On lists of the best films of 1969, the movie is rarely near the very top,
but it shows up respectably. Rotten Tomatoes’ guide to the
“Best Movies of 1969” places it in the middle of the pack, indicating that,
while it may not be considered a towering masterpiece, it’s far from a
forgotten B-picture.
On IMDb, various user-curated lists of “best Western comedies” or “top
parody movies” put it high in the rankings, sometimes just below
Blazing Saddles. One popular IMDb list of “Best Western Comedies”
ranks Support Your Local Sheriff! as #2, right under Mel Brooks’s
juggernaut.
Fan Rankings: Where Viewers Put “Support Your Local Sheriff!”
Audience scores and ratings
If you want to understand why this film has staying power, you don’t just
look at critics you look at fans. On Rotten Tomatoes, the audience score
hovers in the low 80s, with thousands of ratings. Viewers regularly call it
“so much fun to watch,” praising Garner’s charming performance and the
chemistry of the ensemble cast.
On Ranker and other fan-voted platforms, the movie frequently appears on
lists like “Best Western Comedies” and “Best Walter Brennan Western Roles,”
usually landing comfortably in the top tier rather than as an also-ran.
One Ranker-style list of the “Best Western Comedy Movies” highlights
Support Your Local Sheriff! for blending classic Western
storytelling with slapstick humor and crowd-pleasing charm.
Even when fans are simply trading recommendations online Reddit threads,
Facebook groups, or niche Western forums this movie keeps popping up.
You’ll often see comments along the lines of:
“Start with Support Your Local Sheriff! if you want something
funny but not too violent,” or “It’s my favorite Western comedy right after
Blazing Saddles.”
Family-friendly and rewatchable
Another reason fans rank it so highly: it’s incredibly rewatchable.
Modern articles and blog reviews often describe it as a “feel-good”
Western that doesn’t lean heavily on graphic violence or bleakness. One
recent roundup of “feel-good Westerns that don’t get too violent” includes
Support Your Local Sheriff! alongside family-friendly titles like
The Sheepman, Maverick, and Cat Ballou.
That mix of gentle tone, PG-level content, and clever humor makes the film
a go-to recommendation for people who want to introduce kids or
Western-skeptical friends to the genre without traumatizing anyone in the
process.
Where It Ranks Among Western Comedies
The competition: Blazing saddles and beyond
When people talk about Western comedies, a handful of titles almost always
appear:
- Blazing Saddles (1974)
- Cat Ballou (1965)
- They Call Me Trinity (1970)
- Maverick (1994)
- Support Your Local Sheriff! (1969)
Among these, Blazing Saddles usually takes the #1 spot for its
bold satire and cultural impact. But right behind it, especially on lists
created by Western fans rather than general film buffs, you’ll often find
Support Your Local Sheriff! sitting comfortably in the top three.
Where Blazing Saddles aims for loud, anarchic, often outrageous
humor, Support Your Local Sheriff! leans into understatement.
Garner’s Jason doesn’t rant; he raises an eyebrow. Instead of breaking the
genre, the film gently bends it into a grin.
G-rated, but not boring
One fun piece of trivia: on a fan-driven list of the “40 Best G-Rated
Western Movies,” Support Your Local Sheriff! ranks in the top 10,
with a high average user rating (around the mid-7s out of 10).
That’s not just nostalgia speaking; it shows how well the film balances
broad family appeal with genuine comedic timing.
It’s not preachy, it’s not saccharine, and it’s certainly not dull. It’s
proof that you can keep the rating low and the laughs high at the same
time.
Why “Support Your Local Sheriff!” Still Works
James Garner’s secret weapon: laid-back charisma
James Garner had already honed his charming rogue persona in TV’s
Maverick, and he brings a variation of that character to Jason
McCullough. Critics routinely single out his performance as the glue that
holds the film together a man who would rather talk his way out of a
gunfight, but who can shoot with terrifying precision if he has to.
Garner’s sheriff never slobbers over his own heroism; in fact, he spends
half the movie looking like he’d much rather be anywhere else.
That ironic distance is exactly what makes him feel modern, even in a
nostalgia-heavy Western setting.
Supporting cast and character chemistry
The supporting cast gives the film its texture:
-
Joan Hackett’s Prudy is a mix of neurotic energy, physical comedy, and
genuine sweetness. -
Walter Brennan’s Pa Danby spoofs the kind of grizzled patriarch he played
straight in other Westerns. -
Jack Elam’s Jake evolves from town joke to unlikely ally, delivering some
of the movie’s best deadpan lines.
Modern reviewers and bloggers often describe the ensemble as “quotable,”
“endlessly fun,” and “one of those casts where even the background players
feel like they’ve lived in this town for years.”
Smart spoofing without cruelty
A big reason people rank Support Your Local Sheriff! so highly is
its tone. The movie makes fun of Western clichés the jail with no bars,
the overconfident outlaw, the cowardly townsfolk but it doesn’t sneer at
them. You can feel that the writers and director actually like Westerns.
That warmth matters. A parody that hates its genre tends to age fast.
A parody that loves its genre ages like a good campfire story: a bit smoky,
a bit silly, but always welcome.
My Ranking: Where Does It Belong?
If we’re talking all-time Westerns including heavyweights
like The Searchers, High Noon, and
Once Upon a Time in the West
Support Your Local Sheriff! probably doesn’t crack the top 10.
It’s not aiming for that level of operatic sweep or moral weight.
But if we focus specifically on Western comedies, the film
has a strong case for a top-three placement:
- Blazing Saddles – for impact and audacity.
- Support Your Local Sheriff! – for charm, craft, and heart.
-
Cat Ballou / They Call Me Trinity /
Maverick – depending on your flavor of humor.
That’s roughly where many fans and genre specialists end up:
Support Your Local Sheriff! as one of the most reliable,
consistently funny Western comedies ever made a movie that may not
dominate academic essays, but absolutely dominates movie nights.
Experiences and Takeaways: Watching “Support Your Local Sheriff!” Today
So what is it actually like to watch Support Your Local Sheriff! in
2025, long after the heyday of TV Westerns and matinee double bills?
Surprisingly fresh and oddly cozy.
A perfect “gateway Western”
If you’re trying to convert a non-Western fan, this is an excellent
starting point. The stakes are real enough to keep you invested there’s a
dangerous outlaw family, plenty of guns, and a town on the brink but the
tone never tips into grim or nihilistic. That’s why modern “feel-good
Western” lists keep featuring it: it showcases the fun parts of the genre
(dusty streets, showdowns, saloons) without requiring anyone to emotionally
recover afterward.
Watch this with someone who says, “I don’t like Westerns,” and you’ll often
get a different answer 90 minutes later. They may still not be ready for
three hours of existential desert wandering, but they’ll at least admit
that cowboys can be funny.
How different audiences respond
Older viewers who grew up with James Garner on television
or saw the movie in theaters tend to rank it high for nostalgia. They
remember lines, specific gags (like the “jail with no bars”), and the
pleasure of seeing Western archetypes gently mocked instead of worshipped.
Younger viewers often react to the film’s breezy pacing.
Compared with some modern comedies, the jokes here are less rapid-fire but
more character-driven. Jason’s dry one-liners, Prudy’s flustered outbursts,
and Jake’s world-weary asides feel like the kind of humor you’d see in a
good sitcom just one that happens to involve horses and six-shooters.
For families, it’s the rare Western you can comfortably
show to older kids and teens. There’s gunplay, but it’s stylized; the
romance is sweetly awkward instead of steamy; and the innuendo is mild.
It’s closer to a PG sitcom with cowboy boots than a gritty frontier drama.
What you notice on a rewatch
On a first viewing, you mostly track the plot: Jason outsmarts the Danbys,
the town finds its backbone, and everyone lives (mostly) happily ever
after. On a second or third viewing, smaller pleasures start to emerge:
-
The way Garner handles props casually spinning a gun or leaning on the
jail door just so sells Jason’s confidence without a word. -
The little reaction shots from background townspeople, who seem
perpetually astonished that someone competent has finally arrived. -
The rhythm of the dialogue, which often sets up a cliché and then
swerves into a punchline instead of a gunshot.
It’s the kind of movie that turns into a “comfort watch.” You know exactly
what’s going to happen, but you want to see how the characters get there
one more time.
Practical viewing tips
In the U.S., Support Your Local Sheriff! regularly circulates on
streaming platforms that focus on classic films and older TV content, as
well as on digital rental stores. The print quality on most modern digital
releases is clean enough that you can appreciate the color cinematography
and the slightly tongue-in-cheek production design.
For the best experience:
-
Pair it with Support Your Local Gunfighter for a double feature
of lighthearted James Garner Westerns. -
Watch with at least one person who likes to quote movies; this script is
very quotable. -
Don’t overthink it. This is a film that wins by being relaxed taking a
cue from its own sheriff.
By the time the credits roll, you may not feel like you’ve watched “one of
the greatest films ever made,” but you’ll probably feel like you’ve spent
an hour and a half with friends. And that, in its own way, is why so many
fans keep ranking Support Your Local Sheriff! near the top of
their favorite Western comedies: it’s less a legend carved in stone and
more a hangout in a dusty little town where the jokes always land and the
sheriff always has things under control.
