Try “The Wild Bunch”, Sam Peckinpah’s violently disturbing tail of aging outlaw anti-heroes.
“Silverado” is almost a spoof of westerns, except that it took itself seriously, and isn’t a bad movie, all-in-all (though I found myself hoping Costner’s character would get killed).
A good contemporary western is “Last of the Dogmen”. Or, if you’re more action oriented, “Extreme Prejudice” (judging by your picks, I’d guess not).
1 - Unforgiven
2 - Unforgiven
3 - Unforgiven it’s that good
Then I’d go with …
4 - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
5 - The Long Riders - I can’t get enough of this Peckinpah-ish passion play about the James Gang (no, not Joe Walsh’s old group).
I think I’ve seen about six Westerns, so I’m probably not qualified to answer this question. However, I did want to mention that we just rented The Magnificent Seven on DVD, and I enjoyed it tremendously. The special features include a trailer that has lyrics to the Magnificent Seven song, which we have been singing around the house for days now.
I was surprised to see Dances With Wolves on your list, Sparteye, mostly because I’m very ignorant about this genre, and I don’t think I would have thought of Dances With Wolves as a Western. I realize it is set in the “west” (the Dakotas, I believe) and has Indians and horses and people wearing dusty clothing. But what else makes something a Western? Here’s your chance to fight some ignorance today!
Unforgiven is right up there. Of the “Man With No Name” three by Sergio Leone, I often find myself in the minority opinion that For a Few Dollars More edges out The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. The latter has the more instantly-memorable theme song, of course.