The War Wagon is a classic Western that used plenty of real-world locations to bring the story to life, making it feel much more authentic than many of the other movies of its kind released in the late 1960s. The movie was released at a time when Westerns were steadily declining in popularity, but the combination of lead star John Wayne and the attention to detail in filming locations allowed The War Wagon to rise to popularity despite the odds.
John Wayne was among the most popular movie stars of his era, and The War Wagon remains among his most beloved projects today. The 1967 Western follows a rancher who was framed for a crime that he didn’t commit, leaving him out for revenge once he’s served his time. It spans multiple different locations and settings, making it one of the most exciting and grand-scale Westerns in the genre.
The War Wagon Was Filmed In Mexico At Sierra De Órganos National Park
The majority of The War Wagon was filmed at Sierra de Órganos in Mexico, one of the largest national parks in the country. The area is located in the north of Mexico and is filled with beautiful landscapes and natural formations that provided countless cinematic locations for this timeless Western. It wasn’t always typical for movies to be shot entirely on-location during this period of Hollywood, but the Sierra de Órganos National Park is so large and expansive that director Burt Kennedy simply never ran out of settings to use.
The area actually became a popular shooting location throughout the 1960s for Westerns, with projects including Geronimo and The Undefeated also using Sierre de Órganos as their backdrop (via Expedition Portal). It actually brought a large amount of tourism to the site, and The War Wagon remains a large reason for people visiting today.
The War Wagon’s Setting Made It Feel Like An Authentic Western
While plenty of Westerns were made in Hollywood studios thanks to advancements in production design and set-making, The War Wagon’s decision to shoot on-location is the main reason it feels so authentic and epic in scale. It made a huge difference to actually see the sand beneath the actors’ feet and the mountains in the background, immersing the audience in this story and making everything come to life much more effectively than could’ve been done in a studio.
Many Western movies were also using green screens and visual effects technology to recreate their sets, but this technology was nowhere near as advanced as it can be today, despite having been around since the early 20th century (via Nashville Film Institute). Those projects that relied on green screens to immerse audiences in their far-off locations were rarely successful, as flaws could easily be found in the effects. Thanks to its on-location filming, The War Wagon had a much more natural feel, which many Westerns attempted to emulate in the following years.