Released July 1, 2025

I’ll admit it—Westerns were a blind spot for me. Before diving into this project, the only ones I’d seen were parodies like The Three Amigos and Blazing Saddles. But while I hadn’t spent much time watching them, I’ve always been in awe of their scores—especially Jerome Moross’ The Big Country and Elmer Bernstein’s The Magnificent Seven.

So when the opportunity came up (see the An American Tail origin story for the full timeline), I went all in. I watched 21 Westerns, plus 4–5 adjacent films just to follow the actors post-release. I also read at least five books exploring how Westerns helped shape the myth of the American West.

Both of our typesetters, Steve Wryrick and Toby Cross, noted—and I fully agree—that Bernstein’s orchestration is a masterclass in restraint. It’s methodical and economical. Nothing showy or excessive—just exactly what the film needs, exactly when it needs it.