Screened in 35mm! 

Sprawling across decades of Texas history, Giant (1956) expands the boundaries of the Western genre. Directed by George Stevens and starring James Dean in his final film role, this epic drama blends the iconography of the classic Western—vast landscapes, ranching empires, and frontier individualism—with a sweeping examination of wealth, race, and social change. As oil transforms the land and its people, the film traces shifting power dynamics between ranching tradition and modern industry, while also confronting the racial hierarchies embedded in the mythology of the American West. Through its monumental scale and intimate character drama, Giant reframes the Western not just as a frontier tale but as a story about the making—and remaking—of the modern West. 

See James Dean’s legendary final performance and Stevens’s sweeping vision of Texas on the big screen, where the film’s vast landscapes and generational drama can be experienced at their full epic scale. 

Introduced by Jeffrey Richardson, Executive Director of the McFaddin-Ward House in Beaumont, Texas, and former Autry Museum curator 

Directed by George Stevens | Written by Fred Guiol and Ivan Moffat, from the book by Edna Ferber | Starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, and James Dean 

Please note that this film has a runtime of 3 hours and 20 minutes.

The What Is a Western? Film Series explores the wide range of movies that can be considered Westerns, and the ways in which they shape our understanding of the American West. Each screening features a guest lecturer who introduces the film and explains its significance within the genre.