I watched Silverado for the first time a couple months ago and now I'm listening to the "Western Historians" on the commentary. Which reminded me of this question:
How many travelling shots are enough? There are a couple scenes in the movie where one or more people are travelling cross country- the script might say:
Script (maybe) says:
EXT. Plains. Daytime.
The heroes ride their horses across the plains.
EXT. Silverado Main Street. Evening
The heroes arrive in town.
INT. Silverado Saloon. Moments later
Hoss walks in.
HOSS: Give me a whiskey!
But then again, it might read more like this:
Script (possibly) says:
EXT. Plains. Daytime
The heroes ride their horses across the plains.
INSERT
The horses noses breath heavily as they gallop across the plains.
EXT. Plains Daytime
The heroes ride their horses over a hill.
INSERT
Hoss and Buck and Peydon smile as they ride their horses.
EXT. Plains Daytime
The heroes ride toward the camera (and Silverado, apparently)
EXT. Plains Daytime
The heroes ride away from the camera (and Kansas City, I guess)
INSERT
Horse hooves pound the dirt
EXT. Plains Daytime
The heroes ride across the plains. This time, the camera is on the side.
EXT. Meadow Daytime
The heroes stop across the crest of a hill and look at a beautiful meadow.
EXT. Plains Daytime
The heroes ride. Some more. I don't know, maybe shoot it through a reflection, or a POV shot, or maybe one of those where they ride towards the camera, and then it tracks them as they pass under it and they ride away from the camera, but they're upside down now. Or maybe there's snow on the ground. Wait, strike that!
EXT. Snowy Plains-Early Evening
The horses kick up some snow, as the heroes ride them.
INSERT
The heroes smile as they ride the horses over the snow.
EXT. Snowy Plains- Early Evening
Horse hoove-prints left in the snow.
Ext. Silverado, outside of town.
Establishing shot that heroes ride into.
EXT. Silverado Main Street. Evening
The heroes arrive in town.
INT. Silverado Saloon. Moments later
Hoss walks in.
HOSS: Give me a whiskey!
This same thing happens in Star Wars. Count how many approaches the Millennium Falcon makes to Yavin IV.
(Hint: It's 12).