Selecting the nearest of overlapping faces I'm working with a relatively detailed model, which some some inner detail. At the moment I am not concerned with the inner faces, I would just like to select the outer faces so that I can apply a material to them. However, whenever I try using the Face selection options I often end up selecting an interior Face rather than the external Face I'm looking for.


  
  Are those faces on top I've selected?





  
  Nope.


Is there any way I can use the Face selection tools to target the closest faces that intersect the point I click, rather than whatever the default behaviour is which typically catches these internal faces?

I've been trying with both the current Blender 2.68 and the older 2.49b.
Unless I'm missing something isn't this just because you are in wireframe view mode? 

Press Z to go into solid view then make sure Limit Selection to Visible is enabled in the 3D view header as shown below:



Now your model will appear solid and you will be able to select whichever face is directly visible to you in the view i.e. you won't be able to select faces that are behind other faces.