304. The Searchers (1956)

Running Time: 118 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Frank S. Nugent, from novel by Alan Le May
Main Cast: John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Ward Bond, Natalie Wood
Click here to view the trailer

COWBOYS vs. INDIANS

I can remember first starting this project, back in the fall of 2009 and getting up very early on certain mornings to watch movies and write reviews. I managed to fit in The Searchers last night, right before bed, but made sure to set my alarm for 7:00am, so that I could get up while my wife was at work and put in a good effort at ticking off a few more films and reviews. I hit the snooze a few times, but here I am...

Don't ask me why, but this might be one of the greatest opening shots I've ever seen - it just appeals to me for some reason.

The film opens with a terrific shot of a woman opening her front door, stepping out, craning her neck and spotting John Wayne's Ethan Edwards coming out of the desert, a lone man returning to his family, post Civil War. The family consists of Ethan's brother - Aaron, Aaron's wife - Martha and their three legitimate children: Ben, Debbie and Lucy. The next morning, Rev. Capt. Samuel Clayton (Bond) comes a calling on the Edwards' clan, informing them that someone has stolen a local man's cattle and he needs men for a posse. Ethan convinces Aaron to stay behind, while he and the Edwards' adopted son Martin Pawley (Hunter) ride off to help the group. They eventually find the cattle dead and Ethan surmises that the whole affair with the cows was only a ploy to get the men away, so that Comanche Indians could attack their homesteads. Upon their arrival back at the Edwards' home, Ethan and company find the place burned to the ground, with only the remains of Aaron, Martha and Ben to be found - thus the Indians kidnapped the girls. Ethan, a lone rebel means to ride off and find him by himself, however, Martin won't hear of it, insisting to ride along beside the Duke. Add Lucy's boyfriend Brad and the trio set out to find the girls.

SPOILER ALERT!

Not only do I remember occasionally getting up early back in the fall of 2009, but I can also remember way back to my teen years, getting very interested in film. The very first list that I ever tried to tackle was the AFI 100 Years...100 Movies list, the original one. This was in the days before Netflix, so renting the movies was out of the question. Instead, I'd make trips to F.Y.E. and purchase the movies on videotape. This was also at a time when I'd seen VERY few, if any, classic films, so it was my first exposure to not only a certain time period, but also to certain actors, actresses and directors. Well, I only made it about ten movies in before I decided to quite, but five of the classics that I remember seeing were: Yankee Doodle Dandy, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?, The Apartment, Bringing Up Baby and The Searchers. Whether I liked them all or not is irrelevant, I still manage to hold all of these films in high regard, since, at that time, they were the five oldest films I'd seen. I remember LOVING pretty much all of them, except The Searchers. There was something about the dusty plains, the clip-clop of horses and the gunslinging that just didn't appeal to yours truly and I simply didn't take to it. Flash forward to today and recently on the blog we've been talking about westerns and how much I'm not into them - so not much has really changed, has it?

Except, I actually liked The Searchers this go around. Now, let me say that again...I LIKED The Searchers. I know a lot of people consider this western to be the greatest one of all time and while it would probably be up there on a list of my favorite westerns, I have a problem calling it the greatest anything. In 1992 Sight & Sound magazine voted it the fifth greatest movie of all-time, which I think is a bit much, but at least I can sort of understand the recognition. While the general feel and layout of The Searchers is very OF it's time, basically everything else is definitely not what I think of when I think "1956 movie". The one thing that really popped out to me while watching The Searchers was the absolutely awesome cinematography, an aspect of film that THE BOOK has really opened my eyes to. The camerawork here was top notch and something that could hold up today against even the most talented of cinematographers and 3D effects "artists". It seemed like every other frame I was picking out great shots, saying "ooh, that'd be a good one for the blog". Of course there's also the racial dialogue that comes from the Ethan character and is directed toward the Comanche, but you know what? While watching, I really didn't think of it as racist - let me explain. It was a cowboy saying he hated Indians - to me it wasn't racism, it was just the same old cliche story we've seen hundreds of times in hundreds of westerns. To me, on this viewing, it wasn't racism, the two were just natural enemies. But, of course, I'm wrong - it was raging racism and in watching a snippet of an interview with Martin Scorsese this morning on YouTube, he points out that "Ethan hates the Comanche so bad, that he hates them beyond the grave".

The one other aspect of The Searchers that is so fascinating is that the whole film is about nothing but the SEARCH (imagine that). And here's the thing: Martin is searching to save a life, while Ethan may be searching to end one. Why did these two guys search for FIVE YEARS PLUS to find one little girl? I mean, think about that: nowadays you get you'd get your picture slapped on the side of a milk carton after a few weeks and you'd be forgotten about by the general public soon after, thought dead. I'd say Martin didn't stop searching because he was sort of dimwitted and he didn't really have anywhere else to go. His purpose in life burnt to the ground when the Comanche burned down the Edwards' homestead, so why not stick by Ethan and roam the countryside, even if it takes forever? Ethan kept going because he was so freaking racist that he couldn't stand the thought of one of his kinfolk being contaminated by a Comanche tribe. I'd say it was his intention throughout the whole western to find her and kill her and then ride off into the sunset with maybe a tear in his eye for the eight-year-old niece that he could finally get some closure on.

If you think about it, this is just as much a detective story, as it is a western. I personally think someone (preferably talented) needs to remake The Searchers, but not as a western. I kind of have a feeling this has already been done, so comment me if it has. However, I could definitely see The Searchers set on the streets, a kidnapped girl getting picked up and a couple of detectives spending five years searching for her. I think, if done right, it could be something really great, but like I said, I somehow get the feeling that this has already happened and I'm just forgetting something.

It wasn't my favorite, by any means, but I can't in good conscience call The Searchers anything but a great, must see movie. I don't think I need to see it again and I MIGHT not put on a personal list of great movies, but let's face facts kiddies, it's good stuff on display from the John's here and if you haven't seen it, you MUST, at least once. The cinematography is something to behold and while the groundwork may certainly feel like an old fashioned western, the details are very watchable and engrossing. I think most will find a character in Ethan Edwards that is prime for dissection. I'm sure essays could be written on that character, but I'll leave that to the essay writers of the world. As for me, call it a mild win and perhaps I've finally found that truly great western, even though, in my opinion, "great" is a just a bit of a stretch.

RATING: 7/10  I can't in good conscience go higher and for the same reason, I can't go lower. I know I just said I don't need to see it again, but on the contrary, this may be one of those movies that I need to see ten more times before I really appreciate it like everyone else does.

MOVIES WATCHED: 979
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 22

October 17, 2015  8:37am

227. RIO GRANDE (1950)

Running Time: 105 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: James Warner Bellah, James Kevin McGuinness, from the story Mission With No Record by James Warner Bellah
Main Cast: John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Ben Johnson, Claude Jarman Jr., Harry Carey Jr.
Click here to view the trailer

BOOOOORRING!

It seems like every season at least one movie comes along and makes me take a second look at the title of the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" book and make sure it's not the "1001 Movies You Must Avoid At All Costs in Your Lifetime". The title hasn't changed, but I'm here to tell you that "Rio Grande" was tough watch #1 of the season.

This film, like many John Ford films, centers around John Wayne, who this time time around plays Lt. Col. Kirby Yorke, a Union officer, who lead his men into and out of battle in the Civil War and is now stationed in Texas, where he must defend a group of settlers against an Apache tribe. The film opens with a group of new recruits being assigned to Yorke, one of which is the son he hasn't seen in fifteen years, Jeff Yorke (Jarman Jr.). Enter the lieutenant Colonel's estranged wife, Kathleen (Yorke), who wants nothing more that for her son to discharge himself from the army, but we're in the midst of a fictional war dammit and of course, he won't do that. Later, after an Apache attack, the lieutenant Colonel is ordered to lead his men across the Rio Grande, where they'll mount a counter attack on the Apaches. There's also this whole side plot involving Trooper Tyree (Johnson), another of the new recruits, who is wanted for manslaughter, but, to be honest, I kind of mentally checked out of this one at the halfway mark, so I'll leave you to discover the rest for yourself.

Man, I'll be honest, I'm REALLY starting to hate John Ford. Not only did he serve me this dish of cold soup, but he was also responsible for "How Green Was My Valley" and "The Quiet Man". Couple those two with "Rio Grande" and it's enough to make me forget just how good "Stagecoach", "Judge Priest", "The Grapes of Wrath", "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" and "My Darling Clementine" were and send me down the path to remembering John Ford as someone who bore me more often than he excited me. Now normally I HATE it when people use the word boring to describe a bad movie (a pet peeve), but I'll let it slide when it comes to detailing "Rio Grande". I mean, this film was coma inducing! I'm not a John Wayne fan, nor am I fan of these old rolling hills, traditional westerns and that's just the kinds of western that this is. Like I said in my "Winchester '73" review, if I have to watch a western, I'd rather it be a B western, because that's when plot usually takes rank over traditional, formulaic westerns, which is what Ford seemingly excelled at. Trust me kids, "Rio Grande" is very of it's time and was probably even behind it's time in 1950. By then, I'd like to think that film noir and crime stories were all the rage, hence the success of Billy Wilder, John Huston and Alfred Hitchcock around that time. I've said it before and I'll say it again, "Rio Grande" is that type of film that you'd expect to walk in on your grandparents watching, as they huddle under an old, knitted afghan and remember the "good 'ol days". It's boring and as much as I love old films, in 2013, this just isn't working anymore, not on this reviewer anyway. If I had to pick one redeeming quality, it would be the scene where the new recruits ride two horses, one foot on the back of each horse and even jump a fence while doing so. That was pretty fun to watch. Otherwise, take a pass here.

RATING: 1/10  Yep, gotta' go as low as I can go on this one, because I hated it that much and couldn't stop staring at the DVD clock on this one, hoping it'd just END!

MOVIES WATCHED: 716
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 285

August 22, 2013  4:56pm

186. My Darling Clementine (1946)

Running Time: 97 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Samuel G. Engel, Sam Hellman
Main Cast: Henry Fonda, Victor Mature, Cathy Downs, Linda Darnell, Walter Brennan
Click here to view the trailer

EARP AGAIN

For the curious, I'm going to try and squeeze in a couple reviews today and start to get this train rolling toward the finale. Last night I was able to take in John Ford's 1946 western offering, "My Darling Clementine" - a movie that I had actually seen before and one that I feel is kind of *meh*.

The plot highly resembles a movie I watched earlier this season, "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" and tells the story of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and their adventures in the town of Tombstone. This time around Henry Fonda plays the Wyatt Earp role and when we start out, him and his brothers (Virgil, Morgan and James) are driving cattle out west. Along the way they pass the Clanton gang, consisting of Old Man Clanton (Brennan) and his four sons. Clanton offers to buy the Earps' cattle, but they decline and instead get directions to a nearby town, which just happens to be Tombstone. Later that night, the older Earp brothers leave the younger James behind, riding into Tombstone to see if they can rustle up some grub and maybe a shave. When they return to James, later in the night, they find him killed and the cattle stolen. Wyatt and his brothers ride back to Tombstone and Wyatt is offered job as town Marshall, with his brothers serving as the deputies. Wyatt makes it his mission to find the men that killed his brother James, even though it's really no secret that it was the Clanton's. Meanwhile, Wyatt restores order in Tombstone, prompting decent people to come outside again and driving out the miscreants. Wyatt also meets and develops a friendship with Doc Holliday, the gambler of the town and a very sick man, which we see due to his violent bouts of coughing. Like most westerns, it all leads to a big showdown, this time at the O.K. Corral.

SPOILER ALERT!!

Well this is the third John Ford I've watched in just this season alone and I can say that I am definitely not a fan of his. Don't get me wrong, "My Darling Clementine" wasn't bad...but it wasn't great either and with Henry Fonda as part of the cast, that's rare. For starters, I'm just not that thrilled with the Wyatt Earp story as, apparently, everyone else in Hollywood seems to be. Honestly, there's just not much substance to it. Wyatt and his brothers are good, the Clanton's are bad and Doc Holliday fits somewhere in the middle, but mostly he's good. Then, in the middle act somewhere, there's a couple of girls fighting for Doc's attention and throughout the whole thing, the bad guys break stuff and the good guys try not to use their guns. All of the characters seem to fit in these predetermined molds and there doesn't seem to be any room for straying from that. There's just no surprises and it all gets wrapped up just the way we thought it would in the first five minutes of the picture. The Clanton's turn out to be the bad guys, Wyatt takes the Marshall job in Tombstone and in the end, it's the Earps (plus Doc) battling it out with the Clanton's at O.K. Corral. No fuss, no muss.

But, then again, Henry Fonda is in there and how can you beat down a Henry Fonda picture. He's probably my favorite actor of all-time, so when I see one of his pictures, I really expect something special and as much as he tried, this picture ultimately just didn't fully deliver. The camera shots were pretty amazing too and I spotted dozens of images that were really capturing magic, mostly far away shots of Earp as he walked in the rain or sat, with his foot propped on a bannister, on the porch. And let me just say this, I really thought the whole cast did a fine job, not just Fonda. I liked Ward Bond, Victor Mature, Linda Darnell and even Walter Brennan. I mean, who'd have thought this guy could actually play a decent villain, but he totally pulled it off. I cannot believe this is the same bumbling idiot from those Howard Hawks movies.

RATING: 6.5/10  Not good, not bad, but just sort of easing into the dead zone. However, after "Henry V" and "Ivan the Terrible", seeing Henry Fonda bust out his acting chops was a breath of fresh air.

MOVIES WATCHED: 686
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 315

May 22, 2013  12:57pm

149. How Green Was My Valley (1941)

Running Time: 118 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Philip Dunne, from novel by Richard Llewellyn
Main Cast: Roddy McDowall, Donald Crisp, Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara, Anna Lee
Click here to view the trailer

FORD HAVE MERCY ON ME!

Yes, it's another Irish (well it's Welsh, but who's counting) piece by John Ford. Some of you may remember my complete dislike for Ford's "The Quiet Man" earlier this same season and while this one was a smidge better, I still wasn't too keen on it.

The film is a slice of family life in a small, Welsh village where the majority of the villagers are coal miners. We zoom in on a typical family, consisting of a father (Crisp); mother; five brothers, including the youngest Huw (McDowall) and a sister (O'Hara). Together they are the Morgan family and everyday the four elder brothers and their father trot off to work in the dingy coal mines. They come home each night singing songs (not unlike the seven dwarfs), put their wages in Ma's apron, which she folds up to act as a basket and wash the coal dust from their bodies. They then gather round the table, like any wholesome, normal, full of love family and break bread together, giving thanks for what they have. Things are peachy keen until the wages at the mine are cut to make way for new workers, who agree to work for less money and a strike ensues. Father resists the strike and the talk of unionization, but his four elder sons insist that it's a must. Eventually his elder sons, never showing disrespect, decide to leave the house. Meanwhile, Huw, the youngest, falls into an icy river (a la George Bailey) and messes up his legs. Doctors say he'll likely never walk again, but a pep talk from the new preacher (Pidgeon) about faith gives him hope. He ultimately makes a full recovery and goes to school, where he learns that a man must learn to fight with his fists. The strike eventually ends, father returns to the mines and life goes on, with it's ups and downs, as it always will. We continue to watch the progression of the Morgan family, through their specific ups and downs.

Apparently back in 1941, John Ford was doing some serious palm greasing, because that's the only plausible explanation for "How Green Was My Valley" taking home the Oscar for Best Picture, especially considering it beat out "Citizen Kane". Granted, "Kane" isn't a favorite of mine, but it's a favorite of everyone else and it's even obvious to me that "Valley" beats "Kane" zero times out of one hundred. This picture was a little too wholesome, goody-goody and of it's time for this reviewer. It didn't age well, to say the least and this is yet another film that I watch while envisioning my grandparents, wrapped under an afghan, watching and loving every minute of it, on a dreary Sunday afternoon, likely after church. I just don't share Ford's passion for these slice of life, countryside dramas, filled with family values and characters that we follow through years upon years of their lives. He obviously had ideals and interests other than mine and seemed to make pictures that would allow him to reflect on a simpler time, one that is basically non-existent today.

Of course, it wasn't all bad and I'll give credit where it's due. I was engaged about half the time, while the other half the time my mind wanted badly to wander and forget about the dull picture that was spreading itself out before me. Donald Crisp was excellent, as was Walter Pidgeon and certain scenarios were interesting. By the way, the answer to the math question that Walter Pidgeon's character poses to Huw, at about the halfway point is four (I think). At times the picture gave off a cozy aura and while I watched it in my TV room today, wrapped under a blanket (because the air conditioner was on a tad too high), there were times when I wanted to doze off, not because I was bored, but because I was comfortable warmth generating from the screen. I guess that's not bad at all. Also, the narration is great and I can only assume that the narration is read word for word out of the novel, because it's so well written that it must be from a novelist and not a screenwriter.

RATING: 5/10  Let's slice it right down the middle and call it an average affair. I felt that I griped just as much as I praised and therefore a '5' seems fitting.

MOVIES WATCHED: 675
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 326

May 4, 2013  9:17pm

242. The Quiet Man (1952)

Running Time: 129 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Frank S. Nugent, Maurice Walsh, from the story Green Rushes by Maurice Walsh
Main Cast: John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Barry Fitzgerald, Victor McLaglen, Ward Bond
Click here to view the trailer

NOT QUIET ENOUGH

Remember when I wrote my "Double Indemnity" review and I talked about movies that you just know you're going to love before you even begin watching them? Well, that works the other way too, as I've also had many experiences with movies that I knew I WASN'T going to love before I even started them. "The Quiet Man" was one of those movies.

The film was directed by John Ford, in the 1950s and starred John Wayne, so without even going any further we can tell by just that bit of information that it was nominated for a whole heap of Academy Awards (but it only won two). John Wayne is Sean Thornton, an Irish-American, ex-boxer who returns home to the green pastures of Ireland after living in Pittsburgh most of his life. When he rides into the little town of Innisfree, via horse and carriage, he tells the coach driver that he plans to buy a small cottage, fix it up and live there; a small cottage that was owned by his mother and father many years ago and one that he's dreamed of living in all of his life. So Sean meets with the current owner and for the sum of 1000 pounds, she sells Sean the land and the cottage and he moves in, much to the dismay of Squire Will Danagher (McLaglen), who was also interested in the property.Sean moves in, starts fixing the place up, little by little and tries his best to be neighborly with Danagher, who lives right next door. Well, actually, Sean's true neighborly intentions lie with the Squire's sister, Mary Kate Danagher (O'Hara), whom Sean is gaga about. After a while, Sean gets up the nerve to ask Mary Kate out, but traditional Irish customs specify that Sean ask Will for permission to court Mary Kate and of course, Will says no. So the townspeople, who all like Sean well enough, help him hatch out a scheme that will get Will to say yes and it works and Sean marries Mary Kate. However, there's still the matter of Mary Kate's inheritance, which Will refuses to let go of. Oh and there's also the matter of Sean being a former ex-boxer, who retired when he accidentally killed a man in the ring, which becomes important near the end of the movie.

SPOILER ALERT!!

Oy vey! Where do I begin. Well, let's put it this way - I didn't like it! Why didn't I like it, you ask? Well lets start at the very beginning (a very good place to start). For starters, I'm not particularly fond of John Wayne movies as it is. I'm sorry, I know he's supposed to be an American institution and was supposedly a real life superhero (I mean he even had a nickname: "The Duke" - that's  name no one would self apply where I come from, but that's a different matter for a different day) but I just do not get the appeal. As far as I'm concerned it takes a mighty fine script to even make the guy look halfway decent and even then his acting ability is basically nil. Granted, I have only seen a handful of John Wayne movies - this, "The Searchers", "Stagecoach", "Rio Bravo", "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" and "Red River" - but none of those have succeeded in selling me on the guy and I think by now I've seen enough to form a pretty strong opinion and that is one of dislike.

Okay, so the star of the movie aside, there's still the matter of the incredibly - and I do mean INCREDIBLY - boring picture! Now, I hate to be the guy who writes a movie off as boring and leaves it at that and USUALLY I try to avoid using the word "boring" when airing my grievances about a certain film, but I'm sorry; if ever there was a movie to call boring, "The Quiet Man" is that movie. Let's take a look at the sequence of events here: guy returns to Ireland, guy buys land, guy meets girl, guy marries girl, guy quarrels with girls brother, guy quarrels with wife, guy fights girls brother, everybody lives happily ever after. Get the hell out of here with that crap, man! Really? That's it? I'm supposed to be left emotionally drained by one of the most sleep inducing romances in cinematic history? We are never given a reason to care about these characters. What, just because it's the almighty John Wayne (God rest his soul, I'm not one to speak ill of the dead) I'm supposed to automatically care that he's returned to Ireland and oh how romantic, he's been struck smitten by a redheaded angel!? Nah. Sorry, no. No one gets automatic cool points with me, especially not "The Duke". Just because you were one of the biggest names to ever step onto the silver screen, doesn't mean you get my automatic attention. Each movie is it's own vehicle and in this one, I'll reiterate, we are never given reasons to care for these characters. Also, what's with characters in old movies falling head over heels in love after just one look or one kiss? No wonder the 50s were such a boom period for births.

So that about wraps it up. I hate to be THAT guy, but I can't help to just write off "The Quiet Man" as boring. Of course, I didn't even mention that "big climax", where Sean finally decided to fight for his woman (not sure where his big change of heart came from), in a fighting scene that is laced with too much comedy to be taken seriously. No, this film just simply wasn't for me. It's that kind of movie that you'd expect to find your grandparents watching on a Saturday afternoon, your grandma knitting booties and your grandpa half dozed off in the chair...can you blame him?!

RATING: 2/10  Big 'ol thumbs down from this guy and easily THE WORST movie of the season, just beating out "Red Psalm" by a notch. I'll happily mark this one as "watched" and move on with my life.

MOVIES WATCHED: 625
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 376

March 3, 2013  5:37pm

392. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

Running Time: 123 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: James Warner Bellah, Willis Goldbeck, Dorothy M. Johnson
Main Cast: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin, Edmond O'Brien
Click here to view the trailer

"PRINT THE LEGEND"

I had only seen "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" one prior time, before tonight. Yet, this evening, when I decided to give it another go for the sake of THE BOOK, I only needed to walk to my DVD shelf, because that's how much I liked it upon first viewing.

Ransom Stoddard (Stewart) is riding, by coach, to the town of Shinbone, where he plans to begin a law practice and see what life out West has in store for him. He doesn't even make it off the coach, before it's held up by a gang of outlaws, headed up by the meanest, nastiest one of them all - Liberty Valance (Marvin). Stoddard is beaten pretty good, robbed and left lying in a pile of dirt, as Liberty Valance rides off. When Ransom is finally found, it's by Tom Doniphon (Wayne), who takes him to the restaurant of Hallie Ericson (Miles) to be nursed back to health. Since Ransom is now broke, with no way to establish anything, Hallie and her family allow him to stay at their quarters, washing dishes at the restaurant, until he can get back on his feet. Meanwhile, Tom is busy charming the pants off of Hallie, in hopes that she'll one day marry him. Ransom sets up shop at the building that houses the Shinbone Star, the local newspaper and it's publisher Dutton Peabody (O'Brien). However, Ransom can't forget what Liberty Valance did to him and despite warnings from nearly everyone telling him to buy a gun if he plans to hold his own with Valance, Ransom intends to fight Liberty with the law.

As much as I enjoyed my "tete a tete" with Bunuel, sometimes it's nice to shed all of the surrealism and hidden meanings, kick your feet up and head out onto the open range with John Wayne and enjoy the Old West. John Wayne was such a larger than life personality, that when you throw Jimmy Stewart into the same picture with him, it's almost too much star power for a single strip of celluloid. To even behold these two grandiose actors, showing off their skills in the same picture is a sight to behold in itself and add to that the fact that this is actually a very good movie in it's own right (plot wise). The thing I really like about "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" is that it gives us three powerhouse actors to keep our eyes on and three really combustible characters. At no time do these characters/actors step on each others toes and everyone is kept in line, knowing their place in the grand scheme of things. We have John Wayne - the macho, stereotypical, Western hero. He's the guy that makes us get a little giddy when he shows up. He's the one that during his scenes, when he's eye to eye with Liberty Valance, demanding that his Valance remove his steak from the floor, we get goosebumps (or at least I did - great scene!). Then you have Jimmy Stewart and he's the one that I like to watch just flat out be himself. He's the bookworm and he's the one that can make the speeches and get riled up, eventhough he doesn't pose much of a physical threat. He becomes our reluctant hero when John Wayne isn't onscreen.

SPOILER ALERT!

Then you have Lee Marvin, one of the baddest movie villains in the history of cinema, calling people "dude" and wielding a silver baton, which he uses to beat his prey senseless. He's the guy you love to hate and kind of the guy you don't want to see die, because you know the movie isn't going to be quite as fun with him in a pine box. He's also the one that forced John Wayne to step into the shadows, when he gunned him down - now that's tough! Lots of great characters, a love story and then you have a kind of ridiculous plot piece that involves elections, delegates, statehood, open range and a whole lot of other malarkey . This was just an anchor for the picture, as far as I'm concerned, as they had a perfectly good movie in an everyday Joe who wanted revenge on an Old West bad guy and the Old West good guy who gives him a hand. Lee Marvin is really stepping up on my radar and it's getting so that I really look forward to the movies he's in. He's a fantastic bad guy and whether he's wielding that silver baton or throwing coffee into the face of dames, he's just a fun guy to hate.

The film isn't quite as perfect as I thought it to be the last time I watched it, but it still holds up just fine. If you're someone who thinks you might like to give the genre of Westerns a try, this would be an ideal place to start, as it's one of the first Westerns I saw and it made an impression on me. Heck, you even have John Ford at the helm and it doesn't get more Western than John Ford. For me, when I first saw this movie, it worked because it had Jimmy Stewart. At the time, I wasn't much into older films and I especially wasn't much into Westerns, but Jimmy Stewart acted as the friend that you go to the party with, even though you're not going to know anyone there. He made me feel more comfortable and in-turn introduced me to guys like John Ford, John Wayne and the genre of Western in general. Check this one out, whether you're a fan of old films or someone who wants to be.

RATING: 8/10 I hope I can find a home for this one on my TOP 20, but the field is looking hot and there's only 20 spots!

MOVIES WATCHED: 375
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 626

December 22, 2011 10:49pm

136. The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

Running Time: 128 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Nunnally Johnson, from novel by John Steinbeck
Main Cast: Henry Fonda, Russell Simpson, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, Charley Grapewin

"I'LL BE THERE..."

As I noted in my previous post, I was quite excited to see this film, as I am a huge Henry Fonda fan and despite that fact, "The Grapes of Wrath" was a classic Fonda film that had gone unwatched by me for far too long. Well all that was rectified tonight as I sat down and took in the movie, that was adapted from the classic American novel by John Steinbeck and in the end, I wasn't disappointed.

Henry Fonda plays Tom Joad and as the film opens we see Tom hitch a ride with a truck driver and learn that he's just been paroled from prison for committing a homicide. Tom is headed home, back to his folks' land in Oklahoma. When he's nearly approaching the land, he meets up with an ex-preacher, Casy, whom he chats with for a bit, before they go together to the Joad house. Upon arrival at the Joad house, Tom sees that the house has been abandoned and that Ma and Pa Joad are nowhere to be found. A family friend, Muley, who is hiding out in the Joads' house enlightens Tom that several weeks prior, all of the families in the area were forced to leave their homes when the deed holders came in and tool their land, using tractors to knock down homes. Muley tells Tom that his family has relocated to Tom's uncle John's. Tom makes the travel to his uncle John's and finds his entire family, including Ma, Pa and Grandma & Grandpa. Their happy to see Tom and tell him that they've made plans to head to California where they've heard tell that there's plenty of work.

The following morning the Joads' move out, with the ex-preacher Casy in tow, in their old beat up, jalopy of a truck and take Highway 66 to California. The majority of the film takes place on the road, but eventually the family makes it's way into California, although Grandpa and Grandma do not, as the trip takes its toll on them and they pass away before the family gets there. Upon their arrival they soon realize that the rumors of work in California weren't altogether true and that the work that was there wasn't profitable enough to feed the entire Joad family. Eventually Casy splits up from the Joads' and they wind up in a migrant campground where they pick peaches for five cents a bucket. At first it seems alright, but when Tom goes out one evening for a walk, he meets up with Casy again, and Casy tells him that their striking against the camp because they start men out at five cents, but then eventually lower the wages. When cops swarm in to bust up the group, consisting of Tom, Casy and some other strikers, Casy is killed by a cop and the cop is then beaten to death by Tom. Tom gets away but not without getting his face split open and left with a mark that won't make it hard for the cops to finger him.

There are so many things I want to say about "The Grapes of Wrath", so hopefully I don't forget anything. I guess I'll start out with a little bit of praise for Mr. John Ford, as he seemed to really have a way with putting his fingers on the pulse of America and telling those stories that we could all relate to. I've never read the book, so I'm speaking of "The Grapes of Wrath" from a pure film perspective, but Ford really fleshes out the Joads' and makes you want to see them succeed. Eventually you get to a point where the Joads' aren't just characters in a movie or a book, but real life people facing all of the struggles that people in that era faced, and you really can't help but get a little bit emotional when bad thing after bad thing happens to them. The cast is all great, and Henry Fonda doesn't let me down, as he totally steals the show with his portrayal of Tom Joad. However, it isn't the cast or the director that really struck me about this film, but instead it is Gregg Toland, the cinematographer. The photography in this picture is a flawless example of how absolutely breathtaking black & white pictures could be. There are countless shots throughout the film that are just amazing and at some points Toland even used shadows to give the picture a sort of "backwoods noir" feel. The scene where Tom dances with his mother, toward the end of the film made me crack a smile that I simply couldn't get rid of, and when Tom began to sing to her, the smile only grew. And of course, there's Tom's "I'll be there" speech, which is beyond words and delivered with excellence by Fonda. Here's a transcript of the speech for those who haven't seen/heard it, or to those who have and just want a reminder:

"I'll be all around in the dark. I'll be everywhere. Wherever you can look, wherever there's a fight, so hungry people can eat, I'll be there. Wherever there's a cop beatin' up a guy, I'll be there. I'll be in the way guys yell when they're mad. I'll be in the way kids laugh when they're hungry and they know supper's ready, and when the people are eatin' the stuff they raise and livin' in the houses they build, I'll be there, too."

RATING: 10/10 I wasn't gonna' go as high as a '10' but who am I kidding really, there is NOTHING wrong with this movie, and that makes it a '10'.

NEXT UP: Dance, Girl, Dance...Haven't even heard of this film outside of the pages of the "1001", but we'll see what happens...Review should be up by Thursday night.

July 1, 2010 1:08am

119. Stagecoach (1939)

Running Time: 96 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Ernest Haycox, Dudley Nichols
Main Cast: John Wayne, Claire Trevor, John Carradine, Thomas Mitchell, George Bancroft, Louise Platt, Andy Devine, Donald Meek

Sidenote: The review for Stella Dallas is up and can be found by clicking here. On another note; I mentioned the other day that the Dodsworth review would be on the way soon. Well scratch that, as the status of the film on Netflix, has gone from "shipping today" back to a "very long wait", so who really knows when that'll get done. Also, no changing news on the status of Angels with Dirty Faces.

ON MY JOURNEY I MET A MAN CALLED 'THE DUKE'

John Wayne swaggers into the pages of the '1001' book and John Ford follows him, with the director's second entry in the book (following Judge Priest). This was a pretty good western, which really picks up most of it's steam in the final thirty minutes.

The story takes place in the town of Tonto, a town which is going through a high degree of unrest, due to the recent word that Geronimo and the Apache's are afoot and raising cain. When the Marshall, Curly, gets word that the Ringo Kid (Wayne) has busted out of prison and likely headed for Lordsburg to confront Luke Plummer, a man who killed his brother and father, he jumps at the opportunity to bring the Kid back to justice and nab him once more. He summons a stagecoach driver named Buck to take him through Dry Fork, Apache Wells and finally into Lordsburg, despite the threat that the Apache's raise throughout those parts. Along for the ride are several other men and women, all for their own reasons. First off, we have Dr. Boone (Mitchell), the town drunk and a prostitute name Dallas (Trevor), both of whom are being kicked out of the town. Also, we have Mrs. Lucy Mallory (Platt), who plans to meet her cavalry officer husband in Dry Fork. Also along for the trip are Samuel Peacock (Meek), a whiskey salesman, Hatfield (Carradine), the town gambler and Henry Gatewood (Churchill), the banker in Tonto. So the stage is set for a wild ride when these personalities are stuffed into a tiny stagecoach, all for their own reasons and headed through Apache country.

The trip barely gets started when the coach comes across the Ringo Kid and Marshall Curly takes him along for the ride, as they continue their trek. The plot slows down considerably at this point, once all hands are on deck, as the gang arrives at Dry Fork, only to find out that the calvary has moved on to Apache Wells. They continue to Apache Wells, to find that the cavalry has, yet again, moved on to Lordsburg. While staying at Apache Wells, Mrs. Mallory faints and when Doc Boone is urged to sober up and help the young lady, it all ends up with the birth of her child, a baby girl. Also along the way, a romance is sparked between the Ringo Kid and Dallas, as two souls who no one wants, a fugitive and a prostitute, although the Kid doesn't know about her past. Eventually the climax comes and the volume is cranked up to a full blast level, with outstanding stunts and plenty of tension.

This was really a fantastic cast, as everyone involved turned in outstanding performances and played their part to keep the story going, even in the down times of the film. I love films where an random group of strangers are thrown together and forced to coexist. It usually seems to add an element of conflict and tension and keeps you gripped, as you just know at some point, somewhere the shit is going to hit the fan. The chase scene is where this film really turns into a "must see" picture, as it is truly an unbelievable showcase of action and stunts, especially considering the era in which the film was made. It's full of what every chase scene needs to have: great stunts, action, excitement, suspense and just plain awesomeness. From there we're not done, as the suspense and tension are laid on for a second round, as the whole gang reaches Lordsburg and I still realize we got the showdown between Plummer and the Kid to deal with. If they could've kept the excitement up throughout the whole movie, instead of picking it up near the end, then this would've been a blockbuster and a masterpiece. However, the middle segments just seem a bit too dull and "nothing happening" for me.

RATING: 6.5/10 Despite a bit of dullness, the picture was still really enjoyable and fun to watch and I can definitely see this one growing on me, as time passes.

NEXT UP: Zangiku Monogatari...or, The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums...I'll be watching this one on YouTube. I'll be out of town tomorrow, so if I do get to this one tomorrow, it won't be until later at night.

February 26, 2010 11:58pm

85. Judge Priest (1934)

Running Time: 80 minutes
Directed By: John Ford
Written By: Irvin S. Cobb, Dudley Nichols
Main Cast: Will Rogers, Tom Brown, David Landau, Anita Louise, Stepin Fetchit,

JOHN FORD BURSTS ONTO THE SCENE...AND BRINGS WILL ROGERS WITH HIM

Despite not even being able to find a poster for this lesser known John Ford film, "Judge Priest" is still a very good example of early Ford work and a precursor to what the western directing legend, would go on to do.

Judge William Priest (Rogers) is a level headed and sometimes stubborn judge, who resides over his courtroom, while reading the funny pages. His nephew Jerome (Brown) has just returned home from New York with a law degree and soon falls back into the embrace of his former love, Ellie May (Louise). Judge Priest couldn't be happier about this fact, as he is quite fond of the happy couple and wants nothing more than for them to be married. However, Jerome's mother wants no part of Ellie May and discourages her son for associating with her, the reason being, that she doesn't have a known father. When Judge Priest is out one evening at the cemetery, having a little chat with his deceased wife, he notices a man, Bob Gillis, placing flowers on the tombstone of Ellie May's mother. Well, Judge Priest puts two and two together and realizes that Mr. Gillis is Ellie's long lost father.

Upon confronting Mr. Gillis, Judge Priest finds a hard man, who keeps to himself and only speaks the necessary words required to give an appropriate response. One day at the barber shop, when the barber is taking verbal liberties with Ellie May, as she walks by the front of the shop, Mr. Gillis, who is waiting for a shave, takes the opportunity to punch out the big mouth barber and be on his way. Later that evening at the saloon, while the previously punched barber and his barber buddies are playing a little pool, and Gillis is at the bar having a drink, they decide to jump Gillis with pool cues in tow. Gillis gains the upper hand, ultimately pulling a knife and minorly stabbing the barber that he punched out earlier that day. The film ends with the trial of Bob Gillis and Jerome taking him on as his very first client. However, due to the objections of the prosecuting attorney, Judge Priest won't be presiding over this court case.

The character of Judge Priest was the type of man that would make you wanna move down south and find one just like him, befriend him and sit on the back porch with him as he told stories and you listened to the whippoorwills singing their peaceful song. The character is an everyday man, someone that we've probably all come across at one point in our life. An gentleman of increasing age, who is wise and stubborn, yet always speaks for the right and just cause. Will Rogers wasn't just an old name that you heard of, but he was also able to bring the acting chops to the table and he MADE this film, and he made it a great one. I thoroughly enjoyed "Judge Priest" and really enjoyed the portrayl of him by the great Will Rogers. This film is home to some touching moments, like when the Judge talks to his deceased wife and you just want to leap through the screen and give the old man some company. The ending is also a very touching scene, which I'll let you experience for yourself.

RATING: 8.5/10 Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from this movie, but you'd think I'd learn by now to always be surprised and always be ready for a really great film.

NEXT UP: It Happened One Night...More Frank Capra, and Clark Gable bursts into the picture. It's on Netflix to watch instantly, but I'll more than likely save it for tomorrow.

January 29, 2010 6:56pm