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Tag: John Wayne

QuickView: El Dorado (1966)

El Dorado

“I’m looking at a tin star with a drunk pinned on it.”

Cole

Howard Hawks’ penultimate film was a western marketed on starring both John Wayne and Robert Mitchum. Wayne’s honourable hired gunslinger is the real lead, burdened by a bullet received early in the film that provides tension through the ever-present threat of incapacitation despite his skill. Mitchum’s sheriff demands greater range as a proud man lost to drink and desperate to re-earn the respect of the town he serves. The smart script’s dry wit works better than attempts at broader comedy, particularly one character performing a grotesque (but thankfully brief) Chinese caricature. Although El Dorado is prime material for Hawks, it suffers a little from the comparison demanded by its striking similarities to Hawks’ earlier masterpiece in Rio Bravo, with its lawman turned to drink and a gunslinger defending the town jail against a gang trying to release a prisoner. Despite being a variation on the same theme, the fact that El Dorado nevertheless stands on its own is a testament to Hawks and his deft use of the altered friendship between aging lead characters, with an underlying sense of regret lending gravitas.

8/10

QuickView: Rio Bravo (1959)

“If I ever saw a man holdin’ a bull by the tail, you’re it.”

Pat Wheeler

A slow-burning Western with John Wayne as a small town sheriff who needs to hold out for a week until Federal Marshals collect the prisoner in his jail, exploring resiliance, morality and the ability to accept aid. Another of Quentin Tarantino’s three desert island films (along with Blow Out and Taxi Driver), one can see the style of Western he prefers, prioritising dialogue over action and earning its tension through quiet build-up and understated threats within a confined space — Howard Hawks’ direction conjures suspense in the lawmen simply walking down a street at night where every shadow is a threat. The typically male-dominated roster is at least punctuated by Angie Dickinson’s substantial riff on the femme fatale rather than being a simple floozy. Its strong cast aside, the writing elevates Rio Bravo, with the real story being the relationships between the townsfolk, their backstories emerging naturally over time.

9/10

"A film is a petrified fountain of thought."

(CC) BY-NC 2003-2023 Priyan Meewella

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