From the category archives:

John Wayne

Jean Arthur and John Wayne

by Bill on February 19, 2010

After having it on my computer for about two months in a half-finished state, I’ve finally posted my take on A Lady Takes a Chance (1943). It stars Jean Arthur and John Wayne and, yes, it’s a romantic comedy. It’s not, however, the best romantic comedy. It’s pretty mediocre. However, both Arthur and Wayne are [...]

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Donovan’s Reef: Fisticuffs anyone?

by Bill on January 11, 2009

I took a shot at assessing another John Wayne movie (since I’d been doing quite a few of those lately). Here’s what I came up with: Donovan’s Reef (1963) This is a difficult film to defend, much less recommend, for many reasons, most of which have to do with director John Ford. Still, if I [...]

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3 Godfathers: A western as Christmas fable

by Bill on December 28, 2008

Having come across 3 Godfathers in a number of “top Christmas movies” lists, I decided to watch it. A second time. I had watched it about two years ago but I couldn’t recall it, and definitely didn’t recall the Christmas aspect. Now, having seen it again, I see the Christmas angle but I don’t personally [...]

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John Wayne heads north – booze and brawls ensue

by Bill on November 13, 2008

This movie, North to Alaska, is a difficult one to account for. I really like it a lot. But I can’t think of a single cinematic merit it has going for it. Essentially, if you don’t like John Wayne’s later movies, especially the comic ones, you won’t likely take to this film. In fact, you [...]

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John Wayne and Donna Reed in a muddle

by Bill on November 7, 2008

The few reviews found online of Trouble Along the Way, a 1953 movie starring John Wayne and Donna Reed, generally agree: fans of the Duke will likely enjoy it but its saccharine quality will probably be off-putting for anyone else. They also all seem to grade the movie as so-so, at best. I can’t say [...]

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Revisiting Rio Bravo

by Bill on September 16, 2007

Although I’ve had the relatively recent release of Rio Bravo (Two-Disc Special Edition), it has taken me most of the summer to get around to actually watching it. And I actually picked up Rio Bravo (Two-Disc Ultimate Collector’s Edition), which is the same thing just with more stuff like a comic book of Rio Bravo [...]

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The Shootist – John Wayne’s last film

by Bill on June 1, 2007

For me, The Shootist (1976) is a funny movie. Not funny “ha-ha” but funny in the oddball sense. I really enjoyed it. It’s a good, maybe even close to great movie. But at the same time, there are aspects of it that don’t quite work for me. I think what I have problems with are [...]

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The Searchers looking better than good

by Bill on August 15, 2006

I’ve been making my way through all those John Ford-John Wayne movies that finally came (see posts below). I’ve also received my copy of Stagecoach – Special Edition (and watched it last night). So my head’s pretty full of Ford imagery and Wayne’s voice. But let’s start with The Searchers, possibly the best of the [...]

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