John Wayne Westerns

Starring:John Wayne
Studio: Vintage Home Ent.
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

It's the Duke, but remaster please!
the old saturday afternoon at the movies kinda fun
On a 1 to 10 scale, this collection is rated: 5.6
It's the Duke
This was just what I ordered

John Wayne 20 Movie Pack
Starring: John Wayne
Manufacturer: Digital 1Stop / Mill Creek Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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John Wayne Collection
Western Classics 50 Movie Pack Collection

ASIN: B000A2XC6W
Release Date: 2005-07-01

Product Description

John Wayne 20 MoviePack - The Dawn Rider, The Desert Trail, The Lucky Texan , 'Neath Arizona Skies, Rainbow Valley, The Trail Beyond, Texas Terror, The Star Packer, Paradise Canyon, Riders of Destiny, West of the Divide, Winds of the Wasteland, Born to the West (Hell Town), The Lawless Frontier, The Man from Utah, Randy Rides Alone, Blue Steel, Sagebrush Trail, The American West of John Ford, Angel and the Badman, McLintock

System Requirements:

Running Time 1243 Mins.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Customer Reviews:

It's the Duke, but remaster please!.......2007-05-03

We've been spoiled in this day and age. Mopst movies today found on DVDs, including John Wayne movies, have been digitally remastered and include bonus materials, pictures which are always good, subtitles and the like. Though I love the movies in general, the quality of the DVDs is not so good. The picture is not good on some, the subtitles are not there, the sound is not great, and it is not worthy of a DVD by today's standard. McClintock looked like they played it on a TV and recorded it with a camcorder! But what did I expect for the price?

the old saturday afternoon at the movies kinda fun.......2007-05-03

I am 50 plus years of age and I remember the saturday afternoons at the movies. There was always a coming attraction (for the next week for the kids),a cartoon, a chapter serial,& two features. Usually one of the features was a western. These films of Mr. Wayne bring back memories when the good guys always wore white hats and bad guys always wore black hats, drank too much, and always lost the fight with the good guys. The good guys had a romantic interest in the heroine, but no mushy stuff
ever happened in these films, not for young eyes who always like action and no kissing face stuff! Only comment I have wrong about this collection of horse opera is that the first two films (the Dawn Rider and the Desert Trail)have some glinches in them as though they are old copies of them but the others are good copies in this 20 pack. Worth the price of 5.00 dollars in all.

On a 1 to 10 scale, this collection is rated: 5.6.......2007-04-18

The JOHN WAYNE 20 MOVIE PACK includes a bonus:
"The American West Of John Ford" was a made for TV documentary about the legendary filmmaker, with alternating host duties carried out by Wayne, Henry Fonda and Jimmy Stewart. Filmed on-site at Monument Valley, it's easy to see the long-established camaraderie among these actors as they reminisced with their former director about his production company and days gone by. Ford was clearly looking frail and on the decline, which undoubtedly prompted this retrospective tribute.

The balance of the box set are films made prior to the Duke's breakthrough picture, 1939's "Stagecoach," his first collaboration with John Ford. These quickly-made three-reelers, once standard Saturday matinee fare, were often shown in pairs along with a serial chapter, a Three Stooges short and a few cartoons. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear...

The 1 to 10 score for JOHN WAYNE 20 MOVIE PACK was calculated from polling data obtained at a film resource website. Based on these figures, the current rating for this collection is: 5.6.

The following alphabetized program list includes individual poll scores, years of release and primary actors (besides Wayne).

(6.8) The American West Of John Ford (TV-1971-doc.) - John Ford/John Wayne/Henry Fonda/James Stewart/Andy Devine (cameo)
(6.8) Angel And The Badman (1947) - John Wayne/Gail Russell/Harry Carey
(5.5) Blue Steel (1934) - John Wayne/George 'Gabby' Hayes/Yakima Canutt
(5.0) The Dawn Rider (1935) - John Wayne/Marion Burns/Yakima Canutt (in support)
(5.1) The Desert Trail (1935) - John Wayne/Mary Kornman/Paul Fix
(6.0) Hell Town ("Born To The West") (1937) - John Wayne/Marsha Hunt
(4.7) The Lawless Frontier (1934) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(5.6) The Lucky Texan (1934) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(5.0) The Man From Utah (1934) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(7.2) McLintock! (1963) - John Wayne/Maureen O'Hara/Stefanie Powers
(5.3) 'Neath The Arizona Skies (1934) - John Wayne/Sheila Terry/Yakima Canutt (in support)
(5.0) Paradise Canyon (1935) - John Wayne/Marion Burns/Yakima Canutt (in support)
(5.5) Rainbow Valley (1935) - John Wayne/Lucile Browne/George 'Gabby' Hayes
(5.7) Randy Rides Alone (1934) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(5.8) Riders Of Destiny (1933) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(5.1) Sagebrush Trail (1933) - John Wayne/Nancy Shubert/Yakima Canutt
(5.6) The Star Packer (1934) - John Wayne, George "Gabby" Hayes
(5.0) Texas Terror (1935) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(5.5) The Trail Beyond (1934) - John Wayne/Verna Hillie/Noah Beery/Noah Beery Jr.
(5.8) West Of The Divide (1934) - John Wayne/George "Gabby" Hayes
(6.0) Winds Of The Wasteland (1936) - John Wayne/Phyllis Cerf

It's the Duke.......2007-04-10

If you want some of John Wayne's less known movies this is the perfect pack at the perfect price for you. Many viewing hours of the Duke!

This was just what I ordered.......2007-04-01

I have not yet watched these movies, but I have received exactly what I wanted. Thanks.

Average customer rating:

An intriguing example of the John Ford film legacy.....
Fort Apache
Ford Defies Stereotypes of the Classic Western
A Must-See in the History of Western Movies
An unsatisfactory epic Western!

Fort Apache
Starring: John Wayne , Henry Fonda , Shirley Temple , Pedro Armendáriz , and Ward Bond
Director: John Ford
Manufacturer: Turner Home Ent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
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ASIN: B000O599NA
Release Date: 2007-05-22

Amazon.com essential video

John Ford's 1948 classic stars John Wayne as a Cavalry officer used to doing things a certain way out West at Fort Apache. Along comes a rigid, new commanding officer (Henry Fonda) who insists that everything on his watch be done by the book, including dealings with local Indians. The results are mixed: greater discipline at the fort, but increased hostilities with the natives. Ford deliberately leaves judgments about the wisdom of these changes ambiguous, but he also allows plenty of room in this wonderful film for the fullness of life among the soldiers and their families--community rituals, new romances--to blossom. Fonda, in an unusual role for him, is stern and formal as the new man in charge; Wayne is heroic as the rebellious second; Victor McLaglen provides comic relief; and Ward Bond is a paragon of sturdy and sentimental masculinity. All of this is set against the magnificent, poetic topography of Monument Valley. This is easily one of the greatest of American films. --Tom Keogh

Description

The soldiers at Fort Apache may disagree with the tactics of their glory-seeking new commander. But to a man, they're duty-bound to obey - even when it means almost certain disaster. John Wayne, Henry Fonda and many familiar supporting players from master director John Ford's "stock company" saddle up for the first film in the director's famed cavalry trilogy (She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Rio Grande are the others). Roughhouse camaraderie, sentimental vignettes of frontier life, massive action sequences staged in Monument Valley - all are part of Fort Apache. So is Ford's exploration of the West's darker side. Themes of justice, heroism and honor that Ford would revisit in later Westerns are given rein in this moving, thought-provoking film that, even as it salutes a legend, gives reasons to question it.

Customer Reviews:

An intriguing example of the John Ford film legacy............2007-06-26

FORT APACHE, directed by John Ford, features John Wayne in a unusual detour, as the understated Captain Kirby York, Henry Fonda as an arrogant and hardheaded Lt. Col. Owen Thursday, and a grown up Shirley Temple as Philadelphia Thursday, Fonda's on-screen daughter. I viewed this film in a Native American Cinema course. We observed the tensions between soldiers, at the end of the American Civil War, with a local Indian tribe. While York (Wayne) believes that the Indians should be treated with respect, Lt. Col. Thursday thinks otherwise. Meanwhile, his daughter Philadelphia (Temple) is falling in love with Lt. Michael "Mickey" O'Rourke (John Agar). This is much to the great disapproval of her father.

This is a film that depicted Native Americans in a rare, sympathetic light. We also see the ample tension that exists in the experience of Irish-American soldiers following the war. The acting, here, is at times interchangeably compelling (John Wayne is great, as is Henry Fonda) as well as annoying (Shirley Temple's character becomes little more than a curiousity--yes, this is the same Shirley Temple best known as a tap dancing three year old with ringlets). John Ford did a great job crafting this film. It is very engaging and well done. I definitely reccomend this as your introduction to his cinematic storytelling.

Fort Apache.......2007-06-22

The first installment in Ford's illustrious Cavalry Trilogy, "Apache" soars to great heights thanks to Fonda, effectively playing an arrogant, rigid Easterner, and the brawny Wayne, superb as a savvy frontiersman who knows it's foolish to go up against Apache leader Cochise. Apart from critiquing the sensationalization of military heroics and the myth of the "savage," Ford works in sequences of everyday frontier rituals, like dances, chores, and even a romance involving Thursday's daughter, played by an all grown-up Shirley Temple. With its exquisite black-and-white shots of Monument Valley, assured acting, and Custer-esque storyline, "Apache" is an enduring Western winner.

Ford Defies Stereotypes of the Classic Western.......2007-05-09

'Fort Apache' is worth watching for John Ford's cinematography alone. Much of the movie was filmed in Monument Valley, Ford's favorite setting. But the movie offers much more. Ford crafts an entertaining movie-watching experience that includes some deft comedic scenes early on. Ward Bond turns in a strong performance as the burly Irish-American Sgt. Major.

Ford also defies some of our stereotypes of the classic Western. Owen Thursday, the embittered new leader of Fort Apache brilliantly played by Henry Fonda, is, despite his protestation to the contrary, a martinet and in the end a recklessly proud fool. Perhaps most interesting, Ford starkly calls into question the creation of military heroes. Thursday rides to his death in an unprovoked and fool-hardy frontal attack on Apache warriors. Cut to the closing scene, months later back at the fort, Thursday's memory is lauded by a group of uninformed reporters as a glorious hero to which John Wayne, the new leader of Fort Apache ironically accedes.

Highly recommended.

A Must-See in the History of Western Movies.......2007-02-03

It's fascinating to compare this 1948 pairing of director John Ford and John Wayne with Stagecoach, which they did together in 1939. In 1939 Wayne was a 'kid' and the Indians were a faceless menace which could not be reasoned with. Not even ten years later, Wayne is a weathered, wise Captain on a remote outpost, very sympathetic with the local natives. The Indians are now a complex, mistreated group who are deserving of respect.

The landscape and lifestyle is simply gorgeous in this film even though it's black and white. The love of music, the heartachingly gorgeous vistas and carved rocks, the soaring skies all make you want to immediately take a trip to the west. There are a variety of characters here - the defeated Rebels from the civil war, the stereotypical group of drinking Irish, the shopkeeps who take advantage of the natives and the men of honor who try to do the right thing.

The local cavalry group is happy hanging out in their remote outpost when Henry Fonda - Col. Thursday - shows up with his slightly ditsy but good natured daughter, Philadelphia (Shirley Temple!). Philly playfully explains that Pomfret CT and not Pennsylvania lay in her past. Soon the local west point grad is in love with her - but despite his officer rank and the fact that his dad won the medal of honor, Thursday feels the romance is entirely inappropriate - a breach of class etiquette.

In fact, Thursday calls the lad an "uncilized Indian" for taking his daughter out without permission. He feels he's educated and worthy of great glory - he researched the tactics of Khan, Alexander the Great and others. When it comes to real life, however, he is lacking in wisdom.

While the group is sitting around enjoying 1846 port, the natives are restless. Thusrday disdanfully complains that while others get to joust with "the 'great indian nations' of Sioux and Cheyenne, we get the gnat-stains and flea- bites of a few digger indians." Wayne, annoyed, responds, "You'd hardly call the Apaches digger indians." Says Thursday, "You'd scarely compare them with the Sioux ..." When Wayne tries to talk about the Apaches destroying the Sioux, Thursday ignores him.

Soon, because local trader Meacham has been only giving them rotgut whiskey, giving them "whiskey but no beef", Chochise, Diablo, Geronimo and others take off with numerous Mescaleros and Chiricahuas for the south border. Meacham is dismissive - "You know how children are". Wayne goes in to talk peace with them, and no sooner has he negotiated one but Thursday decides to kill them all for glory. When Wayne complains about the damage to his honor, Thursday sneers about the value of "Your word to a breech-clothed savage".

Unfortunately for Thursday's wild plan, the cavalry are soon surrounded and outnumbered four to one. Thurday reluctantly agrees to talk - and again his lack of wisdom shines through as he abandons all diplomacy and openly insults them. It's pretty inevitable what follows.

On one hand you could complain that even though there are supposed to be multiple branches of the Apache clan represented, you tend to only see generic indians on ridges with regular shirts and bandanas. But compared to the stories done just ten years ago, the changes are pretty stunning. Now it's the whites who are the senseless marauders, and the natives who are merely trying to find a peaceful way to live. Unfortunately, it's the cavalrymen who get stuck in the center.

A very important movie to watch, to see how the shifting sands adjust in perceptions over time - and to admire the gorgeous landscapes of the old west.

An unsatisfactory epic Western!.......2006-11-08

In portraying the history of the United States from the Revolutionary War to World War II, John Ford continually resorted to a deeply personal, nostalgic form of legend... If there is no doubt of his importance to the development of the Western, his uniquely sentimental, poetic glorification of the white American's conquest of the wilderness is both picturesque and reactionary...

The cavalrymen get a more honorable deal from three films made in succession by him: 'Ford Apache,' 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon,' and 'Rio Grande.' These are quite properly referred to as his 'cavalry trilogy' as they deserve to be considered as a body of work dedicated to a particular theme, that of the life of the cavalry and their role as frontier protectors in times of Indian uprising...

'Fort Apache' is about the tensions in an isolated fort-social and military - hierarchy tensions, and, ultimately, the purely military tensions that arise when the commanding officer is transparently ill-fitted for his command...

Henry Fonda is a vain, domineering, and embittered colonel who can't get over losing his Civil War rank as general... He arrives at the Arizona desert outpost to take over from the experienced Indian fighter, John Wayne... He is arrogant, accepting no advice, and further alienates the hard-bitten veterans by refusing to support the romance of his lovely daughter (Shirley Temple) with a young lieutenant from West Point (John Agar) who happens to be the son of sergeant major (Ward Bond).

There are nice touches in the film here about army traditions, and undisciplined troops: Civil War veterans living in noisy harmony; amusing and touching moments with variety of vignettes that deal with the everyday lives of Fort Apache cavalrymen; and pretty Irish drunk humor from Victor McLaglen... The inevitable climax concerns, of course, the colonel's arrogance and ignorance leading his men into an Apache massacre...

'Fort Apache' is an unsatisfactory epic Western which yet contains sequences in its director's best manner... Ford consistently finds the most beautiful way to frame a scene, and the black and white photography is stunning... But the best of the trilogy is undoubtedly 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon,' which remains for many their favorite Western movie...

Average customer rating:

Not the Apple Dumpling Gang
revenge is sweet & so is the duke
The Cowboys
100 Years Of Greatness!!!!!!!
Worth Watching

The Cowboys (Deluxe Edition)
Starring: John Wayne , Roscoe Lee Browne , Bruce Dern , Colleen Dewhurst , and Alfred Barker Jr.
Director: Mark Rydell
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000O599WQ
Release Date: 2007-05-22

Amazon.com

Almost in spite of itself, The Cowboys has taken its place among John Wayne's most beloved films. It wasn't always that way: When it was released in January of 1972, the film was widely criticized for appearing to promote the notion that boys become men through violence. From a politically correct perspective, this apparent message is arguably deplorable (and some interpreted the film's young fighters as a reflection of young draftees into the Vietnam war), but there's no denying that The Cowboys remains as invigorating as it ever was, no matter how dubious its thematic implications. Based on a novel by William Dale Jennings, and adapted with Jennings by the married screenwriting team of Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. (whose impressive credits include Hud, Hombre, and Norma Rae), the movie opens with aging ranch owner Wil Anderson (Wayne) desperate for ranch-hands to herd 1,500 head of cattle across 400 miles of dangerous territory. With no better options, he reluctantly hires boys from the local schoolhouse (including Robert Carradine in his screen debut), and an experienced, worldly-wise cook named Nightlinger (played to perfection by Roscoe Lee Browne) joins the cattle drive--the first black man the boys have ever seen.

A Hollywood liberal who initially felt at odds with Wayne's right-wing politics, Mark Rydell (On Golden Pond) originally sought George C. Scott for the lead, but studio executives urged him to convince Wayne to take the role. It was a happy outcome for both, as Rydell directs Wayne with an enjoyable mixture of Old West humor and grizzled trail-hardiness, and The Cowboys is a top-drawer production with gorgeous cinematography (on location in Mexico and Colorado) by veteran cameraman Robert Surtees. Colleen Dewhurst appears briefly but memorably as the madam of a traveling troupe of prostitutes (in a scene often cut from earlier TV broadcasts and some home-video releases), and the young A Martinez (who would later star in several TV soap operas and the indie-hit Powwow Highway) makes a strong impression in a prominent supporting role. But the real reason for the film's lasting popularity is the hiss-worthy villainy of Bruce Dern (as "Long Hair," leader of the rustlers), who earned a dubious place in movie history for his character's cheating approach to gunplay. No matter how you interpret its themes of fatherly influence and justified vengeance, The Cowboys (later the basis of a short-lived TV series) is undeniably entertaining, dominated by Wayne's reliable presence and bolstered by a rousing, Copland-esque score by John Williams. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Not the Apple Dumpling Gang.......2007-06-16

This picture deserves a better reputation. Yes, it has a bunch of kids in it - but it's not Disney-style cutes and sentiment. And boy, does it hold up in this beautiful presentation with the overture and entr'acte. Completely irresistible. (Why wasn't Bruce Dern nominated for this?)

revenge is sweet & so is the duke.......2007-06-11

john wayne gives the last significant performance of his career (i dont much care for "the shootist", sorry) in this revisionist western from director mark rydell. highlighted by the charmingly amateurish performances by the young supporting cast, and the oh-so-sinister bruce dern in his breakthrough role, the movie is vigilantly off-beat, and more true to the spirit of the 1970s than the 1870s. im not sure wayne fans will like it, but i think wayne haters (oh how i pity the fools) might.

The Cowboys.......2007-06-10

This is a very good movie. It is a intriguing movie. It keeps your attention. I would recommend to everyone.

100 Years Of Greatness!!!!!!!.......2007-05-28

My brothers and I grew-up on this and many of Big John's flicks. This is one of his best and left me with the best message for growing boys of today. Just like John Wayne says near the end of the movie: "Every man wants his children to grow-up better than he was" was pure greatness!!!!! And has stuck with us to this day. Only a "non-American" could not appreciate the values expressed on this movie........

Worth Watching.......2007-05-27

I had never watched "The Cowboys" before because, when it first came out, the concept of John Wayne leading a bunch of kids on a cattle drive didn't appeal to me. However, the awareness that this was one of 30 some John Wayne movies I hadn't seen led me to watch it last night. I was impressed. For one thing, I could tell from the beginning that this was a major production for its' day. The cinematography was impressive and the location and sets were well done too. The case for why a school room-full of kids were chosen for the job was credibly made and the journey begins. There's a fair amount of action and entertainment along the way. John Wayne gives a good performance as the cattleman who comes to respect his trailhands. There is some suspenseful conflict with some bad guys and something that rarely happens in a John Wayne film occurs. I won't say what it was but I could only think of "The Shootist" and, in an indirect way, "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" as the other times it occurred after "The Alamo".

The kids give a credible performance and so does Roscoe Lee Brown. Interestingly, there was a bit actor with the last name Canutt who showed up on the credits (as one of the bad guys). Could it the Duke found work for a relative of his old sparring partner Yakima Canutt? Collen Dewhurst is featured but she's over-billed for her gratuitous part. This is not a great movie but it turned out to be a lot better than I thought it would be.

Average customer rating:

John Fords greatest film

The Searchers (John Wayne Collection)
Starring: John Wayne , Jeffrey Hunter , Vera Miles , Ward Bond , and Natalie Wood
Director: John Ford
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

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All Titles | John Wayne Store | Stores | DVD | Video

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DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
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Fort Apache
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ASIN: B000O599ZS
Release Date: 2007-05-22

Description

Working together for the 12th time, John Wayne and director John Ford forged The Searchers into an indelible image of the frontier and the men and women who challenged it. Wayne plays ex-Confederate soldier Ethan Edwards, a believer more in bullets than in words. He's seeking his niece, captured by Comanches who massacred his family. He won't surrender to hunger, thirst, the elements or loneliness. And in his obsessive, five-year quest, Ethan encounters something he didn't expect to find: his own humanity.

Customer Reviews:

John Fords greatest film.......2007-05-18

The Searchers is one of the greatest films ever made.
However, you will only find this out by watching it a few times.
I bought the DVD on the strength of Scorcese rating as one of his top five films. On first viewing I thought it was OK, but subsequent viewings have confirmed Scorcese's view.
You have to view the film in context. This was made in 1956, by a director who had been working in films from the 1930's. Unlike modern films the pace is leisurely and the character development is measured. Even compared with say the first Clint Eastwood dollars movie (8 or 9 years later) this is filmmaking from a different era.
The story is simple Ethan's niece (a young Natalie Wood) is kidnapped by Indians. Ethan (John Wayne) vows to find her and then (after time has gone by) to kill her (as she has presumably been abused by the Indians). There is no question this is John Waynes best acting performance.
A previous reviewer has critised the portrayal of Indians as savages, and some of the interior (exterior) sets - but like I said above this is a film that has to viewed in context. The special effects options when shooting in the studio in 1956 were very limited.
The use of Monument Valley is marvellous, and many scenes benefit from this natural wonder, however the greatest scene is reserved for the climax to the film which I'm not going to tell you about!
John Fords direction is mostly straightforward, but occasionally a classic shot will happen (like the framed doorway) and you realise what an influence this film has had.

Average customer rating:

MY FAVORITE JOHN WAYNE FILM
Perhaps the Ultimate Western.
GREAT JOHN WAYNE CLASSIC!
Early Duke Classic
Exciting, highly enjoyable, and beautiful!

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Starring: John Wayne , Joanne Dru , John Agar , Ben Johnson , and Harry Carey Jr.
Director: John Ford
Manufacturer: Turner Home Ent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Westerns | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

All Titles | John Wayne Store | Stores | DVD | Video

1940s | John Wayne Store | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
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Fort Apache
Rio Grande (Collector's Edition)
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The Searchers (Two-Disc Anniversary Edition)

ASIN: B000O599NK
Release Date: 2007-05-22

Amazon.com essential video

The second installment of John Ford's famous cavalry trilogy (which also includes Fort Apache and Rio Grande), this meditative Western continues the director's fascination with history's obliteration of the past. It features one of John Wayne's more sensitive performances as Capt. Nathan Brittles, a stern yet sentimental war horse who has difficulty preparing for his impending military retirement. All things considered, he refuses to leave before fulfilling his obligation to the local Indian tribe. It's a film about honor and duty as well as loneliness and mortality. And Oscar-winner Winton C. Hoch beautifully photographs it in Remington-like Technicolor tones (you've never seen such stunning cloud-covered skies). The combination of melancholy and farce (Victor McLaglen makes a perfect court jester) evokes comparisons to Shakespeare. Best of all, the scene in which Wayne fights back tears when receiving a gold watch from his troops is unforgettably bittersweet. If you view the whole trilogy, it actually makes sense to save this for last. --Bill Desowitz

Description

A masterpiece of mood and heroics, this second film in director John Ford's renowned cavalry trilogy (Fort Apache and Rio Grande are the others) features one of John Wayne's most moving performances as a cavalry officer in his final week of service on the frontier. Under makeup aging him some 20 years, he inhabits the role of a wily veteran who knows the sting of war and vows to make his last mission one of peace. The ritual of outpost life, the sweep of battle, the advance of the patrol beneath ominous skies: She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, an Academy Award winner* for its color cinematography, paints a memorable portrait of the honor, duty and courage in the finest tradition of the cavalry. And of Ford filmmaking.

Customer Reviews:

MY FAVORITE JOHN WAYNE FILM.......2007-07-04

Although Red River, The Searchers, and possibly True Grit and The Shootist might arguably contain better acting performances from the Duke, this film is my favorite. Everything works in this film, and works well. John Ford loved the U.S. Cavalry, as can be clearly seen in the trilogy, and also in the Civil War film, The Horse Soldiers. While I love all the aforementioned films, this one is the one where everything worked perfectly. The contrast of Wayne's seasoned Capt. Brittles with the two younger officers, the lonely life Brittles lives with no wife or family vs. the younger men competing for the hand of lovely Joanne Dru, the comedy relief provided by the incomparable Victor McLaglen, the savvy wisdom of(former confederate captain) Sgt. Tyree, nothing is missing. This was John Ford's stock company at it's best, with perhaps only The Searchers to compare. The passing years only make me love this film more. everyone was at the absolute top of their game for She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. See it soon!!!

Perhaps the Ultimate Western........2007-04-17

John Wayne lives this part. A battle hardened veteran of the war between the states, a career officer - Captain Nathan Brittles - finds himself on the Western Frontier nearing the end of his career. A man for whom the military is not just a way of life, it is life. And, in a remarkably sensitive fashion for the time, the "hostiles" are shown to be a civilized and intelligent people who have been pushed time and time again by the western expansion of this nation and are simply fighting to survive. It would have of course been easy just to shoot another movie reflecting an Indian uprising with calvary charges and heroic gestures. Thank goodness we're spared that. Instead, we have a deeply well orchestrated movie developing many different characters and plot lines. While he is Army through and through, Captain Brittles still poignantly takes time to water the desert flowers on his wife's grave and to talk to her gently until that day comes that he joins her. And, Sgt Tyree, the irrepressible scout that is almost an extension of Captain Brittles, has another life too that we learn about, in a touching and well done scene not often witnessed in today's pyrotechnic oriented films. Is this the best western I've ever seen? Maybe, maybe not, but the Searchers (who can forget that shadowy ending shot with John Wayne framing the door?) is close (not to mention the sleeper The Tin Star with Henry Fonda) and so are Fort Apache, My Darling Clementine (Henry Fonda again), and Gunfight at the OK Corral (Kirk Douglas) - some of which have been mentioned by other reviewers as well. I would give this movie more than 5 stars if I could, and you cannot go wrong viewing it.

GREAT JOHN WAYNE CLASSIC!.......2007-03-11

Without any doubt - this is my favorite John Wayne classic movie.
All actors are playing wonderful and the movie was shot on a great
place - Monument Valley/Arizona.

Just perfect for every Western fan.

Thank you John Wayne!

Early Duke Classic.......2007-01-19

See another side of John Wayne. This movie stands with The Shootist as one of Wayne's more layered roles. *****

Exciting, highly enjoyable, and beautiful!.......2006-11-08

'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon' remains for many viewers their favorite Ford film, and it is certainly the most striking visually... Winton C. Hoch won an Oscar for his Technicolor photography...

The compositions and photography around Ford's new stamping ground of Monument valley are great to look at as always... The Monument Valley goes from bright sunlight to hail and sleet...

There is a melancholy mixed together in those incredible vistas, with a certain sense of dreamlike contemplation... A backdrop so complex but so significant as the human characters...

Ford has superbly achieved a huge and composite demonstration of all the legends of the frontier cavalryman... Never have the legendary troops been through the silent 'Indian country' and across the magnificent Western plains so brilliant, vivid, exciting and romantic...

Ford has surely done better himself, unquestionably with 'My Darling Clementine,' and 'The Searchers,' yet one has to admit the undisputed merits of 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.' Even the usual criticism launched against it-that it is a Western influenced by feeling rather by reason--can be dismissed at the start... Certainly Ford can be sentimental but only when the springs of honest feeling run dry and lose their inspiration, and this never really happens in 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.'

The story is that of an older cavalry officer (John Wayne) who is six days from retirement at Fort Stark when he's sent out, in a last mission, to escort the Major's wife (Mildred Natwick) and her niece, an attractive single lady (Joanne Dru) out of the danger area... Wayne tries to fulfill his military role protecting his female charges against the uprising of the Sioux, Cheyenne, Kiowa, Comanche and Apaches...

Wayne possibly more than any other Western star has re-created and heightened the mythology of the West-one has only to watch again his absolute and ideal image in 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon,' or his avenging Ethan in 'The Searchers,' to be reminded of how irresistible the Duke has been on the cinema screen...

'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon' is above all a sentimental movie, with irresistible scenes, full of Ford's best touches:

- The cavalry engaged in its everyday work... Wayne simply can't picture himself in a world far from the army...

- The comic interaction between Wayne and Victor McLaglen, two hardcore professional officers...

- The bravery of Sgt. Tyree (Ben Johnson), chased by hostile Indians, who must finish his mission by reporting to the captain what he saw...

- The rivalry of two young cavalry lieutenants (John Agar and Harry Carey Jr.) in love with the same woman, each competing to have her wear a yellow ribbon as a token of his love...

- The 'beloved brute,' the tough-soft cavalry sergeant sharing his saddle with a little orphan rescued from a devastated stage station...

- Ford celebrating McLaglen's lachrymose in self-indulgent fisticuffs in an epic saloon fight...

- The last inspection of the C. troops almost bringing tears to Wayne's and the audience's eyes, as he reads the inscription that means so much to him...

- Wayne riding into the war camp of the Indians to stop a war...

- The U. S. cavalry at full gallop descending upon the encampment, firing wildly and stampeding hundred of Indian ponies...

- The evocative use of music, notably the gay and spirited theme song of the yellow ribbon, played countless times...

'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon ' is an exciting story with strong characters and sentiment, highly enjoyable, and beautiful...

Average customer rating:

For any John Wayne Fan out there
GREAT !!!!!
Rooster Cogburn
Rooster Cogburn
Rooster cogburn movie-john wayne..

Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady)
Starring: John Wayne , Katharine Hepburn , Anthony Zerbe , Richard Jordan , and John McIntire
Director: Stuart Millar
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
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Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 078322592X
Release Date: 1998-03-31

Customer Reviews:

For any John Wayne Fan out there.......2007-05-06

I have been a Duke fan for a long time and Rooster Cogburn (... and the lady) is one of my favorites. This amazing DVD gives vivid beautiful color and enhanced sound that makes you feel like your there hunting "Hawk" with the one eyed brute himself "Rooster J. Cogburn, U.S. Marshal" I recommend this movie for any John Wayne fan or any western fan cause they just don't make movies like this anymore.

GREAT !!!!!.......2007-01-03

GREAT! JOHN WAYNE AND KATHERINE HEPBURN HAVE GREAT CHEMISTRY. VERY ENJOYABLE SHOW !!

Rooster Cogburn.......2006-11-12

wonderful partnership of talent in this updated version of African Queen.
love the verbal jabs and duels. They do it so well!
definitely a keeper!

Rooster Cogburn.......2006-11-09

This is a funny and touching movie with spectacular scenery. Katherine Hepburn is at her best as an independent single woman living in the old west who encounters John Wayne's character, Rooster. Together they make their way with a dangerous cargo through many obstacles. John Wayne is even better in this movie than he was in his academy award winning roll in True Grit. Sit back and enjoy this movie because it's well worth 2 hours of your time.

Rooster cogburn movie-john wayne.........2006-08-23

I didn't like this movie so much,I felt I lost interest in it.somewhere in the story line.Katherine Hepburns acting was good.I felt I got bored as they were tracking the bad guys.It dragged out to long.No excitement.

Average customer rating:

Hondo
The Duke
A superb western
The Man
JW's Hondo

Hondo (Special Collector's Edition)
Starring: John Wayne , Geraldine Page , Ward Bond , Michael Pate , and James Arness
Director: John Farrow
Manufacturer: Paramount
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Big Jake

ASIN: B000ANVPP6
Release Date: 2005-10-11

Amazon.com

Although scarcely seen in its original 3-D, and entirely out of sight for a decade and a half after its producer-star died, Hondo has maintained a high rep among John Wayne fans--and it wasn't even directed by Howard Hawks or John Ford. (Actually, Ford did shoot some second-unit stuff while visiting Wayne on location.) Half-breed Hondo, companioned only by an antisocial dog, tends to be more sympathetic toward the Apaches than toward the white society he occasionally scouts for. He falls into uneasy friendship with a New Mexico farmwoman (Geraldine Page) whose husband deserts her for long stretches, and whose son (Lee Aaker) is blood brother to the local Apache chieftain. A good, spare frontier tale--Louis L'Amour via James Edward (Angel and the Badman) Grant--in which danger and solace come in unexpected ways. John Farrow, who did direct, brings it in at a lean 84 minutes. Page was Oscar ^®-nominated for this first film role. --Richard T. Jameson

Description

Based on the Louis L'Amour story "The Gift of Cochise," this sparkling western has Wayne as a half-Indian Cavalry scout who, with his feral dog companion, finds a young woman and her son living on a isolated ranch in unfriendly Apache country. A poetic and exciting script, outstanding performances, and breathtaking scenery make this an indisputable classic. Page's debut.

Customer Reviews:

Hondo.......2007-06-26

The best John Wayne western not directed by John Ford or Howard Hawks, "Hondo" shows the Duke at the peak of his powers. Helmed by John Farrow (Mia's dad), the film is stunningly photographed, with a tight, trim story brought to life by a luminous Page (in her film debut), the ever-reliable Ward Bond as Hondo's friend Buffalo Baker, and Michael Pate as Vittorio, the Apache chief. Also look for James Arness in a pivotal role- he'd go on to make his career in Westerns on TV's long-running "Gunsmoke".

The Duke.......2007-05-06

I love John Wayne, so anything thing he does is fine with me. Typical Wayne western. Wonderful, colorful, authentic Wayne fare. Amazon had the best price.

A superb western.......2007-04-12

Hondo is a mighty impressive film. It is that rare western that greatly succeeds on on a technical level, as well as an emotional level.
John Wayne and co-star Geraldine Page have amazing chemistry, and child actor Lee Aaker is wonderful and believable as the little boy. (unlike the many phony child actors that were common in the 50s)
The story closely follows the Louis L'Amour novel it was based on, and that is a big plus. It's a very mature and complex tale that is handled with confidence and grace by a great cast, crew and director.
This wonderful film is yet more proof that John Wayne wasn't just an iconic "movie star," but this man was a superb actor in all regards.
Highly recommended.

The Man.......2007-02-15

Another good one from the " Classic Western Star" a must have for your collection.

JW's Hondo.......2007-02-13

John Wayne has again made a wonderful movie, now available on DVD.
I have never seen a movie that he made that wasn't great.
The price for this DVD was a great deal!

The Searchers (Two-Disc Anniversary Edition)

Average customer rating:

A high quality release of this incredible film
The Searchers
Best Western of all time? Fifty years old and good enough for another fifty years!
Ford's Greatest Western; Wayne's Greatest Role
It's easy to overlook it's faults

The Searchers (Two-Disc Anniversary Edition)
Starring: John Wayne , Jeffrey Hunter , Vera Miles , Ward Bond , and Natalie Wood
Director: John Ford , and Nick Redman
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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Shane

ASIN: B000F0UUIM
Release Date: 2006-06-06

Amazon.com essential video

A favorite film of some of the world's greatest filmmakers, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, John Ford's The Searchers has earned its place in the legacy of great American films for a variety of reasons. Perhaps most notably, it's the definitive role for John Wayne as an icon of the classic Western--the hero (or antihero) who must stand alone according to the unwritten code of the West. The story takes place in Texas in 1868; Wayne plays Ethan Edwards, a Confederate veteran who visits his brother and sister-in-law at their ranch and is horrified when they are killed by marauding Comanches. Ethan's search for a surviving niece (played by young Natalie Wood) becomes an all-consuming obsession. With the help of a family friend (Jeffrey Hunter) who is himself part Cherokee, Ethan hits the trail on a five-year quest for revenge. At the peak of his masterful talent, director Ford crafts this classic tale as an embittered examination of racism and blind hatred, provoking Wayne to give one of the best performances of his career. As with many of Ford's classic Westerns, The Searchers must contend with revisionism in its stereotypical treatment of "savage" Native Americans, and the film's visual beauty (the final shot is one of the great images in all of Western culture) is compromised by some uneven performances and stilted dialogue. Still, this is undeniably one of the greatest Westerns ever made. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Working together for the 12th time, John Wayne and director John Ford forged The Searchers into a landmark Western offering an indelible image of the frontier and the men and women who challenged it. Wayne plays an ex-Confederate soldier seeking his niece, captured by Comanches who massacred his family. He won't surrender to hunger, thirst, the elements or loneliness. And in his five-year search, he encounters something unexpected: his own humanity. Beautifully shot by Winton C. Hoch, thrillingly scored by Max Steiner and memorably acted by a wonderful ensemble including Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Natalie Wood and Ward Bond, The Searchers endures as "a great film of enormous scope and breathtaking physical beauty" (Danny Peary, Guide for the Film Fanatic).

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary:Commentary by Peter Bogdanovich
Documentaries:Behind the Cameras (4-parts): Meet Jeffrey Hunter, Monument Valley, Meet Natalie Wood, Setting Up Production
Documentary:The Searchers: An Appreciation
Featurette:A Turning of the Earth: John Ford, John Wayne, and the Searchers
Introduction:Intro by Patrick Wayne
Theatrical Trailer:Theatrical Trailer The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Customer Reviews:

A high quality release of this incredible film .......2007-06-29

The Searchers tells the story of Ethan Edwards's five-year search for his kidnapped niece. John Wayne gives a great performance (many people argue its his best) as Ethan Edwards, a tough, proud Civil War veteran who refused to give up and who is forced to spend years of his life searching for his niece, Debbie. The journey, mostly set in the beautiful Monument Valley of Southern Utah, is truly a quest of epic proportions.

The story is intriguing, the plot fast-moving and unpredictable, and the action exciting. Wayne's performance as Edwards shows him in a darker, more unpredictable role than many of his other films, and that sun-baked, battle-hardened face covered with stubble is a visage that, in many ways, epitomizes the rough character of the American West.

The movie contains a number of stereotypes, from European settlers to Comanche Indians, that would not be considered politically correct today. Despite this, however, this is a fine film by director John Ford, one that captivates from beginning to end. Every list of the greatest Westerns of all time should include "The Searchers."

It's great to see a classic film like this one get an excellent re-release.

The Searchers.......2007-06-27

Monument Valley never looked as breathtakingly beautiful as it does in this exquisite, richly faceted Western, perhaps the most accomplished film in John Ford's oeuvre. Wayne gives the performance of a lifetime as the obsessed, enigmatic Ethan, while young Natalie Wood is indelible in a brief role as Debbie, the kidnapped girl caught between worlds. Ford described his ambitious masterwork as a "psychological epic," and this gut-twisting, high-lonesome tale certainly grows more nuanced with each viewing.

Best Western of all time? Fifty years old and good enough for another fifty years!.......2007-06-26

I first saw this film as a young eighteen year-old Western aficionado on its first theatrical release to the English provinces in 1956. I came to it with great expectations fresh from reading Alan Le May's book of the same name. I came away knowing I'd seen a great film but I was disappointed on two counts first the search lasts for ten years in the book and second, Wayne's character Ethan is killed off in the penultimate battle with the Indians. In the subsequent years I've seen this film dozens of times and it never fails to amaze me that on each fresh viewing I never fail to notice something new!

John Ford and John Wayne collaborated on several films most of them westerns. Although this was their first Western for six years since they completed the last of the Cavalry Trilogy RIO GRANDE (1950). As with the trilogy, Ford once again choose to shoot the most of the film in Monument Valley Utah, when using this his favourite location Ford became an acclaimed visual poet of the West. With Ford's "Western Director" to Wayne's "Western Star" they were unequalled in the making of Westerns producing an outstanding body of work between 1939 and 1962! Although THE SEARCHERS remained totally unrecognised by The Academy Awards for 1956. Fifty-odd years later it still stands at the top of the many peoples list as the greatest Western of all time. Also appearing in most if not all of The Greatest 100 Movies Of All Time Lists.

Three years after the Civil War Ethan Edwards (John Wayne) a dark brooding mysterious character returns home to his brother Aaron (Walter Coy) homestead. Ethan takes his brother place on a posse led by Texas Ranger Rev. Capt. Samuel Johnston Clayton (Ward Bond) on the trail of a raiding party, coming across some slaughtered cattle they realise they've been lured away whilst the main Indian party attacked either the Edwards or Jorgensen Homesteads.

The main body of the posse head back towards Jorgensen's place whilst Ethan along with Mose Harper (Hank Worden) rest their horses before heading back to the Edwards homestead, meanwhile Martin Pawley (Jeffrey Hunter) who had raised by the Edwards as their own raced on ahead against Ethan's advice. Arriving back at the smoking Edwards homestead their worse fears are founded, the two girls Lucy (Pippa Scott) and young Debbie (Lana Wood) have been taken captive and the rest killed. After the burial of his family a demented Ethan sets out after the Indians with a posse led by Captain Clayton. Following a skirmish with the Indians at the river, Clayton elects to take the wounded back home.

Ethan reckons on going on alone but Martin and Brad Jorgensen (Harry Carey Jr.) insist on going too, not least because they fear what Ethan might do the girls. So the three (later two) searchers set out on the trail of the Indians for five long years a couple of trips back to the Jorgensen homestead when the trail was lost and twice pointed in the right direction by Shakespearian Fool Mose Harper, that leads to a band of Comanche led by a chief called Scar (Henry Brandon). At the camp they discover the older Debbie (Natalie Wood) dressed as an Indian girl of marriageable age. Will Ethan carry out his threat to kill her or will Martin be able to stop him?

John Ford was the master of conveying terrible events to his audience through suggested violence, like the returning posse coming across the burnt out homestead with Martha's dress laying on the ground outside indicating the horrors that lay inside. Again when Ethan returns to Martin and Brad from finding Lucy's remains we just see the haunted look on his face as he plunges his knife in the earth to remove the Indian blood from the blade, all powerful stuff but left to our own imagination!

And not only suggested violence but also suggested love too, hardly a word pass between Ethan and Martha but the viewer is left with little doubt of a passed tender relationship between the two. The long narrative is held together by a couple of visits back to the Jorgensen Homestead and a letter from Martin to Laurie, read out to one and all! Ford's ending of the film has turned out in the end to be one of the most iconic endings in movie history. How could I have been so presumptuous as to think anything else?

This Two-Disc Special Edition includes new digital transfer from restored Vista Vision Picture with an introduction by Co-Star Patrick Wayne. Plus: The Searchers: An Appreciation and other extras. Don't miss John Ford's Masterpiece all at a bargain price from Amazon. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Ford's Greatest Western; Wayne's Greatest Role.......2007-06-03

Over half a century since its first release, "The Searchers" remains a landmark of American cinema, perhaps the greatest Western ever made, and the one against which all others must be measured. John Ford, who more or less defined the conventions of this genre with films like "Stagecoach," "My Darling Clementine," and "Fort Apache," never made a better, more complex Western than this one, and he may never have made a better film -- an extraordinary claim, when you consider that Ford gave us such classics as "The Grapes of Wrath" and "How Green Was My Valley."
"The Searchers" operates on so many levels at once, it takes nearly a dozen separate viewings to begin to appreciate them all. Even then, you can always find something new in this film every time you view it. It's extraordinary.
This film demands to be viewed in the widescreen format, so just ignore the "full-screen" edition. It's a waste of time. Ford never shot his Monument Valley locations as lovingly, as achingly, or as heartbreakingly as he does here, and that's part of the point. If you consider the landscape not as backdrop or scenery, but as a separate character in its own right, whole new levels of meaning and thematic development begin to reveal themselves. The neighboring Jorgenson family then emerges not as minor characters whose function is to help the plot along, but as a sort of Greek chorus. Their comments about "This land..." expressed not in sentences, but in sighs and shrugs become symbolic of the personal sacrifices necessary to the settling and "civilizing" of the Western wilderness. Seen in that light, the female characters, who are less than fully developed, suddenly become the whole point of the movie. Remember, the quest which generates the whole story is to restore the abducted Debbie to her "rightful home," even though that home no longer exists.
As Ethan Edwards, the main character, John Wayne gives the performance of his career. Never before or since would Wayne portray a character as complex or conflicted as Ethan Edwards, and you can't imagine anyone else who could pull it off. While Edwards exudes all of the "manly virtues" Wayne's characters are famous for: strength, toughness, the skills necessary to the task at hand, an uncompromising sense of honor, etc. with Ethan Edwards, there's a hole in that honor. Edwards is also an uncompromising racist at heart, something which he makes clear early on and throughout the picture. He is a character driven as much by his hatred of Indians as he is for the love of his departed family, and he must resolve this conflict by the end of the story, when his quest is finally completed.
Through the internal conflicts of his characters, director Ford is able to say some very subtle things about "the winning of the West" and the price American civilization paid for it. It's not all glorious. Some of it is down-right ugly, but Ford is too subtle an artist to editorialize or let you know what he thinks about it. Instead, through the vehicle of this single story, Ford is able to say: "Look. This is what happened, and this is why it happened this way," and let the viewer draw his own conclusions about the goodness or rightness of that.
This is one extraordinary movie. If you're serious about American cinema, Westerns, John Ford or John Wayne, it's essential. It's essential even if you're not serious about any of that. It's one of the best, if not the best Western ever made.

It's easy to overlook it's faults.......2007-04-13

No doubt about it, The Searchers is a western masterpiece. It's the ONLY film that I can easily overlook it's faults that appear throughout the film. The faults I speak of are the scenes of "cornball" humor that are scattered all through the film. They simply don't work nor belong in this mature and intense film. Humor was NOT John Ford's forte, and he seemed to prefer the cornball variety, and granted, it did work in some of his films, but in The Searchers it was definitely out of place.
Amazingly, this film is so spectacular in every other aspect, that forgiving the cornball humor is a very easy thing to do.
The Searchers is not only beautiful to look at, but it's beautiful to listen to as well. This film is one of a rare handful that completely captures a specific time, place, mood and atmosphere and will suck the viewer into it's mighty vortex and put them smack dab in the middle of it. It's truly a stunning visual experience with a very complex and absorbing story, and it possesses symbolic gestures that are utilized with skill and effectiveness, never resorting to pretentiousness like most "symbolic" films.
What more can be said about John Wayne's perfect performance in the lead role ? He was absolutely, positively born to play this role, and he turns it into a perfection personified experience. It's hard to believe there are a few misguided souls who claim Wayne wasn't a great actor. (this performance especially and several more to his resume makes those naysayers seem like babbling fools)
The Searchers has rightfully been acknowledged as an American classic, and a true masterpiece of cinema, and thankfully, it's the film that many have come to admit proved John Wayne as an important actor. (his fans knew it all along)
Highly recommended.

John Wayne-John Ford Film Collection (The Searchers Ultimate Edition / Stagecoach Two-Disc Special Edition / Fort Apache / She Wore a Yellow Ribbon / The Long Voyage Home / They Were Expendable / 3 Godfathers / The Wings of Eagles)

Average customer rating:

What a Deal.
Superb John Wayne
8 Films By Two Screen Legends
SPANISH SUBTITLES MISSING - IT'S A PITY!!!!
Duke classic collection

John Wayne-John Ford Film Collection (The Searchers Ultimate Edition / Stagecoach Two-Disc Special Edition / Fort Apache / She Wore a Yellow Ribbon / The Long Voyage Home / They Were Expendable / 3 Godfathers / The Wings of Eagles)
Starring: John Wayne
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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ASIN: B000F0UUI2
Release Date: 2006-06-06

Amazon.com

There may be no better representation of America's love of the old West than the 10-disc John Ford-John Wayne Collection. The iconic star and iconic director collaborated on 14 films, eight of which appear here. Four--Fort Apache (1948), The Long Voyage Home (1940), The Wings of Eagles (1957), and 3 Godfathers (1948)--are appearing for the first time on DVD, and the two most famous, Stagecoach (1939) and The Searchers (1956), are represented in brand-new two-disc editions that add new and old featurettes as well as the outstanding American Masters documentary John Ford/John Wayne: The Filmmaker and the Legend. (This Ultimate Edition of The Searchers adds a variety of printed materials as well, such as reproductions of press materials and a 1956 comic book.) Two other landmark films previously available on DVD, They Were Expendable (1945) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), round out the set. The three non-Westerns in the set have military settings, with They Were Expendable arguably the greatest World War II picture ever.

The Movies:
A favorite film of some of the world's greatest filmmakers, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, John Ford's The Searchers has earned its place in the legacy of great American films for a variety of reasons. Perhaps most notably, it's the definitive role for John Wayne as an icon of the classic Western--the hero (or antihero) who must stand alone according to the unwritten code of the West. The story takes place in Texas in 1868; Wayne plays Ethan Edwards, a Confederate veteran who visits his brother and sister-in-law at their ranch and is horrified when they are killed by marauding Comanches. Ethan's search for a surviving niece (played by young Natalie Wood) becomes an all-consuming obsession. With the help of a family friend (Jeffrey Hunter) who is himself part Cherokee, Ethan hits the trail on a five-year quest for revenge. At the peak of his masterful talent, director Ford crafts this classic tale as an embittered examination of racism and blind hatred, provoking Wayne to give one of the best performances of his career. As with many of Ford's classic Westerns, The Searchers must contend with revisionism in its stereotypical treatment of "savage" Native Americans, and the film's visual beauty (the final shot is one of the great images in all of Western culture) is compromised by some uneven performances and stilted dialogue. Still, this is undeniably one of the greatest Westerns ever made.

The landmark Western Stagecoach began the legendary relationship between Ford and Wayne, and became the standard for all subsequent Westerns. It solidified Ford as a major director and established Wayne as a charismatic screen presence. Seen today, Stagecoach still impresses as the first mature instance of a Western that is both mythic and poetic. The story about a cross-section of troubled passengers unraveling under the strain of Indian attack contains all of Ford's incomparable storytelling trademarks--particularly swift action and social introspection--underscored by the painterly landscape of Monument Valley. And what an ensemble of actors: Thomas Mitchell (who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as the drunken doctor), Claire Trevor, Donald Meek, Andy Devine, and the magical John Carradine.

Fort Apache stars Wayne as a Cavalry officer used to doing things a certain way out West at Fort Apache. Along comes a rigid, new commanding officer (Henry Fonda) who insists that everything on his watch be done by the book, including dealings with local Indians. The results are mixed: greater discipline at the fort, but increased hostilities with the natives. Ford deliberately leaves judgments about the wisdom of these changes ambiguous, but he also allows plenty of room for the fullness of life among the soldiers and their families to blossom. Fonda, in an unusual role for him, is stern and formal as the new man in charge; Wayne is heroic as the rebellious second; Victor McLaglen provides comic relief; and Ward Bond is a paragon of sturdy and sentimental masculinity. All of this is set against the magnificent, poetic topography of Monument Valley. This is easily one of the greatest of American films.

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, the second installment of Ford's famous cavalry trilogy (which also includes Fort Apache and Rio Grande), continues the director's fascination with history's obliteration of the past. It features one of John Wayne's more sensitive performances as Capt. Nathan Brittles, a stern yet sentimental war horse who has difficulty preparing for his impending military retirement. It's a film about honor and duty as well as loneliness and mortality. And Oscar-winner Winton C. Hoch beautifully photographs it in Remington-like Technicolor tones. The combination of melancholy and farce (Victor McLaglen makes a perfect court jester) evokes comparisons to Shakespeare. Best of all, the scene in which Wayne fights back tears when receiving a gold watch from his troops is unforgettably bittersweet. If you view the whole trilogy, it actually makes sense to save this for last.

It's hardly shameful that Three Godfathers ranks as the slightest John Ford Western in a five-year arc that includes My Darling Clementine, Fort Apache, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Wagon Master, and Rio Grande. The story had already been filmed at least five times--once by Ford himself. Just before Christmas, three workaday outlaws (John Wayne, Pedro Armendáriz, Harry Carey Jr.) rob a bank and flee into the desert. The canny town marshal (Ward Bond) moves swiftly to cut them off from the wells along their escape route, so they make for another, deep in the wasteland. There's no water waiting for them, but there is a woman (Mildred Natwick) on the verge of death--and also of giving birth. The three badmen accept her dying commission as godfathers to the newborn. Motley variants of the Three Wise Men, they strike out for the town of New Jerusalem with her Bible as roadmap. Ford's is the softest retelling of the tale, but it's all played with great gusto and tenderness--especially by Wayne, who's rarely been more appealing. Visually the film is one knockout shot after another. This was Ford's first Western in Technicolor, as well as his first collaboration with cinematographer Winton Hoch. What they do with sand ripples and shadows and long plumes of train smoke is rapturously beautiful. It's also often too arty by half, but who can blame them?

Eugene O'Neill loved The Long Voyage Home, the feature-length adaptation of his one-act sea plays, with intelligent bridging material written by Dudley Nichols and a final movement, both hellish and elegiac, appropriate to the onset of World War II. John Ford directed, in his more self-consciously arty vein but with no loss of power or passion. The focus is on the working seamen aboard a merchant ship making its way from the Caribbean to New York harbor and then England, with dangerous cargo on the transatlantic leg. Thomas Mitchell (who had won a 1939 Oscar in Ford's Stagecoach) gives a career-best performance as Driscoll; Ian Hunter plays the enigmatic shipmate known only as "Smitty"; Ford regulars Barry Fitzgerald, John Qualen, Ward Bond, Arthur Shields, and Joseph Sawyer fill key roles; and the top-billed John Wayne contributes a surprisingly effective supporting performance as Ole, a gentle Swedish giant who really belongs on a farm somewhere. Although neglected in recent years, this movie has a permanent place of honor in one of the most amazing three-year creative streaks any director ever had.

John Ford had a big emotional investment in The Wings of Eagles, and his favorite star John Wayne rewarded the director with one of his strongest performances. The subject is Frank "Spig" Wead, Naval aviation legend turned Hollywood screenwriter, who had written Ford's very good 1932 movie Air Mail and his magnificent WWII elegy They Were Expendable (1945). Ford was fond of exploring the theme of "victory in defeat." Wead's life was made to order for that. The hell-raising flyboy shenanigans, and his flailing marriage to a scrappy Irish redhead (The Quiet Man's Maureen O'Hara reporting for duty), were abruptly curtailed by a fall that left him with severe spinal damage. He should never have been able to walk again, but he fought his way back to limited mobility and built a new career as a writer. And when WWII broke out, Wead made a key contribution to the Pacific air war. It would be satisfying to report that The Wings of Eagles is a triumph--that the broad comedy of the early reels cuts brilliantly against the raw pain of the Weads' marriage, the grief of a family broken and mended and broken again, the film's specters of death and deep frustration. There are powerful moments, but the low comedy is very low, the visual style sometimes stark but more often just drab, and the screenplay is very choppy about the passage of time.

They Were Expendable is the greatest American film of the Second World War, made by America's greatest director, John Ford, who himself saw action from the Battle of Midway through D-day. Yet it's been oddly neglected. Or perhaps not so oddly: for as the matter-of-fact title implies, the film commemorates a period, from the eve of Pearl Harbor up to the impending fall of Bataan, when the Japanese conquest of the Pacific was in full cry and U.S. forces were fighting a desperate holding action. Although stirring movies had been made about these early days, they were gung ho in their resolve to see the tables turned. They Were Expendable, however, which was made when Allied victory was all but assured, is profoundly elegiac, with the patient grandeur of a tragic poem. "They" are the officers and men of the Navy's PT boat service, an experimental motor-torpedo force relegated to courier duty on Manila Bay but eventually proven effective in combat. Their commander is played by Robert Montgomery, who actually served on a PT and later commanded a destroyer at Normandy (he also codirected the breathtaking second-unit action sequences). John Wayne's costarring role as Montgomery's volatile second-in-command initially looks stereotypically blustery, but as the drama unfolds, Wayne sounds notes of tenderness and vulnerability that will take Duke-bashers by surprise. They Were Expendable is a heartbreakingly beautiful film, full of astonishing images of warfare, grief, courage, and dignity. This is a masterpiece.

Description

John Ford was easily one of the greatest, most prolific and versatile directors Hollywood ever produced. Combined with a star of the caliber and magnetism of John Wayne, what emerges is pure cinematic magic. WHV now introduces a ten-disc set featuring eight of the team's finest collaborations: The Searchers: Ultimate Collector's Edition (1956) Stagecoach: Special Edition (1939) Fort Apache (1948) The Long Voyage Home (1940) Wings of Eagles (1957) She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1948) They Were Expendable (1945) 3 Godfathers (1948)

Customer Reviews:

What a Deal........2007-04-28

A lot has been said about this collection. I would just like to point out that the price can't be beat either. The Searchers disk alone would set you back 35 dollars. The Stagecoach another 20. The other six DVD's are free. About 60 to 70 dollars worth. Man you can't do any better. I already had The Wings of Eagles and The Long Voyage Home. The set DVD's are identical to the DVD's I already had, so this isn't a stripped down set at all.

Superb John Wayne.......2007-03-22

An excellent selection of John Wayne movies. The Searchers has been rated one of his best with She Wore a Yellow Ribbon my all time favorite. Fort Apache is excellent also. The Long Voyage and They were Expendable were minor roles for him but all in all a great collection of films. The man became the all american hero even before his passing.

8 Films By Two Screen Legends.......2007-03-19

This is one of the larger collections that came out last year and whatever else you may think about John Wayne, he was the most prolific star of his (perhaps of all) time, twice the output of Humphrey Bogart, for example.

John Ford was also quite prolific but many of his early ones are lost. Still, his place and time as one of the great auteurs intrigues many of cinephile.

Some favorites are missing but are available, such as "Rio Grande", "The Quiet Man" and "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance". The extras for this set are in some cases, non existant, while some are repeats, but the main reason to own this set is for the films themselves.

"Stagecoach" - This 1939 Western stands as the turning point for both Ford's and especially Wayne's careers. This is also quite an ensemble piece for which Donald Meek, Thomas Mitchell (was Oscar for this), John Caradine, Andy Devine, George Bancroft, Louise Pratt and Berton Churchill spend much screen time as the occupants of the stagecoach along with JW and Clair Trevor. Wayne and Trevor provide the love story, she as the whore being run out of town, he the vengeful outlaw who Bancroft wants to lock up for Wayne's own good. But all are misfits in this journey and even though quite laughable today, a fun movie to watch. Alas, the native Americans are basically just ducks in a shooting gallery.

"The Long Voyage Home" is another ensemble piece and does have the odd casting of Wayne as the big Swede who doesn't hit back. Mitchell returns and is actually the main character in this movie, which does have the great bittersweet language of Eugene O'Neil. This offers what a good actor Ward Bond was when called to be when he has his death scene.

"They Were Expendable" Ford won two Oscars for documentaries shot in World War Two. Wayne made many war pictures but this is my favorite one. The dialogue and settings are quite believable for the most part and Robert Montgomery displays dignity as the one in charge. A nice haunting scene is when Wayne gets caught off talking to Donna Reed with the realization he might never see her again. This also has none of the crazy heroics that many films had (Wayne guilty in many of those) and a good humor with the supporting characters.

"3 Godfathers" is truly an offbeat film. Wayne, Pedro Amadariz and Harry Carey, Jr., are actually bank robbers, quite likable though, who save a woman's baby while running away from sheriff Ward Bond. It is through this baby that the three find redemption though it's only Wayne who has the happy ending. In its way, this is a very spiritual film.

"Fort Apache" is actually my favorite film here. Fords prints the facts and shows them distorted by Wayne for his benefit who he can effectively lead the troop. Henry Fonda plays quite the unsympathic custer character who tricks Cochise to come back. The scene th