Binging on John Ford, Part One

John Ford (c.) on the set with James Stewart and John Wayne.

I never really "got" Westerns. When I was a kid, I would run from the room when my dad would turn on Gunsmoke instead of Laugh-In or settle in for a long John Wayne oater (as they say in the crossword puzzles) on a Saturday afternoon. But, as an adult who wants to expand his taste and appreciation of all forms of cinema, I've viewed several horse operas, especially the works of the master of the genre, John Ford. 

Like the Western itself, I've avoided Ford because to me he always represented the kind of toxic masculinity that horrified me as a child. The star of many of his most famous efforts, John Wayne, also exemplified this type of behavior: unexpressive emotionally, arch conservative, revels in all-male environments such as the military or the prairie, speaks with his fists. "Never apologize, it's a sign of weakness," said Wayne as the tough-as-nails cavalry captain in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, While filming Mister Roberts, Ford hauled off and socked leading man Henry Fonda in the jaw. On the set of his films, Ford would often pick out a target and mercilessly ride and bully him, like a fraternity brother. I rejected this template for being a man and still do, but Ford has long been regarded as one of the greatest helmers in film history and my education would be incomplete if I did not at least view his top works. (Orson Welles said he viewed Stagecoach 40 times in preparation for Citizen Kane. Ford is also the only director to win five Oscars.) So during this COVID summer with no theater or new movies to go to, I launched a Ford festival through TCM DVRing and Netflix DVD harvesting. The results of this Ford binging have deepened my respect for his mastery of visual storytelling and the complexity of his historical and political views. 

The binge included TCM's Ford tribute screenings of Drums Along the Mohawk (1939), The Horse Soldiers (1959), Sergeant Rutledge (1960), Two Rode Together (1961), How the West Was Won (1962), and Cheyenne Autumn (1964). DVDs include Prisoner of Shark Island (1938), 3 Godfathers (1948), and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962). Previous viewings include Stagecoach, The Grapes of Wrath, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Fort Apache, My Darling Clementine, and The Searchers. I still haven't seen How Green Was My Valley which defeated Welles' Citizen Kane for Best Picture and Director in 1941. 

There are so many themes and cross-currents in these films, it's difficult to know where to start. You can chart Ford's varied perspectives from a fairly progressive bent in The Grapes of Wrath and Cheyenne Autumn to a reactionary, ambiguous distrust of all government in Liberty Valence ("A man should settle his own problems," Wayne's independent rancher explains to Jimmy Stewart's idealistic lawyer. BTW, they don't come to an agreement until after Stewart slugs Wayne.) Ford's relationship with minorities is also rife for comment, given the marginalization of African-Americans, Native American and Latin characters. But there is also a three-dimensional portrayal of these characters in Sgt. Rutledge and Cheyenne Autumn.  Another common theme is the dynamic tension between the two male leads and what they represent as in Liberty Valence, Two Rode Together, and The Horse Soldiers. Here are my thoughts on recent viewings:

Henry Fonda and Victor Mature in My Darling Clementine

My Darling Clementine: Here the plot is secondary to creating a sense of community. The action is ostensibly Henry Fonda as Marshall Wyatt Earp seeking revenge against nasty old Walter Brennan and his apish sons for the murder of Earp's brother. But what comes across more strongly is the daily life of the town of Tombstone. Much like Robert Altman's McCabe and Mrs. Miller, the film is a portrait of a town on the edge of civilization. Whereas Altman's Presbyterian Church based on the business of prostitution is probably a more realistic depiction of the Wild West, Ford's Tombstone is evolving from a lawless boomtown to a place where you can take a gal for a Sunday social. There is also the interesting dynamic tension between Fonda's taciturn but decent Earp and Victor Mature's artistically-inclined, alcoholic Doc Holliday (he likes Shakespeare). 

The Horse Soldiers: Wayne is his usual gruff authority figure, a Union commander leading a cavalry unit

William Holden, Constance Towers and John Wayne
in The Horse Soldiers

deep into rebel territory during the Civil War. William Holden is his opposite, a humanistic doctor. Of course they don't get along. It seems Wayne's young wife died as a result of a quack so he hates all doctors. Duke and Holden come to blows in the last reel but not before capturing a Southern belle (played by Constance Towers who later starred on Broadway in The King and I) and dragging her along because she knows too much about their plans (or something). Constance gets to slap Duke a couple of times too which means she really likes him (just like in grade school). Whenever he gets disgusted over the carnage of war, Duke gets drunk and smashes things. Interesting casting: Constance's maid (slavery is given a cursory glance) is played by tennis champ Althea Gibson who refused to deliver her lines in a stereotypical dialect. Strother Martin gives his standard performance as a scummy Southern deserter.

How the West Was Won: Ford directed the middle section of this Cinerama epic which resembles a James

Michener meganovel. Three generations cover every aspect of the Western experience from settling, covered wagons, gold strikes, Native American uprisings, the railroad, and gunfights. Debbie Reynolds and George Peppard provide the main thread of plot. Jimmy Stewart, Henry Fonda, Gregory Peck and John Wayne all make big-star cameo appearances, but the most interesting performances are delivered by Eli Wallach and Lee J. Cobb on opposite sides of the law. They were actors with stage training creating believable characters. We also see Debbie in numerous musical numbers including a full-out Broadway-style, Molly Brown up number, Agnes Moorehead without eyeshadow, Thelma Ritter in blue jeans, Walter Brennan as a murderous con man, Carolyn Jones weeping, and Robert Preston wielding a whip.

Cheyenne Autumn: Ford's last Western and the subject of an extended on-set profile in Peter Bogdanovich's Pieces of Time. Ford stated to Bogdanovich he killed hundreds of Native Americans in

Carroll Baker, Delores Del Rio and Gilbert Roland
 in Cheyenne Autumn

his previous films and wanted to show their side of the story for once. Based on a true incident, the film follows the Cheyenne nation's trek from a desert reservation in Oklahoma to their homelands in fertile Wyoming with Richard Widmark's cavalry close behind. They are treated sympathetically, but ironically, all the Indian characters with lines were played actors of Mexican (Ricardo Montalban, Gilbert Roland, Dolores Del Rio) or Italian heritage (Sal Mineo) or Anglo (Victor Jory). Del Rio plays Spanish Woman and her eyes speak volumes. I wanted to know her story. Was she a captive forced to marry Dull Knife (Roland)? What was her life like? Richard Widmark and Carroll Baker carry the main romantic white-people thread (just as Widmark and Shirley Jones did in Two Rode Together and Jeffrey Hunter and Constance Towers in Sgt. Rutledge), but I didn't care about them. I also didn't care about the Dodge City interlude which seemed stuck in for some unnecessary comic relief. Jimmy Stewart and Arthur Kennedy as Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday play cards with John Carradine as rumors of the Cheyenne caravan are swirling. The whole city gets drunk and rides out to meet the menacing horde, but collapses in a riotous heap. A well-dressed fancy lady (Elizabeth Allen) gets stripped to her petticoats in the chaos and evidently loses her mind along with clothes. She falls hysterically into the arms of Wyatt and Doc, who become a sort of Western Hawkeye and Trapper John. There are beautiful shots of Monument Valley, but Ford undercuts his serious message with these sexist hijinks.