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Gone west!

216.244.36.21

Posted by Bambi B on May 14, 2004 at 11:35:41

In Reply to: "Stagecoach" last night on cable posted by Victor Khomenko on May 13, 2004 at 05:46:19:

Victor,

Westerns in the US almost always annoy me as the most common form was always a simple-minded good and evil scenario. These contrived conflicts- water rights, insurgent Indians, cattle theft, evil railroad profiteers, and general was solved by confrontation of two people who stand in the middle of some mud hole street and shoot at each other like idiots.

The problem is the American mythology about the West became a kind of backdrop of chaos that is overcome by violence by the severly self-righteous, motivated individual. I had one of my 10 most mouth-dropping movie experiences when John Wayne in "Red River" kills two members of his cattle driving team because they were going to quit their jobs! "I don't like quitters!" was the explanation.

Personally too, I came to really hate the decades of depictions of the killing of native Americans only becuase they didn't have documentation or ences on their land and were reluctant to give up their country.

This principle of solving of every problem by violence is so ingrained in American culture that I don't think most Americans realize how fundamental a principle it has become. Certainly, the Western did much to keep this idea in front of the public.

But, Western genre movies also went quite far in perpetuating positive attributes of American rugged individualism and independence, freedom for people to pursue a new life in a new land, responsibility for personal choices, creating self-respect through hard work and personal integrity, and the (gradual) respect for rule of law.

In the positive vein, I like very much two Stewart movies, one more of a comedy the other dramatic. The demi-comedy is "Destry Rides Again" with the unlikely pairing Stewart and Marlene Dietrich. Stewart is the son of a famous shootumup sherrif who decides to substitute law for guns. "My pa did it the old way, an I'm gonna do it a new way." Second is "The Man who shot Liberty Valance" Stewart is an attorney moving out west and on the way is robbed and assaulted by Lee Marvin as Liberty Valance- interesting choice of names) and John Wayne recognizes Stewarts integrity and backs him. The plot is much more subtle than most Westerns and Wayne is about as good as I've ever seen him as he realizes hid era is past and Stewart is getting the girl. Wayne has a black cohort and even their relationship is interesting. I like these two as both are related to the idea of justice out of chaos.

Other Westerns I think are worthwhile:

"Little Big Man"- really an amazing movie that drops in on both sides of the Cowboy and Indian story without sentimentality - it does reveal the complexity of US expansion. This is also an early example of a movie in which the Indians are not anonymous savages out killing whites, but people with an evolved, elaborate culture and spiritual base.

"My Darling Clemetine"- Henry Fonda as Wyatt Earp meets up with Doc Holliday (Victor Mature) and they take revenge on the killing of Earps younger bother by the Clantons (Walter Brennan's best role)at the O.K. Corral. Plenty of shooting and violence, very atmospheric and palpable, and very, very nicely photographed. There is just some nice, natural acting and dialoge in this one too.

"The Ox-Bow Incident": - Fonda is part of a posse that captures alleged cattle rustlers, but in the wilds, chaos reigns and the three captured are to be hanged without trial. Fonda has serious qulams about this rough justice. Also very atmosheric and Fonda's inner turmoil, the self-perpetuating violence of the mob and the angst of the accused are well deliniated.

"Unforgiven"- this was a much more sublte movie than I first thought. it has the most realistic violence I had seen in movies (the beating of "English Bob") and Hackman is more of a 3D character than in many Westerns. The introductionof the journalist isinsteresting too as it shows the early days of Wild West myth making. And Eastwood as reluctant hero is quite well wrought.

Western I really hate: "Dances With Wolves"- a skewed hindsight white guilt ego vehicle for Kevin Kostner with the Great plains as an insignificant background. There is not two seconds in that film without Kostner's shapeless head 11" feet high.

A "near Western" I like: "Bad Day at Black Rock" - Spencer Tracy is a one-armed veteran who travels into the Wild West to see a Japanese comrade's father to give him his son's WWII medal. when Tracy starts poking around to find out why the father is dead, Robert Ryan and his henchmen (including Borgnine) give him plenty of trouble. Well-don and suspenful. Walter Brennan is very good as a cynical undertaker!

I started out by saying how I dislike Westerns, but there are definitely some worthwhile ones- when the familiar formulae are broken.

Cheers,

Bam

Unrelated:

PS: Say Victor, by the time I responded to the watch thread on Outside it was already archived. Tried out a beautiful Lange yesterday but too large a watch (48mm) and too large a price (about a new Toyota Camry)! Saw some nice Maurice LaCroix and IWC.

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