Friday, March 5, 2010

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence

Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne d/John Ford

One of the last gasps of studio Hollywood. If you were willing to surrender your critical judgement it was a lot of fun to watch. Many character actors from the 40's and 50's...including Andy Devine!

The story was fine...everybody overacted and the resolution tied it all up in a neat little bow. And Jimmy Stewart got to win the West for law and order and democracy. Oddly, for John Ford, most of the film was shot in a soundstage. Studio Westerns created their own, special reality...a place where chairs break over people's heads, folks thrown through glass windows don't get cut and a full roundhouse punch just makes the recipient rub his jaw for a second. They were fun but I'm not sorry they've passed.

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