 |
Rio Bravo [HD DVD] by Howard Hawks
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
DVD Cover InformationActor: John Wayne Director: Howard Hawks DVD: Region Code 0 Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); Spanish (Original Language) Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Original recording remastered, Widescreen Picture Format: 1.85:1 Running Time: 141 minutes DVD Release Date: 2007-06-05 Audience Rating: Unrated Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of Rio Bravo [HD DVD]Movie Review: "That's what I like about you John T. You're such an encouragement." -- Dean Martin to John Wayne Summary: 5 Stars
Howard Hawks and John Wayne were both displeased by the underlying tone of "High Noon" and made "Rio Bravo" in response. While it was sort of dismissed by critics at the time of its release, it is now universally accepted as a true masterpiece and the quintissential Howard Hawks film. Even if you didn't see the credits roll, ten minutes into this one there's no doubt this is a film by Howard Hawks.
The cast is absolutely flawless. Wayne is John T., the seasoned, bigger-than-life lawman trying to hold a killer in his jail while he gives old pal Dude (Dean Martin) time to recover from the shakes; a condition brought on, of course, by the wrong woman. This is a Howard Hawks film, after all. Hawks built the small western town of Texas in Tuson, and shaded it at 7/8 scale so that Wayne's massive presence would seem even larger than it did in real life.
Martin gives a fabulous performance as a man trying to reach down deep and find his pride again. Once the best gun John T. ever saw, he slowly begins to show flashes of the cool customer he used to be before a woman forced him into the bottom of a whisky bottle. Baby-faced teen idol Rickey Nelson is great as the young gun, Colorado, smart enough to stay out of what's going on until his boss, an old friend of John's, takes a bullit in the back.
Walter Brennan gives his usual old codger performance to perfection as Stumpy. He guards the prisoner and talks too much, and nearly shoots Dude by mistake he's so ready with the scatter gun. Everything is male about this film, including a young and leggy Angie Dickinson. The immediate mistrust of women, a theme running through many of Hawks' best films, is on glorious display here.
Even after Dickinson proves she's on the up and up, John T. keeps trying to get her on the next stage before he ends up at the bottom of a bottle like Dude did; a thought much scarier than facing down the forty or so gunman just waiting for a chance to pick them off. She, of course, is in love with John so keeps finding ways to stay---ala Jean Arthur's character in "Only Angels Have Wings." There is a ton of male humor and bonding over everything masculine in a film spectacularly Hawks in nature.
Long and paced to allow his characters to develop, this is fabulously entertaining and one of the great films in the western genre. A fabulous ending every guy will enjoy and completely understand set the tone for all westerns that would come down the trail after "Rio Bravo." Hawks' fans don't want to miss this one. A true film classic.
|
 |
|
|
|