James Joyner reminds me that it is the 30th anniversary of John Wayne’s death:
Alex Massie and Radley Balko remind me that John Wayne died 30 years ago today.
I recall it well, having just recently returned to the States from Germany and waiting to start 8th grade in El Paso. I’ve seen most of his movies since and become a bigger fan.
Someone (Robert Prather, perhaps) shared via Google Reader a superb tribute by Roger Ebert published earlier this week in the Chicago Tribune. I recommend it highly.
Ebert’s tribute is a fine one and I recommend it over anything I might write in that vein.
John Wayne is one of my very favorite actors, along with Lon Chaney, Spencer Tracy, Paul Muni, Fredric March, and Robert Donat. When I was a young adult he was, unfairly I believe, underrated as an actor, occasionally in harsh terms. I don’t think my peers understood John Wayne’s power as an actor.
John Wayne was one of the last great silent movie actors, just as John Ford was one of the last great silent movie directors. He’s no Richard Burton. You don’t watch a John Wayne to listen to his beautiful interpretation of a line. You watch a John Wayne movie because of his physical acting. The way he walks (wonderfully lampooned by Nathan Lane in The Birdcage). The way he slumps, deflates when a line calls for it. The way he stands as in that famous scene from Stagecoach, Wayne, rifle, and saddle in the foreground, Monument Valley in the background (pictured above).
Look at the marvelous action scene from early in Red River during which Wayne is fighting with an Indian in a stream. It is almost balletic in its elegance. Nearly like watching Gene Kelly. And an enormous amount is said about character in that scene without a word being spoken.
However, Wayne was perfectly capable of giving a terrible performance and, rather than listing my favorite John Wayne pictures but remembering that I think he’s a fine actor, I’ll list what I think are the worst John Wayne pictures.
Note: I loved the Three Mesquiteers series as a kid. They don’t count.
This ranks as one of the worst movies ever made on most lists. Whoever thought that John Wayne would be good in a costumed historical epic portraying Genghis Khan should have had his head examined. Not to mention than in all likelihood the picture, downwind from the A-bomb tests, probably contributed materially to Wayne’s death.
I don’t mind that the picture is patriotic what bothers me is that it’s surreal. It takes a special gift for an actor to direct himself. I don’t believe that John Wayne had that gift.
Wayne sleepwalked through this picture.
This is an inane romantic comedy with no chemistry between Wayne and Claudette Colbert, his leading lady.
I can only speculate that John Wayne and John Huston were more interested in drinking together after shooting than they were in making the picture. This picture is dull. How could a picture directed by John Huston and starring John Wayne be dull?
I welcome readers’ comments about the worst John Wayne pictures. Or stalwart defenses of the pictures listed above.
I never saw “Without Reservations.” The others were indeed awful. “Big Jim McLain” was nigh unto criminal.
Some of his early flicks, notably the Singing Sandy series, were bad in an entirely different way.
I really can’t complain about the Poverty Row pictures turned out at the rate of about one a month. Those are television programs not movies.
In The Greatest Story Ever Told, Centurion John had only one line, which he mumbled his one line disinterestedly (and possibly drunk): “Truly, he wuzzah sunnagahd.” Terrible.
I’m generally unqualified to comment, because I haven’t seen most of the movies. However, having seen one: The Green Berets – I’m glad to see it panned. Perty bad………
C’mon! The Green Berets was great! What other movie ends with the sun setting in the East?
The Conqurer – They didn’t know then what we know now about fallout. They even brought dirt from that area back to the studio to match in continuity shots. Duke actually asked to play the part and did not count on his lines in the script being so archane. He asked for re-writes, but was denied. The story line is ok and the second unit action scenes are fine. Susan Hayward’s refusal to get mussed in any way was laughable.
The Green Berets – Have to take the picture in context for the politically charged era it was filmed in. Again the story is fine and so is the acting. Most people looking to criticize John Wayne cite the sunset in this picture as they always take the easy out. Hit hard by the critics, but a big hit for him at the box office. Meaning, the public liked it. The same critics that hit him so hard were falling all over themselves a year later with praise for True Grit. John Wayne made the Green Berets to support the troops as the media was totally biased against the war and the troops. News never printed any stories then to support the troops.
Big Jim McLain – Anti-communist propaganda, pure and simple. Poor script.
Without Reservations – Just a vehicle for Colbert. John Wayne fullfilled a contract obligation.
Barbarian and the Geisha – Houston saw the story one way and John Wayne another. Houston provided little or no direction and the two had a bitter falling out. Years later, Duke was still angry about the film. To this day, Anjelica Houston is still making vile and angry comments regarding John Wayne and this film and how hurt her father was that Duke had re-cut the film to flesh out more story after Houston left the picture at the end of filming.
The Greatest Story Ever Told – “Transplanted Lawyer” is remembering incorrectly in that he “mumbled his one line disinterestedly (and possibly drunk): “Truly, he wuzzah sunnagahdâ€.” Probably read or made up what he wrote as he is not a fan. Duke did not drink during filming and prided himself on his diction. In viewing the portion with Duke, he IS miscast, but speaks the line fine.
The oaters made during the 30’s were for a different generation and mainly for kids. No video games, TV or DVDs. No CGI or mega special effects, just characterization and story. Duke cut his teeth learning the dialogue that informed the audience and the exposition required due to the short length of each “two-reeler”. That generation followed him the rest of his career as kids in the 30’s, as teens and young adults in the 40’s, parents in the 50’s taking their kids to see him and grandparents in the 60’s and 70’s. People grew up with John Wayne. They saw him in the theaters and with TV, in their homes. He always tried to do the right thing, was respectful of women and elders, kept his word, admired loyalty and tried to be a good example. Critics and liberals hated his politics and used that against him wherever they could. Though far from perfect as a human being, he did the best he could. Lastly, one has to wonder that after 30 years, his films are so popular, there were anniversary celebrations for his birth recently, gun commeratives, hundreds of pages of memorabilia on eBay, film marathons on holidays, the re-issuance of the America – Why I Love Her soundtrack on DVD, still a major and popular choice in actor popularity polls, etc. Try thinking of Gable, Tracy, Grant, Cooper, Bogart, Stewart, Peck or others of his generation and they don’t come close. Or how about McQueen, Newman, Wagner, Scott, Hackman, Lancaster, Douglas and Mitchum? Same. Can you look at current “stars” and see anyone having this same popularity after they die? Gibson? Freeman? Crowe? Pitt? Clooney? Bale? McGuire? Damon? Puh-leeze. Eastwood a definite possibility.
Rooster Cogburn and the Lady (original title)
Hold your horses. He was being lazy in that one. In True Grit he was doing a great Wallace Berry imitation. It was fresh in that instance but in R. C. he got sloppy with it. He lost the control that he had of the character in T. G. Katherine Hepburn saved the movie. She was reprising her role from African Queen.
“Big Jake” was the worst western John Wayne ever made. There was
way too much violence and the actors that played his sons were not believable.
Bruce Cabot was good in the role of an Indian scout but needlessly was killed off right at the end of the movie along with the dog.
The dog was probably the best actor in the entire movie but his actions were not beleivable.
This was one of John Wayne’s Batjac productions and was a total failure just as “The Alamo” was.
Better to watch “True Grit” or “The Cowboys.”
I haven’t seen all of John Wayne’s movies, but the worst that I’ve seen was Big Jake. Unfortunately, he shared in the producing and directing , which may have been the problem.
The funny part is that Charles Mays previous said that the actors that played his sons weren’t believable. One of those “actors” WAS his son (Patrick Wayne) and he never was a good actor – still isn’t. The little boy, who played his grandson is also John’s son.
I totally agree that the dog was the best actor.
However, I very much agree with Bill in that John Wayne is an icon for many reason, but not for his acting – for the America that he represented, which is forever gone, thanks to our current president.
I will admit that J.W. wasn’t the same caliber of actor as Spencer Tracy but he was far and away my favorite. Still is as a matter of fact. Why? Because he was genuine. He lived or attempted to live as his screen persona. He brought his personal beliefs and convictions to the characters which he portrayed. No, he is not and never was considered among the greatest of actors. But he did portray what American men should be. He didn’t [for the most part] play a character as much as he played himself under different guises. He gave his audiences an icon, a hero to look up to and attempt to become, he had flaws, what human being doesn’t?
But it isn’t this flawed human we look up to and admire it is the fact that he truly tried to live up to the screen persona he created.
Take, for instance, one of his lines in “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon,”
“Never apologize Mr., it’s a sign of weakness.”
Look deeper into that particular line, I take it to mean never do anything you have to apologize for. Now try to live up to that goal, I can’t, though I do try my best to do so. But then I’m not John Wayne.
Couldn’t disagree more regarding Big Jake, one of my favorites. Great story about a crusty grandfather coming back to rescue his grandson. I found the violence refreshing as that was more likely the way things were in those days. Not to mention Richard Boone, who did a great job as the villain, almost to the point he stole scenes away in my opinion.
Not disagreeing very much, but Donavon’s Reef was dreadfully stupid. Here is an example, fights break out for no apparent reason. Also, Donavon didn’t want Miss Dedham to see the war memorial with her Dad’s name on it, so he takes her within site of it for a Christmas tree. Just a stupid movie.