Donovan's Reef

Starring: John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Elizabeth Allen, Jack Warden, Cesar Romero, Dick Foran, Dorothy Lamour
Directed by: John Ford
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Comedy, Romance
1963

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A group of war veterans (John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Jack Warden) have their lives disrupted when the daughter (Elizabeth Allen) of one of them arrives on the island and changes up their relaxed, carefree life.

Review:

Tim: It felt weird to watch a John Wayne movie where he didn't fire a gun, ride horses, or partake in too much action at all (besides the occasional bar room brawl). This is one of the more quirky films in Wayne's catalog- a romantic comedy. Wayne still plays his typically gruff, hard-nosed man with a heart of gold, but this role is also a departure from the majority of his characters. For that reason, this film was refreshing to watch.

The movie itself is decent, but never really great. The movie is about a woman who travels to the South Seas to meet her father for the first time, and to determine whether he has any moral flaws that would prevent him from receiving his willed shares of a massive shipping company. There, she meets Wayne and the other zany characters inhabiting the island. The story itself become secondary and mostly forgotten as we watch these characters move around aimlessly, jumping from scene to scene with very little momentum or direction. I wish there was more urgency in this film. Everything seemed to unfold so slowly.

In some ways, this movie comes across as a screwball comedy. It certainly marked a major departure for both John Wayne and director John Ford, as there is very, very little action. The action scenes we do get are infused with comedy, and very really amount to much- there's no suspense, no real point to any of the action (which mostly consists of people punching each other, then randomly stopping and drinking together). It's strange how much this film stands out from the majority of the films these two men made. In one regard, it is refreshing to see a major change of pace. On the other hand, it feels out of place and unexpected. I liked the uniqueness, but I didn't love every aspect of this film.

Donovan's Reef is certainly a decent movie, but it never really gains any momentum. The story ambles along like it's on vacation in the South Seas, with no real direction or motivation. That doesn't make for a great movie. It is an interesting, mostly entertaining film that puts the characters first. I liked that, although I wish it was more focused. The story was interesting, but never really heartfelt. The story misses out on touching on any emotions.

I thought this movie did enough right to be an enjoyable experience, but not quite enough to really be a good movie. This was a unique effort, and a decent film, but not much more than that.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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