Rio Grande

Starring: John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Ben Johnson, Claude Jarman, Jr., Harry Carey, Jr.
Directed by: John Ford
Rating: Not Rated
Genre: Western
1950

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Colonel Yorke (John Wayne) is ordered to cross the Rio Grande and venture into Mexico to track down a tribe of Apache. The situation is complicated when his son (Claude Jarman, Jr.) is posted to the same fort and his estranged wife (Maureen O'Hara) arrives to bring her son home.

Review:

Tim: I felt like this is one of the more overrated John Wayne westerns. Wayne has made some great films, but this movie is far too forgettable to be included in that list. There's probably quite a few reasons for this, but I have to believe at least some of it comes from the fact that director John Ford wanted to make a different movie first, but the President of Republic Pictures insisted he make this one first. That had to be somewhat of a hit on Ford's motivation, and it shows. This entire movie feels like a half-hearted effort.

John Wayne is decent in the film, but he has been far better before. Wayne's always enjoyable, but the script he had here just wasn't up to par. Maureen O'Hara is decent. The rest of the cast are all fine as well, but no one really stands out. Most of the roles here are forgettable.

I also had some concerns with the plot of the film. There are some action scenes, but this movie is really a study of a fractured family and how they operate in the middle of a military setting. I generally favor films straying from the typical Western plots, but I didn't feel like it worked quite as well as it should have. The movie is too slow in many places, and I never really cared about any of the characters.

Rio Grande never shakes the feeling that it was a rushed, half-hearted production. The movie isn't terrible, but it simply doesn't have the same lasting impact of so many of Wayne's other films. Still, this is a movie starring John Wayne and directed by the great John Ford, so you know that there will be at least enough strengths to make watching this film worthwhile.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: El Dorado, Rio Lobo, Rio Bravo, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon