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(More customer reviews)While a Western 'purist' would certainly prefer seeing a 'dream' boxed set of John Ford/John Wayne's 'Cavalry' trilogy, "Stagecoach", and "The Searchers" released together, the "John Wayne DVD Gift Set" is an excellent collection of some of the Duke's finest westerns from his last two decades.
The classic of the collection is "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance", John Ford's 1962 'deconstruction' of the genre he'd helped to create. A visually simple, yet deeply layered tale of how a western legend was born, the film echoes Ford's "The Last Hurrah", as well as taking a tongue-in-cheek 'jab' at critics of his more idealized earlier westerns. While Jimmy Stewart, at 55, is far too old to play an idealistic young lawyer, his confrontations with desperado Lee Marvin, and pragmatic (yet ultimately doomed romantic) Wayne are terrific. And don't miss Edmund O'Brien's 'takeoff' on actor Thomas Mitchell, in support...Ford's directorial 'style' was never better than in this remarkable film.
"The Sons of Katie Elder" is an important film in Wayne's career, as it marked his 'comeback' after losing a lung to cancer. While much of his dialogue had to be 'looped', and oxygen was kept nearby throughout the filming, Wayne proved that he could still play an action hero believably. Certainly, he looked all of his 58 years, and the idea of Dean Martin being one of his brothers is farfetched, but when Wayne first appeared on the screen, 1965 film audiences stood and cheered...and his dominating presence still makes the film 'work', today.
"El Dorado" is, if you are unfamiliar with the film, simply a reworking of 1959's Hawks/Wayne classic, "Rio Bravo", but it stands very well on it's own merits, beginning with the terrific chemistry between Wayne and co-star Robert Mitchum. A very young James Caan offers a funny counterpoint to the two veteran stars, and wonderful character actor, Arthur Hunnicutt (who, for trivia fans, played Davy Crockett in 1955's "The Last Command"...thus making this a unique opportunity to see TWO Davy Crocketts in one film!) plays a rustic variation of Walter Brennan from the earlier film. With plenty of Howard Hawks' signature comraderie, the film is very entertaining.
"True Grit" is, of course, John Wayne's Oscar-winning role, as pot-bellied, one-eyed Rooster Cogburn. While many believe Wayne won for his career longevity rather than his performance, the film is, in fact, very entertaining and lyrical, and Wayne's portrayal is the glue that holds it together. Certainly, Glen Campbell offers a less-than-stellar performance, but it is more than compensated for by Kim Darby and Robert Duvall, and Wayne, guns blazing, reins clenched in his teeth, provides an image that has become classic.
Finally, there is "The Shootist", Wayne's final film. Shot as the Duke's health was declining, dramatically, the production was a difficult one, with director Don Siegel struggling to work with the ailing actor (Co-star Ron Howard would say he learned more about directing from this film, than any other). Because of the Duke's fragile condition, many friends took roles at far below their usual salaries to work with him a last time (including James Stewart, Richard Boone, and Lauren Bacall). The finished film is a labor of love, from the "Classic Wayne" film clips that open the story, to the final gunbattle, with Wayne's character, the cancer-ridden John Bernard Books, going out in a blaze of glory. It may not have been among Wayne's 'best' films, but it was certainly a most fitting end to his career.
It's easy to see why this is a worthy Wayne collection to own...But don't take my word for it; buy it, and see for yourself!
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Legendary producer-director Howard Hawks teams with two equally legendary stars, John Wayne and Robert Mitchum, in this classic Western drama. Mitchum plays to perfection an alcoholic but gutsy sheriff who relentlessly battles the dark side of the wild West, ruthless cattle barons and crooked "businessmen." The Duke gives an equally adept performance as the sheriff's old friend who knows his way around a gunfight. Filled with brawling action and humor, El Dorado delivers the goods. James Caan and Ed Asner co-star.Ranking with Stagecoach as one of the greatest of its genre, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is the modern-day Western to beat all Westerns. John Ford, whose very name is synonymous with "Westerns," directed the ideal cast. Jimmy Stewart plays the bungling but charming big-city lawyer determined to rid the fair village of Shinbone of its number one nuisance and Bad Man: Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). And as if all that weren't enough, the biggest star that ever aimed a six-shooter plays the Man of the title: John Wayne. Super-sincere Stewart and rugged rancher Wayne also share the same love interest (Vera Miles). One gets the gunman but the other gets the gal.Afflicted with a terminal illness, John Bernard Brooks (John Wayne), the last of the legendary gunfighters, quietly returns to Carson City for medical attention from his old friend Dr. Hostetler (James Stewart). Aware that his days are numbered, the troubled man seeks solace and peace in a boarding house run by a widow (Lauren Bacall) and her son (Ron Howard). However, it is not Brook's fate to die in peace, as he becomes embroiled in one last valiant battle.Katie Elder bore four sons. The day she is buried they all return home to Clearwater, Texas, to pay their last respects. John Wayne is the eldest and toughest son, the gunslinger. Tom (Dean Martin) is good with a deck of cards and good with a gun when he has to be. Matt (Earl Holliman) is the quiet one - nobody ever called him yellow...twice. Bud (Michael Anderson, Jr.) is the youngest. Any hope for respectability lies with him. Directed by Henry Hathaway (True Grit), an acknowledged master of the Western, the story has a dual theme: not only is this a he-man's story, but it is also a drama of the maternal influence of Katie Elder, movingly portrayed from beginning to conclusion.In 1970, John Wayne won an Academy Award. for his larger-than-life performance as the drunken, uncouth and totally fearless one-eyed U.S. Marshall, Rooster Cogburn. The cantankerous Rooster is hired by a headstrong young girl (Kim Darby) to find the man who murdered her father and fled with the family savings. When Cogburn's employer insists on accompanying the old gunfighter, sparks fly. And the situation goes from troubled to disastrous when an inexperienced but enthusiastic Texas Ranger (Glen Campbell) joins the party. Laughter and tears punctuate the wild action in this extraordinary Western which features performances by Robert Duvall and Strother Martin.
