Fathers and sons. Honor among your brethren.

Hardly Ford’s finest work (he didn’t really care about this one, and did it to fund some of the ones he did care about) but there are still so many lingering shots that get in so tight and so close on the actor’s faces that say so much without a word spoken. The man was just breaking the mold with what was such a young art form in ways that still feel incredible to see in motion. Even when he’s at his most middling John Ford was one of the most emotionally engrossing artists to have ever walked the earth. Just wish Rio Grande was something he was all in on. When it’s not focused on the dynamics of a broken family or on the brotherhood of soldiers, it’s unfortunately more than a little middling and sorely lacks the complexity and psychology with which he would more often approach the subjects of race and conflict with the Natives. They’re mostly just nameless, faceless villains in this and it’s all incredibly hard to care about or invest in as such. Still, though, the father and son stuff is incredibly moving. But, then, I’m an easy target for that kind of stuff. That scene where Wayne hears his boy’s name called out among the recruits and lays eyes on him for the first time in fifteen years is so perfect it almost moved me to tears.

Fathers and sons. Honor among your brethren.

Hardly Ford’s finest work (he didn’t really care about this one, and did it to fund some of the ones he did care about) but there are still so many lingering shots that get in so tight and so close on the actor’s faces that say so much without a word spoken. The man was just breaking the mold with what was such a young art form in ways that still feel incredible to see in motion. Even when he’s at his most middling John Ford was one of the most emotionally engrossing artists to have ever walked the earth. Just wish Rio Grande was something he was all in on. When it’s not focused on the dynamics of a broken family or on the brotherhood of soldiers, it’s unfortunately more than a little middling and sorely lacks the complexity and psychology with which he would more often approach the subjects of race and conflict with the Natives. They’re mostly just nameless, faceless villains in this and it’s all incredibly hard to care about or invest in as such. Still, though, the father and son stuff is incredibly moving. But, then, I’m an easy target for that kind of stuff. That scene where Wayne hears his boy’s name called out among the recruits and lays eyes on him for the first time in fifteen years is so perfect it almost moved me to tears.

It feels like Ford’s heart wasn’t in this one. It lacks the same kind of care and passion that his best works carry from start to finish. It’s visually wonderful, as one would expect from any Ford. He uses the classic “Cowboys vs. Indians” as a facade for a story about family and honor, a the best scenes in this are those that zero in on that theme. Granted, this is the third installment in a trilogy of cavalry films I haven’t seen yet, so I can’t really speak to how it relates to Ford’s other works in the niche. Pretty basic cavalry movie though. Side note, it’s weird to see John Wayne with a mustache like this.

It feels like Ford’s heart wasn’t in this one. It lacks the same kind of care and passion that his best works carry from start to finish. It’s visually wonderful, as one would expect from any Ford. He uses the classic “Cowboys vs. Indians” as a facade for a story about family and honor, a the best scenes in this are those that zero in on that theme. Granted, this is the third installment in a trilogy of cavalry films I haven’t seen yet, so I can’t really speak to how it relates to Ford’s other works in the niche. Pretty basic cavalry movie though. Side note, it’s weird to see John Wayne with a mustache like this.

Spent most of the movie either thinking about The Quiet Man or wondering “I wonder if that hurt the horse?”

An alright western, feels a bit by the numbers and unfocused as it progresses. I liked the ending

Spent most of the movie either thinking about The Quiet Man or wondering “I wonder if that hurt the horse?”

An alright western, feels a bit by the numbers and unfocused as it progresses. I liked the ending

premier john ford yahouuuu

premier john ford yahouuuu

my first ford in over 2 years! don’t really understand the lukewarm reception of this movie on here. maybe i’ve just been out of the game for too long but i thought this one was breathtaking right from frame 1. the detractor’s biggest complaint seems to be that rio grande is too derivative, lacking the brechtian juices of fort apache and the quiet, twilight poeticism of she wore a yellow ribbon. while there is a return to some basic concepts and archetypes, here ford flexes his melodramatic muscles, giving weight to hokey familial strife through staging and juxtaposition. the wide shot of wayne staggering around on the riverbank is as beautiful as anything in ford’s more critically acclaimed work.

as long as they are, the two music sequences are easily my favorite part of the movie. i wonder if this films placement in the so-called calvary trilogy might impact its reception, and i hope one day more people will see this film for the lowkey yet richly-layered tone poem that it is, á la wagon master.

some small directorial missteps here and there, but even minor ford is still about as good as it gets.

my first ford in over 2 years! don’t really understand the lukewarm reception of this movie on here. maybe i’ve just been out of the game for too long but i thought this one was breathtaking right from frame 1. the detractor’s biggest complaint seems to be that rio grande is too derivative, lacking the brechtian juices of fort apache and the quiet, twilight poeticism of she wore a yellow ribbon. while there is a return to some basic concepts and archetypes, here ford flexes his melodramatic muscles, giving weight to hokey familial strife through staging and juxtaposition. the wide shot of wayne staggering around on the riverbank is as beautiful as anything in ford’s more critically acclaimed work.

as long as they are, the two music sequences are easily my favorite part of the movie. i wonder if this films placement in the so-called calvary trilogy might impact its reception, and i hope one day more people will see this film for the lowkey yet richly-layered tone poem that it is, á la wagon master.

some small directorial missteps here and there, but even minor ford is still about as good as it gets.