Rio Grande

As a writer, I find this to be the most honest and least pretentious of all John Ford's western films. His cavalry trilogy ended with "Rio Grande" (the others are "Fort Apache" and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon: and it was also the first pairing of John Wayne with Maureen O'Hara, with whom he made five film appearances all told. The setting of the film is not glamorous by anyone's standards; it is dusty, hot, remote, a country for hard men and hard duty. The storyline has Wayne in command of a fort. When his son is assigned to him for training with other recruits, his wife, estranged for fifteen years, follows him--to try to meddle... The storyline makes clear that during the Civil War he refused to disobey orders to burn down her family's plantation; now she's come west, and he wants her back and want to instill his pride in and love for the cavalry in his son. There is rough humor in the film, changes to mind and body, learning to ride, standing up to the elements and to men, lessons the West can demand of anyone who comes there. nd after a plan of Wayne's to protect settlers against the Indians backfires, he has to risk everything to save his career and his command. The theme of the film is that any man has to dare and dream beyond old conventions and ideas in order to reach his best; and that goes for O'Hara as well. The film was directed by John Ford, with script by James Kevin MacGuinness..Bert Glennon's skilled B/W cinematography captures the bleak beauty of the spare semi-desert country, and admirably. Frank Hotaling did the production design and Victor Young contributed the score. In this feature's large cast were Wane, O'Hara. Claude Jarman Jr. of "The Yearling" as their son, Harry Carey Jr., Victor Maclaglen, J Carrol Naish, Chill Wills and many solid western performers. But the best thing to me about the production is the absence of any attempt to glamorize or apologize for the West. The men who rode for the cavalry lived with loneliness, the roughness of the country they patrolled and constant danger from those they opposed; this film makes it clear why men would do this for the meager pay they received; that it was the challenge they took up, as a way to use their abilities and emotional strength to the full. That is why I like this film the best of all of Ford's estimable works.

For some reason, over the years I failed to see this particular John Ford western, thinking it was probably just another cavalry yarn and I'd seen so many of them I figured I'd let this one pass.

Wrong. It's now among my favorite John Ford westerns with both JOHN WAYNE and MAUREEN O'HARA giving really heartfelt performances as a husband and wife separated for some time, their only son (CLAUDE JARMAN, JR.) having just joined the regiment as a soldier under his father's command at an outpost being menaced by Apaches.

There's a jaunty, rollicking score by Victor Young that captures ballads of the Old West to provide some colorful background music, wonderful scenes of soldiers training under VICTOR McLAGLEN (at his crustiest and endearingly funny), BEN JOHNSON (wonderful as a man on the lam), and the breezily confident HARRY CAREY, JR. It's even got a story that has more than one theme running through it--the personal conflict between father and son, husband and wife, and how the young son (played extremely well by Claude Jarman, Jr.) has to prove himself to his fellow soldiers.

The final shootout occurs when the Apaches kidnap some children and hold them prisoners in a church. It sets the stage for the final encounter, just one of several skirmishes with the Indians that is masterfully staged and photographed.

Pictorially, it's one of the handsomest of all the John Ford epics and should definitely have been filmed in Technicolor, although the B&W photography is indeed impressive. MAUREEN O'HARA gives one of her most sensitive portrayals and JOHN WAYNE is at his best.

Summing up: A solid western well worth watching whether you're a John Ford fan or not.

Director John Ford's third and last film about the U.S. Cavalry (the others being 1948's "Fort Apache" and 1949's "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon"), "Rio Grande", was initially a minor project, done only to please the head of Republic Films, Herbert Yates, who wanted a marketable western before allowing Ford to make "The Quiet Man", a movie that in Yates' mind showed no promise (Of course, time would prove him wrong anyway). However, instead of delivering a throwaway film just to please his producers, Ford final "Cavalry film" was another step in his own evolution of the genre, as it included a new dimension to his Westerns by adding the family element to the picture.

"Rio Grande" stars John Wayne as Lt. Col. Kirby Yorke, a Union officer who has spent his time after the Civil War battling apache rebels in an Outspot in the Rio Grande. Suddenly, the life of this lonely man gives a 180° spin as he discovers that his son Jeff Yorke (Claude Jarman Jr.), whom he hasn't seen in 15 years, has joined the Cavalry and is assigned to his post. Things get even more complicated as his wife Kathleen (Maureen O'Hara) arrives too in order to get her son back, and in some way, recover the family she lost when the Civil War made her husband (a Northerner) her enemy. In the middle of this family drama, troubles arise as an Apache bandit is using three tribes to create chaos, and Yorke will have to decide between his two loves: the Cavalry or Kathleen.

Like the previous two Cavalry stories, "Rio Grande" was based on a story by James Warner Bellah, and despite sharing many elements with the past two films (like members of the cast and some character names), the three stories are not tied together and are basically stand alone films joined by a common theme. The story is more oriented to drama rather than to action, although it still gives the characters a chance to show off their riding skills. The element of the family adds a new dimension to Wayne's character, and the theme of division between families because of the Civil War is a nice touch that adds to the sexual tension between the main characters. The tag line reads "John Ford's Greatest Romantic Triumph" and this time it doesn't lie, this Western is a powerful melodrama that plays a different tune than other westerns.

Despite being a "minor" project, John Ford shows off his great talent turning this small modest movie into a wonderful film of epic proportions. His trademark cinematography shines in all its splendor and portrays Monument Valley with an unnatural beauty, and he keeps his film as historically accurate as possible (despite the use of some recently composed songs). The portrayal of the Native Americans, so demonized this days, it's actually realistic for its time, and Ford makes sure that it's stated that the Apaches are not evil per se, but leaded by a criminal rebel. His familiar themes like honor, sacrifice and responsibility (and being torn by them), are all present here, making a powerful and entertaining Western that even non-fans of the genre can appreciate.

I'm not very familiar with John Wayne, but in my opinion his performance was very good. His character is torn between the love he feels for his country and the love he feels for his family, and the guilt he feels for his actions during the Civil War makes him even more interesting; as if behind the macho image were a loving man tied by his duties. Maureen O'Hara is wonderful as Kathleen, and makes the perfect match for Wayne's troubled hero, my only complain would be that she looks a bit too young for the part. Ford regulars like Victor McLaglen, Ben Johnson and Harry Carey Jr. also appear in supporting roles and have remarkable scenes (specially Johnson).

"Rio Grande" is a remarkably well-done film, mixing drama and action it definitely makes up for an entertaining evening. Most people (me included) have a certain prejudice towards pre-60s Westerns; while it's true that Westerns used to portray Native Americans in a bad light, one has to judge the films according to the times when they were done, and John Ford's Western are no exception (in fact, he seems to portray them in a relatively fairer way than other directors). While maybe outdated by today's standards, "Rio Grande" is definitely a masterpiece of the genre that deserves a chance before passing judgment over it.

Before watching "Rio Grande" I was not really familiar with John Ford's career (or John Wayne's), so I'm not biased towards the man and his work. "Rio Grande" has some problems, its true, but it's miles ahead of other Westerns of its time and is definitely a must-see for anyone interested in the history of cinema. 8/10

According to a trailer on my Quiet Man VHS and Maureen O'Hara's memoirs Rio Grande was a negotiating chip that Republic Pictures studio president Herbert J. Yates used in order to get John Ford to work for his studio. John Ford had wanted to make The Quiet Man for years and the major studios turned him down. Republic was the last stop he made. Yates agreed to let him shoot The Quiet Man at Republic, but first he wanted a guaranteed moneymaker.

Fort Apache and She Wore A Yellow Ribbon were both done at RKO and made money. So Yates said give me another cavalry picture with John Wayne and you can shoot The Quiet Man afterwards.

James Warner Bellah who had written the short stories that the other two were based on fortunately had a third one published. And that boys and girls is how Rio Grande came into being.

Good thing too because of studio politics we got ourselves a western classic. And a family classic as well. John Wayne who is once again playing a character named Kirby Yorke has two families, the United States Cavalry to which he's devoted and a wife and son from whom he's been estranged. How he repairs the relationships between wife Maureen O'Hara and son Claude Jarman, Jr. is the key to the whole story.

As Maureen toasts at a dinner scene with J. Carrol Naish as General Philip H. Sheridan, "to my one rival, the United States Cavalry."

Young Jefferson Yorke has flunked out of West Point and has joined the army as an enlisted man. Through none of his own doing he's assigned to the frontier post commanded by his father. Mom then comes west to try and spring him from the army, but young Jeff doesn't want to be sprung.

In fact to his father's surprise the young man proves himself to be an able cavalryman without any assistance from Dad. And when Maureen comes west, old love rekindles between Wayne and O'Hara.

All this is against the background of some Apache hit and run raids across the Rio Grande. Topped off by them attacking a party escorting dependent women and children away from the post. Young Trooper Yorke rides for help there, hence the title quote.

A lot of John Ford's stock company fills out the cast to give it that familiar look of Ford films. Some bits from previous films were used like the training Roman style of the new recruits. They prove a more able bunch than the ones from Fort Apache.

Some traditional melodies were used as they are in John Ford period pieces, but unusual for a Ford film, several new songs were written for the film, done by the Sons of the Pioneers. One of them written by Dale Evans entitled Aha San Antone. She was employed at Republic studios also.

A fine classic western with a nice story about family relationships and responsibilities one incurs in life.

Although I am not particularly fond of westerns, I saw this movie since I had heard much about it from many people. It is true that a lot of westerns show the wild lives of cowboys overdoing with cruelty. RIO GRANDE, however, is a different story. It is not only a western but a highly educational movie which combines all precious values in life, some of which do not necessarily go in harmony, including honor, love, the feeling of duty, grandeur, and psychological reflections. Moreover, as a film, it is supplied with highly prestigious cinematography, memorable music, and, most importantly, great cast. But there is something more that makes Ford's film really memorable - the characters presented very clearly. But why such a title? While watching the movie, one clearly notices that the title RIO GRANDE does not only refer to the famous river that separated the cavalrymen from Indians in Mexico, but has wider metaphorical extensions.

The characters are very well developed throughout. Lieutanant Kirby Yorke (John Wayne), a northerner, lost the family 15 years earlier but never gives up finding a chance to rebuild the old relationship with his southern wife, Kathleen (Maureen O'Hara) and their son Jeff. His "rio grande" is duties and strict orders that make a barrier for a happy life within the family. Kathleen Yorke tries to get her son out of the cavalry; however, Jeff decides to protect honor rather than his comfort. She also aims at rebuilding the family ties with Kirby but is aware that it requires much sacrifice. Their relationship is built upon a high respect for the freedom of both and a very delicate love between a man and a woman. Jeff (Claude Jarman), their son, attempts to do right and seeks for the honorable deeds. The blink of ambition in his eyes is noticeable in every scene with him. There are also other characters that the movie shows in a very psychological light (consider Travis Tyree played by Ben Johnson).

The cast give memorable performances but the pair of John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara shine above all. Wayne seems to have been born for the role and, although he played in two previous parts of John Ford's cavalry trilogy (FORT APACHE and SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON), he gives his best performance in RIO GRANDE. Wayne wonderfully emphasizes grandeur, feeling of duty and a husband who reflects on his past mistakes in marriage. Maureen O'Hara has something aristocratic in her behavior as well as in her appearance, which helps her portray a southern lady who used to live a rich life on a plantation. She also stresses her attempts to rebuild the past mistakes; however, she seems to be driven by completely different factors.

Music is absolutely wonderful for this genre. The ballads supply the movie with sentimental mood. Yes, they are deadly sentimental, but they in no way make you sad but rather lifted to high emotions. Here comes to my mind a very poetic scene when Wayne and O'Hara are serenaded by troop soldiers on one moonlit night. Their faces strongly express profound emotions and nostalgia for the better life together. This is so well played that anybody who sees the pair will be able to deduce some reflections from their faces.

Some people said that the Apaches are showed as real monsters in RIO GRANDE. It is important to state here that they are showed exactly in the way they were perceived rather than what they were really like. These were very "wild" tribes in the eyes of the white people and that is what the film shows. As a matter of fact, both the Apaches and the cavalrymen defended their values and John Ford did not forget about it.

And coming back to the thrilling atmosphere of the movie, there is one more aspect that needs to be mentioned - the locations. The Monument Valley supplies the scenes with authenticity as well as drives viewers into a wonderful mood. It simply leaves an unfading trace in memory as do the cast, the content, and everything about RIO GRANDE.

What to say at the end?... The last part of Ford's cavalry trilogy, though 55 years old, is a classic attempt to bring all that is valuable onto screen - HISTORY MEETS SINGLE INDIVIDUALS! Aren't our lives constructed in such a way that we all have our own "rio grande", such a barrier that closes us from happiness? I leave this universal question open to every open minded reader as John Ford implicitly did more than 50 years ago to every open minded viewer. Anyway, the film is unarguably worth seeing!