Le nettoyeur

Destry is directed by George Marshall and adapted to screenplay by Edmund H. North and D.D. Beauchamp from a story by Felix Jackson; itself suggested by the novel Destry Rides Again written by Max Brand. It stars Audie Murphy, Mari Blanchard, Lyle Bettger, Thomas Mitchell, Edgar Buchanan and Lori Nelson. Music is by Joseph Gershenson and cinematography by George Robinson.

When the sheriff of a small frontier town is shot and killed in mysterious circumstances, mob boss Decker (Bettger) and the crooked mayor (Buchanan) appoint the local drunk, Rags Barnaby (Mitchell), as sheriff. Thinking it will be easy to control the town now, Decker is surprised to learn that Barnaby has sent for help in the form of Tom Destry (Murphy), the son of a famous hard nosed lawman. However, when Tom arrives, he isn't exactly the all conquering macho lawman the town were expecting, in fact he doesn't even carry a gun!

OK, when judged against the James Stewart/ Marlene Dietrich starring Destry Rides Again from 1939 (also directed by George Marshall), this Audie Murphy led remake is standard stuff. The third attempt at adapting Max Brand's novel (there was also a Tom Mix version in 1932), George Marshall's movie has good production values, is well represented by the cast and all told is an amiable way to spend an afternoon. Three songs light up proceedings: Bang! Bang! If You Can Can-Can and Empty Arms (words and music by Herbert & Hughes), while the Technicolor is gorgeous (check out those costumes) and the final gun play is very well staged by Marshall and his team.

Sadly much of the picture is spent within the confines of the town, with a number of dialogue based scenarios that come off as samey. This means we miss out on ample usage of the Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, location exteriors. Yet in the capable hands of Marshall and Murphy it rounds out as a safe recommendation to B Western fans. 7/10

Sometimes remakes do turn out for the best and Audie Murphy was a perfect in the casting of another edition of the Destry saga. I will say this though, Destry's grown up considerable. Audie uses some forensic science to clean up the town and the final gunfight is played a bit more seriously than in the James Stewart-Marlene Dietrich classic.

For those who haven't seen either film, a certain crooked saloon keeper/ town boss has been grabbing land by hook or crook and kills the sheriff who's opposing him. Lyle Bettger is every bit as nasty as Brian Donlevy was. Bettger gets the idea to make the deputy, Thomas Mitchell, the sheriff. Mitchell is the town drunk, but Mitchell fools them and sends for the son of legendary lawman Tom Destry to be his deputy.

When Audie Murphy as Destry comes to town it's without wearing firearms, but in his own quiet way Audie gets results.

Of course saloon girl Mari Blanchard ain't a patch on Marlene Dietrich, but that's pretty stiff competition for anyone. Edgar Buchanan is the mayor and does his usual foxy and calculating part and we're not quite sure where he'll wind up in the end.

Destry is one of Audie Murphy's better B westerns from the Fifties and it shows with the right casting, a classic can be done well a second time.

fNo sooner had the big budget To Hell and Back been released than everyone began to wonder if Audie Murphy, who played himself in that autobiographical flick about his WWII experiences, might be on the way out of B westerns and into major movies. It was, after all, one of the most successful films in Universal Studios history to that point in time. No such thing, though - later that same year, Murphy was back in a better-than-average remake of the classic Destry Rides Again - this time, with the title shortened to the character's name, doubtless because that was in vogue at the time: Shane (Alan Ladd), Hondo (John Wayne), Jubal (Glenn Ford), etc. While this film may never come close to the heights of the earlier A movie starring James Stewart and Marlene Dietrich, it sure rates far and above the average oater of that time. Murphy is actually far more close to the descriptions of Tom Destry in the original novel than was Stewart, and while Mari Blanchard isn't Marlene Dietrich (who was?), she is pretty terrific as the exotic saloon girl whose cynical attitude melts whenever she's around the likable young marshal. Murphy's self-effacing style may not have been acting precisely, but when one critic dubbed him a half-pint Gary Cooper, he got it right in everything except the intended insult. Murphy was, and still remains on celluloid, one of the greatest of all B movie cowboy heroes. The little boy who idolizes him is played by Lee Aaker, who that same year became "Corporal Rusty" on Rin Tin Tin. Lori Nelson, a gorgeous blonde then under contract at Universal, is the 'nice' girl. Uninspired but solid, this is as fine a representation of the era's B westerns as you could ask for - and the perfect film for anyone out there who hasn't seen one of them and is looking for a good place to start. Nice color photography, too!

I'm a big fan of Audie Murphy, but even I willingly admit that most of his movies are mediocre at best. That being said, AMC has been running some Audie Murphy movies that I've never been able to see before...and much to my surprise, I found myself thoroughly enjoying "Destry"! Whenever the studios cared enough to surround Audie Murphy with top-quality supporting players (such as Thomas Mitchell, Edgar Buchanan, Alan Hale, Jr., and Lyle Bettger in this film), Audie's performances always rose to the level of those around him. Everyone is good in this movie, with very little of the over-acting that was the style then.

I saw the Dietrich/Stewart version many years ago...I've never liked Marlene Dietrich and never understood what the big deal with her was, but Jimmy Stewart tops the list of my favorite actors, so it surprises me that I honestly can't remember a single scene from their film. The Murphy remake, however, has some really nice moments that have stuck with me. I'm sure I'll offend a lot of people by saying the following, but Mari Blanchard has more beauty and sex appeal than Dietrich ever DREAMED of having. Mari Blanchard is absolutely stunning in this film.

As for the technical end, I found the directing good, the script devoid of the usual brainless dialog and plot holes that many B Westerns of the time seemed burdened with, and the score was not intrusive. People seem to think this is a comedy, but it is not...it is a Western with humor in it...there's a difference. The humor is derived from the real situations, but never descends into broad comedy with pratfalls and nonsense.

Many Audie Murphy films are good for a single viewing and can be forgotten, but "Destry" is definitely worth repeat viewing. If you run across it, I highly recommend checking it out...there is good stuff throughout.

When the Sheriff of Restful asks one too many questions about the legitimacy of Decker's card games, he winds up dead and the new sheriff is the town drunk. The corrupt forces behind Restful think that things will be just how they like it from now on but don't figure that the drunk will call in help in the form of a deputy, Tom Destry – son of the famous lawman. However Destry Jr turns out to not only be against carrying guns but also be soft-spoken and good-humoured – not characteristics that Rags hoped for in his deputy. However with a culture of silence, gun crime widespread and the town in the grip of the sultry and dangerous Brandy, can Destry make an impact?

Just to prove that modern Hollywood does not have the sole rights to the concept of the totally unnecessary remake, we have this film made 15 years after the definitive version starring Stewart and Dietrich; and true to form, this version is just that – unnecessary. The plot is pretty much a carbon copy and indeed a lot of the scenes are almost copies of the 1939 version and the only thing this achieves is to highlight that it has all been done before – and better. Although it is a copy, it isn't as free-wheeling, fun or energetic as the previous film and it does show.

The main reason for this is the cast as this bunch show how important the cast were in 1939. Murphy bravely plays against type but he just isn't as well suited to the role as Stewart was – he plays naïve well enough but it isn't that funny or fun. Blanchard does the best she can and in fairness she does pretty well filling Dietrich's boots. Mitchell is always fun and does well enough but the rest of the support cast aren't really there. The musical numbers are quite fun but again feel like it is aping other numbers rather than going out on its own territory.

Overall nothing in this film is bad, in fact it is quite enjoyable across the board. However when you watch the 1939 film you have to wonder why they bothered to go back and remake it at all since all it manages to do is highlight how the "original" was better in the first place – and that only knocks the fun out of it that bit more.