La charge héroïque

It seems trite to say they don't make them like this anymore. But it's a fact. They don't make them like this anymore. And it seems likely we won't be seeing them making them like this ever again. This is John Ford at the height of his career, at his best, doing what he did best. On location in the Monument Valley, it is more than fair to say the scenery, the colors, even the weather, along with Ford's cinematography, particularly the patient framing of his shots and making full use of the setting and environment in which he filmed, are every bit as much stars of this film as are the featured human stars.

None of which is to say the human stars weren't good. John Wayne in the lead turned in a remarkable performance. Wayne was 42-years old when he made this, but he was playing a character much older than that, perhaps as much as 20 years older, and Wayne pulls it off. He looks and seems like a 60-year old man. He showed his acting chops here.

Ben Johnson had been around awhile at this point, mainly as a stuntman, but here he makes one of his first forays into real acting, and he does well, which no doubt boosted his career.

Perennial John Wayne sidekick Harry Carey, Jr. is here too, at the ripe young age of 28. It occurs to me as I write this in November 2008 that he seems to be the last surviving cast member of this movie.

Joanne Dru. What can be said? While this movie was made before I was born, Joanne Dru plays the fetching young woman wearing the yellow ribbon and stirring the male ashes deep inside as well as anybody ever could, and she was quite fetching indeed. Her performance still striking that chord precisely that way almost 60 years later.

Ostensibly this is a western, but this movie is actually much more a military movie than just a western. John Ford was a military man himself, who ultimately retired as a Navy Reserve Rear Admiral. He knew what the military was all about, he understood and enjoyed military life, military ways, military customs, and military culture, and he clearly relished making military depictions. So that's what we see here. All that military stuff. Oddly, though, it all seems out of time in a way. This movie was made in 1949, just a few years after WWII. While making a movie about the cavalry fighting the Indian wars in 1876, the military culture Ford depicted seems more apropos of the 1940s than of the 1870s. For instance, I'm just not sold on this version of history where US cavalry men were burdened with and hauled around family members in the wild wild west. Maybe they did, but I'm not so sure. It seems much more likely this was a device added to appeal to 1949 audiences. There are other examples of this. This is the only flaw in an otherwise very good movie. And who knows, maybe it isn't a flaw at all, true or not. It's a good movie. Ford made a movie in which he talked to all those recently mustered out veterans he knew were out there populating his audiences. On that level he succeeds.

There is an ironic point about the production of SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON immediately after FORT APACHE. Most critics agree that Col. Owen Thursday, the martinet commander, is based on General George Armstrong Custer, and that the massacre of his command due to his own pig headedness is the battle of the Little Bighorn. But SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON begins with that moment in the summer of 1876 when the entire frontier was nervous after word came of the destruction of Custer forces. The historic continuity (which is amazingly consistent, despite minor anachronisms) is shown early when Captain Brittles, visiting his wife's grave, mentions to her the death of Captain Miles Keogh at the Little Bighorn. Historically this is correct. Keogh, a hero of the American Civil War, served with Custer's Seventh Cavalry and died with his commander and fellows. In fact, the only "survivor" of Custer's forces at that disaster was Keogh's horse, "Commanche".

Captain Brittles has served in the American cavalry for thirty years. He was one of those soldiers who held higher rank in the Civil War with a "Brevet", but in the cutbacks in the army following the war (Custer went from brevet major general to Lt. Col. in the regular army)Brittles had to be satisfied with the rank of Captain. His wife and children died (presumably of some epidemic illness at the post - they are buried nearby). His old orderly from the war, Quincannon (Victor McLaglen) is still serving him. But he is facing a crisis. His thirty years means retirement, unless the army decides to promote him to Colonel. Despite the debacle in Montana, it is not too likely that the politically unconnected Brittles will get the promotion his fine abilities deserve.

So we are watching an old soldier slowly fade away in this film. Brittles is aware he has days before he is to leave (unless a promotion turns up), and he has to try to keep the hot blooded Indian braves, impressed at what they just saw Crazy Horse and the Lakota forces accomplish, go on the warpath. He also has to keep his two most promising young officers (John Agar and Harry Carey Jr.) concentrating on their careers rather than fighting over Joanne Dru. He is worried too for Sgt. Quincannon, who is likewise going to be leaving the army a few days after Brittles. Will Quincannon's drunken, roistering ways ruin his chances to maintain his pension? And he has to keep an eye on the suspicious behavior of the local fort sutler (Paul Fix) is up to - can he be running guns? Whatever he faces, he faces unflinchingly, and his motto is never to apologize - it's a sign of weakness.

For all the anachronisms listed on this thread, such as the 48 star flag (in 1876?), Ford got the time and place perfect in what counts. Note the fascinating relationship of Brittles and Sgt. Tyree (Ben Johnson). 1876 was a crossroad year for the U.S. regarding the results of the Civil War. In the negative, a questionable Presidential election result was solidified when three southern states agreed to support the Republican (Rutherford Hayes) over the Democrat (Samuel Tilden) in return for the Federal troops being pulled out of the south and the official end of Reconstruction policies benefiting southern African-Americans. One can't deny that is still a stain in American history (despite Hayes excellent handling of the Presidency afterwords). But the former foes were finding less and less reason to dislike each other, and more and more to admire the grit both sides had shown. During the Civil War, Tyree was a Confederate Captain - he was Brittles' equal in rank. Once the war ended, after a few years, he joins the American Army and rises to the rank of Sergeant. Technically he is not as high a Sergeant as Quincannon, who is Brittles' aide. But Brittles constantly treats Tyree as a full equal, consulting him again and again on how to move next when going out of the fort to confront the Indian threat. The highpoint of this respect is when one of Tyree's "soldiers", "Trooper Smith" turns out to be a former Confederate cavalry leader named Rome Clay, and dies of wounds in an action against the Indians. Brittles and his men watch silently while Tyree and his fellow southern soldiers bury Clay properly with his flag, the Confederate one.

In terms of relations between the whites of the North and South, SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON is miles away from the confrontations of, say THE PRISONER OF SHARK ISLAND. There John Carridine's northern officer has nothing but fanatical contempt for Dr. Mudd, whom he considers evil for helping John Wilkes Booth. Until the end of that film, Carridine takes a sadistic interest in making Warner Baxter regret his every move. The events of THE PRISONER was from 1865 - 1869 (when Mudd finally returned to Maryland). This is seven years afterwords.

There are other little historical pointers. The rivalry of immigrant groups is shown when Quincannon is facing rival Sergeant Hochbauer, who openly dislikes the former as an overbearing Irishman (Hochbauer being a German). There is the civilian clothes that are meant for Brittles (complete with "Muller cut-down hat") that Quincannon ends sampling (which leads to his hysterically funny fight with Hochbauer and the other soldiers meant to take him to the guardhouse). Quincannon insists he is not out of uniform (technically he is) but is simply dressed as a retired gentleman should be. Yes, in 1876, that would be the dress of a retired gentleman.

I like this film. The characterizations of the all the actors are strong, and Ford had great set pieces in it. Perhaps not as great a film as THE SEARCHERS (which is more meaty and dark), but a top notch Western all the same.

and he has easily seen it over 200 times. He got me hooked on it when I was a young girl by pointing out all the gentle humor and the repeated comedic bits that separate it from many other westerns. I still love it for those reasons and more.

"Yellow Ribbon" is not John Ford's best movie, but it may be John Wayne's. Capt. Brittles is -- needless to say -- the antithesis of Henry Fonda's Col. Thursday in "Fort Apache." When the film opens, it is obvious Capt. Brittles has earned the respect of his troops and won their loyalty, and by the fade-out they have come to love him like devoted sons.

For someone who was allegedly so difficult to work with, John Ford put together a truly remarkable stock company of actors and technical personnel. They appeared in his films time and again, and there was more or less a core group of professionals on screen and off that gave all of Ford's westerns color, excitement and realism. But "Yellow Ribbon" has something less expected: warmth. And there's not a thing wrong with that.

"She Wore A Yellow Ribbon" is also arguably the most sentimental movie John Ford ever made, and there's nothing wrong with that, either.

SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON is, arguably, the most enduring and appealing of John Ford's 'Cavalry' trilogy. While lacking the dramatic core of a fatally flawed central character (FORT APACHE), or an estranged couple reunited by a headstrong son (RIO GRANDE), the film offers a richly sentimental tale of a crusty yet endearing career soldier (John Wayne) facing retirement, in a romanticized West where the cavalry stands as the only defense against the combined might of the Indian nations. The combination of Wayne and the cavalry in SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON is simply unbeatable!

Wayne, at 42, portrays the sixty-ish Capt. Nathan Brittles, and under Ford's sure hand, is magnificent in the role. Whether chastising young lieutenants ("Never apologize, mister, it's a sign of weakness"), complimenting an enlisted man ("Keep it up, and you'll make a fine corporal, in three or four years"), or kneeling at the grave of his long-dead wife, to share the news of the day, Wayne's performance shows a subtlety and sensitivity that his critics often claimed he lacked. When his commander, Major Allshard (George O'Brien) refuses his request to rescue Lt. Cohill (John Agar) and two squads who had performed rear guard duty, the anguish Wayne shows is heartbreaking. This is an Oscar-caliber performance, from a vastly underrated actor.

The rest of the cast measures up equally well. Victor McLaglen, as irascible as ever, plays Irish Top Sergeant Quincannon, full of blarney and (a bit of) whiskey. His morning scenes with Wayne, denying he'd been drinking, are comic gems. As the young suitors of Joanne Dru (who plays a more traditional role than in Howard Hawks' RED RIVER), Agar and Harry Carey Jr. are also quite good.

The real 'find' of the film, however, is Ben Johnson, in only his second major role. As Sgt. Tyree, ex-Confederate captain, and Brittles' best scout, Johnson shows an easy-going charm, a (feigned) lack of respect (when asked his opinion, he'd always begin with "That's not my department..." then make a dead-on assessment), and astonishing riding skills (not surprising, as Johnson had been a champion rodeo rider). A future Oscar winner, he displays a charisma on-camera that would quickly earn him a place in the 'Ford Family' of actors.

The visuals of SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON have been frequently compared to Fredric Remington's classic paintings of cavalrymen and Indians, and the comparison is justified; the film would win an Oscar for it's rich Technicolor photography, and images of 'dirty blue' riders on horseback against the stark blue sky and golden hues of Monument Valley are very reminiscent of the artist's work.

SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON is the kind of film you can watch again and again, and still find rewarding. It is on my 'short list' of favorite westerns, and if you haven't seen it yet, you're in for a treat!

The second of John Ford's cavalry trilogy that deals with the life of the professional soldier is the only one that was photographed in color. Lucky are we, the cinema fans two generations away.

She Wore A Yellow Ribbon has John Wayne the embodiment of the thirty year army man. The year of the action of the film which is 1876 has Wayne mentioning in passing that he was at the Battle of Chapultepec in the Mexican War which started in 1846. Wayne's Nathan Brittles was by his account a dirty shirt tailed runaway from his father's Ohio farm when he joined the army. And now he's reached mandatory retirement. He's married and has had a family who he's lost for reasons John Ford doesn't explain in the film. But Wayne dutifully, "makes his report" at their gravesides every night he's at the post.

Wayne's seen a lot of military history and a lot of tragedy. With no family left, the United States Cavalry is his home and family. He doesn't like the idea of retiring at all. In a later Ford film, The Long Gray Line, Martin Maher says that all he knows and holds dear is at West Point. Wayne could have said that line himself here.

Even though George O'Brien is the commanding officer at Fort Stark, Wayne is the father figure for the whole post. And not like some of the others don't behave like children. The whole romantic rivalry between John Agar and Harry Carey, Jr. over Joanne Dru seems pretty childish. Cute while in the safety of the post, but when out on a mission downright dangerous and Wayne like the good father scolds his kiddies.

With some makeup to grey his hair and wrinkle him a might, Wayne turns in one of his finest performances on the screen. Harry Carey, Jr. wrote what is probably the most evenly balanced portrayal of the Duke in his memoirs In the Company of Heroes. They didn't always get along, but Carey says Wayne was an inspiration to him and the other younger cast members. In fact during the scene with the gunrunners Paul Fix and Grant Withers being killed in the Indian camp while Wayne, Carey, and Agar watch on the ridge, the whole idea for the chaw of tobacco bit came from Carey himself, but that Wayne encouraged the improvisation as he was wont to do.

Other than the Duke, my favorite portrayal in the film is that of Ben Johnson as Sergeant Tyree. Wayne recognizes in him a younger version of himself. In fact Tyree is a former Confederate Army captain, a fact brought out in the death scene of "Trooper Smith" another former Confederate who in fact was a general in that army. Ben Johnson was a real cowboy, a horse wrangler who John Ford gave a chance to act. He graced many a film with his presence and won himself an Oscar to cap his career in The Last Picture Show.

Like in Fort Apache and Rio Grande, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is the story of the professional soldier and the sacrifices he makes when he gives up his civilian status to serve his country. It's a universal theme, not just confined to the USA. No one embodied that theme better than did John Wayne as Nathan Brittles in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.