Least Favorite Ford Western

[ken123]

I have to say Stagecoach cause while it seemed new at the time it is now so cliche, or maybe beacuse his others Westerns were so awesome.

[MikeBSG]

I have to say that when I saw "The Iron Horse" on DVD last year I found the subplot about the villainous three-fingered man ridiculous. "The Three Bad Men" is a much better movie (silent Ford western.)

[JackFavell]

I'm not crazy about The Horse Soldiers, but I expect an epiphany some day. I didn't really "get" Stagecoach either, but this last time it was on I had a breakthrough.

[Richard--W]

All of John Ford's westerns are my favorite. But my most favorite is whichever one I'm watching at the moment. Stagecoach is an inspiration and a favorite and brilliant cinema. I suppose Cheyenne Autumn is fatally flawed because of mis-informed history and the annoying comedy interlude involving Wyatt Earp, but it's a very persuasive film in spite of those flaws.

I don't understand why Straight Shooting (1914), Ford's earliest western to survive, hasn't found it's way onto DVD.


Richard

[mrsl]

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I honestly cannot think of one I feel is less than any of the others. All of Ford's movies are exceptional in some way, in their own right. I even looked up Fords filmography on imdB to see if there was one I forgot . . . but no. The one thing I did dislike was the cast of The Horse Soldiers. I like John Wayne, but felt Bill Holman, and the lady were not right for their parts.

I have stated before that the James Stewart part does not belong in Cheyenne Autumn, it causes a break in the thread of the story. But what historical points are wrongly shown, other than trying to put everything into a two hour movie?
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[MikeBSG]

I'd agree that "The Horse Soldiers" strikes me as weak and miscast. But it isn't really a Western is it?

I'd also agree that Ford's westerns are generally superb and absorbing. I even like "Two Rode Together" which some people can't stand. Ford's westerns make an impressive body of work.

[Richard--W]

There is no such thing as a "bad" John Ford western. Ford was first and foremost a dramatist, and sometimes he applied the frontier conditions and trappings of the western to the drama he was telling. Stagecoach is drama first, and a western second, but it excels at both.

The Horse Soldiers is not a western. It's a Civil War story that takes place in 1863 in the deep South. It is based on true events, a raid by a Yankee cavalry into the South, and with the primitiveness of surgery and medicine for the wounded. Where it goes wrong in historical facts it makes up for in conveying an underlying truth about the two sides. The story is complex and full of contradictions. It also contains one of John Wayne's most mature and conflicted performances.


Richard

[pvitari]

It also contains one of John Wayne's most mature and conflicted performances.

Believe it or not, The Horse Soldiers is the movie that turned me into a confirmed John Wayne fan. I found his performance so subtle and moving that any doubt I might have had about his ability as an actor (not just a movie star) vanished completely.

It didn't hurt that William Holden was in it too. :)