When we first meet him, though, Marshal McCabe is an amoral lawman living a fairly ordinary life in a small Texas town where law and order seems to be primarily a matter of dealing with the town drunks. Riding with Marshal Guthrie McCabe (James Stewart) on his mission is a army officer portrayed by Richard Widmark. Similar to Ford’s The Searchers (1956), the plot revolves around two men’s quest to rescue White captives from an Indian tribe. What does it mean to be civilized and what does it mean to be a savage? Can one be a civilized person in the midst of savagery? Or a savage living in civilized “polite” society? These are the philosophical and moral questions at the heart of John Ford’s Two Rode Together, an unintentionally quirky Western with strong comedic overtones and a strong romantic element. Or as Widmark puts it, “I guess old Guth found something he wanted more than ten percent of.” Whatever the case, there is a gentle debunking of Western Legend here conveyed with a charm that Ford somehow never found again. ( SPOILER ALERT!) This film ends with the mission a failure, a heroine ostracized and Jimmy Stewart out of a job, but the characters have grown and changed in important ways. What struck me most, though, was the pervading sense of optimism in what is essentially a bleak tale. There is surprisingly little action in Two Rode Together, yet it seems to move at a brisk pace, and the prevailing sense of humor breaks naturally for moments of keen drama. In fact, Stewart and Widmark play brilliantly off each other, almost as if they’d been acting together for years, and writer Frank Nugent, who worked steadily with Ford from Fort Apache onward, gives them some cherce material: the scene at the river bank should be studied and cherished by lovers of acting, writing, directing, and just plain damn-fine movie-making. Jimmy Stewart lends his easy charm to his role as a corrupt lawman and Indian Trader, and Richard Widmark plays it knowing and sincere as a cavalry lieutenant who still has some sense of commitment, even if he isn’t sure to what. The West here may be filled with suckers and con men, where even the Noble Savage plays politics and keeps an eye out for the main chance, but that doesn’t keep its heroes from going about their business with professionalism and a wry smile. Perhaps the defining thing about Two Rode Together is its cheerful cynicism. ![]() Rutledge (1960) both of which have their pessimistic aspects… and then this. Then another long pause before the cavalry pictures The Horse Soldiers (1959) and Sgt. ![]() After Rio Grande, made the same year, he didn’t make another western till The Searchers in 1956. This sees Ford gliding toward the bitterness of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, but in a showmanlike way.Īctually, the westerns of John Ford had grown increasingly disenchanted since Wagon Master (1950).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |