Is it just me or is John Wayne's True Grit...

[A-Bone]

Originally Posted by RoadRunner

"True Grit"... not Duke's best film.

To answer your question above, check out "The Searchers", made by John Ford in 1955, one of the greatest films ever made, western or otherwise. Wayne's character, "Ethan Edwards", in the film is your basic "deeply flawed anti hero" and the Duke nails him to a "T." People say John Wayne wasn't a great actor, they haven't seen "The Searchers", if they had, they'd have another thought altogether.

or if they saw Red River.

The famous anecdote told about Red River is directors Howard Hawks and John Ford having lunch in the commissary. Ford gets a scowl on his face and says "I never knew the son of a bitch could act" in reference to Wayne's performance in the Hawks' film.

[RoadRunner]

Originally Posted by A-Bone

or if they saw Red River.

The famous anecdote told about Red River is directors Howard Hawks and John Ford having lunch in the commissary. Ford gets a scowl on his face and says "I never knew the son of a bitch could act" in reference to Wayne's performance in the Hawks' film.

Classic story, and an excellent point! I bet Ford was thinking "Red River" the whole time he fleshed out Wayne's Ethan Edwards character during filming for The Searchers.

[pete692]

Originally Posted by RyanC.

personally I think the John Wayne version is unwatchable.

It's a freakin' horrid, dated campy mess. The new one ain't that great either. Too matter-of-fact, and yet opened ended at the same time. You just wanna know how she lived out the rest of her childhood after trip, and you get nothing.

[84superchamp]

Originally Posted by pete692

It's a freakin' horrid, dated campy mess. The new one ain't that great either. Too matter-of-fact, and yet opened ended at the same time. You just wanna know how she lived out the rest of her childhood after trip, and you get nothing.

also a prominent faux paux in wayne's version was his condition. he was getting old and had a sizeable pot belly going..didn't really look like a hard-rider who could stay in the saddle for days, looking for outlaws in the great expanse of the west. he already looked like he needed bed rest every night.

[Boobala]

Originally Posted by superchamp

also a prominent faux paux in wayne's version was his condition. he was getting old and had a sizeable pot belly going..didn't really look like a hard-rider who could stay in the saddle for days, looking for outlaws in the great expanse of the west. he already looked like he needed bed rest every night.

That's how the character was written. In the book, Rooster is described as being built like Grover Cleveland.

[84superchamp]

heh. got to admit, i never read the book. i guess in that situation (un-read) it's up to our own minds what he should look like.

[DV52]

The new one was good.The old one was GREAT.The open air ,the visual.Just a better movie.

[echale3]

I watched the JW version before I watched the Coen Bros version. The JW version just doesn't cut it for me--it's like a sanitized "Pollyanna" thing.

I much prefer the Coen Bros version. The character protrayal is a hell of a lot more believable, the props--gear/clothes/buildings/etc--looked like they were actually used, not fresh from the store, the dialogue was a hell of a lot closer to prose from that time, etc.

The JW version looks like modern guys went to the store, bought some western-style gear, then went riding off playing cowboy cops-n-robbers.

JW was fantastic in certain films, just not this one.

Gotta give Glen Campbell props, though, for having the balls to step out of his music genre and co-star in a movie with John Wayne....