Rio Bravo.

Review #1399: Rio Bravo.

Cast: 
John Wayne (John T. Chance), Dean Martin (Dude), Ricky Nelson (Colorado/Ryan), Angie Dickinson (Feathers), Walter Brennan (Stumpy), Ward Bond (Pat Wheeler), John Russell (Nathan Burdette), Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez (Carlos Robante), Estelita Rodriguez (Consuelo Robante), and Claude Akins (Joe Burdette) Directed by Howard Hawks (#951 - The Big Sleep and #1352 - His Girl Friday)

Review:
"A good movie is three good scenes and no bad scenes."

Collaborations can make for an entertaining film if in the hands of the right people, with this being particularly true for Howard Hawks and John Wayne, who made five films together (all but one being a Western), which began with Red River (1948). The film was written by longtime screenwriter Jules Furthman and science fiction writer/screenwriter Leigh Brackett as a loose adaptation of a short story of the same name by B.H. McCampbell. The plot outline may seem familiar to those who have viewed High Noon (1952), which Wayne and Hawks both criticized, with Wayne calling it "un-American" since he viewed it as an allegory against blacklisting and Hawks disapproving the idea of a sheriff "running around town like a chicken with his head cut off asking for help, and finally his Quaker wife had to save him". For his part, Gary Cooper (star of said criticized film) thought it was phony (which to me seems like the key side in a triangle of eye-rolling statements). Quibbles aside, Hawks would go on to make two further films that were variations on this film in the next eleven years with Wayne as the lead and Brackett as writer with El Dorado (1967) and Rio Bravo (1970) and inspiration can be found in John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 (1976).

One gets plenty of engaging entertainment here in this film, with five prominent stars besides Wayne present that come alive with their own quirks that make for riveting moments that fit the hallmarks of a Hawks film. Everything comes together without a stumble, particularly with its silent four minute opening sequence, which helps set the film up nicely and effectively with principle. It is a sprawling film that runs at 141 minutes with solid ambition and useful execution in its warmness. Wayne, playing on a type that he had done for several years (right down to the hat that was worn in several films starting with Stagecoach) does a fine job with a balancing act of stature and reaction to others that make for some amusing moments of chemistry with the others. Singers-turned actors Martin and Nelson do well in following along with Wayne in their own right, with Martin (told by Hawks to not play a cowboy but to just play a drunk) doing well with showing inner demons demanded by this part alongside growing assurance, and Nelson gives off a youthful confidence; each also is given a chance to sing, which comes around right before the climax, which is both unsurprising and not too distracting. Dickinson, in a breakthrough performance after getting her start in television, makes for a playful balance to Wayne, having a fairly believable chemistry, where one doesn't see the 25-year age difference between the two as too much of a distraction. Brennan and Bond fill out their time with warmness (moreso for the former) and capability in the time they are given to shine. Russell, though not given as much time as the others, does make for a fair adversarial presence to drive the tension for the inevitable showdown, which delivers in sealing the fate of a pretty good sprawling Western with folks one will come across plenty when searching for entertainment helmed by someone with plenty to deliver as well.

Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.

Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter.

Review #1153: Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter.

Cast: 
John Lupton (Jesse James), Narda Onyx (Dr. Maria Frankenstein), Estelita Rodriguez (Juanita Lopez), Cal Bolder (Hank Tracy/Igor), Jim Davis (Marshal MacPhee), Steven Geray (Dr. Rudolph Frankenstein), Rayford Barnes (Lonny Curry), William Fawcett (Jensen, the pharmacist), and Nestor Paiva (Saloon Owner) Directed by William Beaudine (#463 - Billy the Kid versus Dracula and #535 - Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla)

Review: 
Older fans of mine will remember my coverage of Billy the Kid versus Dracula, which I covered all the way back in October of 2013, which served as part of a double feature with this film.

Admittedly, combining the genres of a western with horror could be interesting. I suppose there really must've been a push to make some cheap thrills and make a quick buck out of it while featuring outlaws from the Old West. The result is two films directed by Beaudine that were both shot in eight days while written by Carl K. Hittleman while shot at the Corrigan Ranch in Simi Valley, California. The only noteworthy thing to look at in this movie is the lab equipment, which came right from Kenneth Strickfaden, who had designed the electrical effects for Frankenstein (1931) and several other projects. It is easy to say both films are awful, but it may prove a bit difficult to figure out which one is "better" - as if one was comparing scab wounds. I could probably edit my description that I said about Billy the Kid versus Dracula and have it work now, as this is also a sloppy mess from beginning to end, starting with the hokey, if not drunkenly written premise of Jesse James in a horror film. Let's not forget that this film not only decides to depict him as having survived the shooting by Robert Ford in 1882, but also encounter the (grand)daughter of Frankenstein. If you can believe it, this film feels like a drag with its run-time of 83 minutes, probably since it takes half of its run-time for the two main characters to meet but also due to the fact that it feels like there are two plots mixed into one, and they are both pretty boring.

Lupton is pretty wooden, not really generating sort of interest in wanting to follow his outlaw character - as reading about the real Jesse James would probably be more interesting. Onyx (in her last film role) is the one who stands out, having plenty of ham and ridiculousness that would probably be suited for stuff such as Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943), but then again it actually makes this film seem tolerable, even if it is let down by nearly everything else. Rodriguez (also in her last role prior to her death in 1966) is okay, but the romance between her and Lupton is as stilted as everything else in this movie, not being particularly convincing (I'd also like to point out that James was married at the time of his death - to his first cousin), seeming to fill time and plot. Bolder is bland as the heavy, and the effect used to turn him into the Monster (called Igor for some reason) is awful, since the stitches (on a bald head) is rubber tape. I especially take amusement that the Monster doesn't even wear a shirt, as if that is going to make all the difference for showing strength and terror. You may be surprised that there are two Frankensteins in this film. You may be even more surprised that they are siblings, since the age difference between the two (Onyx and Geray) is 27 years. Speaking of which, Geray isn't awful, having a reluctant nature to him that is somewhat believable to go along with. Honestly, there is nothing here to watch the movie for, since there are no real big spectacles, and the parts when the monster finally comes to life are just as lame as the parts leading up to it. You would actually be better off with The Beast of Hollow Mountain (1956) if you want something with horror and western elements, and that was an incredibly mediocre movie. The only way to watch both this and Billy the Kid versus Dracula is on a night where you want something fast and cheap (they are both in the public domain) and don't care what they deliver as long as they give you some sort of monster and hero to watch. In that sense, they are just fine as a double feature of terror to terrorize the audience in their spooky awfulness.

Overall, I give it 2 out of 10 stars.