Director: Howard Hawks
Producer: Howard Hawks
Writers: Jules Furthman and Leigh Brackett (screenplay); B.H. McCampbell (short story)
Cast: John Wayne, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, Angie Dickinson, Walter Brennan, Ward Bond, John Russell, Pedro Gonzalez-Gonzalez, Estelita Rodriguez, Claude Akins, Malcolm Atterbury, Harry Carey Jr.
Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Cinematography: Russell Harlan
Editing: Folmar Blangsted
Distribution: Warner Bros.
Release Date: March 18, 1959
Running Time: 141 min
The films of Howard Hawks remain some of the most accessible films of the classic Hollywood era because they remain as fresh and exciting when viewed today as they were for audiences when they were released. Hawks was a director who held a sense of fierce independence at a time when many directors found their work cut up by the long arm’s of the studio, he was also a meticulous craftsman who could work up a great script, get great performances from his actors and bring all of the elements together into one great movie. This is perhaps why his films have transcended cultural and generational barriers, they’re simply great entertainments, and no film shows off Hawks’ style more perfectly than his 1959 classic Rio Bravo.
Originally intended as a response to High Noon, a film reviled by Wayne and Hawks, Rio Bravo adapts the basic story of a sheriff defending his town from outlaws, but drops the overt political subtext that surrounded High Noon and instead focuses more on the characters and situations. At the center of things is Sheriff John T. Chance (John Wayne) who has locked up the brother of a powerful ranch owner for murder. Chance is a stubborn man who despite the danger of his situation refuses help from all but his closest friends, including his two sheriffs Dude (Dean Martin) and Stumpy (Walter Brennan). Dude is a flawed man with a penchant for drinking, and Stumpy is a cripple resigned to guarding the jailbird. Much of the film the plot is pushed into the background and instead the camera focuses on the characters and their struggles. In fact Rio Bravo is a film that could take place anywhere at anytime, it’s the characters and their struggles that matter. The suspense in the film isn’t derived from the impending fight, but rather the character’s struggles. One of Hawks’ great skills as a filmmaker was his ability to draw us into the problems and dynamics of his characters. Every character in Rio Bravo is richly detailed, and thoroughly human, and Hawks handles their dramas in a very mature manner. Take Dude’s struggle with alcoholism, a lesser filmmaker would have turned it into a preachy story arc, but instead it remains thoroughly dramatic. Notice how instead of intervening, Chance lets Dude overcome his own struggles, take for example when Dude and Stumpy get into an argument, Chance decides not to get involved. There’s also Chance’s relationship with the professional gambler Feathers (Angie Dickinson), revealed through energetic and sexually-charged conversations between the two. Hawks had such a way with dialogue, and Rio Bravo is filled throughout with memorable one-liners and great conversations. Hawks’ naturalistic dialogue has in fact been an influence on many filmmakers to come such as Quentin Tarantino.
Above all though, Rio Bravo is one hell of a fun western. It’s a film that has all the staples of a great western, but instead of merely relying on clichés it transcends them. The suspense, the action, the story is all superbly handled by Hawks who has a keen understanding of cinematic technique. To the naked eye, Hawks’ direction can appear theatrical, he preferred to shoot his scenes at eye level and rarely used close-ups, but Rio Bravo belongs specifically to the cinema. Hawks’ placement of all the elements in a scene, the way he edits, and places his actors is all distinctly cinematic. Take for example the wordless opening sequence, like most of the film it is shot at eye level and from a distance, save for a jarring cut when the camera cuts to an angle shot of Chance. Hawks uses devices like these such as shots of sunsets, and radical angles sparingly to give a sense of uneasiness. I also applaud his use of music, there’s a sequence towards the middle of the film where the band in the saloon is instructed to play a haunting melody that permeates throughout all of the other scenes, and the feeling it provides is so atmospheric. The action scenes are all tense and exciting, and the gunfight at the end is not to be missed. It’s exciting and well-directed, and a stunning conclusion to the film.
Rio Bravo is a well-acted picture. The central performance from John Wayne remains to this day one of his best. Just the way he carries himself throughout the film, the way he delivers his dialogue and his distinct mannerisms with an air of confidence is superb. Wayne though doesn’t allow himself to dominate the screen, and instead allows Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, and Angie Dickinson to give strong performances. Dean Martin gave what I thought was the best performance of the film, and his portrayal of the alcoholic Dude remains so real and empathetic. I forget at times that I’m watching an actor and become fully caught up in the character he is playing. Angie Dickinson is one of the great Hawksian women. She plays her character with an air of confidence, but not without a bit of sex appeal, she plays so well off of John Wayne and their scenes together are some of the best of the film. Ricky Nelson is a bit, well, he’s good, he’s got energy, but his performance isn’t in the league of Wayne’s or Martin’s. The cast is rounded off by a wonderful performance from character actor Walter Brennan as stumpy and a colorful supporting cast.
Rio Bravo is one of the great westerns, and it’s one of the great films period. There are few other films that are so well directed, well scripted, and well acted. It’s entertaining, exciting, and above all human. It’s one of the last of the great Hollywood studio films before the sixties changed the way films were made, and it’s quite a swan song.
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