Customer Reviews

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon [Import]

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

What more can you say about John Wayne and John Ford? It's great! All fans know exactly what I mean.

The two most important elements that make She Wore A Yellow Ribbon a great production are John Wayne and Monument Valley. John Ford, the producer, couldn't get enough of either and in the film they both take up a lot of movie reel space. If you like John Wayne, you will certainly be pleased with his acting in his leading role as a Cavalry Captain on the early west frontier. The same can be said for Monument Valley once you have been there, The classic panoramas of the magnificent vista's with their high desert grandeur, are like watching a travelogue of north-eastern Arizona. Joanne Dru and the other supporting actors are well cast in their
various parts in bringing to the screen this compelling story of hardship, dedication and love in the old west.

This movie is a classic John Wayne western. Well cast with a good story and good acting, it is a good addition to any collection for someone who likes westerns

I love John Wayne, I have 45 John Wayne DVD's and still collecting. This a great John Wayne western in the classic John Wayne fashion. Great story, great cast, and this DVD is a great buy. I do not like to review any movie as I do not want to give anything away about the movie, other than if it is goo or bad. If you are a collector, a John Wayne fan or need some good entertainment, I highly recommend this DVD movie as great.

John Ford produced this as part of a trilogy and I recommend it if you liked the old westerns he produced. John Wayne was his usual superb self.

Joanne Dru teams with The DUKE again in this Technicolor marvel (after appearing together in "Red River" the year before). In this one, Dru plays a young romantic hopeful for both John Agar and Harry Carey, Jr.

Monument Valley never looked better. The stormclouds are stunning, even if the fake lightning is not. And the sunsets! Only Technicolor can capture the colors with such brilliance!

While I prefer "Rio Grande" and the lamentably-not-on-DVD-yet "Fort Apache", "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" plays more as a quiet homage to the cavalry than the actionfests of the other two films. Not that this film is sparse on action! However, the focus here is most definitely on the honor and wisdom of the old guard.

As usual, Ford has many subtle threads woven in to the plot of the film that enhance the story with backstories that are only hinted at. The most notable of these is the former Confederate soldiers, now part of the U.S. Cavalry. Their honor is intact, and they are still true to their ideals, despite wearing the uniform of the Yankee. There is, we know, much more to their story, but we see just what we need to. Any more, and the real story would get lost, the focus moved to the wrong place. How many modern directors make the mistake of letting this happen again and again and again? Too many, for sure.

Some people have complained that John Wanye was a lousy actor, which I've always chalked up to a refusal to recognize talent in a celebrity simply through differences in personal taste. Like "The Searchers", "Red River", "The Horse Soldiers" and "The Sands of Iwo Jima" (also starring the late John Agar), there are solid moments in this film when DUKE delivers. Just look as he "gives his report" to his wife and children, when he writes out his protest to his commanding officer, and again, when he gets the memento of the silver watch from his troopers. The viewer's taste notwithstanding, it cannot be denied that DUKE could act.

The usual excellent Ford supporting players abound. Ben Johnson, Arthur Shields, Harry Carey Jr., and of course, the lovable Victor McLaglen (yet again playing a man named Quincannon), are all on hand. Paul Fix has a cameo as a gun-runner.

Two real-life Indian chiefs also appear. Chief John Big Tree appeared in several westerns (including "The Big Trail" and "Stagecoach", both with The DUKE), and is famous for being the original model for artist James Fraser when he crafted the indian head nickel. Chief Sky Eagle cameos in his only film appearance.

A touching and poignant western, it is a must see for fans of Ford, The DUKE, The U.S. Calvalry, or the Old West.

And, incidentally, this film was not shot in a widescreen format. It was shot in a 35mm, spherical process, with an aspect ratio of 1.37:1. In other words, it will show about the correct size when displayed on your standard TV screen.

The other reviews cover the movie details (one error, silver watch not a gold watch). Just a beautiful movie, wonderfully transferred to DVD. Why can't more modern films look this good. Makes me want to see it on the big screen.

SHE WORE A YELLOW RIBBON is the second leg of greatness in the John Ford Cavalry Trilogy. Cinematography-wise SWAYR is the jewel in the crown, it's much heralded Oscar winning celluloid images are breathtaking. All three films have their own moments of greatness, here it's John Wayne as Capt. Nathan Brittles, in make-up aging him 20 years no less "making his report" graveside to his wife and daughter; His receiving his silver watch from his troops ("Lest we forget,") and his negotiating Victor McLaglen's retirement ("A man of a thirst like that can't survive on less than a sergeant's pension!"). Of course there is the cavalry's march to their 3 theme songs: "Garry Owen", "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon" and "The Girl I Left Behind Me" (a constant in the trilogy). Sterling performances across the board. SWAYR is an all time classic.

When this film was released I was six years old, living in grey, cold, bankrupt post war Britain, a world of food and clothing rationing. Cinema was pure escapism and I thank my parents for taking me there every week. Westerns were big in those days. They had titles such as "Broken Arrow" or "Winchester 73". As my love of cinema was slowly nurtured "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon" left an indelible impression on my psyche. I loved every bit of it. The odyessic story, with its lack of 'white man good' 'red indian bad' stereotyping. The sophistication of Ford's direction with its cool appreciation of America's big country. The actors - Wayne, of course, towering above all, and decades before he blotted his copybook with his embarrasing gung-ho roles, to Victor McLagen's 'Oirish' knockabout sargeant, via the under-stated work of Joanne Dru and John Agar. "Never apologise, son. It's a sign of weakness." A simply unbeatable movie.

This is the second and ,as many have said, best in John Ford's famed cavalry trilogy. I go further in claiming for it high status in the genre of western films, it is one of the finest. Wayne wears makeup that ages him 20 years and his acting performance transforms him into that older man Captain Nathan Brittles, soon to be retired from the U. S. Cavalry. Captain Brittles talking to his late wife at her grave ,while he waters the plants he has placed there, with Monument valley in the background is one of the more moving scenes. This and "The Searchers" are Wayne's finest acting performances.
"She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" won an academy award for it's color cinematography and it was well deserved. This is one beautiful film. Ford shot many of his westerns in Monument valley, this is his definitive Monument valley western, you really see alot of the landscape and clouds and it's glorious. The special features on this dvd has a short home movie of Ford and Wayne flying down to Mexico and hanging out back in the forties.
Own this one because it's one of those rare films you can, and will want to, watch over and over.