THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962)

Fresh out of law school, 54-year-old James Stewart is traveling to the small western town of Shinbone when the stagecoach is held up by local bandit Liberty Valance.  He beats the poo-poo out of Stewart and leaves him for dead on the side of the road.  Luckily, John Wayne happens to find him and takes him into town for some medical attention.  Shinbone is a small town, not much bigger than a tumbleweed, and it doesn't have a lawyer or much of anything for that matter.  Mostly bars, drunks, a one-man newspaper written by Edmond O'Brien and a restaurant waitressed by Vera Miles.

It's Miles who nurses Stewart back to health.  She even gets him a job washing dishes, since there's no need for a lawyer.  As things progress and the locals faces off against the large ranchers in a fight of statehood vs. territorial control by the ranchers, Stewart is obsessed with seeing Valance face the justice of the Law.  At the same time, Valance and his gang continues to terrorize the local population and Wayne sees that his secret love for Miles is in danger of being crushed by her admiration of Stewart.

THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE isn't your standard western with the wide shots of the beautiful desert vistas, cattle drives and everybody riding horses non-stop.  Most of the action takes place indoors with people talking.  Now whether that was was done by choice or lack of financing I don't know, but it works thanks to the strong script and the fact that TMWSLV has pound-for-pound one of the most impressive casts ever!  It's amazing!  There's one scene (the steak on the floor scene) where you have John Wayne, Vera Miles, Jimmy Stewart, Lee Marvin, Edmond O'Brien, Strother Martin, Woody Strode, Jeanette Nolan, Lee Van Cleef and John Qualen all in one area together!  Not to mention Andy Devine ducking out the back door.  That's mind-blowing.

Great story, amazing cast, Strother Martin giggling, Montie Montana's horse drinking out of a water pitcher, tons of familiar faces (including Denver Pyle, Willis Bouchey, Robert F. Simon, Carleton Young, Ted Mapes, Jack Pennick and more), good pace, costume design by Edith Head, John Carradine monologuing and one of my favorite Edmond O'Brien performances ever.  I have no idea why this film only received one(!!!) Oscar nomination. 

Highly recommended.

SHENANDOAH (1965)

Farmer Jimmy Stewart along with his six sons (including Patrick Wayne), one daughter and one daughter-in-law run a 500 acre farm in Virginia.  The Civil War is happening all around them, but pigheaded Stewart refuses to get involved and tries to ignore it.  Finally some events happen and he doesn't have any choice but to get involved.

I was kinda torn with SHENANDOAH.  The acting is very good, but the story is off.  In one of the opening scenes, Jimmy's teenage son finds a Rebel hat and starts wearing it.  Right then and there the viewer knows that no good can come of this, but even with the war raging all around them, Stewart allows the boy to wear the hat.  Naturally something really horrible happens because of the stupid hat.  Another thing that irked me and it's irked me with a number of films from this period is the blind happiness in going to church.  I know that if my entire life and the lives of my family were destroyed and turned upside down because of my foolishness I damn sure wouldn't be sittin' around in church praisin' the Lord and crying.

Quick pace, lots of action, tons of familiar faces, unwise life choices, great acting, clips of battle scenes from RAINTREE COUNTY, bending bayonets, multiple actors from "The Dukes of Hazzard" and "Little House on the Prairie".  Enjoyable beginning and middle that's tarnished by a weak ending.  Too bad that Stewart and Anthony Mann had already had their falling out in real life because this film could have used Mann in charge.

 

 I'll never look at Dr. Baker the same ever again.