SATURDAY NIGHT ON TCM

Oznell · ‎11-08-2014

Interesting, diverse line-up, a good time to stay in, stay cozy and have movie night...

Blue eyes alert:

5:30 p.m. Eastern, Saturday-- "Red River" John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Walter Brennan, Coleen Gray, Joanne Dru

Director Howard Hawks' epic depiction of Western cattle drives and the struggles of an embittered man (John Wayne) and his adopted son (a young Montgomery Clift).

A lot of women tend to overlook Westerns, and I am guilty of that (apart from masterpieces "Shane", "The Searchers" and "High Noon"). Yet I have always found "Red River" to be engrossing, almost Shakespearean in its near-tragic father-son misunderstandings, conflicts and losses. Director Howard Hawks pulled it all off with an elegiac beauty. That tiny scene where Wayne puts his mother's bracelet on the wrist of his sweetheart, "Fen" (Coleen Gray) has never left me.

Love John Wayne. Peter Bogdanovich is very interesting here discussing how Wayne's range of roles evolved starting with "Red River". He went from affable cowboy to a more complex, sometimes tormented persona. As for his character in the film, Bogdanovich reveals how Howard Hawks explained it to him-- Wayne's character made one big mistake in his life, and it directed his actions from then on. That immediately crystallized it for me! Here's the short clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLak5PwUzH8

Trivial aside: How great looking was Montgomery Clift? Here he is in a casual moment on set:

8:00 p.m. Eastern-- "Out of the Past" Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, Kirk Douglas

I've alerted this countless times-- in my book, one of the four or five greatest film noirs. Punchy dialogue, enigmatic romance, wonderful sardonic tidbits from private eye Mitchum. Mitchum, Greer, Douglas all outstanding.

10:00 p.m. Eastern "The Night of the Hunter" Lillian Gish, Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Peter Graves

Stunning, haunting, beautifully directed and photographed story of imperiled children escaping a figure of evil and finding refuge.

Catiele · ‎08-20-2012

Great movies. Clift was tragically great. Lillian Gish was my dad's favorite. They were about the same age. Oh I must be old too!

Judaline · ‎03-10-2010

@Oznell wrote:
Interesting, diverse line-up, a good time to stay in, stay cozy and have movie night...

Blue eyes alert:

5:30 p.m. Eastern, Saturday-- "Red River" John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Walter Brennan, Coleen Gray, Joanne Dru

Director Howard Hawks' epic depiction of Western cattle drives and the struggles of an embittered man (John Wayne) and his adopted son (a young Montgomery Clift).

A lot of women tend to overlook Westerns, and I am guilty of that (apart from masterpieces "Shane", "The Searchers" and "High Noon"). Yet I have always found "Red River" to be engrossing, almost Shakespearean in its near-tragic father-son misunderstandings, conflicts and losses. Director Howard Hawks pulled it all off with an elegiac beauty. That tiny scene where Wayne puts his mother's bracelet on the wrist of his sweetheart, "Fen" (Coleen Gray) has never left me.

Love John Wayne. Peter Bogdanovich is very interesting here discussing how Wayne's range of roles evolved starting with "Red River". He went from affable cowboy to a more complex, sometimes tormented persona. As for his character in the film, Bogdanovich reveals how Howard Hawks explained it to him-- Wayne's character made one big mistake in his life, and it directed his actions from then on. That immediately crystallized it for me! Here's the short clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLak5PwUzH8

Trivial aside: How great looking was Montgomery Clift? Here he is in a casual moment on set:

8:00 p.m. Eastern-- "Out of the Past" Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, Kirk Douglas

I've alerted this countless times-- in my book, one of the four or five greatest film noirs. Punchy dialogue, enigmatic romance, wonderful sardonic tidbits from private eye Mitchum. Mitchum, Greer, Douglas all outstanding.

10:00 p.m. Eastern "The Night of the Hunter" Lillian Gish, Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Peter Graves

Stunning, haunting, beautifully directed and photographed story of imperiled children escaping a figure of evil and finding refuge.

Did you ever notice - or I should say- every movie I've seen John Wayne in he has had on a gold bracelet. Alan Ladd, too. I always wear a gold bracelet so maybe that's why I've noticed-eventually I started looking for it in their movies. I know John Wayne's first movies were like in the 30s, so I don't know if he wore it in those!

Red River was really good. Did he wear it in that movie? I haven't the slightest idea, lol. But I'll look for it.

spiderw · ‎06-14-2010

The only Westerns I love are High Noon with that great theme song and Magnificent Seven, the original. The only movie I liked John Wayne in is The High and the Mighty, love that theme song also!

The Night of the Hunter and Out of the Past are on my DVR

Thanks, Oznell, for the updates.

Judaline · ‎03-10-2010

@spiderw wrote:
The only Westerns I love are High Noon with that great theme song and Magnificent Seven, the original. The only movie I liked John Wayne in is The High and the Mighty, love that theme song also!

The Night of the Hunter and Out of the Past are on my DVR

Thanks, Oznell, for the updates.

I love that song-Johnny Desmond I think. But just the melody is so pretty.

You didn't like the Clint Eastwood westerns?

kaydee50 · ‎02-07-2011

Three great movies. I was going to post about Robert Mitchum's double bill. Two of his best.

In addition to the westerns mentioned by oznell, I would add the original Stagecoach from 1939 which made people take westerns seriously and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, both classics.

hayseed00 · ‎11-24-2011

@kaydee50All great John Wayne movies. My favorites are Rio Grande, and El Dorado !!

Oznell · ‎11-08-2014

@Catiele, @spiderw , @Judaline , @kaydee50 , @hayseed00

@Catiele, isn't Lillian Gish perfect in "The Night is the Hunter", esp. as a counterpoint to Mitchum's character? Your Dad had good taste.

@spiderw, I've never seen "The High and the Mighty", must make a note.

@Judaline, trust observant you to notice bracelets on both actors! As soon as you said that, I had a hazy idea I've noticed it too (and of course, even though I don't like jewelry on 'mortal' men, both of those guys could carry that off, totally!!)

@kaydee50, thank you for adding those two, "Stage Coach" and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon"-- two fabulous classics, and very instructive in seeing Wayne in his dewy early career, and his more 'world-weary' phase...

@hayseed00, Rats, I'm guilty of not having seen either "Rio Grande" or "El Dorado" yet. I've definitely favored Wayne in his relatively few non-Western roles, but admittedly, how can you get to the real Wayne without the essential Westerns?

Reever · ‎03-14-2010

@hayseed00 wrote:
@kaydee50All great John Wayne movies. My favorites are Rio Grande, and El Dorado !!

Love John Wayne. He was also a great American patriot. He helped fund the honory warfare memorial statue at Fort Bragg. It is 22 feet tall and depcits a Green Beret from the Vietnam War and faces a wall with the names of our fallen heroes.

spiderw · ‎06-14-2010

Judaline!

Tex Ritter sang the High Noon theme song and to this day my sister and I love hearing it! I think it definitely made the movie even better!

I do not care for Westerns although when young I did watch them since they were such a big part of TV in the fifties. I think I liked Roy Rogers and Lone Ranger but once I grew up I just lost my taste for cowboy shows and or movies. I' may have watched one of Eastwood's westerns, the Good, Bad and Ugly but that was it , not a fan.