There isn't a more instantly identifiable movie location in the United States than Monument Valley. Situated at the Arizona-Utah border, the area provides a visually striking backdrop thanks to its series of buttes. John Ford made the valley famous via his groundbreaking Western "Stagecoach," and revisited it throughout his legendary career. Over the last 74 years, filmmakers as diverse as Stanley Kubrick, Sergio Leone, Harold Ramis, Steven Spielberg, and Michael Bay have dropped in on the ruggedly beautiful locale with everything from hominins, Chevy Chase, and Transformers. It's a cinematic sandbox every movie lover is desperate to visit. And we all have Ford to thank for this.
Or perhaps not.
One of Ford's other major discoveries was a monument of a man named John Wayne. The tall, swaggering Iowan seemed consigned to a career as a star of B-Westerns until Ford decided he was literally ready for his close-up in "Stagecoach.
Or perhaps not.
One of Ford's other major discoveries was a monument of a man named John Wayne. The tall, swaggering Iowan seemed consigned to a career as a star of B-Westerns until Ford decided he was literally ready for his close-up in "Stagecoach.
- 2/22/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
It's been nearly half a century since John Wayne last donned his iconic stetson hat to play a Western hero, but the actor's name is still synonymous with America's collective image of the Wild West cowboy. During the golden age of Hollywood Westerns, Wayne was the most recognizable gunslinger around, and he won the hearts of millions playing tough, imperfect, sometimes irascible men fighting their way through the rough-and-tumble frontier. From "Stagecoach" to "The Shootist," Wayne frequently embodied what many remember as the prototypical on-screen cowboy.
In reality, though, Westerns existed on screen even before Wayne made his cinematic debut in the 1920s, and the actor wasn't particularly fond of the way they tended to be portrayed. "I made up my mind," Wayne told Maurice Zolotow for his biography "John Wayne, Shooting Star," "that I was going to play a real man to the best of my ability. I felt...
In reality, though, Westerns existed on screen even before Wayne made his cinematic debut in the 1920s, and the actor wasn't particularly fond of the way they tended to be portrayed. "I made up my mind," Wayne told Maurice Zolotow for his biography "John Wayne, Shooting Star," "that I was going to play a real man to the best of my ability. I felt...
- 1/15/2023
- by Valerie Ettenhofer
- Slash Film
In the realm of film criticism, people tend to put too much emphasis on classifying cinema as either the "best" or the "worst." Movies can certainly be bad or good, but often there are enough things in a film that fall into the grey area of just being fine that they don't necessarily fit on either extreme of the spectrum. And at the very least, if the latest trip to the theater yielded a complete stinker, it wasn't a waste, because there's always a lesson to be learned, even if that lesson is what not to do when making a movie.
One classic movie star that embraced this outlook is John Wayne. While he's known for his iconic roles in films "The Searchers," "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," and "True Grit," the Duke starred in over 170 motion pictures throughout his career -- and they weren't all worthy of preservation by the National Film Registry.
One classic movie star that embraced this outlook is John Wayne. While he's known for his iconic roles in films "The Searchers," "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," and "True Grit," the Duke starred in over 170 motion pictures throughout his career -- and they weren't all worthy of preservation by the National Film Registry.
- 1/12/2023
- by Ben F. Silverio
- Slash Film
John Agar never asked to be a movie star, but when the question is put to you by David O. Selznick, you say yes every damn time.
Born in Chicago and raised in Los Angeles, Agar was a physical training instructor for the U.S. Army Air Corps when, in 1945, he found himself at a glitzy party rubbing shoulders with Hollywood's heaviest hitters, as Shirley Temple's date. Selznick, the legendary producer whose dogged determination brought Margaret Mitchell's "Gone with the Wind" to the big screen, was struck by the handsome, twentysomething, 6'1" man on the arm of filmdom's most famous child star, and the filmmaker offered him a five-year contract at 150 a week -- that's twice what the Army was paying him. Though he'd never performed before, he signed on and began taking acting lessons.
Three years later, Agar got a chance to prove himself as Second Lieutenant Mickey...
Born in Chicago and raised in Los Angeles, Agar was a physical training instructor for the U.S. Army Air Corps when, in 1945, he found himself at a glitzy party rubbing shoulders with Hollywood's heaviest hitters, as Shirley Temple's date. Selznick, the legendary producer whose dogged determination brought Margaret Mitchell's "Gone with the Wind" to the big screen, was struck by the handsome, twentysomething, 6'1" man on the arm of filmdom's most famous child star, and the filmmaker offered him a five-year contract at 150 a week -- that's twice what the Army was paying him. Though he'd never performed before, he signed on and began taking acting lessons.
Three years later, Agar got a chance to prove himself as Second Lieutenant Mickey...
- 1/9/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Though John Wayne's legacy will be forever entwined with that of his most frequent and beloved director, John Ford, the two really didn't start collaborating in earnest until well into Wayne's career. By 1947, Wayne had already appeared in over 100 films. True, eight of those were directed by Ford, but Wayne only starred in one of them: 1939's "Stagecoach," which turned him into a star.
The 1940s were a turbulent decade for Wayne. He began it on a high note, celebrating the critical and commercial love for "Stagecoach" at the Academy Awards. But as the '40s wore on, Wayne began to have serious doubts over what kind of star he wanted to be: did he want to write, produce, even direct, or just act? With World War II underway, Wayne starred in war picture after war picture -- would he ever return to the Western that proved so successful with audiences?...
The 1940s were a turbulent decade for Wayne. He began it on a high note, celebrating the critical and commercial love for "Stagecoach" at the Academy Awards. But as the '40s wore on, Wayne began to have serious doubts over what kind of star he wanted to be: did he want to write, produce, even direct, or just act? With World War II underway, Wayne starred in war picture after war picture -- would he ever return to the Western that proved so successful with audiences?...
- 1/8/2023
- by Ryan Coleman
- Slash Film
It's rare to see John Wayne back down in a standoff, but that's exactly what happened when shooting one of his most revered films. By 1939, Wayne was no stranger to Westerns, though he wasn't yet a household name. Wayne had already appeared in a string of uncredited roles in films by the legendary director John Ford in the late '20s. So, when Ford made his triumphant return to the Western genre with "Stagecoach" he tapped Wayne for the lead character, Ringo Kid.
Casting Wayne was the first of a lengthy series of battles with United Artists. The studio wanted a big name for the film, but Ford had a feeling about the charismatic 32 year old and insisted on him for the role. Ford introduces viewers to Wayne in dramatic fashion, with a zoom-in on a rifle-wielding Ringo Kid in front of a gorgeous landscape of Monument Valley plateaus (where...
Casting Wayne was the first of a lengthy series of battles with United Artists. The studio wanted a big name for the film, but Ford had a feeling about the charismatic 32 year old and insisted on him for the role. Ford introduces viewers to Wayne in dramatic fashion, with a zoom-in on a rifle-wielding Ringo Kid in front of a gorgeous landscape of Monument Valley plateaus (where...
- 1/3/2023
- by Travis Yates
- Slash Film
By 1948, Howard Hawks had made just about every type of film over his then 22-year career when he decided to take on the most American of movie genres: the Western. Though he'd made plenty of films about rough and/or ruthless men, the closest he'd come to making a true oater was with 1934's "Barbary Coast," which plays like more of a period crime film set in mid-1850s San Francisco. "Red River," written by Borden Chase and Charles Schnee (based on Chase's serialized novel "The Chisholm Trail"), would be the real deal.
And it almost fell apart before Hawks shot a frame of film.
While the story about Tom Dunson, a determined rancher who turns into a horse-riding Captain Ahab during a harrowing cattle drive from Texas to Missouri, was crammed with action and intrigue, it proved tonally problematic for Hawks' star. Gary Cooper had made several films with...
And it almost fell apart before Hawks shot a frame of film.
While the story about Tom Dunson, a determined rancher who turns into a horse-riding Captain Ahab during a harrowing cattle drive from Texas to Missouri, was crammed with action and intrigue, it proved tonally problematic for Hawks' star. Gary Cooper had made several films with...
- 1/3/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
Before John Wayne began making low-budget Westerns in the 1930s, stunt performers were rarely, if ever, acknowledged or given credit for their work. Studios didn't want to break the illusion to reveal that it wasn't the main star on-screen performing their own stunts, so the practice became one of Hollywood's biggest secrets. Looking back on the history of stunts from the era, the British Action Academy noted that, during that time, studios and directors began demanding more dangerous stunts that resulted in a large increase in on-set fatalities.
The marquee star wasn't in mortal jeopardy and some actors like Harold Lloyd had it written into their contracts that it could never be revealed when a stuntman was utilized. Tom Mix, the first bonafide movie star, always claimed that he was the one who made the famous horse jump across the Beale's Cut ravine in John Ford's 1923 short film, "3 Jumps Ahead.
The marquee star wasn't in mortal jeopardy and some actors like Harold Lloyd had it written into their contracts that it could never be revealed when a stuntman was utilized. Tom Mix, the first bonafide movie star, always claimed that he was the one who made the famous horse jump across the Beale's Cut ravine in John Ford's 1923 short film, "3 Jumps Ahead.
- 1/3/2023
- by Drew Tinnin
- Slash Film
John Wayne had cemented his status as one of the biggest movie stars in Hollywood when he encountered his first major challenges as an actor in Howard Hawks' "Red River." While playing a hard-case cattle driver like Thomas Dunson was right in the Duke's macho wheelhouse, the character's age and Ahab-like obsessiveness called for him to step outside of his swaggering, heroic persona. He had to look old and be not just ornery, but downright unlikeable.
It's the kind of role Wayne would only take on as a collaboration with a director he respected as more than an overseer. Hawks was a versatile master of the visual medium. He could do screwball comedy, gangster flicks, war movies, film noir, and Westerns, bringing a rare intelligence to each without turning them into joyless, awards-courting prestige pictures. The biggest stars of the day were eager to work with Hawks, so it was...
It's the kind of role Wayne would only take on as a collaboration with a director he respected as more than an overseer. Hawks was a versatile master of the visual medium. He could do screwball comedy, gangster flicks, war movies, film noir, and Westerns, bringing a rare intelligence to each without turning them into joyless, awards-courting prestige pictures. The biggest stars of the day were eager to work with Hawks, so it was...
- 12/29/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
There are few pettier on this Earth than an actor who chased a coveted role and received little to no consideration from the director. Sure, some have thicker skin than others and can handle rejection with little bruising to their ego. And then there are guys like John Wayne, who didn't like losing anything. Ever.
The Duke had slugged it out in poverty row Westerns throughout the 1930s before landing his breakout role in John Ford's 1939 triumph, "Stagecoach." After the success of that film, Wayne had zero interest in groveling for a part ever again. But he made an exception for Cecil B. DeMille, the master of the Hollywood epic who, in early 1940, was casting "North West Mounted Police." Despite the yawner of a title, this was a big-deal motion picture — Gary Cooper was set to star as a Texas Ranger who joins forces with Canadian lawmen to track down a fugitive outlaw.
The Duke had slugged it out in poverty row Westerns throughout the 1930s before landing his breakout role in John Ford's 1939 triumph, "Stagecoach." After the success of that film, Wayne had zero interest in groveling for a part ever again. But he made an exception for Cecil B. DeMille, the master of the Hollywood epic who, in early 1940, was casting "North West Mounted Police." Despite the yawner of a title, this was a big-deal motion picture — Gary Cooper was set to star as a Texas Ranger who joins forces with Canadian lawmen to track down a fugitive outlaw.
- 12/22/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
When an ambitious, first-time filmmaker pulls off a cinematic coup, critics and jealous industry veterans have a penchant for working overtime to undermine their achievement. You need look no further than "Citizen Kane," the genius of which has, over the years, been ascribed to cinematographer Gregg Toland, screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, and editor Robert Wise. Surely, Welles, who only revolutionized radio and stagecraft, couldn't have transformed yet another medium!
But when an ambitious, first-time filmmaker faceplants, everyone in a position to claim credit skedaddles like cockroaches at the flick of a light switch. The cast and crew were at the mercy of a misguided fool. They did their jobs as directed, and couldn't wait to move on to the next show.
This is the way of things in Hollywood. So it's strange that John Wayne spent the last nineteen years of his life fighting to assert authorship of the poorly...
But when an ambitious, first-time filmmaker faceplants, everyone in a position to claim credit skedaddles like cockroaches at the flick of a light switch. The cast and crew were at the mercy of a misguided fool. They did their jobs as directed, and couldn't wait to move on to the next show.
This is the way of things in Hollywood. So it's strange that John Wayne spent the last nineteen years of his life fighting to assert authorship of the poorly...
- 9/30/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
7 April 1961: In his biography, Maurice Zolotow’s tries to explain the aura that surrounds Miss Monroe
The British intelligentsia are suckers for the Cinderella myth. Show them a pin-up girl turned movie star and they will rush to recognise her as a “natural actress,” “a born comedienne,” or “artlessly touching.” One can think of at least three beautiful women, with no acting capabilities whatsoever, who have been acclaimed as actresses by the serious British critics. The same critics had very probably jeered at these same girls when they were merely “sex symbols.”
Continue reading...
The British intelligentsia are suckers for the Cinderella myth. Show them a pin-up girl turned movie star and they will rush to recognise her as a “natural actress,” “a born comedienne,” or “artlessly touching.” One can think of at least three beautiful women, with no acting capabilities whatsoever, who have been acclaimed as actresses by the serious British critics. The same critics had very probably jeered at these same girls when they were merely “sex symbols.”
Continue reading...
- 4/7/2017
- by Richard West
- The Guardian - Film News
The actress is mostly remembered for her good looks, but what about her impressive performances?
In Richard Dyer’s book Heavenly Bodies: Film Stars and Society, he writes that Marilyn Monroe was “the most visible star”: an actress whose life was put on display, and remains so over 50 years after her death. She is one of the most iconic Hollywood stars of all time, her face instantly recognizable to even those who have never seen any of her movies. She is a symbol of beauty, glamor, cinema, femininity, blondness, sexuality, and tragedy. While the world speculates about her personal life — who was she romantically involved with? How did she die? What was she really like? — her career as an actress is overshadowed by her fame.
While she may not have been the greatest actress of all time, she certainly had her fair share of talent and intelligence, and always worked incredibly hard to bring her...
In Richard Dyer’s book Heavenly Bodies: Film Stars and Society, he writes that Marilyn Monroe was “the most visible star”: an actress whose life was put on display, and remains so over 50 years after her death. She is one of the most iconic Hollywood stars of all time, her face instantly recognizable to even those who have never seen any of her movies. She is a symbol of beauty, glamor, cinema, femininity, blondness, sexuality, and tragedy. While the world speculates about her personal life — who was she romantically involved with? How did she die? What was she really like? — her career as an actress is overshadowed by her fame.
While she may not have been the greatest actress of all time, she certainly had her fair share of talent and intelligence, and always worked incredibly hard to bring her...
- 3/15/2017
- by Angela Morrison
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
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