Director:
Henry Hathaway
Cast:
John Wayne….Marshall Reuben J. ‘Rooster’ Cogburn
Glen Campbell….La Boeuf
Kim Darby….Mattie Ross
Jeremy Slate….Emmett Quincy
Robert Duvall….Ned Pepper
Dennis Hopper….Moon
Strother Martin….Colonel G. Stonehill
Jeff Corey….Tom Chaney
Paramount Home Video presents True Grit: Special Collector’s Edition. Screenplay by Marguerite Roberts. Running time: 128 minutes. Rated G. Theatrical release: June 11, 1969. DVD released May 22, 2007.
The Movie
The Duke turns 100 on May 26. How do you plan on celebrating the day that America’s toughest actor punched his way out of the womb? You’ll have plenty of choices as a wave of his best movies hit the DVD shelves in various special editions. John Wayne appeared in over 150 films, but only won a single acting Oscar for True Grit. Even with one eye covered and a lung removed, Wayne took back his title as the greatest cowboy actor in the role of Rooster Cogburn.
In the mid-60s, the Western had undergone a revolution thanks to Sergio Leone and the Spaghetti Westerns that flooded the theaters. The clean-cut cowboy heroes played by John Wayne had been pushed aside by the amoral scruff sported by Clint Eastwood. It just wasn’t that cool to be a John Wayne fan, especially after The Green Berets. In the era of youth rebellion, Wayne was the icon of the elderly. But with True Grit, the Duke was able to alter his cinematic image without having to pack his gun belts and mosey off to Spain. He didn’t have to turn his back on Hollywood to let us see a different side.
True Grit starts with Frank Ross, a rancher, heading into town to sell horses. During a night of gambling, one of his employees, Tom Chaney, loses his temper and kills Ross. Chaney skips town for Indian territory. Ross’ daughter Mattie wants justice for her dead father. Even though she seems like a sweet girl, she seeks to hire the meanest sheriff to hunt down Chaney. The only man that fits that description is Marshall Rooster Cogburn. He’s a drunk, one-eyed lawman who’d rather bring them back dead than deal with a prisoner. He’s relucatant to accept the case, but Mattie throws enough cash at him. He stumbles onto the fugitive’s trail. Turns out that Mattie isn’t the only one looking for Chaney. He shot a state senator in Texas. La Bouef, a ranger, is also looking to collect a bounty on the killer’s head. The two lawmen and the teen girl head into the wilderness. They quickly discover that Chaney isn’t riding alone. He’s joined up with Ned Pepper’s outlaw gang. This is not going to be a simple chase. Hopefully Rooster’s packed enough whiskey to keep his hand steady.
After decades of seeing John Wayne playing the Superman cowboy that stands for truth, justice and the American way, it’s refreshing to see him as Rooster. He embraces the ruthless ways of the role. He shoots an unarmed mouse. Wayne looks like a natural drunk when he pounds down a bottle of booze on the back of a horse. He has no problem backing out on his deals with the dead. Rooster is kinda lawman the Duke would gun down to clean up a town.
What makes Wayne’s performance memorable is his interaction with Kim Darby. She pushes Wayne to not merely act the fool. She has no fear or awe in her eyes when sharing the screen with the cowboy legend. She remains a sensible girl who demands results for her investments. She’s not the sweet, but scared farmer’s daughter. Her two horse trading scenes with Strother Martin are comic gems. Mattie Ross is a great female character in Western films. Darby remains an active actress and is best known to cable addicts as John Cusack’s mom in Better Off Dead.
Two of the bad guys are played by Robert Duvall and Dennis Hopper. It’s always good for the Duke aim his gun at such talent. The only weak part of the casting is Glen Campbell as the Texas Ranger. He’s just out of his league. As the film progresses, they edit around the Rhinestone Cowboy’s performance to limit his reaction shots. As far as singer/actors go, he’s no Dean Martin, but he’s better than Vanilla Ice.
As we take pleasure in a century of John Wayne, it’s fitting to view this film as it reinforces not only his image as an American icon, but as an acting legend. True Grit was proof that the Duke could do more than look tough, punch cows and say, “Pilgrim.”
The DVD
VIDEO:
The picture is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The transfer has very little dust or specks. The picture looks stunning when showing off the Colorado landscapes. .
AUDIO:
The soundtrack is Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and Mono. There’s a French and Spanish mono dubs. The new mix gives a boldness to Elmer Bernstein’s score. The commentary track features Jeb Rosebrook (screenwriter of Junior Bonner, Bob Boze Bell (owner of True West magazine) and J. Stuart Rosebrook (film historian). The captions are in English and French.
EXTRAS:
True Writing (4:29) breaks down the transition from Charles Portis’ novel to Marguerite Roberts’ screenplay. There was no hesitation in Wayne wanting to make the film after he read this script. Roberts thought the Duke would reject the script since she was on the Hollywood blacklist.
Working With The Duke (10:16) has actors and crew tell their on location tales. Jeremy Slate points out that John Wayne did play against type in the film because the Duke shot him in the back. Unfortunately too much of this short piece is monopolized by film historians chirping in about Wayne. Luster Bayless, a custome designer, explains how he created an eyepatch that Wayne could see through. There’s some nice behind the scenes photos. We also get a pic of Wayne accepting his Oscar. Shame they couldn’t spend time with Dennis Hopper. There are numerous stories about how the Duke didn’t like Hopper’s hippie ways.
Aspen Gold: The Locations of True Grit (10:19) is a tour of what the movie locations look like now. The gallows have been removed from the town’s center. They still have the fiberglass fake rocks near the outlaws’ cave. If you’re a fan of the film, this is a good guide for a location vacation.
The Law And The Lawless (5:47) deals with the strange nicknames of Old West Outlaws. Did you know there were gunslingers called “Dirty Sock” Jack and “Bad Bladder” Allen? There’s also discussion of how the legal system worked in the Old West when it came time to clean up the frontier towns.
Theatrical Trailer (3:40) is the Cliff’s Notes version of the film.
True Grit: Special Collector’s Edition |
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