May 26, 2020

A perfect pairing of sound & vision. Rio Bravo.

Purple light in the canyon,
that is where I long to be.
With my three good companions,
just my rifle pony and me.

 A rare moment in a John Wayne film where he feels superfluous to the action.
There's about to be big trouble in little Rio Bravo. Joe Burdette's been arrested for murder and he ain't going quietly. His brother is Nathan Burdette and Joe knows his big brother, the rancher, won't put up with a jailed family member. Sheriff Chance (Wayne) has his hands full. His friend Wheeler (Ward Bond) has been gunned down and all he has left to back him up is Stumpy (the estimable Walter Brennan), the jailer with a bad limp, Colorado (Ricky Nelson), a teenager who was Wheeler's help and Dude (Dean Martin). Dude used to be handy with a pistol until a fondness for drink left him the laughing stock of the town. But now he has a chance to be of use again and he's trying his best the stay sober. Burdette's men are coming and the 4 have a moment of peace before all hell breaks loose.



A perfect example of the calm before the storm. Those dulcet tones. Dean Martin, a perfect choice for the role of Dude. His real life demons feeding into those of Dude's. Yeah the casting of Ricky Nelson was a cynical ploy to get the teeny bopper fans of his into the cinema but TBF so was Martin's casting. And it worked. It gave us this little piece of cinema magic, a perfect pairing of sound & vision.

 Previous pairings 

 Hard Boiled
8 mile
Wheels On Meals
The Office (UK)
Do The Right Thing
Se7en
Mad Men
The Colour Of Money
Rules Of Attraction
Kickboxer                                  
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