Orson Welles was asked what director influenced him the most. He responded John Ford. Welles answer is interesting, since he directed Citizen Kane; a movie considered by many to be the greatest film ever made. It is a humble and very honest answer. There have been many great directors to set foot in Hollywood, but there is only one John Ford.
John Ford created the modern western, with the three films that form the trilogy, Fort Apache, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Rio Grande. These movies were filmed in Monument Valley Utah. It gives these westerns a beauty out of the stories they tell. They show the hard life of cavalry soldiers and officers and the dangers they face. It also shows their bravery. It gives insight into their personal lives as well. There is no one who could craft a story better than John Ford. He was a taskmaster, with his actors, but the product was incredible. He also had a stock group of actors, that included Ward Bond, Victor McLaughlin, Harry Carey Jr. and Ben Johnson that he used for the trilogy.
John Wayne was toiling for years in B grade westerns, until he was cast in John Ford’s western, Stagecoach. John Wayne continued to work with Ford, on and off for several years. He then began the trilogy with the director in 1948. Despite Ford’s difficult demeanor, John Wayne looked up to Ford, calling him Pappy. After Wayne finished the trilogy, he was an established star, and a respected actor.
The first film in the trilogy is Fort Apache, (1948) and stars John Wayne, Henry Fonda and a grown up and beautiful Shirley Temple. John Wayne plays Captain Kirby York and Henry Fonda has the role of Colonel Owen Thursday. Fonda, in his role, is a by the book, hard as nails, new commander of the fort. His job is to quell the uprising of the Apaches, his way. John Wayne does his best to get Thursday to understand that the Apaches need a velvet glove approach, and not an iron fist.
Thursday’s efforts to run a tight ship, are thwarted by two things, his daughter, Philadelphia, and the officers and the behavior of the enlisted men. Philadelphia, has fallen for a young officer, Michael Shannon O’Rourke played by John Agar, Shirley Temple’s husband at the time. Colonel Thursday has tried to shield her from the harsh reality of army life. Unfortunately, she goes on a ride with John Agar, and they come across a massacre. This infuriates Thursday and he orders Agar not to see his daughter. These are just words to the couple, and they disregard the colonel. Thursday must also contend with his staff, who agree with Captain York’s feelings about the Apaches. His other problem is the enlisted men. One of them is Sgt. Michael O’Rourke, Lt. O’Rourke’s, bursting with pride father. He is played by John Wayne’s best friend, Ward Bond. In a funny scene, led by Victor McLaughlin, the men don’t destroy rotgut whiskey; being sold to the Apaches, by a crooked government man. They drink it and are thrown in the guardhouse on Fonda’s orders.
The Apaches continue their attacks and Thursday goes out with a small group that includes Captain York, to meet with the chief. The chief demands that the government agent leave, and states firmly that they will not go back to the reservation. The colonel is outraged, and demands that they go to the reservation, immediately. Thursday, also forgetting any diplomacy, tells the chief that he is without honor, and that he and the tribe will be forced onto the reservation.
The next day comes and Colonel Thursday and his officers and enlisted men go out to engage the Apaches. He gives the command to charge in groups of four. Colonel York objects saying it will be suicide. Colonel Thursday angrily orders York back to the fort, along with Lt. O’Rourke. Thursday orders the charge, and is unhorsed in the ensuing battle. Colonel York orders the Lt. back to the fort, and heads toward the battle. There he finds Thursday in a daze from a head wound. He tries to get him to come with him. Instead, he gets on York’s horse and rides back to the battle. Unfortunately because of Thursday’s blunder, everyone is killed. Ford did a good job showing the chaos of the battle. After the battle ends, the Apaches head to York’s position. They advance and the captain does the only thing possible to avoid further bloodshed. He drops his weapons, and stands alone. The Apaches get his message, and leave.
The film advances a few years with York, now a colonel, and Philadelphia and Lt.O’Rourke married with children. He is giving the reporters a status report about the Apaches. A reporter asks a question about Colonel Thursday and the facts surrounding his death. Thursday is hailed as a hero, and York confirms his status. He says Thursday and the men who died will always be with us, with their faces appearing, when York looks out the window. Afterward, Colonel York leads his men out to pursue the Apaches.
Fort Apache has Henry Fonda giving a solid performance as Colonel Thursday, an officer motivated only by his duty. He is a fictionalized version of Colonel George Armstrong Custer, set in the southwest. Fonda was a somewhat under appreciated actor, who had to wait many years for recognition. John Wayne has given quite a performance as Captain York. He is the polar opposite of Fonda’s blinded by duty Colonel Thursday.
The second film of the three is She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949). This is the best of the trilogy. It is enhanced by technicolor, which shows Monument Valley as a true natural work of art. It also has narration, which gives it a more dramatic feel. In this film, John Wayne is the star, playing Captain Nathan Brittles, who is retiring from the army in a few days. Joann Dru, plays Olivia Dandridge, the niece of the fort’s commanding officer. She causes quite a stir when she catches the eye of two cavalry officers, Lt. Flint Cohill, (John Agar) and Second Lt. Ross Pennell, (Harry Carey Jr.). She starts wearing a yellow ribbon in her hair, meaning she has a beau. Neither officer knows which one she likes, and later they fight over her, but Captain Brittles breaks it up. They later resolve their issues, when Olivia decides. A running joke is when Mr. Pennell says he’ll make first Lt. Brittles and Cahill say yes, in ten or twenty years.
Olivia Dandridge isn’t just a pretty young lady, flirting with officers. She has a heart. In one of the films most touching scenes, Brittles is at his late wife’s gravesite, telling her about George Custer’s death. He tells her about Miles Keough, a young man they knew, who died with Custer. He reminisces about the officer being a good dancer. During this scene, a shadow falls over the grave. The shadow belongs to Olivia, who has brought fresh flowers to the grave. This scene shows the acting range of John Wayne.
Unfortunately for Nathan Brittles, he can’t relax until he retires. The Sioux and Cheyenne have been on the war path since Custer’s death. He has been ordered to evacuate the women to safety, and pursue the Indians. Along the way, his troops find an outpost that was attacked, with one survivor. He is treated and placed in a wagon. Abby Ashlard, (Mildred Natwick), takes care of him, and sings the title song to him, during a thunderstorm. John Ford with this scene sets the mood.
Captain Brittles and the soldiers get back to the fort, but Captain Brittles won’t be going back. He is retiring. The soldiers have deep respect for him. They give him a brand new watch. He is touched by this gesture, and sheds a tear. After this the men depart. He then goes to see his close friend, Sgt.Quincannon, (Victor McLaglin). He is retiring in three weeks, and Brittles asks him to try on a suit that he has. The suit is ill fitting, but Brittles says he looks fine, and to keep it for his civilian life. Brittles tells the Sgt. to have a drink at the bar. Brittles last order is to lock up Quincannon. This seems cut and dried, but even the toughest soldiers fear the drunken Sgt. He gets into a brawl with at least a half dozen soldiers. He beats all of them and gladly walks to the guardhouse. It is a very funny scene. McLaglin was the comic relief for many of John Ford’s films.
Nathan Brittles rides out of the fort, to meet his friend, Chief Pony That Walks, (Chief John Big Tree). He tries to get the chief to persuade the warriors, that their way is foolish. Pony That Walks says the young ones want war, and won’t listen. He asks Nathan to come with him and they can hunt buffalo. He says no, he’ll probably head to California. This is a good scene showing a very human side of the Indians. It also shows Brittles putting great faith and trust in Pony Who Walks. It also suggests that Brittles and the chief enjoyed some adventures in times past, before the wars.
After his meeting Captain Brittles catches up with the troops, who are beating the Indians. When the battle is over, he tells the officers, “Make them walk, it hurts their pride.” Brittles then heads out to his new life. The narrator comes in and says the army wasn’t done with Captain Brittles. A rider gives him a dispatch from the war department. He has been made chief of scouts. Nathan Brittles then goes to a dance at the fort. Olivia Dandridge asks the captain to dance. He says he can’t because he has to attend to some business. He goes to his wife’s grave and tells her the news. The next day he heads out as chief of scouts, with the troops.
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, is a sentimental film, that gives an upside to life in The U.S. Cavalry. This is one of John Wayne’s and John Ford’s greatest films. It shows Captain Nathan Brittles as a man who respects the way of life of the Indians, and his deep friendship with Chief Pony That Walks. Captain Brittles has also a motto, in this movie. It’s “never apologize, it’s a sign of weakness.” He says this to Olivia Dandridge, after she apologizes to him. John Wayne’s ability to act is clear in this movie. He plays a man several years older than himself. The best thing that can be said about this film is that it transcends the western genre. It becomes a movie with deep human feeling, with the action becoming secondary.
The third film, Rio Grande, (1950) is the darkest film. It brings back the character John Wayne played in Fort Apache, Kirby Yorke. Yorke is now a Lt. Colonel. The movie gives York a love interest, Mrs. Kathleen Yorke, played by Maureen O’Hara. She brings her beauty and Irish charm to the role. Together the two shine on screen.
Col. Yorke is in charge of an outpost on the Rio Grande. He is told by his commanding officer, that his troops need to stop the Apaches raiding the area. Yorke’s C.O. is Lt.General Philip Sheridan, played by J. Carrol Naish. This is the first time a real life character is used in the films.
After being told of the situation, Col. Yorke finds out that his son, Jefferson Yorke, has joined his command. Jefferson flunked out at West Point, and wants to prove himself. This doesn’t please him. The Colonel soon finds out, that when it rains, it pours. His estranged wife, Kathleen, has arrived to take him home. She will pay the money, for her son’s release from service. The only problem is neither the colonel or his son will sign the release papers. Mrs. Yorke will have to accept the reality of her son’s new life. Ford’s mastery of the camera is shown, when Maureen O’Hara’s character enters Col. Yorke’s tent. She is shown in all her radiant beauty in a full closeup.
There is a ray of sunshine to Kathleen Yorke’s life. Her disappointment has given her back the man she lost, Col Yorke. John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara create sparks on screen. They managed to do this in the several films in which they appeared.
Before the hostilities start, Colonel Yorke must evacuate the women and children. While they are taking them to safety, the Apaches attack the wagons. The Indians take the children, and head across the Rio Grande to the Mexico side.
John Wayne’s character has a dilemma. He needs to rescue the children, but diplomacy, prevents him. His dilemma is solved when his C.O. gives him permission to cross. The children are being held in a church. A few of the men go in. One of the children rings the church bell, letting the rest of the troops know the men are safely inside. The cavalry advance and are met by the Apaches. There is a fierce battle, and the cavalry beats them. The children are taken back, and reunited with their families. The next day, many of the men are cited for bravery, including trooper Yorke. Another trooper, Travis Tyree is also cited. He is given a furlough by Colonel Yorke. This is to escape a U.S. Deputy Marsal, (Grant Withers), who’s been pursuing him throughout the movie. Colonel Yorke and Mrs Yorke have patched up their differences, giving a happy ending to the movie.
This film although dark does give the audience comedy. This is in the form of Victor Macglaglen, who plays Sgt. Major Timothy Quincannon. Macglaglen is one of the many stock players who make these films shine. Also shown is this movie is the horsemanship of Ben Johnson, and Harry Carey Jr. This film also has songs provided by The Sons of the Pioneers.
The three films in this trilogy were made as part of a deal between John Ford and Republic Pictures. John Ford agreed to make three westerns for the studio. Republic, in return, agreed to let John Ford direct a film about Ireland. It all worked out. Republic Pictures produced three of the finest westerns ever made. John Ford’s tale of Ireland was The Quiet Man. It won the director his fourth Academy Award.
John Ford with these movies changed the rules for westerns. He shot them all on location. This was rarely done. Most westerns were done on the studio lot, and exteriors were done not far from the lot. Story lines for many westerns were largely formulaic:good guy/bad guy. The villains in these movies aren’t always unhappy Indian tribes. There is government corruption. This being prominent in the first film, Fort Apache. There is also arrogance, and pride; shown by Col. Thursday In Fort Apache and the Sioux chiefs in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. These unique and game changing ideas made John Ford an innovator when it came to westerns, as well as overall directorial style. There is probably a director struggling to make their first or tenth movie. There could be a Hollywood moment for this person. They could look out the window, and like Col.York, in Fort Apache see John Ford, John Wayne and the rest of the players in the trilogy; and gain inspiration.