Rio Lobo

Rating:
Summary: The worst western ever made? Rent it & decide.
Review: Stupid? Slow moving? Hard to follow? Yep. This one's so bad it's actually pretty entertaining. The thing to do is get hold of this movie, have some friends over (bringing beer), and spend a winter weekend afternoon discussing Rio Lobo's vast flaws and shortcomings. Take US Cavalry Col. John Wayne's unique strategy for chasing a gang of train robbers, for example: every time you come to a fork in the road, say: "Half you men go that way -- the rest, follow me!" Of course, you can only do that so many times before you end up, as The Duke does here, chasing the bad guys all by yourself. This apotheosizes John Wayne's mythic solitary hero persona. Or maybe it's just really stupid (but maybe it's unfair to expect much, given that the JW character's civilian occupation is "aimless drifter"). Take the slow meandering repetitive dialogue -- "You can't arrest this woman without a warrant. Do you have a warrant to arrest this woman?" "Golly, I didn't think of getting a warrant to arrest her." "Well, if you don't have a warrant you can't arrest her. You'll have to go back and get a warrant." "But I don't have time to go back and get a warrant..." Oh, you get your money's worth of talk out of this one alright. Take the way the Evil Cattle Baron (or whatever he is--it's not clear what he does for a living besides being Evil) gets captured by the Good Guys (a seriously motley crew that includes a Mexican Confederate officer called Frenchy) a third of the way through the movie, so he spends the remaining two-thirds just kind of tagging along--his part's over, you understand, but he's still there, in some corner of the screen in almost every shot till the end ("Hi, mom!"). You can even take the ECB's giant humongous fake eyebrows, leftover makeup from a caveman movie I'm guessing. You'll still have plenty of points for discussion, cause this is a very long movie (although not as long as it seems). That's "Rio Lobo", folks. See it and find out why they don't make westerns any more.

Rating:
Summary: Rio Lobo es fantastico!
Review: This is a classic western. Wayne and Hawks show again why they rank as the best actor/director duos in cinema. The villians are scary as hell, the dialogue is crisp and sharp, and the plot is everything you'd want in a western. Jack Elam is hilarious. Jennifer O'Neil and Sherry Lansing are beatiful and sexy (look for a nearly nude scene with Lansing and you'll be wishing she'd never left the silver screen), and John Wayne is at his best! A must for all fans of westerns, John Wayne, and lovers of entertainment cinema. It doesn't get any better than Rio Lobo!

Rating:
Summary: Very interesting and authentic....hardcore John Wayne
Review: This movie is hardcore John Wayne at his finest, and terribly authentic. The movie begins with Union Colonel Wayne nervous (with good reason) about a gold shipment during the latter stages of the civil war. He is only nervous about sending it through territory where he knows the famous 1st Louisiana Cavalry is lurking. What follows is absolutely the greatest train robbery in movie history in my opinion. You are left breathless when the hornet nest is sent flying into the boxcar holding the gold. Then John Wayne picks up the chase. Great photography, and it posesses all the ear marks of a Wayne-Hawks western. The plot later in the movie follows along the same lines as previous Wayne-Hawks classics "Rio Bravo" and "Eldorado". Do yourself a favor and add this one to your western collection.

Rating:
Summary: Started off promising....
Review: This one starts off great w/ a train robbery but then flickers out light a used candle. The Duke was paired with co-stars who seemed to know nothing about the dialect or mannerisms of the old west. Their acting styles made them great candidates for guest spots on "The Love Boat" or "Charlies Angels". The two girls were quite the hotties but out of place in this flix. Im wondering who the target audience was. All in all, worth seeing once for the train robbery but don't even think of buying this one.

Rating:
Summary: Hawks' Cinematic Farewell
Review: Though cut from the same narrative cloth as "Rio Bravo" and "El Dorado," Howard Hawks' "Rio Lobo" (1970) remains a solid Western and a fitting end to the veteran director's career. With a "comfortable" John Wayne back in the saddle, the film is highlighted by impressive action sequences and splendid comic relief from Jack Elam. Admittedly, the younger actors are a bit weak -- and it's a shame that Robert Mitchum was unable to co-star with Wayne as originally planned. "Rio Lobo" may not represent Hawks' best work, but it's a lot of fun.

Rating:
Summary: Hawks' Cinematic Farewell
Review: Though cut from the same narrative cloth as "Rio Bravo" and "El Dorado," Howard Hawks' "Rio Lobo" (1970) remains a solid Western and a fitting end to the veteran director's career. With a "comfortable" John Wayne back in the saddle, the film is highlighted by impressive action sequences and splendid comic relief from Jack Elam. Admittedly, the younger actors are a bit weak -- and it's a shame that Robert Mitchum was unable to co-star with Wayne as originally planned. "Rio Lobo" may not represent Hawks' best work, but it's a lot of fun.