She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

Rating:
Summary: One of Ford's best movies
Review: She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is the second movie in the John Ford cavalry trilogy and a great western overall. In the months following the massacre at the Little Bighorn, all the Indians tribes throughout the west, Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache, are uniting to fight back and destroy the white population. At Fort Starke, Captain Nathan Brittles has only six more days in the army before his retirement becomes official. Before he can retire, Brittles must lead his cavalry troop on one last patrol to try and stop the coming Indian attack. Simply put, this is one of the most beautiful westerns ever put on screen. As expected with a John Ford western, the cinematography in Monument Valley is breathtaking with gorgeous vivid colors. At the same time, the movie is a perfect example of a how a story should be told. Ford takes his time developing the story, allowing the viewer to get to know the characters and enjoy the scenery of Monument Valley. It goes without saying that if you like this movie, check out Fort Apache and Rio Grande.

John Wayne gives one of his best performances as Captain Nathan Brittles, a retiring cavalry officer who must lead his troop on one more patrol. Any movie fan that denies getting a little teary-eyed during the scene where Brittles addresses his company for the last time is lying. Joanne Dru plays Olivia Dandridge, a young Eastern woman traveling with the troop. John Agar and Harry Carey JR play Lt. Flint Cohill and Lt. Ross Penell, the young officers vying for Miss Dandridge's attention. In an excellent supporting role, Ben Johnson plays Sergeant Tyree, an ex-Confederate officer serving as the company's scout/point man. Ford regular Victor McLaglen is equally as good as Sgt. Quincannon, the hard-drinking veteran and friend of Brittles who is also retiring. The movie also stars George O'Brien, Mildred Natwick, and Arthur Shields. The DVD offers a beautifully remastered standard presentation, production notes, a brief 4-minute home video with the Duke and Ford scouting locations, and a theatrical trailer. For another John Wayne classic with the master director, John Ford, check out She Wore a Yellow Ribbon!

Rating:
Summary: ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS LOOKING DVD OF THIS JOHN FORD CLASSIC
Review: "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon" is one of those glorious westerns, luminously photographed by director, John Ford. It stars, John Wayne, as a widower living at a military outpost with the cavalry and features some of the most gorgeously photographed exteriors ever captured on film. Monument Valley becomes a place of quiet, stoic beauty and the duke never gave a more impressive performance than he does here.
My hat off to the good people at Warner Home Video. This is a truly amazing looking DVD and one that should definitely be on every film buffs wish list to own. Colors are fully saturated, well balanced and incredibly life like. Contrast levels are on pitch as are black levels. There is a hint of edge enhancement and pixelization but really - it's just a hint. Chips, scratches and imperfections inherant in the original camera negative are kept to a bare, bare minimum. The audio is mono, as originally presented, but extremely well balanced, with low to non-existant background hiss in most scenes. No extras: a shame! One craves a documentary on either the making-of this movie or John Ford himself. We get neither. Still, it's hard to fault such a near pristine looking transfer.
BOTTOM LINE: Get this one before it goes out of print!

Rating:
Summary: ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS LOOKING DVD OF THIS JOHN FORD CLASSIC
Review: "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon" is one of those glorious westerns, luminously photographed by director, John Ford. It stars, John Wayne, as a widower living at a military outpost with the cavalry and features some of the most gorgeously photographed exteriors ever captured on film. Monument Valley becomes a place of quiet, stoic beauty and the duke never gave a more impressive performance than he does here.
My hat off to the good people at Warner Home Video. This is a truly amazing looking DVD and one that should definitely be on every film buffs wish list to own. Colors are fully saturated, well balanced and incredibly life like. Contrast levels are on pitch as are black levels. There is a hint of edge enhancement and pixelization but really - it's just a hint. Chips, scratches and imperfections inherant in the original camera negative are kept to a bare, bare minimum. The audio is mono, as originally presented, but extremely well balanced, with low to non-existant background hiss in most scenes. No extras: a shame! One craves a documentary on either the making-of this movie or John Ford himself. We get neither. Still, it's hard to fault such a near pristine looking transfer.
BOTTOM LINE: Get this one before it goes out of print!

Rating:
Summary: A jewel!
Review: A delight from start to end. Music, action, humour - everything works here. Beautiful colors and Wayne giving a very good performance as an older army-officer about to retire. One of the really enjoyable examples from the days when they made class-A westerns. Highly recommended!

Rating:
Summary: One of the movies the watch late on a Saturday night.
Review: Both Howard Hawks and John Ford understood that the older they became,
the more important male friendships were to them.
This is one of the best examples from Ford. The film has a warmth
and unmistakable magical quality to its sense of humor. It bears
up very well under repeaded viewings and the relationship between
John Wayne and Victor McLaglen is just the best. Wayne's character
exhibits a maturity and wisdom here that is very moving. It helps
to have seen a little of life before viewing this film. But, then,
that is true of all of John Ford's and Howard Hawks' work.
You just have to have lived life to appreciate it in their films.
One of my favorites and every bit the equal to "Rio Bravo."
It's the perfect film to watch while enjoying a rare New York steak
and a good bottle of red wine.

Rating:
Summary: "Lest we forget!"
Review: Capt. Nathan Brittles (John Wayne) is near retirement and looks at it with an unsure and heavy heart. After years in the U.S. Cavalry it is all he knows and is not sure what will become of him when he leaves it. Brittles knows that the Army and life will go on, but what will his role in life be, since he lost his wife years before. This is the second and best film in the John Ford cavalry trilogy. As it Brittles is not very keen on handing over command to younger soldiers who are yet to prove themself in leading other men and in combat. For all it's worth he has little to no say about what will happen to those who take over and what will become of the indian tribe that he has worked with and delt with for so long. Victor McLaglen is a great supporter in the film as he also faces retirement and enjoys his whiskey and fights along with the other men. A story about trust and service along with changing times, it features one of Wayne's best performances. An Oscar winner for best color cinematography (Winton C. Hoch) that features Monument Valley, this is a film to see as it is a western and war film wraped into one. It is simple yet not boring and it get's to the point when needed. Grade: B+

Rating:
Summary: Beware! This video is recorded in EP speed.
Review: Caveat emptor: This classic John Ford western is recorded in EP speed, though it's priced slightly higher. Video quality leaves much to be desired.

Rating:
Summary: Six stars film! A CLASSIC TO REVIEW AGAIN&AGAIN!
Review: Everybody says "The Searchers" is the best Western ever made... Well, I like it a lot, to be sure, but when I step into the living room and have to chose between it or "She wore a yellow ribbon" (among other DVD's) I will always pick the later first.
I think it's the best one by the team Ford/Wayne by far, those who say Wayne could'nt act must see this film, probably doing films like this is what made him "larger then life" and subsequently made new rols or films as WAYNE films (a continuity of purpose overused in his last films wich incredibly are mainly suportable by HIS performance...).
Wayne is up there with Fonda, Jimmy Stewart and very few others wich always were THEMSELVES over their rols/parts in the movie.
Enough said, get "The Horse Soldiers" if you liked "She wore a yellow ribbon".
Really a SIX stars film.

Rating:
Summary: Measuring Ford by Ford's Standards
Review: For whatever reasons, Wayne's performances in westerns tend to be of a higher quality than in his other films and that is especially true of his work in this film, based on two of James Warner Bellah's short stories. Wayne portrays Captain Nathan Brittles who is about to retire. As the last day of his command approaches, Brittles must meanwhile cope with an Apache uprising which even his longtime friend Chief Pony That Walks (Chief John Big Tree) cannot prevent. One sub plot involves two young lieutenants who compete for Olivia Dandridge (Joanne Dru). One is Flint Cohill played by John Agar who appeared previously in Fort Apache as Lieutenant Michael O'Rourke. Other members of the John Ford Repertory Players include Victor McLaglen, Mildred Natwick, Arthur Shields, Harry Carey, Jr., and Ben Jonson who is especially effective as Sergeant Tyree.

Frankly, I dislike westerns shot in color. Also, John Ford apparently had problems when directing actresses. (Maureen O'Hara's performance in The Quiet Man is a stunning exception.) More often than not, Ford's female characters are presented as saints, children, or furniture. I would have much preferred that this film had been shot in black-and-white, that the Olivia Dandridge character be omitted, and that the film focus entirely on the completion of Brittles' last command. Wayne is absolutely brilliant when Brittles is presented with a gold watch from his troops and struggles withy his eyeglasses so that he can read the inscription, "Lest We Forget." His conversation with Chief Pony That Walks in the Apache camp is also memorable. Wayne has better material to work with in this film than he had in Fort Apache (1948). In my opinion, his performance is flawless. Nevertheless, I rate this film a notch or two below Fort Apache and Rio Grande in which Ford is much less self-indulgent.

Rating:
Summary: People, People, People....
Review: Great movie on every level...but please people, stop looking for John Wayne movies filmed prior to 1953 in the widescreen format. It didn't exist! This movie was made in 1949. I had to post a similar review for Wake of the Red Witch, for reviewers over there looking for widescreen. John Wayne's first widescreen movie was The High And The Mighty in 1953. Hope this clears up the confusion on the widescreen debate...