She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)

Rio Grande is still tops in my books.

I've watched all the titles in director John Ford's cavalry trilogy in recent weeks.

Fort Apache had too much comedy for my taste. I didn't buy the romance between John Agar and Shirley Temple - even though the couple was married in real life at the time.

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is better than Fort Apache, but comes nowhere close to Rio Grande's power.

The romance doesn't work here either. 2nd Lt. Ross Pennell (Harry Carey, Jr.) and Lt. Flint Cohill (Agar) are both wooing Olivia Dandridge (Joanne Dru). There's a lot of squabbling, but not much romance. The yellow ribbon in Dandridge's hair suggests she has a fella in the cavalry, but she won't identify her sweetheart. Is it Pennell or Cohill?

Capt. Nathan Cutting Brittles (John Wayne) is nearing the end of his command days. The timing is not great. Various Indian tribes are putting aside old differences and teaming up to drive settlers from their land. Ten thousand warriors are itching for a fight. General Custard and his men have been wiped out. Brittles is ordered on patrol, in part to make sure Dandridge and Abby Allshard (Mildred Natwick) get out of harm's way.

Brittles, literally just days away from punching out, struggles for success on his mission. He's frustrated because everything he was supposed to accomplish fails. It's not the way he wants to leave his post.

Death gets plenty of attention in this film. Brittles regularly visits the grave of his wife. How she died we don't know. A United States' paymaster is killed in an Indian attack. One of Brittles' men is gravely injured by the Indians. Time is tight for the life-saving surgery he needs. Another veteran trooper is killed in battle.

Victor McLaglen's characters have a definite thirst for liquor in each of these films. What starts out as a fun way of Top Sgt. Quincannon hitting the bottle for a quick jolt turns into an extended sequence involving civilian clothing, plenty of booze and six other cavalry members. This scene goes on much too long.

Fortunately, things pick up when Brittles decides to keep serving the cavalry after his official retirement. He rides into the Indian camp to make an appeal to Chief Pony That Walks (Chief John Big Tree) to avoid war. When that fails, Brittles has a Plan B that's impressive to watch.

There is, again, some beautiful images in this colour film. Wayne is great as a veteran leader at the end of his days. Natwick and Ben Johnson offer solid support work.

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon has its moments, but Rio Grande is easily the best of Ford's cavalry films.

RATING: 7/10

FUN FACT: Last week I lamented Fred McMurray's last film role was in disaster maestro Irving Allen's The Swarm. Poor Joanne Dru. Her last appearance on the big screen was Super Fuzz in 1980 with Ernest Borgnine and Terence Hill.

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon was Chief John Big Tree's second last movie appearance. His career began in 1915 with Author! Author!

Fort Apache (1948)

What kind of movie is Fort Apache supposed to be?

Yes, I know it's a western.

But is director John Ford's 1948 effort a slapstick comedy? Romance? Drama?

It's hard to pin this movie down because its mood is all over the place. That makes for a frustrating viewing experience despite some very fine cinematography by Archie Stout and William Clothier. In fact, the cinematography might just be the best thing about this movie.

Lt. Col. Owen Thursday (Henry Fonda) is the new commander of Fort Apache. This career military man is definitely all business. He doesn't take kindly to being posted in the middle of nowhere and wants to move on - pronto.

Thursday is strictly by the book and doesn't take kindly to his daughter, Philadelphia (Shirley Temple), romancing 2nd Lieut. Michael Shannon O'Rourke (John Agar). Temple doesn't make much of an impression in this, one of her last film roles before retiring from the big screen in 1949. Agar was her husband when Fort Apache was shot, although they'd divorce in 1950. The romance takes up a good chunk of Fort Apache's nearly two-hour running time. Sigh.

Then there's the comedy, which also eats up a fair part of Ford's film. There's extended sequences with new recruits that go on too long. Even Temple gets mixed up with a comedic scene about living quarters that aren't very liveable.

Oh, there's the social life of the fort too, including a couple of dances. There's jokes about alcohol. Most of this screen time is tiresome. Fonda does get a good line when a stash of booze is found in the hidden inventory of Silas Meacham (Grant Withers). There's a suggestion the hooch is for a religious purpose. "Pour me some scripture," Thursday says.

Good grief, what's this movie about?

John Wayne doesn't do much for most of the film. One of his most promising scenes, when he meets with an important Apache leader, Cochise (Miguel Inclan), ends as soon as the two men meet.

Thursday is a great character. It's a wonder how he earned such a rank because he has zero people skills and shows little understanding of military strategy. Oh, he doesn't listen to his advisers either. It's too bad audiences don't get to learn more about what makes him tick. There's a suggestion of a past relationship with Capt. Sam Collingwood (George O'Brien). Each man made a decision in the past. It earned Thursday a promotion and Collingwood a ticket to Fort Apache. What happened? We never find out.

Fort Apache is a frustrating film to watch. Stick with My Darling Clementine or Stagecoach.

RATING: 4/10

FUN FACTS: Anna Lee, who appears as Mrs. Emily Collingwood, was Sister Margaretta in The Sound of Music . Her husband in Fort Apache is Ward Bond.

Movita has a small role as Thursday's servant.

George O'Brien's last film was in another Ford movie, Cheyenne Autumn.


UPDATE: Shirley Temple died on Feb. 10, 2014. She was 85.