Rio Bravo (film)
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| Rio Bravo | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Howard Hawks |
| Produced by | Howard Hawks |
| Written by | B.H. McCampbell (short story) Jules Furthman Leigh Brackett |
| Starring | John Wayne Dean Martin Ricky Nelson Angie Dickinson Walter Brennan Ward Bond John Russell |
| Music by | Dimitri Tiomkin |
| Cinematography | Russell Harlan |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | March 18, 1959 (U.S. release) |
| Running time | 141 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Rio Bravo is a 1959 western film, directed by Howard Hawks. It stars John Wayne, Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson, with Angie Dickinson, Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, Estelita Rodriguez and Walter Brennan and was shot at Old Tucson Studios, just outside Tucson, Arizona.
Rio Bravo is generally regarded as one of Hawks' best, and is notable for its lack of close-up shots. It features a long opening scene with absolutely no dialogue.[1] The film received favorable reviews, and was financially successful, earning over US$5.5 million.
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[edit] Plot
Sheriff John T. Chance (Wayne) arrests a murderer, Joe Burdette (Claude Akins), the brother of powerful rancher Nathan Burdette (John Russell). The rancher's men then quarantine the town in preparation to breaking Burdette out of jail. The only help Chance has are his deputies Dude (Martin), an alcoholic, and Stumpy (Brennan), a cripple. Tensions are further strained by the presence of a young gunslinger, Colorado Ryan (Nelson), and the arrival of a mysterious woman, Feathers (Dickinson), who becomes romantically involved with Chance.
[edit] Production
The script was written by Jules Furthman and Leigh Brackett and the musical score was composed by Dimitri Tiomkin. His score contains the haunting tune "De Guella" (also spelled "degüello"), which is played several times to build tension.[2] When a character asks for the name of this tune, he is told that it is the "Cutthroat Song," played on the orders of Antonio López de Santa Anna to the Texans holed up in the Alamo to signify that no quarter would be given. The tune was used in the following year, over the opening credits of Wayne's film, The Alamo. Composer Ennio Morricone recalled director Sergio Leone requesting him to write "Dimitri Tiomkin music" for A Fistful of Dollars. The trumpet theme is similar to Tiomkin's "Deguella" whilst the Italian title of Rio Bravo was Un Dollaro D'onore.
Because the film starred a crooner, Martin, and a teen idol, Nelson, Hawks included three songs in the soundtrack. Before the big showdown, in the jail house, Martin sings "My Rifle, My Pony and Me" (which contained new lyrics to a Tiomkin tune that appeared in Red River) accompanied by Nelson, after which Nelson sings a brief version of "Get Along Home, Cindy," accompanied by Martin and Brennan. Over the closing credits, Martin, backed by the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, sings a specially composed song, "Rio Bravo." Nelson later paid homage to both the film and his character, Colorado, by including the song "Restless Kid" on his 1959 LP, Ricky Sings Again.
[edit] Trivia
- Harry Carey, Jr. was hired for Rio Bravo, but angered Hawks by calling him "Howard" rather than "Mr. Hawks." Carey was paid and received a screen credit, but his scenes were cut.[citation needed]
- The film was made as a response to High Noon, which is sometimes thought to be an allegory for blacklisting in Hollywood, as well as a critique of McCarthyism[citation needed].
Wayne teamed up with director Howard Hawks to tell the story his way. Hawks was offended by High Noon as he didn't believe the marshal, played by Gary Cooper, would ask the townsfolk for help. Wayne was a conservative and a firm supporter of blacklisting. It is commonly believed that Cooper alone defeated the outlaws and didn't need help from others but Will Kane's Quaker bride saves the Marshal's life by shooting and killing one of them. However it is true that in Rio Bravo Wayne is surrounded by allies--a drunk deputy, a young gunfighter, an old man and an attractive young woman--and he definitely needs their help.
.jpg/300px-Howard_Hawks'Rio_Bravo_trailer_(26).jpg)
Scene from Rio Bravo's trailer: Chance and "Feathers".
- Film footage from Rio Bravo was later incorporated into the opening sequence of Wayne's last film, The Shootist, to illustrate the backstory of Wayne's character.
[edit] Remakes
The film has been informally remade twice as a Western, although on each occasion under a different title. Both of these remakes were directed by Hawks, both starred John Wayne and in each case, the script was written by Leigh Brackett.
- The first remake, El Dorado, was released in 1967. In this film, Robert Mitchum played the Dean Martin role, Arthur Hunnicutt the Walter Brennan character and James Caan the Ricky Nelson role. Hawks again named the Nelson/Caan character after a state (in this case, Mississippi) and in a wry, humorous twist on the original film, Hawks made him inept with firearms, but skilled with a knife.
- The second remake, Rio Lobo, was made in 1970 and also directed by Howard Hawks. This was a looser remake, beginning with a Confederate train robbery of a Union gold shipment during the American Civil War, then moving to a Texas town under siege, which was central to the original film. This film starred John Wayne, Mexican film star Jorge Rivero (as Frenchie), Christopher Mitchum (Robert Mitchum's son), Jack Elam, and Jennifer O'Neill.
- Assault on Precinct 13, John Carpenter's 1976 film, though not a remake of Rio Bravo, was inspired by the film. Carpenter borrowed some elements from the earlier film's plot but set his film in 1970s Los Angeles. He also paid homage to the original film by using the pseudonym "John T. Chance," the name of Wayne's character in Rio Bravo, for his editing credit.
- A remake of Carpenter's film was released in 2005. The remake, also called Assault on Precinct 13, was directed by Jean-Francois Richet and set in Detroit, Michigan.
[edit] References
- ^ Butler, J. February 22, 2004. Rio Bravo editing, University of Alabama Telecommunication and Film Department (retrieved August 13, 2006).
- ^ The Handbook of Texas Online, Texas State Historical Association (retrieved on November 22, 2006).
[edit] External links
- Rio Bravo at the Internet Movie Database
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