I wonder if all the 5-star reviewers saw a different film than the one I watched. This is easily Howard Hawks' weakest Western and probably one of his worst films overall. The underlying problem is that it's hard to tell if it is supposed to be a serious film or a spoof; it tries to play on both sides of the fence, and that just doesn't work.

The Duke's performance is about average for him, but there seems to be a little spark missing from his acting; I wonder if he was a reluctant participant. Dean Martin (and I am a big fan) gave an unconvincing performance as a drunkard who is trying to reform. The problem with Martin is that a person never really knows when to take him seriously.

Walter Brennan was his usual irritating self. Ricky Nelson was wooden and flat. Angie Dickinson overacted, and I felt the film would have been better without her part. Ward Bond's performance was probably the best of all the major players, but it was a minor role.

The "romance" between Wayne and Dickinson was very, very awkward and unenjoyable. The caricature-like treatment of the Mexican roles was embarrassing. And, at 2 hours and 21 minutes, the film was about 30 minutes too long; I found myself fast-forwarding a lot at the end.

Hawks' second attempt at this story, El Dorado, is a MUCH, much better film. Even the much-maligned Rio Lobo is a lot more enjoyable. Rio Bravo is a DVD that will not remain in my library.

In todays hustle and bustle world, it's nice to occasionally relax and watch an old fashioned western with real "good guys". This movie is fun entertainment for the whole family and even has a little singing with Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson. I'm so glad we still have movies like this available on disc.

Old Wooden Wayne and twenty-something Angie Dickinson with the most uncomfortable hooey dialog ever written. It was just awful. And Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson as cowboys, come on! Just an awful film. See Wayne in any Maureen O'Hara film, a thousand times better.

Rio Bravo (Howard Hawks, 1959)

I've heard a few times that Rio Bravo was an ultra-right-wing response to High Noon. I'm not terribly sure about all that, but having watched the two films without a month or so of each other now, High Noon is the clear winner from the simple standpoint of being a good movie. Because of the back-and-forth, I feel like blaming the message. Problem is, there's not really much of a message to blame; while Rio Bravo certainly isn't a bad movie by any standards, both John Wayne and director Howard Hawks were capable of far superior work, and showed that many times.

John T. Chance (Wayne) is the sheriff of your typical small western town besieged by bad guys, in this case the Burdette Brothers, Nathan (John Russell) and Joe (Claude Akins), and their string of hired guns. The trouble starts when Chance, his all-but-useless deputy Borrachon (Dean Martin-- "Borrachon" is a nickname, of course, the word is Spanish for "drunk". An inspired piece of casting, there!), and their old-geezer flunky Stumpy (Walter Brennan) lock Joe up. Nathan responds by killing a local rancher, and one of his hands, a young firebrand named Colorado Ryan (Ricky Nelson), wants in on the revenge. This, of course, sets up musical numbers with Nelson and Martin (and who knew Walter Brennan could sing?). It also sets up the big gunfight at the climax. It's not a spoiler. How often do you see a western that doesn't have a big gunfight at the end?

It's certainly not a bad movie; I'm not sure Hawks was capable of making a bad movie. Nor was Wayne, once he got out from under the heel of Lone Star in the thirties. And while this is a well-acted and well-paced movie, it's pretty typical genre stuff, save the musical numbers. Howard Hawks is not Vicente Minnelli, and I'm not sure he should've ever tried to be. Still, if you're in the mood for a wetsern, and all your library's copies of High Noon are out, give this a shot. (I should say, by the way, that I'm as much a conservative as either Wayne or Hawks ever were-- and I still prefer High Noon). ***

The two-disc special edition of Rio Bravo is a classic
"American Western." John Wayne, Angie Dickinson, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson,& Walter Brennan spin this classic western yarn. Howard Hawks gives outstanding direction with his artistic expertise. A glimpse into America's golden movie era. You won't want to miss the insightful glimpse through Howard Hawk's genius, as he takes you behind the scenes into movie making. Your western movie collection is incomplete without Howard Hawk's Rio Bravo.