Review of Johnny Guitar (1954) by Daniel K — 27 Sep 2012

4: One could obviously write an academic paper solely on the use of color in the costume choices in this underrated masterpiece, but I definitely don't feel like it (I'm sure it's been done before as well).

Undoubtedly, one of the reasons I love Westerns so much is that they deal with very primal and archetypal characters, themes, motives, and passions. It's clear from the start that this will not be a grand vistas-style Western, as we get a couple seconds of Sterling Hayden on horseback with a grand vista behind him before we are bombarded with mining explosions and then a stagecoach robbery in which a man is killed.

These essentially seem to be shrugged off by Johnny Guitar, and the following scenes in which we are introduced to Joan Crawford's character aren't exactly brimming over with fellowship and love either.

This sets the tone wonderfully for the rest of the picture, which is essentially equally dark. This is no Star Trek utopia, rather it is closer to the universe envisioned in Deep Space Nine if one were to continue the analogy.

This is actually the first time I've seen this Nicholas Ray classic and it certainly confirms what I have the long suspected, namely that the Cahiers du cinema cineastes had very good taste. It's the kind of pulpy and operatic Western that would sit comfortably alongside one of Scorsese's favorites, The Duel in the Sun.

I look forward to seeing again and will probably wish I'd seen it much earlier in my life. It looks great on Blu-Ray though.