Review of Stagecoach (1939) by Knox M — 31 Mar 2017

The American West, late-1800s. A stagecoach sets off across the untamed wilderness carrying a mixed assortment of characters: an infamous outlaw, a drunk doctor, a prostitute, a whiskey salesman, the wife of an Army officer, a gambler, a bank manager, the local Marshall and the driver. Animosities and petty differences, and unexpected friendships, surface. Their fortunes take a turn for the worse when they learn that an Apache raiding party, lead by Geronimo, is in their vicinity.

A masterpiece that is the most important Western ever made. Great plot, well directed by the legendary John Ford. Not just a conventional cowboys-vs-Indians / gunfight sort of Western (though there a large element of that) but a character drama too. There is great character depth and development on display and this is used well in developing the story.

Some great themes running through the movie too, especially one of anti-prejudice.

Good performances all round. John Wayne is great as the Ringo Kid and shows a softer side that wasn't always apparent in his later films. Thomas Mitchell deservedly won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance as Doctor Boone.

More than just a brilliant movie, a movie that created the blueprint for Westerns, and pretty much defined the genre.

It also made John Wayne a star. He had acted in plenty of movies before this without much impact but Stagecoach is what truly launched his career as we know it.

John Ford had already won a directing Oscar before directing Stagecoach, so this movie wasn't as career-enhancing to him as it was to John Wayne. However, it did set him up as the foremost director of Westerns. Moreover, it was to be the first of many collaborations with John Wayne, a series of collaborations that would see them make movies like The Searchers, Rio Grande, The Quiet Man, They Were Expendable, Fort Apache and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

A brilliant and historic movie.