Review of The Sons of Katie Elder (1965) by Van R — 03 Jan 2009

Notorious gunslinger John Elder (John Wayne of "Rio Bravo") returns to his dusty hometown of Clearwater, Texas, to pay his final respects to his deceased mother in Henry Hathaway's first-rate western "The Sons of Katie Elder," co-starring Dean Martin, Earl Holliman, James Gregory, George Kennedy, and Michael Anderson, Jr. "The Sons of Katie Elder" ranks one of John Wayne's finest western melodramas that he appeared in during the 1960s, and veteran director Henry Hathaway of "Garden of Evil" delivers more excitement, suspense, and tension than most westerns can muster. The scenic Mexican scenery that substitutes for nineteenth century Texas looks is appropriately rough-hewn.

Several scenes stand out in "The Sons of Katie Elder." Among them are the noisy gun battle at a creek crossing, a barroom raffle for a glass eye, the hero's fight with a thug at a mortuary, and the violent finale in town. Originally, "Magnificent Seven" director John Sturges had been scheduled to helm this lively sagebrusher, but doctors diagnosed Wayne with lung cancer, and the box office baron had to postpone the film so that one of his lungs could be removed. Anybody that craves a good, tough, old-fashioned western will love "The Sons of Katie Elder." Director John Singleton's urban remake of this John Wayne & Dean Martin classic that came out in 2005 starring Mark Wahlberg and Tyrese Gibsonâ??"Four Brothers"â??lacks the energy, charisma, and celebrity star power of the original..

Since John Elder doesn't want to create trouble, he surveys his mother's funeral from afar while his younger brothers, gambler Tom (Dean Martin of "5 Card Stud"), entrepreneur Matt (Earl Holliman of "Sharkey's Machine") and Bud (Michael Anderson of "Logan's Run"), attend it at the cemetery with several members of the community that knew and loved Katie. Later, at the grave site, Elder learns from Sheriff Billy Wilson (Paul Fix of "The Rifleman") that Katie lost her ranch to the most influential citizen in town, not long after his father, Bass Elder, died under mysterious circumstances.

It seems that Bass Elder gambled the ranch away to Morgan Hastings and then got shot in the back. Billy informs the incredulous Elder that Katie was living in the Lupin place on the other side of town when she died from being worn down to a frazzle. Billy is concerned that Elder, whose reputation with a six-gun precedes him, will stir up trouble. Anyway, John rides over to the ranch to reacquaint himself with his siblings. The Elders decide to clear any debts that their mother left behind and see if she had any money in the bank from the sale of the ranch. They are surprised to learn from the town banker, Mr. Vennar (James Westerfield of "Dead Aim") that Katie died flat broke and that Vennar let her live on the ranch.

Meanwhile, unscrupulous entrepreneur Morgan Hastings (James Gregory of "PT-109") hires a burly gunman, Curley (George Kennedy of "Cool Hand Luke"), to keep tabs on the Elders. Hastings suspects that the Elders may pose a danger to him for his acquisition of their ranch. Curley doesn't cotton to the idea of tangling with John Elder. Hastings operates a firearms manufacturing business, and he needed water to power his mill. The only place with a water supply sufficient for his use was the Elder ranch because a river flows through it. Hastings fears that the Elders may investigate Bass Elder's unsolved murder. Despicable dastard that he is, Hastings follows Sheriff Wilson out to the Lupin place late one evening and uses a high-powered telescopic rifle to blow Wilson out of the saddle.

Of course, the Elders were nowhere nearby when Hastings shot the sheriff. Instead, the Elders were away herding 200 horses to market in Colorado that they bought from Charlie Bob Striker (Rhys Williams of "Our Man Flint") who had originally planned to sell the horses to their mother. Deputy Sheriff Ben Latta (Jeremy Slate of "The Devil's Brigade") bears a grudge against the Elders. Earlier, Latta tried to arrest the Elders for trespassing on Hastings' property, and the brothers disarmed him and then rode back to Clearwater to straighten things out with Billy. Meanwhile, Ben discovers an old wanted poster on Tom and jails the brothers. Initially, when Hastings shot Billy, he only wounded him, and Dr. Isdell awaits Billy to regain consciousness so that he can clear the Elders. Billy dies, however, and Hastings and his men incite a lynch mob to break the Elders out of jail. Billy's other older deputy, Charlie Biller (John Qualen of "Casablanca"), prompts Ben to take the Elders to Laredo so they can get a fair trial.

Oscar winning film composer Elmer Bernstein wrote the flavorful orchestral score to "The Sons of Katie Elder," and it ranks as one of his more memorable efforts, among his scores for "The Magnificent Seven," "The Scalphunters," "The Great Escape," "Walk on the Wild Side," and "The Hallelujah Trail." Although "The Sons of Katie Elder" takes a long time to unfold, clocking in at 122 minutes, this John Wayne oater emerges as one of his best westerns. The cast is top-notch, especially Percy Helton as Mr. Peevey, the storekeeper. James Gregory makes a solid adversary, while Dennis Hopper is fine as his hot-tempered son. John Wayne could sleep walk his way through a role that he had grown thoroughly accustomed to playing from having made so many westerns over the years not only for Henry Hathaway but also for John Ford. Interestingly, Wayne garnered his only Oscar as best actor in another Henry Hathaway horse opera called "True Grit." "The Sons of Katie Elder" represented the second time that Wayne and Martin co-starred in a western. What sets "The Sons of Katie Elder" apart from most westerns as well as melodramas is how Hathaway skillfully paints our heroes into one hell of a corner that they cannot get out of without shedding their own blood as well as the blood of others.