Johnny Guitar (1954) User Reviews (152)

Dancin' Kid: "Can you play?" Johnny Guitar: "Can you Dance?"

[krorie · 8/10 · 2 February 2006]

Surely this allegorical western influenced Clint Eastwood when he directed his "Pale Rider" and "High Plains Drifter," though I've never read where he has mentioned it. There are certainly similarities, especially with "High Plains Drifter." The brilliant director Nicholas Ray who threw so much of himself and his search for artistic expression on film into his works at times carries the allegory too far. Good allegory, such as "Moby Dick" and "Huckleberry Finn," must never become too obvious. It then descends into mere cleverness and creative arrogance. The posse from Hell dressed in black led by a perverted Joan of Arc doesn't leave much to the viewer's imagination. Except for a few such parts, most of the movie purports itself well and tells an effective story that can be interpreted on several different levels.

Mercedes McCambridge playing the demonic sexually repressed Emma Small (again the name makes it too easy for the viewer) stands tall amongst a cast of giants. That her voice would be used for the devil's own in "The Exorcist" is understandable for it crackles with fire and brimstone. Jealousy and rejection guide in her determination, nay obsession, to destroy both her sexual rival Vienna and her unrequited love the Dancin' Kid. Sterling Hayden plays the lead character Johnny Logan aka Guitar to perfection. Hayden was not only under-appreciated by the Hollywood moguls but even by himself. In interviews he always trashed his acting talents in much the same way Robert Mitchum tended to do his own. He maintained he was just doing a job that he didn't like very much. In reality Hayden was one of the best performers of his generation as was also true of Mitchum. Joan Crawford who was often miscast finds her niche in "Johnny Guitar." As her roulette spinner says to the camera,"She's more of a man than a woman." She is in control at all times even when there's a rope around her neck. She tells Johnny Guitar when to play his instrument and The Dancin' Kid when to dance. She even holds the posse from Hell at bay until Emma Small steps in. Emma is also a woman in control but only of external forces. Inside, her emotions, fears, and frustrations dominate.

Ernest Borgnine was still playing bullies, which he did so well, at this point in his career. Royal Dano the consumptive gang member always true to The Dancin' Kid gives his usual fine performance. Veteran actor John Carradine appears in somewhat of a different type role than usual as the loyal caretaker for Vienna. One part hearkens back to his best screen portrayal as Preacher Casy in "The Grapes of Wrath" when he tells Vienna that he'll hide young Turkey out in the cottonwoods so the posse can't find him. Nicolas Ray aided young aspiring actors with ability by showcasing their talents in his films. He introduced Dennis Hopper who has an uncredited bit part in "Johnny Guitar." Later Hopper would appear in Ray's "Rebel Without a Cause" with James Dean, Natalie Wood, and Sal Mineo. Look for two other faces that were mainstays of the cinema Sheb Wooley ("High Noon"--he also wrote and recorded "The Purple People Eater")and Denver Pyle ("Bonnie and Clyde," "The Dukes of Hazzard"). There's also the inimitable Ward Bond who could always be counted on to give a good performance.

Any show that starts out with a mountain being blown to pieces, a sand storm of Herculean proportions, and a stage coach holdup can be counted on to deliver the goods. The story about a railroad coming through to change the community takes second place to all the other storms and whirlwinds involving jealousy, greed, and murder. Emma and the posse from Hell are not just on a private vendetta. They are also trying to stop progress that threatens their very way of life. Railroads bring new people, new ideas, and new ways of making a living. Those who benefit from change like it. Those who are hurt by change fight against it with all their might. These forces mix with personal ones to make "Johnny Guitar" one of the best westerns ever. It's not to be missed.

The music for "Johnny Guitar" is a definite plus. Peggy Lee sings the title song, which she helped compose with Victor Young, at the end of the movie as no one else could. She had a sultry blues voice with great feeling and emotion. Oft times she is dismissed as a mere pop singer from the 40's and 50's. Peggy Lee was much more. She was one of the great voices for her era. I couldn't find information about who actually played guitar for Sterling Hayden. The picking is flawless. The closest I've come is the name Howard Roberts, who was the jazz guitarist that backed Peggy Lee on her later hit "Fever." I've read that he could play anything on any type guitar. The dance song picked by Johnny Guitar that inspired The Dancin' Kid to dance with Emma was "Ol' Joe Clark," a folk ditty, usually played on the fiddle, that was popular during the time period thus adding authenticity to the show.

There's Only Room for One Woman in the Town!

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 1 February 2010]

I'm not a big fan of Westerns. I just find a sameness to them that I can't get over. I had read that this was interesting. It was. First of all, the two protagonists are women. Joan Crawford, hanging on to her saloon, waiting for the arrival of the railroad, and Mercedes McCambridge, looking absolutely possessed, getting every man in town to follow her to the point of hanging people. Then there's Sterling Hayden, Jack Ripper from Dr. Strangelove, a puzzling character of great complexity, the gunfighter who can't stay out of the business. Add a few character actors and a relentless effort to ignite a fire and keep progress away, and you've got a really engaging film. It's obvious this was made with a higher budget, good camera work and some excellent settings. I'm sure someone has addressed all the symbols in the movie. Green dresses (envy), white dresses (purity), red dresses (time to kick butt). There are lots of scenes framed for effect as well. I recommend this film.

Magical and mythic Western with unerring sense of style

[ma-cortes · 8/10 · 13 May 2011]

Weird and hysterical Western with Freudian touches , dreamlike emotionalism and magnificent dialogue in which is blended domination, humiliation and a deadly confrontation ; resulting to be a fascinating and melodramatic film .The ex-prostitute Vienna (Joan Crawford) , a Gambling Saloon keeper, has built a saloon outside of town, and she wishes to make her own way once the railroad is put through, but the villagers want her run out of town and some of them hanged . Meanwhile the stagecoach is attacked and four men , Dancin' Kid (Scott Brady) and his hoodlums( Brian Cooper, Ernest Borgnine, Royal Dano) come to the saloon . Righteous Vienna stands strong against them, and is aided by the appearance of a gun-toting old flame of hers, Johnny Guitar (Sterling Hayden), who is not what he seems. As Vienna can't drive Guitar out of her head . Meantime the officials (Frank Ferguson , War Bond) pursue the group led by Dancin' Kid and besiege their booth and occurs a lynch mobs . At the ending takes place a long-expected shootout between the two-fisted enemies averted by a woman's insistence.

Love and hate are woven into two protagonists , the fallen angel Joan Crawford and the spinster landowner Mercedes McCambridge ; both of them share a mythical confrontation . Exceptional performances by all casting as top-notch Joan Crawford as gutsy matriarch squabbling over two men , Sterling Hayden as pacifist saddle-tramp who turns a psychopathic temper taking up his pistols and Mercedes McCambridge as nasty and vengeful harpy . Sensational plethora of secondaries as John Carradine , Paul Fix , Rys Williams , among others. Colorful cinematography with a symbolist use in Trucolor by Harry Stradling. Classic and immortal musical score by Victor Young , including unforgettable songs by Peggy Lee . This hypnotic Western with symbolism rampant is marvelously directed by Nicholas Ray , author of various master pieces and hits as Rebel without cause , 55 days at Pekin and many others . Rating : Very good , exceptional and indispensable seeing . Two thumbs up

Great unusual western

[funkyfry · 10/10 · 15 October 2002]

Great cast and stunning direction makes this an offbeat classic. Funny interpretation of gender roles in America -- Crawford as the emasculated nihilistic prostitute/businesswoman, and Hayden (in PERFECT casting) as a slightly pretty-boy gunslinger, a role in which he is as passive to Crawford as a typical film heroine to her hero. All bit parts are memorable, particularly the venomous McCambridge (one of her best characterizations -- it makes my skin crawl every time I see her face light up as they burn the casino) and John Carradine's memorably pathetic death scene.

A lot of people have said a lot of things about this movie. I was glad to see from glancing through the postings on IMDB that there is also some healthy discussion of the movie on here -- how much it means, how little it means. I don't think it was designed to save the world from its madness, nor do I think it's a lesbian love story (although there is some strange element in McCambridge's obsessive hatred of Crawford), but I do think there's something going on beneath the surface of this film that's hard to explain. Somehow, it ended up being much much better than it should have been. One thing is, I think Nick Ray and Phil Yordan decided the story was so ridiculous that they would just concentrate on the emotional elements, also bringing out the pure fantasy (going behind the waterfall to find a hidden fortress, the heroine running from the fire in her white satin dress, etc.) that is the best element of all great film. But it's really hard to pin down any one element that makes it great, so I'll have to stand pat and just say it's a combination of elements that are operating on conscious and subconscious levels to bring about a fantastic movie experience -- to those who are able to surrender to it.

One other element worthy of comment -- the wonderful opening sequence where Hayden rides through a hillside covered in explosions. I really think that the quality of a good movie, and especially a western, can be seen most of the time in how well the director handles an opening sequence. He/she should capitalize on the viewer's total lack of knowledge about the film's situation to create moments of suspense or drama that couldn't possibly occur once the story is set in motion. He should also use this suspense to create tension that will carry the movie forward. Nicholas Ray has done an excellent job of this here; we see Hayden riding through the explosions and wonder what's going on, and then we see (through his eyes) the bank holdup, which he is doing nothing to stop. We don't know if he's a part of the robbery, we can't really see who's doing the robbing, etc. etc. -- it just brings up a lot of questions that keep the audience wanting to see more.

An excellent production, one of Republic's best.

The More Excess The Better

[dougdoepke · 13 October 2013]

Hard to know what to say about this florid concoction except that it's truly one of a kind. Taken as a western, it's plain god-awful. Taken as parody of a western, it's sharp as a doorknob. Taken as an experiment in Technicolor, I can think of cheaper ways. To me, the movie is best taken as a collection of insider indulgence. How else to explain Crawford's Park Avenue get-up, or her desert island casino, or McCambridge's manly fierceness, or a bookish bank-robber, or a showdown for toughest woman of Lesbos.

Now, scholars can play around with symbolism all they want. But first, the subject has to be interesting enough to play with. Seems to me there are worthier movie subjects than this one for analysis. Sure, I've read how the story's really a color-coded allegory of McCarthyism, with the black-clad posse as HUAC and the bank robbers as commies. After all, the Dancin' Kid is left-handed and the gang does stick together and they do rob banks. Probably this is as good a subtext reading as any, that is, if you're looking for some such. Me, I just take it as a slice of Hollywood weirdness with Crawford playing dress-up and in charge, with the estimable Nick Ray trailing somewhere behind.

A cult 50's Western that's colorful, melodramatic, surreal and mesmerizing

[Wuchakk · 8/10 · 13 April 2021]

The railroad is coming soon to a town in northern Arizona where a tough saloon owner (Joan Crawford) faces off with a power-mad cattle baron (Mercedes McCambridge) over the Dancin' Kid (Scott Brady) and more. Into this mix Johnny Guitar (Sterling Hayden) rides into town, a former love of the saloon proprietor. Who will be left standing when the ashes settle?

"Johnny Guitar" (1954) is melodramatic to the point of being surreal, not to mention implausible, but it's colorful, passionate, original and spellbinding. It's a Tarantino Western 40 years before Tarantino movies existed. The director, Nicholas Ray, also did "Rebel Without a Cause" (1955) so imagine that kind of overwrought 50's melodrama translated to a Western, albeit in glorious color.

Despite the title, Crawford's Vienna is the undoubted protagonist counterbalanced by McCambridge's fiendishly neurotic antagonist, who might bring to mind the Wicked Witch of the West.

Interesting quirky bits are thrown in that enhance the picture, like the A-framed saloon built into the side of a cliff; Vienna's piano recital in a bridal dress; and Old Tom (John Carradine) reading a book while on guard duty. Then there's the mystery of why no one in the area would be aware of the secret passageway behind the waterfall that leads to the "hideout" curiously located on top of a rock mount plain for all to see.

I shouldn't fail to mention Ernest Borgnine as a gang member of questionable character.

The film runs 1 hour, 50 minutes, and was shot in the Sedona region of north-central Arizona, including Oak Creek Canyon, with studio stuff done at Republic Studios in North Hollywood.

GRADE: A-

Classic Tough-Talking Feminist Western With Cult Movie Fan Dream Cast

[ShootingShark · 6/10 · 6 February 2013]

Vienna runs a casino in a remote western outpost but her prospects are looking up when the railroad plans to build in the area. However, she is not popular with the local cattle barons, who intend to run her off her land ...

Johnny Guitar is a much beloved and iconic little western, and a lot of fun to watch, mostly due to its snappy dialogue and sensational cast of wacko character actors. The script by Philip Yordan (from Roy Chanslor's book), is in some ways a laughably stodgy set of clichés - the small town railroad scam, the ostracised scarlet hussy, the good time gang with a den hidden in the hills, the mysterious stranger from the past, the gun-happy lynch mob - and it sometimes degenerates into awkward melodrama. In another sense however it's an extremely original, revelatory story about two powerful and indomitable women who defer to nobody and will stop at nothing to protect their interests. The idea of a western where uber-tough-guys like Hayden and Bond kowtow to the ladies and which culminates in an all-female gunslinger shootout must have been incredibly daring in 1954 and doesn't disappoint. Everyone is great, with Crawford and Brady never better, Hayden a classic hardball-chewing enigmatic dude, and Borgnine and Carradine both as excellent as ever. Best of all however is an incredible McCambridge as the zealous, repressed, cracking pint-sized bundle of fury that is Emma Small. If you're not familiar with McCambridge, check her out in Giant, Touch Of Evil or her legendary vocal performance in The Exorcist. She was an amazing actress who lead a fairly wild life and threw herself into her art, and she is just amazingly intense in this picture. There's also a great lurching score by the prolific Victor Young (featuring a memorable song coda by Peggy Lee) and the movie was shot on location in the rugged red sandstone mountain scenery of Sedona, Arizona. This is one of many great examples of an intelligent, original B-picture (it was one of the last hurrahs for Republic Pictures) which has long outlasted its more expensive contemporaries purely through the talent and tenacity of its makers.

Color, Color, Everywhere!

[telegonus · 10/10 · 9 September 2002]

This deservedly legendary western has to be seen to be believed. Directed by Nicholas Ray in blazing color, courtesy of Harry Stradling, Jr., it's western featuring the rivalry between two women, Joan Crawford and Mercedes McCambridge, as they quarrel over two men, Sterling Hayden and Scott Brady, and shake things up in the Old West, Hollywood style, 1954. The film is for all practical purposes experimental. Ray is indulging himself in color, composition and space, nudging the viewer toward laughter at every twist and turn of its convoluted plot. As a purely visual exercise the film is a rousing success. Although Victor Young's music is nice, and the late Peggy Lee does a good job with the title tune, this one's better with the sound off. It is a movie to see, to experience, and very hard to discuss. Lord knows, I've tried. If you can make sense out of it, I'll buy you dinner. My best guess is that Ray was taking all the aspects of film that are traditionally ancillary and incidental, and putting them ahead of everything else. What I like most about Johnny Guitar is the way Joan Crawford's saloon is designed, the undergound cave, the waterfall, the cabin on top of the hill, the moments of intimacy and emotion as they occur in these places, and how the viewer is encouraged to suspend his disbelief of what the story is about and give into his emotions, as the characters give into theirs', and let the devil take the hindmost. Ray succeeded marvelously here, as there's nothing else quite like this one; and the movies in general as far as I'm concerned are still lagging behind it, by several decades.

One of the Most Anomalous Out-of-Nowhere Singularities of the Studio System

[jzappa · 7/10 · 17 October 2010]

Johnny Guitar is a gender drama with obsessive personalities flirting with dementia: the character played by Mercedes McCambridge is unmistakably the main baddie, but Joan Crawford's character is not completely pleasant, grimacing as she does through much of the movie. Vienna's own sexually linked psychological fixation influences her in correspondingly curious digressions; she dresses thoroughly in white in a climactic scene where she must confront McCambridge, who dresses in black for most of the film. The men dramatically defer to the powerful determination and identities of these two women. Sterling Hayden as the eponymous hero is something less of a hero on account of Crawford's compulsion. The fact that he plays a guitar and travels without a gun gives a hint to the devalorizing of the Western hero boilerplate inferred by the title. He's a subordinate character, given to hesitation. He's mainly a bystander: His catchphrase is "I'm a stranger here myself," which can also characterize Nicholas Ray here himself.

The other male principals also take a subordinate role to the women; none of the posse, not even McIvers, its suggested chief, can bring himself to refuse McCambridge's Emma, even when lives depend on it. The Dancin' Kid makes several crucial choices, including the robbing of a bank, based on whether or not Vienna will go on reciprocating his sentiments rather than leaving him for Johnny. Johnny and the Kid are both atypically tender cowboys in contrast with the icons of the time, together with the basis that each has a creative craft that's part of his name, and that both in most cases allow the female characters to make the choices and are inclined to comply with them.

Scorsese has talked about the great theme-smugglers of the studio era who snuck subversive elements past the scrutiny of the censors. This is definitely true and admirable, but sometimes I'm baffled at what must've been functional retardation on the part of Hayes' puritan committee. This 1954 Freudian Western is one of the record out-of-the-blue phenomenons of the studio system, a film so insubordinate it's a miracle it ever got made. But despite its genre, this is a gentle, thin-skinned film, Ray's tenderest avowal of his outsider theme.

As with Ray's In a Lonely Place, On Dangerous Ground and Bitter Victory, characters come across truths that they don't want to admit to themselves or others, and sometimes this information is obvious to those around them first. He uses innuendo as a way to deal with plot developments that can't be externalized, or those that haven't come to pass yet. The characters are rounded out through teasing, accusation, high emotion.

Ray, known for his dramatic use of architecture, was keen on the meanings of the horizontal line, which serves a western particularly well. The first and second halves of the film have different visual styles. But both sections feature extensive panning. The second half features brilliant landscape photography, as Ray's camera pans over snow-covered mountain roads and trails. These sections are unusual in that they don't feature wilderness areas. Instead, these scenes always have human habitations in them: roads, farmhouses, paths, and other human constructions. They can be described as rural, or as tourist areas: the sort of remote but inhabited location one might go to on vacation. Such locales rarely pop up in movies. Westerns, which feature vast landscapes, tend to have wilderness areas without modern buildings. And contemporary films rarely go to such poverty stricken tourist spots, preferring resort and wilderness areas with more glamour.

However, no matter what intellectual appreciation movie buffs and film scholars and critics have for it, it's impossible to deny its utterly ham-fisted acting and soapy plot strands, all approaching out-and-out kitsch. I've seen a good deal of westerns with more understated, salt-of-the-earth acting that brought me closer to the grit inherent to its environment. This is the diametric opposite of being one of them. Did any of them have whiplash after a certain amount of takes? Why such intense about-faces and comic-book demeanor? Was Douglas Sirk on set? After awhile, I gave up on the performances. Their imaginations don't seem engaged. They pretend self-consciously. They're stiff, tightly wound. They never let go. And though Crawford is never uninteresting or by any means bad in any film in which I see her, I feel she should've been told as much as necessary that acting is not a competition, that everything must be done for the good of the film or everybody else is put at risk. But she's not the only one who showboats here; everybody does. Despite a cast of performers that tend to intrigue me, the two females, Hayden, Ernest Borgnine, I could only rely on Ray's building of tension through montage and his marshaling of the plot to keep me engaged. Nevertheless, Johnny Guitar is a certain kind of film that has upheld its rank by repositioning itself every decade since its release.

A Shakespearian western

[Rueiro · 10/10 · 4 February 2003]

I was 15 the very first time I watched this wonderful movie, and from that moment it became a kind of cult classic, a cinema icon, for me. I had to wait over ten years to be able to enjoy it again, and by this time it had reached the category of legend on my personal film paradise. The great score by Victor Young, which I never could forget, is probably the most romantic and sentimental music ever composed for the screen, with the Johnny Guitar theme, with the voice of Peggy Lee, bringing us the fascination of the legend they called Johnny Guitar. Also the fantastic colourful images, with those reddish tones of fire and passion, and the backgrounds, the landmarks, the characters and the sutile and perfect dialogues, make this film a total masterpiece or modern cinema. A western without savages, cavalry, rodeos, and the usual John Ford stuff. A different western, ahead of its time, and very misunderstood by the public then, but, fortunately, reborn from the limbo and forgiveness, rediscovered by new generations, and still alive, fresh as in its first day, and always inmortal. Joan Crawford was never so great, and the exchange of poisoned words with McCambridge at the saloon "You haven't got the nerve" , and "If I don't kill you first" on reply to "I'll kill you" by Emma, makes me to smile, as both characters show they wear the trousers rather than the men do. In short, there never was a film like Johnny Guitar, and there never will. Now, on its 50th aniversary, it is time to enjoy it once more, and to wish that we could have been at Vienna's, being part of that group of characters with no equal in cinema iconography.

Bizarre "Guitar"

[marissas75 · 7/10 · 16 February 2006]

I would love to know what prompted a studio executive in the early 1950s to green-light "Johnny Guitar". Not that it's a worthless movie, but it's just so incredibly strange. Who thought that audiences wanted to see a Western where gun-slinging outlaws go by none- too-frightening nicknames like Johnny Guitar, Turkey, and the Dancin' Kid? Where the primary plot interest isn't with the male characters, but with two antagonistic women played by Joan Crawford and Mercedes McCambridge? (And whose bright idea was it to bring Peggy Lee in to do the theme song?) Were the story's parallels to McCarthyism enough to get this film made? Was Nicholas Ray a respected enough director that the studio approved this project of his? I don't know, but I certainly would like to.

Of course, nowadays "Johnny Guitar" enjoys a reputation as a camp classic that makes subversive statements about things like feminism and homosexuality. Traditional gender roles get reversed: Johnny (Sterling Hayden) is a relatively passive hero, while his love interest, saloon-owner Vienna (Crawford) is described as being almost more man than woman. And there are many campy, laughable moments: the sight of Johnny holding a teacup, Vienna's poufy dress catching on fire, and most of McCambridge's intense performance as the vindictive Emma Small.

In some sense, though, the movie doesn't go as far as it could. We hear about Vienna's supposed masculinity more than see it: Crawford's voice and mannerisms are much too refined to suggest any kind of manliness. Maybe this is part of "Johnny Guitar"'s camp appeal, but otherwise I'd simply call it a bad performance. In another example of telling, not showing, the characters' convoluted psychology gets spelled out within the first fifteen minutes (e.g. Emma loves the Dancin' Kid, but is so afraid of her own sexuality that she thinks she wants him dead). But wouldn't "Johnny Guitar" be even stronger, and more subversive, if Vienna were truly masculine? Or if the characters' twisted motivations were allowed to unfold naturally, rather than told to us from the start?

Watching "Johnny Guitar," you get the feeling that the filmmakers were trying to make a big thematic statement of a kind not usually found in Westerns. But the exact nature of that statement is never clear (that's probably why this film is so tantalizing to modern scholars who want to decode its secrets). The result is a very bizarre, rather campy, completely unforgettable movie that hints at something more substantial, but never reveals what it is. Maybe if I knew the reason that this movie was initially made, I'd have a chance of figuring it out. But somehow I doubt even that would help much.

An Excellent Feminist Western Movie

[claudio_carvalho · 9/10 · 9 April 2004]

Vienna (Joan Crawford) is a woman with an unknown past, who built a saloon in an area outside town, waiting for the railroad, which would pass nearby her bar. She has a great enemy, the evil Emma Small (Mercedes McCambridge), who wants to expel Vienna from that place. The reason for the dispute is the love for Dancin' Kid (Scott Brady), a handsome man. The simple guitar player Johnny 'Guitar' Logan (Sterling Hayden) arrives in the bar, invited by Vienna, to work with her. The locals are not aware that Johnny was the former lover of Vienna and a famous gunman. When Dancin' Kid and his partners rob the local bank, Emma finds a motive to accuse and chase Vienna.

This movie is an excellent and very feminist western. The story is different from most of other movies of this genre and based on the rivalry of the two lead actresses. I do not recall any other western movie having such powerful roles for women. The DVD released by the Brazilian distributor Versátil is wonderful, being totally restored and re-mastered, highlighting the marvelous colors of the costumes of Joan Crawford. Mercedes McCambridge has an outstanding performance in the role of a very mean and powerful woman. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): 'Johnny Guitar'

One for the cultists!

[JohnHowardReid · 6/10 · 3 October 2014]

Despite a bit of shooting on outdoor locations, this is a talky and rather stagey western, obviously made on the cheap, using some ridiculously obvious studio backgrounds and sets. This wouldn't be so irritating, if the level of studio craftsmanship had risen to the occasion. Even Bob Mark's make-up is ghastly. Harry Stradling's Trucolor photography is also several notches below his best work. At least the Lydeckers have risen to the occasion with some effective explosions. The director has a royal time shuffling his large groups of players into phalanxes that toe the right chalk marks, but is defeated by the script's stagey, theatrical dialogue which makes it appear we are watching a stage play rather than a movie. Oh, yes, you can read a lot into the cult-flavored screenplay, but that doesn't make it any easier to digest. It's still dull, tedious and very stagey. True, Joan Crawford does add a bit of meat to her stretches, but Hayden makes a weak support. Maybe he's supposed to provide a contrast to the fiery Crawford, but he's still too glum and far too lacking in charisma. But there's no excuse for Scott Brady's inept performance. He's just way, way out of his depth. On the other hand, Ben Cooper is surprisingly effective. Ward Bond and Ernest Borgnine also stand out as solid support figures, but it is the sulfuric performance by Mercedes McCambridge that will make the film live in any hall of fame. Her ruthlessly naked depiction of evil, coupled with the burning down of the saloon, are the movie's most memorable assets. Add Victor Young's effective music score with its melodious theme and song – rendered very briefly by Peggy Lee under the end credits. Available on an Olive Films DVD.

Vienna Has The "Sausage"

[jimmylee-1 · 4/10 · 11 September 2006]

I'm a big fan of film noir, and I loved Mildred Pierce. I also like westerns, and I'm not picky about how you classify them - as far as I'm concerned, if there's a horse, John Wayne or Gary Cooper (minus Patricia Neal) or it was shot in the Missouri Flats or by John Ford, it's a western (The Conqueror meets this category quite handily, by the way). So I was ready and willing to watch Johnny Guitar.

But then I saw Joan. Never seen make up like that, anywhere. Nice crop of eyebrows you got coming up this year, Farmer Joan. Not to mention the four alarm lipstick, which she seem to carry regardless of the venue (dancehall, hanging, whatever). Tears of a clown. Wow. Especially since she ran around with her eyes bugging out of her head for the entire movie (this must have been the movie Faye Dunaway watched the most). And the name "Vienna." That trips off the tongue. Most unfortunate product placement.

And how about that Mercedes. She kept herself spun up for the entire film schedule. Suitably bitter and dogmatic, with a little Mrs. Danvers thrown in. I'm not clear how one woman could whip a bunch of men into such a frenzy and keep them following her (although at times witless, I've noticed men are capable of independent thought and dislike abuse), especially since she was often wrong (and they never threw that in her face. That's true to life, suuuure), and when her personal jealousy was so...subtle.

And the "Dancing Kid." Wasn't there one of those in a Roy Rodgers short? Dear me. I can tell by the story we were supposed to take him seriously, but who named him that? The only name sillier would be the "Kissy Face Kid" but that's about as far as you can go.

Speaking of silly, so are the lines. If they're not silly, they're delivered so histrionically, they have a huge potential for staff meeting quotes. Every single line from Joan was delivered with enormous quivering feeling, eyes wide open, huge drama.

There were no nuances, no subtle delivery, no delicate relationships - it was all over the top. And Mercedes just hated, so no subtle acting there; her lines were shrieked and thrown at us. Ernest Bornine was guilty of the same single dimensional acting. The rest of the men - even Sterling Hayden and Ward Bond - with their carefully crafted characters, fade into the background.

I'm sure the book was groundbreaking, and I'm AOK with the women in typically male roles, shooting away, emasculating most of the men in town, irrationally hating each other, and getting caught up in real estate issues. I just couldn't take the one-dimensional characters seriously, or the over the top acting. This is a guilty pleasure cult flick, offering great lines for future amusement. An acting tour de force, it's not. But it's fun.

But the title song, presented ably by Peggy Lee as usual, is a tour de force. It's well worth watching the credits go by. Beautiful.

An enjoyable film - but a very unusual western

[bob the moo · 10 April 2004]

Just outside of town is a small saloon where the owner, Vienna, plans to develop a new town once the railroad comes through. However her associations with criminals (namely the Dancin' Kid and his gang) bring the disapproving Emma Small and the authorities to the saloon. Aided by the arrival of a man from her past, Vienna stands against them, but only succeeds in putting off the inevitable confrontation in a situation made worse by love and deception.

I came to this film simply because it was the username of another person on the imdb boards and I was intrigued as to what it was about. The film starts as a western but it simply doesn't conform to that genre, instead it is a weirdly matriarchal piece where the traditional roles are almost roundly reversed and the whole film has an otherworldly feel to it. The plot summary doesn't really do justice to a story that essentially comes down to being a battle between Emma and Vienna as well as throwing up all manner of issues regarding the relationships between the characters. The western clichés become secondary to these relationships and the director seems to prefer these to any lynching or shoot out.

The full colour of the film gives it a gaudy, otherworldly appeal that is very enjoyable. Fires range in terrible, hellish reds, while shadows divide scenes of emotional complexity. Heck, it even goes down to the basic level of having the innocent Vienna dressed in perfect white before doing a blood red shirt to become a fugitive. Not all of this works of course, and several times I wished it would settle down into a film that I could recognise rather than being so different from what I am used to, but it was more interesting as a result (aside from being less accessible).

The cast are roundly good but the fireworks belong to the two lead actresses. Despite being the title character, Hayden is rather underplayed but I think that was the point - he is not the typical Western man's man. Crawford is very good as Vienna but she is out-hammed and out-vamped by McCambridge who is excellent. In any other film her performance would be woefully OTT but against the background of a saloon burning with a hellish fire, her facial expression work very well and her whole performance fits well too.

Overall this film is no classic western - mainly because it is not a western but rather a complex story in western clothes. The gaudy colours and cleverly framed shots only serve to enhance a plot that is difficult to fully appreciate but is engaging none the less.

`There was never a man like my Johnny'

[IlyaMauter · 10/10 · 19 May 2003]

Johnny Guitar (Sterling Hayden) walks into a saloon run by Vienna (Joan Crawford), who is his past love whom he hasn't seen for five years. He's looking for a job as guitar player. Many things has changed since they saw each other for the last time, Vienna turned from a plain saloon singer to its owner, and Johnny Guitar, also known as John Logan, one of the fastest to draw the gun in the West, passed through many tribulations too, but one thing immediately becomes clear as they meet again (`I've waited for you, Johnny') that the major suffering they had to pass through was the solitude, the pain of separation from each other.

But five years is a long time and `How many man have you forgotten? – As many as you remember.' There's a man she hasn't forgotten yet called Dancing Kid and there's also a woman who haven't forgiven Vienna for not forgetting him, his most dangerous rival in life and in love Emma (Mercedes McCambridge), ready to stop before nothing to have her revenge on Vienna and get Dancing Kid's heart back from her possession.

But `Spin the wheel, Eddie!' and here is Emma together with town's Marshal accusing Dancing Kid and his partners of recently committed robbery. The accusation that soon makes them go against the law and flee together with Johnny and Vienna. `Keep the wheel spinning, Eddie!' There they are on the run towards the end culminating in a duel between the two women and in so many loves and so many deaths. `Stop spinning the wheel, Eddie!'

Fabulous acting by fabulous actors, wonderful script with unforgettably intelligent and witty dialogs, magnificent direction and intensity of passions surpassing the impact of deaths of `cowboys dying with the grace of ballet dancers' (François Truffaut in his review on the film). What more can I say? Simply one of the greatest Westerns ever made that deserves to be seen and seen again. 10/10

Perverse and fascinating...

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 9/10 · 27 August 1999]

"Johnny Guitar" is a perverse and fascinating Western where sexual drive plays an important part in the story... It is known that Emma's madness/hysteria is a result of sexual repression... She detests Vienna, who has her choice of men, when the only man she can stir up herself is ugly Bart... And what is especially enraging for Emma is that while she is desperate for the Kid's love, Vienna, who now has Johnny back, turns the Kid away and still he doesn't stop being loyal to her... Even before Johnny returned to her life, Vienna had reached control over her sexual desires; but Emma hasn't such will power...

Johnny Guitar rides into a small town in the wilds of Arizona... He has been hired to work as guitarist by an aggressive lady of fortune, owner of a saloon-casino... Five years earlier they had been lovers, but he walked out on her, too restless to settle down...

There is a stage robbery, and a banker is killed... Emma Small (Mercedes McCambirdge), the dead man's sister, comes to Vienna's accompanied by the town marshal (Frank Farguson), and the wealthy rancher John McIvers (War Bond), and a bunch of vigilantes...

Emma and McIvers are determined to keep the area an open range for cattle... Emma also despises Vienna because the man she loves, the Dancin'Kid (Scott Brady), is attracted to her... She would rather see the Dancin'Kid dead than with Vienna, and tries to convince her companions that Vienna, the Kid, and the Kid's partners- stingy Bart (Ernest Borgnine), sickly Corey (Royal Dano), and young Turkey (Ben Cooper)-are responsible for her brother's death and should be hanged... Neither the marshal nor her ally McIvers will go along with her without real evidence, but McIvers orders Vienna and the Kid's gang to clear out the town...

That night, Vienna and Johnny admit they still love each lover... They agree to start again, but neither is certain the other can be relied upon... Vienna doesn't like Johnny's violent nature and Johnny is jealous that Vienna has had many lovers...

The following day, the Kid and his three companions decide to rob Emma's bank - figuring that as long as they are being forced to flee the area it might as well be for a genuine crime and not a stage robbery which they had no part in... The bank robbery takes place just as Vienna was withdrawing her money...

Joan Crawford wears black and packs six-guns... She makes all the decisions, initiates the action, and takes the majority of heroic stands-Privileges traditionally denied women in Westerns... Vienna dreams of a railroad and a new town... She wants to remain neutral, and sit and wait for the railroad to come and make her rich... She is at her best when she refuses to allow Emma and the vigilantes to arrest her for the murder of Emma's brother... She sees herself still in love with Johnny... She searches his face in every man she mets... Now she finds it hard keeping the peace between the two men who love her...

As Johnny Guitar, Sterling Hayden is a loner with a past... His character struggles to control hostile impulses... In fact, he begins with true explosion that occurs when he rides across the screen... Soon he finds himself compelled to strap on his gun again to protect his love...

Dressed in a black funeral dress, Mercedes McCambirdge is a highly frustrated Emma who constantly reminds the cattle people that Vienna is a foreigner, having lived in the region only five years... Appealing to their bigotry, she warns them that if the railroad comes through as Vienna plans, dirt farmers will push the cattlemen out of the territory...

As the Dancin'Kid, Scott Brady is a left-handed-draw, leader of a wild bunch, whose only desire is 'to leave the town so broke.' He tosses a coin into the air, promising Johnny Guitar he'll kill him if it turns out "head."

Nicholas Ray will be always remembered for "The Lusty Men," "Run for Cover," "The True Story of Jesse James," and "Johnny Guitar," his first film in color... With great skill, he makes a fantastic Western with two gun-carrying ladies in a showdown to-the-death...

Strumming

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 8 February 2014]

Johnny Guitar is a cultish western with a feminist subtext. The climax is a shootout between two females.

It is a standard western with all the tropes of a western. One dominant, rich, landowning family and their hangers on who are bullying another group.

There is a robbery, a posse, a hanging and some bad lines. The film is melodramatic, even campy.

Sterling Hayden is Johnny Guitar who is hired to protect Joan Crawford (Vienna) his past lover. What people do not know that he is more than just a guitar player.

Vienna has a saloon and when the railroad arrives she hopes to get rich. Vienna has a volatile relationship with the local townsfolk, especially Mercedes McCambridge (Emma.) Emma is determined to see the back of her by hook or by gunfire.

Both it seems have a thing for the local bad boy The Dancing Kid. A bank robbery is the catalyst to sort out past grudges and Johnny Guitar might have to reveal his true identity.

McCambridge bristles with venom, she has more balls than the rest of the posse together as seeks to finish of Vienna.

Meanwhile Crawford is no slouch and here she reveals a vulnerable side, this is no arch, campy Joan Crawford. She gives the odd schlock look here or there but she rises to the acting chops despite the campiness of the script. Hayden provides sterling support.

One of my new personal favorites

[allar100 · 9/10 · 24 May 2003]

I have seen Sterling Hayden in a lot of film that I have been picking up lately, and I must say that I think that he is one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood history. Anyway, there is nothing like mob mentality, and this film proves it. Good acting, good script, Ernest Borgnine (Nicholas Ray gets bonus points for casting him), and some pretty good direction make this a worthwile western for any fan of the genre. Only a couple a places with some shoddy editing make this film kinda weak in my eyes.

Reversion of gender roles in such a traditional genre as the Western

[frankde-jong · 7/10 · 13 October 2021]

"Johnny Guitar" is a regular Western with one notable exception: the gender roles are reversed, and that in such a traditional genre as the Western! The fighting is between the women (Vienna played by Joan Crawford and Emma played by Mercedes McCambridge) while men are playing second violin (or guitar) as their love interests.

Another aspect whose importance cannot be missed is the color of especially the dresses. Vienna changes all of a sudden from black to white and later on uses different primary colors among which red and yellow. Her enemies led by Emma are mostly in black because they are in a mourning period. Although the importance of color for this film is rather obvious, I didn't break the code for the symbolic meaning. Whoever wants to make an attempt is kindly invited.

Not obvious at all, at least not to me, was the relation of the film to the McCarthy years and the activities of the HUAC (House Committee on Un-American activities). Nevertheless review after review that I read after seeing the film was stressing this relationship.

On second glance there is some truth in it. Emma is played by Mercedes McCambridge not as the "normal" enemy of Vienna, but with such an intense hatred that it evokes associations with the determination with which McCarthy made his witch hunt. Also the pressure put on a young boy to (falsly) testify against Vienna in order to save his own life resembles the pressure put on left wing directors to drop names of their colleagues in the McCarthy years. Last but not least the script for "Johnny Guitar" was written (uncredited) by Ben Maddow , who had unpleasant experiences with the HUAC and was forced to leave the credits for his screenplay to Philip Yordan.

one of my favorite westerns

[Quinoa1984 · 10/10 · 24 July 2005]

Nicholas Ray, one of those rare directors who could put in a style or outlook of his own in various films of different conventional types in 1950's Hollywood, has with his film Johnny Guitar a job very well done. I had the chance to see it on the big screen at a revival screening some months ago (mostly among Joan Crawford fans) on a double bill with Sam Fuller's Forty Guns. Crawford, McCambridge, and definitely Sterling Hayden (one of my all-time favorite 'guy' actors) brought a lot to the entertainment factor of the film. The story goes like this (and if you've seen Sergio Leone's Once Upom a Time in the West, you'll notice obvious similarities, as his was a slight homage of this film)- Crawford owns a bar/parlor on the edge of town. The townspeople want her out to make way for a railroad, most vocally of this is McCambridge (in maybe the best performance of the film, really the most theatrical). The title character is played with usual panache by Hayden, who at first is a little enigmatic, then reveals himself to have a past with Crawford.

The story then unravels from there, in a way that actually went against my expectations, much to my delight. This is the kind of genre picture that knows what it is, but with a director clever enough to take chances. For example, there is the contrast of color between Crawford and the angry townspeople near the beginning of the film. She's playing the piano on one side of the room in a white dress, while the others, the supposedly 'good' people of the town, are all in black. Is Ray messing with the convention of good guys white, bad guys black, or do we have to keep attentive all the way through to know how it plays out? I think you'd have to - this is one of those westerns that has enough excitement, humor (mostly dark or unintentional), and a climax that goes with some of the best of them. At the least it should hold up for those expecting something very dated- it's not quite as towering as the Leone films, but on its own terms Ray has a contender against all those old-school Ford/Wayne westerns.

"I Never Shake Hands With A Left Handed Draw"

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 19 June 2008]

If Johnny Guitar is known for anything else except possibly being the first lesbian western that some folks describe it as, it will be for that practical piece of wisdom that title character Sterling Hayden offers when he refuses to shake hands with Scott Brady.

I wonder what Barbara Stanwyck was doing when Johnny Guitar was made. The part that Joan Crawford plays her is definitely one that Stanwyck must have been given first consideration for. It's more her kind of role than Crawford's. Still Joan manages to adapt to the strange western settings for her. It's certainly unusual for her not to be dressed to the nines in those Adrian gowns that MGM used to give her.

As a film Johnny Guitar suffers from some bad editing. Missing here I'm sure is a whole beginning sequence that explains just why Joan and Mercedes McCambridge hate each other so. When it opens the men of the town and McCambridge are looking for the gang that held up a stagecoach and killed McCambridge's brother.

I doubt it was director Nicholas Ray's fault. I'd put my money on it being the fault of Herbert J. Yates. He was quite the miser and his studio made its bones on doing those quickie B westerns that starred Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and a host of other singing and non-singing cowboys. Nothing with as much meat on it as Johnny Guitar.

Crawford's the owner of a saloon/gambling palace that's way out on the plains by itself. But she's built it there because the railroad's coming through and director Rhys Williams has promised that a depot will be built in that spot.

The prospect of lots of new immigrants bothers big cattle baron Ward Bond and smaller ranchers like McCambridge. But she's got a bigger reason for a mean-on with Crawford. It seems as though outlaw Scott Brady likes Crawford and won't give McCambridge a tumble. But we don't KNOW that for sure and a lot read into the film lesbianism, mainly because of McCambridge's own sexual proclivities and the fact that Joan Crawford was occasionally supposed to indulge.

Anyway Crawford's tired of Brady and she sends for an old flame, Sterling Hayden, to help her out. Now she's got two guys panting after her and McCambridge can't get a date. What's a gal to do?

It's all a pretty bloody business climaxing in a shootout with the two women. That has to be seen.

Johnny Guitar is a good western, but I would probably rate it a lot higher if we saw a director's cut.

"Never seen a woman who was more a man. She thinks like one, acts like one, and sometimes makes me feel like I'm not"

[boscofl · 8/10 · 30 May 2021]

Nicholas Ray's camp classic Johnny Guitar turns standard Western film conventions on its ear by having two women tussling for supremacy while emasculating all the men. The film does hedge its bets by dressing star Joan Crawford like a man which leads to a wicked undercurrent of sexual tension racing in all directions. While subversive for its time much of this subtext likely flew over the heads of 1954 audiences but savvy modern viewers should pick up on it. When viewed through this lens the film is a seditious treat.

It opens with the title character (Sterling Hayden) riding through the wilderness toting a guitar instead of a gun. He is reformed gunslinger Johnny Logan summoned by his former lover Vienna (Joan Crawford) to assist in defending her property. After witnessing a stagecoach holdup from afar he arrives at Vienna's; a gambling house in the middle of nowhere. The structure is nearly as bereft of people as the landscape save for Vienna and her 4 employees. The solitude is quickly shattered by an angry mob headed by MacIvers (Ward Bond) and Emma Small (Mercedes McCambridge) who demand to know the whereabouts of the Dancing Kid (Scott Brady) whom they suspect in the holdup. The underlying hostility that will propel the plot is neatly laid out: interloper Vienna plans for her saloon to be the centerpiece of a new town that the future railroad will run through while MacIvers and Emma, who own everything else, want Vienna gone. They are both burned by the way she outsmarted them in getting the land while Emma despises her for more personal reasons.

The story itself isn't particularly original; the undercurrent makes it unique. The narrative mixes elements of McCarthyism and repressed sexual tension that eventually explodes in mayhem. Emma is desperate to eliminate Vienna and doesn't seem to care whether she's innocent or guilty of any crimes. She loudly denounces Vienna as a tramp not fit for decent company and everyone clearly feels threatened by her. Vienna unashamedly behaves like a man: dressing like one, being referred to as like one, and enjoying numerous lovers including the Dancing Kid. In one particularly nasty scene Emma manipulates an injured, scared teenager facing a lynch mob into implicating Vienna in a bank heist with the promise of setting him free. The boy complies, knowing full well Vienna is innocent but desperate to save his own life, and the mob hangs him anyway. The surface motivation for her vindictiveness towards Vienna is Emma's alleged unrequited love for the Dancing Kid and jealousy over his relationship with Vienna. However, as the story progresses, it becomes evident that it's not the Kid Emma longs for but Vienna. Of course, she can't admit this to anyone (not even herself) and this inner knowledge manifests itself in bloodlust.

Johnny Guitar will probably be an acquired taste for most: Batman-level camp value, Ed Wood type dialogue, an over-the-hill leading lady, and an absolutely bonkers performance by Mercedes McCambridge. Many aspects of the production will either irritate or endear depending on the spirit with which one views the film. The dialogue between Johnny and Vienna during their romantic moments is so howlingly bad that it's good. The Dancing Kid and his gang hide out in a secret abode they dub "the lair" which is somehow so secluded it's as if it exists in another dimension. The conventional use of sound stages and rear projection to ape location scenes are comically obvious; it is almost as if they were made deliberately phony for some artistic purpose. Lastly, the climactic shootout between Vienna and Emma on the porch of the interdimensional lair is poorly staged and edited and further undermined by how awkward both actresses look manipulating guns.

On the black side of the conventional cinema ledger are aspects that would be capital in any film. The opening scene of Johnny arriving at Vienna's is wonderfully atmospheric with howling winds and impenetrable dust blowing around to set up a foreboding atmosphere. The interior of the saloon is a fantastic set piece; a gambling house built into the side of a rock formation that plays home to the primary confrontational sequences. Outside there are a number of impressive explosions as the railroad men blast their way through the surrounding bedrock and sets the stage for one tense scene. The musical score, and particularly the haunting title ballad, is memorable and exquisitely establishes the appropriate moods.

Now we get to the acting and is there a lot to unpack here. Joan Crawford is unquestionably the star and delivers an iconic performance decked out in some garish shirts, pancake makeup, and a gun belt. While she occasionally projects vulnerability she is clearly not a woman to cross and definitely enjoys dominating the men. Despite being 20 years too old for the role it is impossible to imagine any other actress as Vienna and there is something undeniably cool about her single-handedly holding an angry mob at gun point while insightfully exposing their hypocrisy. The victim of this supremacy is costar Sterling Hayden who gets steamrolled by her and delivers a surprisingly poor performance. In any other film he would be the focus as the quick triggered guitar man but he is effectively neutered by Miss Crawford here. Hayden seems awkward both mouthing his more ridiculous dialogue and brandishing his firearm. Worse still he comes off as childish when frequently brooding about all the men Vienna has had in the five years they've been apart. Even more emasculated is Scott Brady as the Kid who endlessly moons over Vienna and gets into cat fights with Johnny over her.

There are several capable supporting performances by the familiar cast. Ward Bond initially presents himself as a rampaging locomotive of animosity who gradually becomes more timid until he's content to stand by and watch the women fight it out. Ernest Borgnine seems unaware of the camp classic he's in while providing another rendition of his bullying, double-crossing, dim witted thug persona. Surprisingly, in a film bursting with exaggerated acting, the most subtle performance comes from the master of ham, John Carradine, who dials it way back to deliver a touching characterization as Vienna's devoted companion. Keep an eye out for a thin, clean shaven Denver Pyle and genre regular Paul Fix in small roles.

The one performance everyone is likely to remember is Mercedes McCambridge as the sexually confused Emma Small. This is a powerhouse example of voracious scenery chewing as she dominates her male counterparts and displays an insatiable, uncontrollable mania to see Vienna dead. In almost any other film an over the top interpretation like this would likely be detrimental but here it is right on the money. It is quite a sight to see tiny Mercedes convincingly run roughshod over big, tough Ward Bond to the point where he'd be carrying her purse if she had one. The scene of her gloating with satanic glee through the flames of the fire she starts in the middle of Vienna's saloon is a moment one will not likely forget.

Over the years Johnny Guitar has built a reputation as a camp masterpiece while cementing Joan Crawford's status as a gay icon. The reversed gender domination angle was unique for 1954 and nearly unprecedented for the times. There is no question the film is polarizing and likely an acquired taste; those expecting a conventional shoot em up western will be disappointed. However, for those who revel in kitschy pop culture and rooting out deeper, seditious meanings in their cinema, this is unquestionably the gold standard and a highly enjoyable movie.

A Ray of Sexual Tension

[peapulation · 7/10 · 18 December 2008]

Nicholas Ray knew exactly what to do with a western to make it interesting: sexual tension. What is more is he casts Joan Crawford, who is always ace at playing the strong woman, and in doing so, he inevitably enlarges the sexual charge, although it is unfortunately clear from the film that at the time she was a little of age. No matter, Sterling Hayden was no Dean Martin...

Johnny Guitar is everything that could possibly symbolize the best of the Americana westerns of the time. The roles are reversed. The good guys, the ones that go after the outlaws are not the ones that we are supposed to be rooting for. We have to root for the gambling, drinking outlaws, because they don't wear black clothing. On top of that, the main plot is the power-thirsty women quarrel, and not Johnny Guitar, who is, however, the one that we side with the most, because he is the peaceful guy that would avoid using a gun if at all necessary, although he has a past of being 'gun crazy'. This is a whole peaceful concept that went on to inspire numerous films not just westerns, and of course, the character of Johnny Guitar definitely had a major influence in the shaping of the character of Harmonica in Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West.

Nicholas Ray is excellent. He has this new and modern idea of film-making, where he knows exactly how to place the characters in the frame and on top of that, knows exactly not too move the camera in too an overwhelming way in the establishing sequence that lasts over half an hour. After that, the plot and the film becomes very exciting indeed, with the outlaw 'good guys' on the run, but with the constant knowledge that they will be caught, and the outcome will be messy.

WATCH FOR THE MOMENT WHEN - Johnny and the Kid face off for the first time. Kid asks "can you play?", and Johnny replies "Can you dance?".

Super campy "western "

[jp404 · 1/10 · 11 February 2005]

I find it hard to believe that some people actually take this lurid melodrama seriously. It is so god-awful that it can be highly entertaining to a certain audience.

We see an aging Hollywood queen (Joan Crawford, aged 50[?])desperate to make a movie, any movie, even if it requires dressing up like Black Bart and dragging her heavily varnished Hollywood glamor through the grit and grime of a super hokey western and acting against a leading man (Sterling Hayden) with the talent of a fence post and a converted radio actress (MercedesMcCambridge) chewing the scenery with the ferocity of a blood-crazed shark.

If you want to know what the film is about don't ask me. The story is so convoluted that I lost track after the first thirty minutes. With Miss Crawford's cultivated MGM accent, her carefully lighted and photographed close-ups and meticulous makeup and hair style the film seems to ask the improbable question, "Can a fading female movie star find love and happiness as the proprietor of a seedy 1800's western saloon?"

I suppose it is possible to admire the scenery and vivid cinematography of the film but it is difficult with all the schlock going on in front of it. The real pleasure to be found here is a perverse one; relishing the sheer, unholy badness of it all, the puerile screen play, overwrought dialog and bad acting, ranging from way-too-little to way-too-much with La Crawford trapped in the middle of it but staunchly giving the same mannered performance that she delivered in film after film throughout most of her career.

This thing has to be seen to be believed.