While watching I though Lucy Mallory was played by younger Donna Reed who I know from "It's a Wonderful Life". But I was wrong, she was played by Louise Platt. Both very beautiful.
Fun facts: Orson Welles called this film a "perfect textbook of filmmaking" and claims he watched Stagecoach more than 40 times in preparation for his first movie Citizen Kane. This was John Wayne's star making performance. Before this film he had spend nearly 10 years grinding out low budget B pictures for Republic.
Stagecoach is often cited as the first "adult" Western since most Westerns of the time period were made for kids going to Saturday matinees even though John Ford had been making mature Westerns since the Silent Era, but Ford has a very poetic way of creating shots to relate both vastness and intimacy particularly between Dallas and Ringo not to mention his use of doorways and windows to signify pervading rites of passage or moments of quiet revelation for instance when Hatfield views Mrs. Mallory through a window through the window of stagecoach. Anyway, I love this film. One thing I really like about Ford's casting despite the main characters is that he always wanted to cast genuine Native Americans for "Indians" where it was typical in the Holllywood casting offices to have non-Natives to play those roles. Great reaction, Henry. Really looking forward to Young Mr. Lincoln and all the rest of the Ford library you'll be watching. Hoping you're going to be watching HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY - talk about doorways and windows iconography! And it's a beautiful film which won 1941's Best Picture Oscar over Citizen Kane controversially.
The women's league reacted when Doc leaned out the stagecoach because he had his thumb on (or at) his nose, which would have been almost the equivalent of the modern middle finger. Extremely rude, in any case. You'd sometimes see the same gesture in pre-code cartoons. Tom Tyler as the bad guy Luke Plummer isn't in the movie long, but he has the distinction of being the first actor to play Captain Marvel/Shazam on film, also making him the first actor to play ANY comic book superhero on film. The Adventures of Captain Marvel is usually regarded as one of the best of the old movie serials, and Tyler was a particularly fit actor, so he looked good in the costume.
what is always amazing to me in these old westerns is the stunt work. In this movie the work by the stunt men around the stagecoach's horses while they're running as fast as they can is outright dangerous.
Stagecoach is an iconic film filled with iconic scenes, staring with the camera zoom that introduces John Wayne to the stunt work around the stage coach during the chase scene to the subtle looks Claire Trevor relies on to steal the film from the other actors. As for the shunning and dirty looks given her character, aside from creating a contrast in which the connection between Ringo and Dallas makes sense, they reflect one of the metaphorical tropes that some Westerns use to explore the encroachment of civilization as it closes in on the frontier wilderness. Claire Trevor featured in mostly Westerns and film noirs, with roles in some of the classics of both genres including Dark Command (1940), Honky Tonk (1941), Texas (1941), Man Without a Star (1955), The Stranger Wore a Gun (1953), Best of the Badmen (1951), Murder, My Sweet (1944), Johnny Angel (1945), Born to Kill (1947), Borderline (1950), Key Largo (1948), and Raw Deal (1948). (If I had to pick one above the rest it would be Key Largo)
A common trope in Hollywood westerns is the changing of the "Wild West" into a more civilized place. According to Hollywood, when the first towns were settled and law enforcement was weak, there were virtually no women other than prostitutes. As towns grew and started to get sheriffs and marshals and the rule of law developed, married couples felt safe enough to move in. The wives rightly considered the sex workers as threats to their family life, and took action to run them out of town. The town of Tonto at the beginning of the film is going through this "civilized" development. Note that the "real" history of the West is a lot more complicated, but the movie trope is what the plot is running with.
Great review Henry, I enjoyed it and am glad that you have watched and enjoyed the classic movie Stagecoach, one of the best. If you are doing a John Ford\John Wayne series then you simply have to include 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon' which can be called both Ford and Wayne's best movie and it includes an excellent performance from Victor McLaglen (remember him in The Quiet Man}.
In Victorian times, it was considered improper to refer to someone's legs, in particularly women's legs, but "limbs" was okay. (In the beginning, Curly refers to Mallory's legs and then immediately corrects himself.) Dallas was supposed to be a "woman of ill repute" (i.e., prostitute), but the Hays Code in effect prohibited the move from being more direct. Also the other woman was pregnant but again the code prevented both labeling her as such and from showing her with an extended stomach. Audiences of the time, however, knew EXACTLY what was implied in both cases. (Despite the morality that reinforced the Hays Code, the "prostitute with a heart of gold" was a familiar trope, also seen by Belle Watling in Gone With The Wind and Marlene Dietrich's character in the 1939 Destry Rides Again, the later spoofed so well in Blazing Saddles.) On the other hand, the Hays Code might have "encouraged" the plot to have the gambler to die in the end. Thomas Mitchell, the drunk doctor, was a great character actor. He played Scarlett O'Hara's father in the blockbuster Gone With The Wind (released the same year - 1939 was a banner year for classic movies, including of course Wizard of Oz and Destry Rides Again). He also played Uncle Billy in another must-see movie, It's a Wonderful Life, which came out in 1946. (I was long familiar with GWTW and Wonderful Life but only last year did I realize it was the same actor, he was so good as different characters.)
I did briefly wonder why Curly changed from "legs" to "limbs". So that was why. The Hays Code had more influence on the movie than I thought. I didn't realize even pregnancy can't be shown! I don't have "Destry Rides Again" on my list, so I'll make sure to add it. As for the other movies you mentioned, I've watched "It's a Wonderful Life". It's a beautiful movie 🥹
@@henryellow Destry Rides Again provided the framework for the plot of Blazing Saddles, although it isn't necessary to watch it to understand the second (but it helps). In It's A Wonderful Life, think about how George Bailey and his wife talk about her getting pregnant - He asks "Mary, are you on the nest?" (And she answers just nodding her head and saying "yes.") In 1952, 13 years after Stagecoach, on the I Love Lucy show (you should watch a least a few full episodes), there was an episode "Lucy Is Enceinte" (French for pregnant - I never even heard of that word before). In real life, Lucille Ball had gotten pregnant and so a big decision was to include it in the series, considered a major risk, as this had never been done before. Again, they couldn't use the word "pregnant." They hired a Catholic Priest, a Protestant Minister, and a Rabbi, to make sure each episode, each word in each episode, did not offend the audiences. I think this might have been the first time a woman was seen in full maternity clothes. I think this show also started the trope of the panic that happens when the woman realizes she is going into labor (and of course the husband is depicted as completely hapless in getting her to the hospital). PS - Lucy and Ricky were always shown in twin beds, as were Laura and Rob Petrie on the Dick Van Dyke show of the early '60's.
"Well, I guess you can't break out of prison and into society in the same week." Fun Fact: Theatrical film debut of Mickey Simpson. Extra Nation Fact: Local Navajo Indians played the Apaches. The film's production was a huge economic boost to the local impoverished population, giving jobs to hundreds of locals as extras and handymen. Casting Notes Fact: John Ford originally wanted Ward Bond to play Buck the stage driver. However, he gave the role to Andy Devine when he found that Bond couldn't drive a "six-up" stagecoach and that not enough time existed to teach him. Legendary Hat Fact: The hat that John Wayne wears was his own. He would wear it in many westerns during the next two decades before retiring it after Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo (1959) because it was simply falling apart. After that, the hat was displayed under glass in his home. The Duke Fact: John Ford gave John Wayne the script, asking him for any suggestions as to who could play the Ringo Kid. Wayne suggested Lloyd Nolan, not realizing that Ford was baiting him with the part. Additionally, once filming began, Ford was merciless to Wayne, constantly undermining him. This psychological tactic was designed to make Wayne start feeling some real emotions and to be unintimidated by acting alongside the likes of such seasoned professionals as Thomas Mitchell. Running W Fact: A stunt known as a "Running W" was used to cause the Indians' horses to fall during the sequence where they are chasing the stagecoach. Strong, thin wires were fixed to a metal post anchored in the ground, while the other ends of the wires were attached to an iron clamp that encircled the legs of each horse. A horse was then ridden at full gallop, and when a wire's maximum length was reached--just when the rider was "shot"--the animal's legs would be jerked from beneath it, causing it to tumble violently and throw off the "shot" rider. A rider could anticipate the fall, but the horse could not, resulting in many horses either being killed outright or having to be destroyed because of broken limbs incurred during the falls. The use of the "Running W" was eventually discontinued after many complaints from both inside and outside the film industry.
Oh no, the "Running W" is the saddest fun fact from this sharing 😢. I didn't even notice any wires during those scenes. I thought they taught the horses how to fall. To think that horses were sacrificed for movies that use the "Running W" stunt. I'm glad they discontinued it. Thanks for sharing!
Very strange that you don’t mention John Wayne, the most famous western star by far in cinematic history, at all. This is the movie that made him a star.
When it comes to listing favorite movies, it is difficult for me. Because the list always changes. So I rather arbitrarily just keep Stagecoach as my #1 western. Orson Welles watched Stagecoach almost nightly while he was making Citizen Kane. I can see why. You could almost watch Stagecoach with no dialogue and understand what is going on. Ford knew how to frame a shot and then put the shots together to frame a story. Nine disparate people and by the end, you have nine unique characterizations. In just 90 or so minutes. No clunky exposition drops either. And did so when much of it is in the subtext. Regarding prostitution. It varied from place to place. So-called, 'law and order leagues,' popped up pretty much everywhere eventually. Schools and churches supplanting the bars and brothels. Sometimes town tamers (lawmen hired specifically to transition the change) would post the names of "undesirables." Sometimes it was vigilance committees. If your name was on the list, get out of town or things would go bad for you. Madams were often on the list. So they'd just sell out to the next madam and move to the next town. There was a quite famous Madam named Sally Standford. She said, "If you are being run out of town, get in front of the crowd and make it look like a parade." In Stagecoach, that is what Doc does when he is run out of town. He leaves as if it is his own idea and a cause for celebration. While Dallas just feels hurt.
Oh yes, I liked the characters and character development in this one. That's interesting. I feel that this kind of "transition" is necessary to create a civilized community, but driving them out of town is a bit much. Then again, perhaps getting out of town was a good idea (if the alternative was violent treatment by the townspeople). It's no different from being isolated and bullied by the majority though...
The drunken Doc is instantly recognisable as Scarlett's dad. Now there's a film worth watching!
John Carradine is also in Grapes of Wrath.
While watching I though Lucy Mallory was played by younger Donna Reed who I know from "It's a Wonderful Life". But I was wrong, she was played by Louise Platt. Both very beautiful.
I love John Wayne. Anything he is in I have probably watched. This is a very good movie!
Fun facts: Orson Welles called this film a "perfect textbook of filmmaking" and claims he watched Stagecoach more than 40 times in preparation for his first movie Citizen Kane.
This was John Wayne's star making performance. Before this film he had spend nearly 10 years grinding out low budget B pictures for Republic.
Thanks for sharing the fun fact! 😊
Stagecoach is often cited as the first "adult" Western since most Westerns of the time period were made for kids going to Saturday matinees even though John Ford had been making mature Westerns since the Silent Era, but Ford has a very poetic way of creating shots to relate both vastness and intimacy particularly between Dallas and Ringo not to mention his use of doorways and windows to signify pervading rites of passage or moments of quiet revelation for instance when Hatfield views Mrs. Mallory through a window through the window of stagecoach. Anyway, I love this film. One thing I really like about Ford's casting despite the main characters is that he always wanted to cast genuine Native Americans for "Indians" where it was typical in the Holllywood casting offices to have non-Natives to play those roles. Great reaction, Henry. Really looking forward to Young Mr. Lincoln and all the rest of the Ford library you'll be watching. Hoping you're going to be watching HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY - talk about doorways and windows iconography! And it's a beautiful film which won 1941's Best Picture Oscar over Citizen Kane controversially.
Absolutely. "How Green Was My Valley" is in the queue, and I'll watch it in the next John Ford cycle 😊
The women's league reacted when Doc leaned out the stagecoach because he had his thumb on (or at) his nose, which would have been almost the equivalent of the modern middle finger. Extremely rude, in any case. You'd sometimes see the same gesture in pre-code cartoons.
Tom Tyler as the bad guy Luke Plummer isn't in the movie long, but he has the distinction of being the first actor to play Captain Marvel/Shazam on film, also making him the first actor to play ANY comic book superhero on film. The Adventures of Captain Marvel is usually regarded as one of the best of the old movie serials, and Tyler was a particularly fit actor, so he looked good in the costume.
Ohh, I see. I had no idea about that gesture. Thanks for clarifying! 😊👍 (this thumbs up is NOT on the nose, by the way) 😂
what is always amazing to me in these old westerns is the stunt work. In this movie the work by the stunt men around the stagecoach's horses while they're running as fast as they can is outright dangerous.
I agree. One wrong move and the stunt men could end very badly...
Stagecoach is an iconic film filled with iconic scenes, staring with the camera zoom that introduces John Wayne to the stunt work around the stage coach during the chase scene to the subtle looks Claire Trevor relies on to steal the film from the other actors. As for the shunning and dirty looks given her character, aside from creating a contrast in which the connection between Ringo and Dallas makes sense, they reflect one of the metaphorical tropes that some Westerns use to explore the encroachment of civilization as it closes in on the frontier wilderness. Claire Trevor featured in mostly Westerns and film noirs, with roles in some of the classics of both genres including Dark Command (1940), Honky Tonk (1941), Texas (1941), Man Without a Star (1955), The Stranger Wore a Gun (1953), Best of the Badmen (1951), Murder, My Sweet (1944), Johnny Angel (1945), Born to Kill (1947), Borderline (1950), Key Largo (1948), and Raw Deal (1948). (If I had to pick one above the rest it would be Key Largo)
I'll add some of these to my list, thanks for your suggestions! 😊
Happy you're feeling better, Henry! (Fantastic stunts in this one, huh?!) Great edit!
Yup, feeling much better, thanks! 😊
Those were some risky stunts indeed.
A common trope in Hollywood westerns is the changing of the "Wild West" into a more civilized place. According to Hollywood, when the first towns were settled and law enforcement was weak, there were virtually no women other than prostitutes. As towns grew and started to get sheriffs and marshals and the rule of law developed, married couples felt safe enough to move in. The wives rightly considered the sex workers as threats to their family life, and took action to run them out of town. The town of Tonto at the beginning of the film is going through this "civilized" development. Note that the "real" history of the West is a lot more complicated, but the movie trope is what the plot is running with.
Thanks for sharing! 😊
Great review Henry, I enjoyed it and am glad that you have watched and enjoyed the classic movie Stagecoach, one of the best. If you are doing a John Ford\John Wayne series then you simply have to include 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon' which can be called both Ford and Wayne's best movie and it includes an excellent performance from Victor McLaglen (remember him in The Quiet Man}.
"She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" and "The Quiet Man" are in the John Ford queue. I'll watch them in a few more cycles 😊
In Victorian times, it was considered improper to refer to someone's legs, in particularly women's legs, but "limbs" was okay. (In the beginning, Curly refers to Mallory's legs and then immediately corrects himself.)
Dallas was supposed to be a "woman of ill repute" (i.e., prostitute), but the Hays Code in effect prohibited the move from being more direct. Also the other woman was pregnant but again the code prevented both labeling her as such and from showing her with an extended stomach. Audiences of the time, however, knew EXACTLY what was implied in both cases. (Despite the morality that reinforced the Hays Code, the "prostitute with a heart of gold" was a familiar trope, also seen by Belle Watling in Gone With The Wind and Marlene Dietrich's character in the 1939 Destry Rides Again, the later spoofed so well in Blazing Saddles.)
On the other hand, the Hays Code might have "encouraged" the plot to have the gambler to die in the end.
Thomas Mitchell, the drunk doctor, was a great character actor. He played Scarlett O'Hara's father in the blockbuster Gone With The Wind (released the same year - 1939 was a banner year for classic movies, including of course Wizard of Oz and Destry Rides Again). He also played Uncle Billy in another must-see movie, It's a Wonderful Life, which came out in 1946. (I was long familiar with GWTW and Wonderful Life but only last year did I realize it was the same actor, he was so good as different characters.)
I did briefly wonder why Curly changed from "legs" to "limbs". So that was why.
The Hays Code had more influence on the movie than I thought. I didn't realize even pregnancy can't be shown!
I don't have "Destry Rides Again" on my list, so I'll make sure to add it. As for the other movies you mentioned, I've watched "It's a Wonderful Life". It's a beautiful movie 🥹
@@henryellow Destry Rides Again provided the framework for the plot of Blazing Saddles, although it isn't necessary to watch it to understand the second (but it helps).
In It's A Wonderful Life, think about how George Bailey and his wife talk about her getting pregnant - He asks "Mary, are you on the nest?" (And she answers just nodding her head and saying "yes.")
In 1952, 13 years after Stagecoach, on the I Love Lucy show (you should watch a least a few full episodes), there was an episode "Lucy Is Enceinte" (French for pregnant - I never even heard of that word before). In real life, Lucille Ball had gotten pregnant and so a big decision was to include it in the series, considered a major risk, as this had never been done before. Again, they couldn't use the word "pregnant." They hired a Catholic Priest, a Protestant Minister, and a Rabbi, to make sure each episode, each word in each episode, did not offend the audiences.
I think this might have been the first time a woman was seen in full maternity clothes. I think this show also started the trope of the panic that happens when the woman realizes she is going into labor (and of course the husband is depicted as completely hapless in getting her to the hospital).
PS - Lucy and Ricky were always shown in twin beds, as were Laura and Rob Petrie on the Dick Van Dyke show of the early '60's.
"Well, I guess you can't break out of prison and into society in the same week."
Fun Fact: Theatrical film debut of Mickey Simpson.
Extra Nation Fact: Local Navajo Indians played the Apaches. The film's production was a huge economic boost to the local impoverished population, giving jobs to hundreds of locals as extras and handymen.
Casting Notes Fact: John Ford originally wanted Ward Bond to play Buck the stage driver. However, he gave the role to Andy Devine when he found that Bond couldn't drive a "six-up" stagecoach and that not enough time existed to teach him.
Legendary Hat Fact: The hat that John Wayne wears was his own. He would wear it in many westerns during the next two decades before retiring it after Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo (1959) because it was simply falling apart. After that, the hat was displayed under glass in his home.
The Duke Fact: John Ford gave John Wayne the script, asking him for any suggestions as to who could play the Ringo Kid. Wayne suggested Lloyd Nolan, not realizing that Ford was baiting him with the part. Additionally, once filming began, Ford was merciless to Wayne, constantly undermining him. This psychological tactic was designed to make Wayne start feeling some real emotions and to be unintimidated by acting alongside the likes of such seasoned professionals as Thomas Mitchell.
Running W Fact: A stunt known as a "Running W" was used to cause the Indians' horses to fall during the sequence where they are chasing the stagecoach. Strong, thin wires were fixed to a metal post anchored in the ground, while the other ends of the wires were attached to an iron clamp that encircled the legs of each horse. A horse was then ridden at full gallop, and when a wire's maximum length was reached--just when the rider was "shot"--the animal's legs would be jerked from beneath it, causing it to tumble violently and throw off the "shot" rider. A rider could anticipate the fall, but the horse could not, resulting in many horses either being killed outright or having to be destroyed because of broken limbs incurred during the falls. The use of the "Running W" was eventually discontinued after many complaints from both inside and outside the film industry.
Oh no, the "Running W" is the saddest fun fact from this sharing 😢. I didn't even notice any wires during those scenes. I thought they taught the horses how to fall. To think that horses were sacrificed for movies that use the "Running W" stunt. I'm glad they discontinued it.
Thanks for sharing!
henryellow ...Only the first fact is the "fun" fact.
Go in Peace and Walk with God. 😎 👍
Very strange that you don’t mention John Wayne, the most famous western star by far in cinematic history, at all.
This is the movie that made him a star.
This is the first time I've seen him in a movie 😉
When it comes to listing favorite movies, it is difficult for me. Because the list always changes. So I rather arbitrarily just keep Stagecoach as my #1 western.
Orson Welles watched Stagecoach almost nightly while he was making Citizen Kane. I can see why. You could almost watch Stagecoach with no dialogue and understand what is going on. Ford knew how to frame a shot and then put the shots together to frame a story.
Nine disparate people and by the end, you have nine unique characterizations. In just 90 or so minutes. No clunky exposition drops either. And did so when much of it is in the subtext.
Regarding prostitution. It varied from place to place. So-called, 'law and order leagues,' popped up pretty much everywhere eventually. Schools and churches supplanting the bars and brothels.
Sometimes town tamers (lawmen hired specifically to transition the change) would post the names of "undesirables." Sometimes it was vigilance committees. If your name was on the list, get out of town or things would go bad for you. Madams were often on the list. So they'd just sell out to the next madam and move to the next town.
There was a quite famous Madam named Sally Standford. She said, "If you are being run out of town, get in front of the crowd and make it look like a parade." In Stagecoach, that is what Doc does when he is run out of town. He leaves as if it is his own idea and a cause for celebration. While Dallas just feels hurt.
Oh yes, I liked the characters and character development in this one.
That's interesting. I feel that this kind of "transition" is necessary to create a civilized community, but driving them out of town is a bit much. Then again, perhaps getting out of town was a good idea (if the alternative was violent treatment by the townspeople). It's no different from being isolated and bullied by the majority though...