I'm a huge fan of John Wayne and this was the first Wayne western I saw in a theater on first release. It's a treat seeing Wayne and O'Hara again and many of the veteran character actors such as Bruce Cabot, Harry Carey, Jr. and Hank Worden that have appeared in many films with the Duke. Richard Boone also gives a marvelous performance as the vicious villain and he's the perfect foil for Wayne in the film. No one could play a slimy bad-guy like Boone. Having said all that however, this still is not a very good picture. The direction is shoddy (reportedly director Sherman was ill during the shoot and Wayne directed scenes himself), the script weak and many of the performances are sub-par (Patrick Wayne is particularly bad). Most of the humor in the film comes across as forced and some of the violence is kind of gratuitous and in bad taste. This was typical of most of Wayne's 1970's films (the exceptions are the classic "The Shootist" and the underrated "The Cowboys"), he often gave clichéd performances during this era and was mostly just going through the motions and playing his "personna." I almost gagged when I saw an earlier reviewer state that this is better than "The Searchers." Sorry - not even close. Still, it's The Duke and most of the movie is kind of fun - just don't compare it with Wayne's best Westerns. "Stagecoach," "Red River," "Rio Bravo," "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," and the aforementioned "The Searchers" and "The Shootist" are all miles ahead.
Review of Big Jake
