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Reviews
Rio Bravo (1959)
Watch El Dorado Instead
I'm in the camp that says El Dorado is better than Rio Bravo by at least two star ratings. If you watch El Dorado first like I did, and you're like me, Rio Bravo will be a disappointment - a definite step down in all aspects of movie-making. If you watch Rio Bravo first and like it, you should like El Dorado as well, if not more. If you watch Rio Bravo first and don't like it, you MIGHT like El Dorado better. I don't know how anyone can say Rio Bravo is the better movie of the two.
The only thing I can see getting out of Rio Bravo once you've watched El Dorado is to see a younger Ricky Nelson, Dean Martin, or the one of a kind Walter Brennan. Walter was heavy character actor of course, and did a great, specialized job, but his character's personality gets on my nerves. I don't want to watch him again.
Other than those three actors, there's nothing to see here that wasn't in El Dorado, and El Dorado had more and better everything.
Green Card (1990)
Reasons to watch Green Card (or not)
PROS:
For me, Andie McDowell is one of the most desirable women to ever appear on the big screen. I'd watch it just for her.
The acting performance of Gérard Depardieu. He was purportedly France's best actor at the time, appearing in his first English speaking lead role. I wasn't disappointed.
CONS:
The ending was typical 'romantic comedy chick flick' but difficult to 'buy' given McDowell's attitude toward him up until that point.
The whole premise behind why McDowell wanted to marry him in the first place is far-fetched.
Favorite scenes:
1. Depardieu being courted by some single ladies over dinner, followed by an emotional appeal at the piano.
2. The couple sharing old photos on the couch, followed by the most dramatic and suspenseful scene in the movie.
3. McDowell's entry back into the greenhouse, alone, and her abrupt focus on some tomato plants.
4. Their separate interviews before the immigration officials. Emotional opinions of each other begin to flow from both their mouths as the editing brilliantly switches back and forth between the two.
Enjoy!
El Dorado (1966)
Reasons to watch El Dorado if you haven't already
I decided to watch El Dorado because movie critic Roger Ebert listed it on his website as the 15th best movie for 1967. This was my first John Wayne movie to watch from beginning to end, and I'm far from being a big fan of the 'western' movie genre, only because I hadn't watched any western movies in their entirety until now. This was typical 'good guys vs. the bad guys.'
If like me you're not already a John Wayne or 'western' fan, I'll offer up a few reasons why it might be worth investing 2 hours of your time.
1) From a production standpoint, I loved all the outdoor night time scenes in and around the little town. Whoever worked on the lighting did a great job. They made it look like the characters were operating under a full moon each night.
2) Actress Charlene Holt as Maude. She's as pretty a woman as I've ever seen, period.
3) I watched El Dorado just after watching The Godfather for the first time. Far from an Academy Award performance, this was the movie that purportedly put James Caan on the map. Obviously, it's a totally different kind of role from the Godfather, but he seems to do an adequate job with whatever is asked of him.
4) If you like 'shoot 'em ups,' whether they're 'western' movies or not, there are plenty of bullets flying around.
What's NOT a reason to watch? Well, how about the acting ability (or lack thereof) of Robert Mitchum. Line delivery is not his forte. This was my first Robert Mitchum movie, and he's not someone I'd go out of my way to see again. I'd sooner seek out some Charlene Holt eye candy :)
Enjoy!