Hondo (1953)

I have certainly seen much worse Western movies all ready out on DVD. I wish this great one was available on DVD (When I wrote this it wasn't). I caught it on TV this weekend during a John Wayne marathon of movies. The acting, sets, directing, scenery, and music all stand out on this one. Many critics think "The Searchers" is great but although I think it is a wonderfully shot movie I don't think the interaction is as believable as "Hondo". The cast here does a wonderful job of making me believe what is happening and that I'm with them in that time period. John Furrow must have worked hard directing to get such results.

The attitude towards Indians is much more appropriate as well. The camera work is excellent. Especially good with wide scenic shots and close-ups of the actors. The directing as I said before is excellent, and the scope of acting in this movie is some of the best I have seen in a John Wayne movie or any Western for that matter. Geraldine Page is great as the Duke's love interest. She does a magnificent job portraying a pioneer woman. Ward Bond, Michael Pate, James Arness, and the rest the cast do a fine job supporting. I hope you get the opportunity to see it. I'm sure you will agree it is a top notch Western and it should be on DVD.

As an addendum I want to thank the studio for finally releasing a wonderful quality DVD with several extras. This is a personal favorite and I want to thank those of you nice enough to vote for my review. It is people like you showing an interest in these classics that prompts the studios to do a proper job of restoring the movies and releasing them on DVD.

John Wayne stars as Hondo Lane, a half-Indian message carrier and gunslinger in New Mexico. He first shows up at the ranch of Mrs. Angie Lowe after getting away from Apache attackers. This takes place in the ending days of the "Indian round-up" years, when only a few bands of Apache were left. Hondo takes a liking to Angie and her young son, but soon heads out to deliver the message.

In the meantime, the Apache have always been fond of Mrs. Lowe and had a good relationship with her and the chief takes a personal interest in her son. He tries to convince Angie to choose a new husband from amongst his braves. She insists that her husband will be back soon to stay on the remote ranch with her.

Hondo runs into the wayward husband in a bar, only learning his name after punching him out. In an attempt to get the husband back to his wife, Hondo takes the man's horse and says that Mr. Lowe can retrieve it at the ranch. Angry, Lowe pays a guy to go with him after Hondo. Apaches attack and kill the paid bodyguard, and Hondo shoots an Apache to save Lowe's life. Lowe repays Hondo by attempting to shoot him in the back. Hondo is forced to kill him. He takes Lowe's tintype of Lowe's son to bring back to the mom.

Along the way, the Apaches find Hondo and are about to torture him to death when the Apache chief recognizes the tintype. Hondo still has to fight and triumph over the brother of the Apache he killed. The Apache chief brings Hondo back to Mrs. Lowe, who claims Hondo as her husband in order to get him in away from the Apaches. Hondo tries several times to tell Angie what happened, but each time she doesn't want to hear it. She does end up hearing the truth from someone else, but when Hondo then attempts to tell the boy, Angie refuses to let him do it. She scolds Hondo that his need for the truth is so great that he'd damage the boy's sense of well being and security to achieve it.

The movie is a rather complex story, based almost exactly on the story by Louis L'Amour. John Wayne loved the story so much that he specifically hired a favorite script writer to adapt it into a movie for him. It was filmed to be watched in 3D, so there are several scenes with knives poking at the screen and people standing in the foreground. You might think this would make the movie look cheesy, but really you're normally lost in the storyline or the gorgeous landscapes.

This movie came out in 1953 and for an era that saw many "slaughter the Indians" movies, it's pretty impressive in its even handedness. Angie likes the Apaches and has been friends with them since childhood. Hondo is a half Indian, and had an Apache wife while he lived with them for 5 years. You get treated to many scenes with Apaches speaking in their native Apache tongue. Hondo makes it pretty clear that the only reason that the Apache are rising up are that the US government has been actively deceiving them and betraying them. He explains that the Apache are very much against lying, and that he is the same way.

Compared to many other westerns, this does a reasonably good job of showing shades of grey, not just 'Good' and 'Bad'. The Apaches were pushed into the war, but they're prepared to kill an innocent woman who has lived on this land from birth. The settlers are sometimes obnoxious about their desire to get rid of the "natives". In the end, Hondo says that he imagines this will be the end of the Apache way of life, and that it's a shame.

Buy Hondo (1953) Now

HONDO is a solid Western in the best tradition of the genre. Based on the story "The Gift of Cochise" by Louis L'Amour, John Wayne brings the character Hondo Lane to the screen juxtaposed with his familiar screen presence yet true to L'Amour's spirit of the literary "Western." James Edward Grant's script is impressively sympathetic to the American Indian given the period when this film was produced. Geraldine Page as Angie is perfectly naïve as the homesteader living alone with her son in the open wilderness of rock and dust (artistically captured by Robert Burks' cinematography). However, it is John Wayne's portrayal as the enigmatically tough yet unemotionally tender survivor of this barren country that is the strength of this film. The music for HONDO is credited to both Emil Newman and Hugo Friedhofer and their impressive melody for HONDO majestically reflects the honorable and brave stature of the man.

Read Best Reviews of Hondo (1953) Here

I was going to wait until this was available on widescreen until I did some research on the web and found out that this DVD is in the original aspect radio of the film, so this is "as good as it gets".

I couldn't find anywhere, where Amazon indicates this.

Want Hondo (1953) Discount?

Customer reviews of Hondo seem to bounce from "great" to "poor." It appears that most of the criticism, other than some editing, is caused by the fact that this is an early 1950's western. Come on folks, of course the Duke is freshly shaven all the time, Page's cabin looks spotless, etc. It was made in the 1950's!!! This sort of "lack of realism" complaint could be directed at virtually every western made up to the time and of many others after. .... The action is excellent, even for a Wayne action movie, certainly better than some of his higher profile "Indian" westerns such as Ft. Apache and even Rio Grande and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. The tension and suspense waiting for the Apaches to come over the rise is palpable thoughout the movie. .... Acosta succeeds in this film as one of the most convincing of evil villains ever to appear in a western. .... If you don't have it, get it. You'll enjoy it a lot.

Save 46% Off