Rooster Cogburn (1975)

Cinema Sweetheart's Rating: 10 out of 10

Director: Stuart Millar

Starring: John Wayne, Katharine Hepburn, Anthony Zerbe

Rated: PG

Genre: Western, Action, Drama, Comedy

Runtime: 108 minutes

Prequal: True Grit (1969)

John Wayne stars once again as one of his most memorable characters: the drunken, smart-mouthed, one-eyed marshal Rooster Cogburn.  When outlaws ransack a small mission set up in the Indian territory, killing the minster Rev. Goodnight, his daughter Eula (Hepburn), the mission's teacher accompanies Rooster Cogburn to track them down.  The marshal, however, is reluctant to be tailed by a quick-witted preacher woman and her Indian friend Wolf (Richard Romancito)  To make matters worse, if Rooster does not bring the criminals--who not only killed Eula's father, but also stole a shipment of nitroglycerin-- back alive, he'll lose his job.

I think what I liked best about this movie was how much it had to provide.  Besides having a wonderful trio of heroes in Cogburn, Eula Goodnight, and Wolf, there was a great set of horrible villains.  Richard Jordan plays Hawk, the leader of the outlaws; a ruthless, cruel man who will do anything he has to in order to get the payoff.  Jordan's performance was deliciously vile.  His Hawk was both hated and feared; this is not some push-over baddie.  Anthony Zerbe also played an amazing character as Hawk's man Breed.  Zerbe brings another level of danger to the plot; because he once rode with Cogburn, he understands him better than any of the others in Hawk's employment.

The scenery was breathtakingly beautiful.  The water, crystal clear; the mountains, majestic; the trees and cliffs, rugged but awe-inspiring.  It makes you wish that you were there with them; riding horseback across the fields and through the woods.

Even though I loved the scenery and the characters, I think my favorite part had to be the wonderful chemistry between John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn.  The plot combines two rough and stubborn characters, and despite their hard-headed nature, it soon becomes apparent that Rooster has a little thing for Ms. Goodnight, and she likes him as well.  It was a wonderful little romance; not too overpowering, and a perfect supplement to the rest of the film.  Apparently even someone as mean as old Rooster Cogburn has a soft spot in his heart.

If you enjoyed  True Grit, either the original or the recent remake, then you need to see this movie.  Granted, John Wayne's Cogburn is a bit gentler than Jeff Bridges's, but that doesn't mean he's any less of a fighter.  And he's an amazing actor at that!

True Grit (2010)

Cinema Sweetheart's Rating: 9 out of 10

Director: Ethan and Joel Coen

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon

Rated: PG-13

Genre: Western, Adventure, Drama

Runtime: 110 minutes

Original Version: True Grit (1969)

When fourteen year old Mattie Ross's (Steinfeld) father is killed in a drunken rage by gunman Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), she makes it her life's mission to see him hang for his crimes.  However, after the murder, Chaney ran away and joined ranks with a band of outlaws.  To track him down, Mattie enlists the assistance of Marshal Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn (Bridges), the meanest, drunkest, most ornery marshal around, old and fat and one-eyed.  It's only reluctantly that she is able to get him to come with her, and once he does, they are both aided and hindered by Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Damon), who also wants to arrest Chaney, but plans on retrieving him for a bounty in Texas, where he killed a senator; whereas Mattie wants him to know that he killed her father and that is why he is being hanged.

They often say that the remakes aren't as good as the original, and I'm sure that for most die-hard John Wayne fans, the same holds true for True Grit.  However, since I haven't seen the original, I'll be able to give a less biased opinion.

I thought that True Grit was absolutely wonderful!  Even though it was a drama, and said to be darker than the original, I thought that it was hilarious at many points and very touching at others.  Jeff Bridges was wonderful as the rough, drunken marshal.  His Rooster Cogburn was very funny, especially when drunk.  His sassy attitude and smart mouth made him a character that you liked in spite of yourself.

Matt Damon was wonderful as LaBoeuf the Texas Ranger, and Josh Brolin was a very convincing villain.  However, I have to say that it as Hailee Steinfeld who stole the show.  Her portrayal of little Mattie Ross was not only incredibly convincing, but amusing, too.  She's so serious for someone so young, and absolutely adorable at the same time.  One of the best scenes is where she attempts to bargain a sale of some of her late father's horses back to the man who sold them to him in the first place. 

I think the best part though, would have to be the cinematography.  The scenery was beautiful and made you feel like you were right there in the "Wild West" of Arkansas. 

However, there are a few things that you might want to be aware of.  For those of you who have seen the original True Grit, this film is a lot edgier.  Furthermore, there is one scene in particular which I thought was a little too intense for a PG-13 movie.  I won't provide a spoiler about what happens, but I'll give you a heads up that it takes place when Rooster and Mattie are in the cabin.

All in all, this is a film that I truly enjoyed.  If you like Westerns, then this is a must. Personally, I'm not a fan of Westerns for the most part, but I loved this movie.  Also, to give you the opinion of my dad (a huge John Wayne fan), this was very good for a remake, and better than he expected it to be.  Rating: 8.5

By the Sun's Rays (1914)

Cinema Sweetheart's Rating: 5 out of 10

Director: Tod Browning

Starring: M.J. Macquarrie, Lon Chaney, Seymour Hastings

Rated: Not Rated

Genre: Silent, Drama, Western

Runtime: 11 minutes

By the Sun's Rays is one of silent film star Lon Chaney's earliest films (possibly his earliest surviving), during an era where he was mostly scripted as a villain.  In this short film, even though Chaney is listed second to Macquarrie, its obvious who's the real star.  With his mastery of pantomime and facial expressions, Chaney creates a captivating villain.

Frank Lawler (Chaney) is a corrupt clerk who uses his position to alert a posse of outlaws when shipments of gold are coming through the area using a small mirror to reflect the sunlight and act as a beacon.  Detective John Murdock is called in to investigate the situation, and once Lawler is found out, pretty young Dora Davis (Agnes Vernon), the object of Lawler's affections plays bait to stall for time.

Since this film is so short, instead of posting a trailer, I'm simply going to post the entire film.  It's only eleven minutes, and despite its mediocre rating is still worth seeing.  Mostly, I gave it a lower rating because there's not enough time to build up a great plot, and I couldn't help but wish that Chaney's role had been more substantial.  A nice tidbit, though, for Chaney fans, and enjoyable overall.

Shanghai Noon (2000)

Cinema Sweetheart's Rating: 8 out of 10

Director: Tom Dey

Starring: Jackie Chan, Owen Wilson, and Lucy Liu

Rated:PG-13

Genre: Comedy, Western, Action

Run Time: 110 minutes

Sequel: Shanghai Knights (2003)

When a Chinese princess is kidnapped and held for ransom in the Wild West United States, the emperor sends the three greatest of his imperial guards to bring her back.  Imperial guard Chon Wang (Chan) saw the princess leave but failed to protect her, and now feels that its his duty to accompany the others, even if its just to carry their bags.  Meanwhile, wild west outlaw and ladies man Roy O'Bannon (Wilson) is double crossed by his own bandits.  A freak accident that involves the death of Chon's uncle bring the two men together, first as enemies, and then as reluctant allies.

It was wonderful to finally see Shanghai Noon from start to finish.  Bad timing in the past has always ended with me seeing the movie in chunks.  I've seen the beginning and end, but missed most of the middle of the film.  So, it wasn't an entirely new film to me (as many of these are) since I've seen most of it, just not all at once.  Ironically, I've actually seen the sequel to the movie before I saw the actual movie itself.  (But enough about Shanghai Knights--I'll talk about that film in another post).

I really think this film has a little something for everyone.  Action, comedy, romance...It's a western, its a martial arts movie, its a historic film...And of course, Owen Wilson and Jackie Chan are just an amazing team!  The two of them had me laughing until I cried, and the drinking games scene is not one to be missed!  I love both of these actors on their own, but putting both together is simply a stroke of genius!

Another fun little tidbit...this movie is full of historical jokes and ironic references (although not as many as in the sequel).  Be sure to look for them all! ;)