El Dorado

Howard Hawks (1967)

121min

PG Certificate

Review

Our Score

by Tony Sloman

"Ride, boldly ride..." sings George Alexander over the Remington-styled western paintings that accompany the titles to this elegiac masterwork. It's a fabulously entertaining, immensely skilful and warm-hearted tale from ace director Howard Hawks. John Wayne plays gunfighter Cole Thornton, a flawed hero whose actions lead to the suicide of a boy (Johnny Crawford) in a superbly staged preface to the plot, and whose resulting wounds dictate the pace and outcome of the movie. More than a match for the Duke is the great Robert Mitchum, in one of his best screen roles as alcoholic sheriff JP Harrah, destroyed for the love of a woman. This film suffered on its release by comparison to Hawks's earlier western masterpiece Rio Bravo, but with the passing of time this screen meditation on ageing proves to be one of the most pleasurable of all Hollywood movies.

Summary

An ageing gunfighter is drawn into the conflict between a land-grabbing cattle baron and a ranching family, but gets wounded in the process. A year later, he returns to town to find the situation has not improved - so along with his sidekick and the drunken town sheriff, he fights to defend the family from its enemies. Western, starring John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, James Caan and Ed Asner.

Cast & Crew

Cole Thornton John Wayne

JP Harrah Robert Mitchum

Mississippi James Caan

Maudie Charlene Holt

Joey MacDonald Michele Carey

Bull Harris Arthur Hunnicutt

Kevin MacDonald R G Armstrong

Bart Jason Edward Asner

Doc Miller Paul Fix

Nelse McLeod Christopher George

Milt Robert Donner

Pedro John Gabriel

Jason's foreman Jim Davis (1)

Maria Mariana Ghane

Luke MacDonald Johnny Crawford

Saul MacDonald Robert Rothwell

Matt MacDonald Adam Roarke

Jared MacDonald Chuck Courtney

Saul MacDonald's wife Anne Newman

Matt MacDonald's wife Diane Strom

Jared MacDonald's wife Victoria George

Dr Donovan Anthony Rogers

Swedish gunsmith Olaf Wieghorst

Director Howard Hawks

Other Information

Language: EnglishColourAvailable on: video and DVD

Drama

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Howard Hawks (1967)

Review

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