The Alamo (1960) dir. John Wayne

[jserraglio]

Watched this glowing picture show,
Instead of the Super Bowl.

Davy Crockett (the immortal John Wayne), Jim Bowie (Richard Widmark) and William Travis (Laurence Harvey) die defending the Texas fort against Mexican soldiers in 1836. With Frankie Avalon, Patrick Wayne, Linda Cristal, Joan O’Brien, Chill Wills, Joseph Calleia, Richard Boone.

The mise en scene is gorgeous.

Nicely scored by Dimitri Tiomkin.

Streaming free (with unobtrusive ads) on Tubi.

[david johnson]

The soundtrack's version of Deguello is a moving trumpet solo, also used in the Wayne movie Rio Bravo. The actual tune used in Santa Ana's army is very different and can be found on YouTube.

[Belle]

The soundtrack's version of Deguello is a moving trumpet solo, also used in the Wayne movie Rio Bravo. The actual tune used in Santa Ana's army is very different and can be found on YouTube.

John Wayne adored Howard Hawks (and vice versa) and that trumpet solo was, of course, composed by Tiomkin - who scored both "The Alamo" and "Rio Bravo". As Director, Wayne would have wanted to demonstrate his appreciation for Hawks, apart from any other artistic considerations in the film. (I was only talking about Hawks today, as it happens, and how he was fit and healthy until he tripped over his dog, which lived inside the house, and died.)

Otherwise, "The Alamo" is a very flawed film, far too long, with too much folderol and too many pratfalls (a la Ford) and one which nearly bankrupted its star and director (Batjac Productions). I've read that John Ford turned up all the time to tell Wayne how to direct the film.

[jserraglio]

Flawed, but FUN. "The absence of flaws in beauty is itself a flaw."

Pratfalls have been a staple of movies from the outset, and a very good thing that's been too.

John Ford's influence works to good effect here. Wayne's trade, after all, was not movie direction. And Ford was no actor, while Wayne was arguably the most iconic Hollywood leading man of his generation, a top box-office draw who made movie after movie with important directors.

Another famous director, not Ford, once said he would gladly turn over direction to John Wayne because he knew Wayne knew exactly what he wanted.

His name was Howard Hawks.