Hondo [Blu-ray]

Director: John Farrow John Farrow

Overview

Hondo is so "perfect" a John Ford western that many people assume it was directed by John Ford--or at the very least, Andrew McLaglen. Actually the director was suspense expert John Farrow, who worked with the "Duke" only twice in his career (the second film was an oddball war drama, The Sea Chase [55]). In Hondo, John Wayne plays a hard-bitten cavalry scout who is humanized by frontierswoman Geraldine Page and her young son (Lee Aaker, star of TV's Rin Tin Tin). Try as he might, Wayne can't convince Page to move off her land in anticipation of an Apache attack. He leaves her ranch, only to be ambushed by desperado Leo Gordon--who happens to be Page's long-absent husband. Having killed Gordon, Hondo returns to the ranch to protect Page from the Indians, and to rekindle the woman's hesitant love for him. The climactic attack sequence is enhanced by Hondo's 3-D photography, one of the few truly effective utilizations of this much-maligned process. Long unavailable thanks to the labyrinthine legal tangles of the John Wayne estate, Hondo was finally released to videotape in the early 1990s.

Product Details

Release Date:	06/05/2012
UPC:	0097361461946
Original Release:	1953
Rating:	NR
Source:	Paramount
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:23:00
Sales rank:	15,144

Special Features

Introduction by Leonard Maltin; Commentary by Leonard Maltin, western historian Frank Thompson, and actor Lee Aaker; The making the Hondo; Profile: James Edward Grant; The John Wayne stock company: Wawrd Bond; From the Batjac vaults; The apache; Photo gallery; Theatrical trailer HD

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

John Wayne	Hondo Lane
Geraldine Page	Angie Lowe
Ward Bond	Buffalo Baker, Army Indian Scout
James Arness	Lennie, Army Indian Scout
Michael Pate	Vittoro
Rodolfo Acosta	Silva,Silva
Leo Gordon	Ed Lowe
Tom Irish	Lt. McKay
Lee Aaker	Johnny
Paul Fix	Major Sherry
Rayford Barnes	Pete
Chuck Roberson	Otawanga/Cavalry Sergeant Killed in Indian Attack
Lassie the Dog	Actor
Hugo Friedhofer	Composer
Emil Newman	Composer

Technical Credits

Louis L'Amour

James Edward Grant

John Farrow	Director
Robert Fellows	Producer
Louis L'Amour	Screenwriter
James Edward Grant	Screenwriter
Nicolás de la Rosa	Sound Effects
John Wayne	Producer

Editorial Reviews

When the long-overdue critical reevaluation of John Wayne’s films has finally been completed and assimilated by students of pop culture, this masterful 1953 western will emerge as one of the Duke’s very best star vehicles. His portrayal of cavalry scout Hondo Lane -- rugged, principled, and taciturn -- is quintessential Wayne, the Wayne that impressionists loved to mimic on TV and in their nightclub acts. As the story opens, an Apache warrior (Michael Pate) is waging war on all whites, soldiers and settlers alike. Hondo, coming across a strong-willed housewife (Geraldine Page) and her young son (Lee Aaker) in their desert homestead, urges them to leave but stays to offer help when they refuse. There’s an undeniable attraction between the nurturing mother and the self-sufficient scout, but romance won’t have much chance when the woman learns that Hondo has killed her ne’er-do-well husband (Leo Gordon). Originally shot and presented in 3-D, Hondo is an unusually good-looking western, boasting terrific location cinematography that has the added virtue of careful composition. In fact, the production values all bespeak a greater-than-usual attention to detail, but it’s the script and acting that really carry the day. Wayne delivers an economical performance: Hondo isn’t much of a talker, so the Duke conveys much of the scout’s personality with facial expressions and body language. Page is terrific in a role that would have been sabotaged by the casting of a typical Hollywood glamour girl. Attractive but not classically beautiful, she has an expressive face that displays character, and that makes her perfect as the indomitable frontier woman. The relationship that develops between Wayne and Page seems natural and unforced, and that’s one of the movie’s great strengths. Unavailable for several decades, its exposure limited in recent years, Hondo deserves wider distribution because it’s easily one of the best films Wayne made.

Barnes & Noble - Ed Hulse

Hondo is one of John Wayne's best films. Unfortunately, for many years it was not easily available, so that, while Wayne's John Ford epics became canonized, Hondo was largely forgotten. Wayne's performance is outstanding, matched in intensity by love interest Geraldine Page, in her screen debut. Page would receive an Oscar nomination for her work, and then make no major film appearances for another eight years. Her Oscar, for The Trip to Bountiful, would come 32 years after her first nomination. Hondo is rarely seen today in its original, partial 3-D format, but that change has little effect on its central qualities: a classic Louis L'Amour story, fine supporting performances, and Wayne.

All Movie Guide - Richard Gilliam