John Ford Sound Films, Part 7: 1963-1966
Donovan’s Reef through 7 Women
The following is a list of John Ford sound films. These film pages are taken from Wikipedia entries (with some minor editing). I will be adding bibliographic material and John Ford film stills from my personal collection to add to these pages. Also, I will be adding bibliographic material and references from noted writers.
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Donovan's Reef (1963)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
J ohn Ford
Screenplay by
Frank S. Nugent
James Edward Grant
Story by
Edmund Beloin
Starring
John Wayne
Lee Marvin
Music by
Cyril Mockridge
Cinematography
William H. Clothier
Edited by
Otho Lovering
Color process
Technicolor
Production company
John Ford Productions
Distributed by
Paramount Pictures
Release date
June 12, 1963
Running time
109 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$2,686,000[1]
Box office
$6,600,000[1]
Donovan's Reef is a 1963 American adventure comedy film starring John Wayne and Lee Marvin. The picture was directed by John Ford, and filmed in Kauai, Hawaii, but is set in French Polynesia.
The supporting cast features Elizabeth Allen, Jack Warden, Cesar Romero, Dick Foran, and Dorothy Lamour. The film marked the last time Ford and Wayne collaborated.
Plot
The film begins with Thomas "Boats" Gilhooley ("boats" is a nickname for a boatswain's or bosun's mate) (Marvin), an expatriate United States Navy (USN) veteran, working aboard a freighter. When he realizes that the ship is passing by Haleakaloha, French Polynesia, but not actually calling there as he had been promised, he jumps ship to swim to the island.
Next, Michael "Guns" Donovan (Wayne) ("guns" is a Navy nickname for a gunner's mate), another expatriate USN veteran and a former shipmate of Gilhooley's, returns from a fishing trip aboard an outrigger canoe. Donovan is greeted by William "Doc" Dedham (Warden), also a USN veteran and the only medical doctor in the archipelago, who is about to begin a one- or two-week pre-Christmas circuit of the "outer islands", taking care of the health needs of the residents. Dedham's three children are placed in Donovan's care.
The kids' plans for a peaceful celebration of Donovan's December 7 birthday are shattered by Gilhooley's arrival. He shares Donovan's birthday, and they have an unbroken 21-year tradition of a knock-down, drag-out fight every birthday, to the delight of the local observers, and their 22nd year does not break the tradition. The two vets meet in (and trash) "Donovan's Reef", the saloon Donovan owns. The saloon has a broken slot machine, but locals constantly play it, hoping to hit the jackpot.
Miss Amelia Dedham (Elizabeth Allen) is a "proper" young lady "of means" from Boston, who has become the chairman of the board of the Dedham Shipping Company. Her father is Doc Dedham, whom she has never met, but who has inherited a large block of stock in the family company, making him the majority stockholder. Amelia travels to Haleakaloha to find proof that Doc has violated an outdated (but still in effect) morality clause in the will, which would prevent him inheriting the stock and enabling her to retain control.
When word reaches Haleakaloha that Miss Dedham will soon arrive, Donovan, Gilhooley, and the Marquis de Lage (Romero) concoct a scheme. De Lage, Haleakaloha's French governor, also hopes to find another diplomatic post — preferably Miami Beach or Hollywood. Donovan will pretend to be the father of Doc's three children (Leilani, Sarah, and Luke), until Doc returns and can explain the situation to his prim and proper Boston daughter. The plan is reluctantly accepted by eldest daughter, Leilani, who believes the deception is because her siblings and she are half-castes (Hapa).
Amelia learns that her father, Donovan, and Gilhooley were marooned on the Japanese-occupied island after their destroyer was sunk in World War II. With the help of the locals, the survivors of the ship conducted a guerrilla war against the Japanese with only Dedham, Donovan, and Gilhooley surviving the war. She also learns that her father built a hospital, and lives in a large house (she expected a shack). Amelia is intrigued by a portrait of a beautiful Polynesian woman in royal trappings. The woman is Doc's late wife, the mother of his children, though Amelia is not told this. She learns that the woman was named Manulani. Donovan mentions she died in childbirth.
As the story develops, Amelia learns that life in the islands is not as she expected, and neither is Donovan, who proves to be educated and intelligent, and owns a substantial local shipping operation. Amelia, too, is not as expected. When Donovan takes her boating, she strips off her outdated "swimming costume" to reveal a tight swimsuit, and challenges Donovan to a swimming race before diving into the water. They form a truce, as de Lage tries to court Amelia (or rather, her $18,000,000). Everyone attends a Christmas Mass in the church with a leaking roof, for which the congregation has no money for repairs. The priest uses any donated money to help the poor. In the middle of the service, a thunderstorm starts, so most of the audience - knowing of the roof's condition - open umbrellas.
When Dr. Dedham returns, father and daughter meet for the first time (Amelia: "Mister Dedham, I presume?"). He is told about the deception, and, over dinner, explains that he was serving in World War II when his wife (Amelia's mother) died. When the war ended, he felt that he was unneeded in Boston, but was desperately needed in the islands, so he stayed. He signs over his stock to Amelia, as he intends to remain in the islands. Just as he is about to explain about Manulani and their children (described by Amelia as "half-caste"), a hospital emergency interrupts.
Manulani was the granddaughter of the last hereditary prince of the islands, and Amelia finally solves the mystery: Leilani — Manulani's daughter — is not only the island's princess, but Amelia's half-sister, a relationship joyfully acknowledged by both. Following a brawl in the bar with some Australian sailors, their commander finds a coin on the floor and hands it to the priest, thinking it is his. The priest responds that it belongs in the "jukebox" - the slot machine. He puts the coin in and hits the jackpot, with coins gushing out. He can now afford to fix the roof.
Amelia and Donovan evolve their truce into marriage plans, despite her blaming him (correctly) for deceiving about her half-siblings' true paternity. They discuss naming their first son - he insists he be named after his father, while she wants the child to be named after her great uncle: Sedley. Donovan is incensed at the thought of a boy named that, so she offers a compromise: William, after her father. Donovan is pleased. As he puts it, he will call him Bill. She moves to embrace him, but he stops her, stating that she has a "mean Irish temper", but he loves her. Pulling her to a nearby fountain, he says that from now on, he makes all the "pax", puts her across his lap, and spanks her. When done, she rolls over in his lap, and they kiss. Gilhooley also finally marries his longtime girlfriend, Miss Lafleur (Dorothy Lamour). Donovan gives the bar to his old shipmate as a wedding present.
In the final scene, Leilani and Amelia walk hand-in-hand down the driveway to Doc Dedham's house, trailed by Leilani's two younger siblings, Donovan and Gilhooley carrying Amelia's luggage, and the local gendarmerie toting Leilani's piano as the newly extended family returns home.
Cast
· John Wayne as Michael Patrick "Guns" Donovan
· Lee Marvin as Thomas Aloysius 'Boats' Gilhooley
· Elizabeth Allen as Amelia Dedham
· Jack Warden as Dr. William Dedham
· Cesar Romero as Marquis Andre de Lage
· Dick Foran as Australian Navy Chief Petty Officer Sean O'Brien
· Dorothy Lamour as Miss Lafleur
· Marcel Dalio as Father Cluzeot
· Mike Mazurki as Sgt. Monk Menkowicz
· Jacqueline Malouf as Lelani Dedham
· Cherylene Lee as Sarah 'Sally' Dedham
· Jeffrey Byron as Luke Dedham (as Tim Stafford)
· Edgar Buchanan as Boston Attorney Francis X. O'Brian
· Jon Fong as Mister Eu
Production
The film was based on original material for Paramount prepared by James Michener (although Michener is not credited in the final film).[2] In February 1962 Paramount announced that John Wayne and John Ford would make the film, then called South Sea Story, from a script by James Edward Grant. Martin Rackin helped put together the deal at Paramount.[3]
Ford called it "a spoof picture - a whammy, crazy sort of thing. We're not going for any prizes."[4]
While Donovan's Reef is set on the fictional island of Haleakaloha, which has a French governor, the only Polynesian language exhibited in the film is Hawaiian; "Haleakaloha" can be translated as "Home of Laughter and Love" (hale = home, aka = laugh, aloha = love), and Amelia arrives from Boston by sailing ship. In fact, in the southern Polynesian dialect spoken in French Polynesia, the words are spelled with a T, where Hawaiian uses a K.
Filming started in July 1962 on Kauai, Hawaii,[5] but Ford's health had deteriorated to the point that Wayne wound up directing most of the film himself.
The home of the French island governor, the white beach house with coconut palms and surrounding grass lawn, is the Allerton Estate home and former summer residence of Hawaiian Queen Emma near Poipu Beach, now a part of the National Tropical Botanical Garden (without the scenes of boats and canoes on the Wailua River, which were edited and merged with scenes filmed at the Allerton Estate).
The unit then returned to Hollywood to finish scenes at Paramount studios.
Release
Box-office
Donovan's Reef was a moderate financial success. Produced on a budget of $2,686,000,[1] the film grossed $6,600,000 in North America,[1] earning $3.3 million in US theatrical rentals.[6] It was the 24th-highest grossing film of 1963.
Critical reception
A. H. Weiler of The New York Times wrote that the movie was "sheer contrivance effected in hearty, fun-loving, truly infectious style".[7] Variety called it an "effort-less effort", but praised the photography.[8] Currently, the film holds a "Rotten" 55% rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes.[9]
References
1. Box Office Information for Donovan's Reef the Numbers. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
2. Nick Adams Will Film 'Naked Lover': Busy Star Also in TV Series; Pair to 'Shoot' Vegas Shows Scott, John L. Los Angeles Times (9 July 1962: C11.
3. Looking at Hollywood: Base South Sea Film on Michener Work Hopper, Hedda. Chicago Daily Tribune 21 Feb 1962: b4.
4. VIEW FROM A LOCAL VANTAGE POINT: Traditional Heirs by EUGENE ARCHER. New York Times 14 July 1963: 69.
5. Entertainment: New Novel Bought for Warner Film Los Angeles Times 17 July 1962: C5.
6. "Top Rental Features of 1963", Variety, January 8, 1964 p 71. Please note figures are rentals as opposed to total gross.
7. Weiler, A.H. (July 25, 1963). "Screen: Excitement on Haleakoloha:'Donovan's Reef' Opens at Three Theaters John Ford Production Stars John Wayne". The New York Times. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
8. "Review: 'Donovan's Reef'". Variety. December 31, 1962. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
9. Film reviews for Donovan's Reef. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
Cheyenne Autumn (1964)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Bernard Smith
Screenplay by
James R. Webb
Based on
Suggested by Cheyenne Autumn by Mari Sandoz
Starring
Richard Widmark
Carroll Baker
Karl Malden
Sal Mineo
Dolores del Río
Ricardo Montalban
Gilbert Roland
Arthur Kennedy
James Stewart
Edward G. Robinson
Music by
Alex North
Cinematography
William Clothier
Edited by
Otho Lovering
Production company
A John Ford - Bernard Smith Production
Distributed by
Warner Bros.
Release date
October 3, 1964
Running time
154 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Box office
$3,500,000 (US/ Canada rentals)[1]
Cheyenne Autumn is a 1964 American epic Western film starring Richard Widmark, Carroll Baker, James Stewart, and Edward G. Robinson. It tells the story of a factual event, the Northern Cheyenne Exodus of 1878–79, told in "Hollywood style" using a great deal of artistic license. The film was the last western directed by John Ford, who proclaimed it an elegy for the Native Americans who had been abused by the U.S. government and misrepresented by many of the director's own films. With a budget of more than $4 million, the film was relatively unsuccessful at the box office and failed to earn a profit for its distributor Warner Bros.[2]
Plot
In 1878, Chiefs Little Wolf (Ricardo Montalban) and Dull Knife (Gilbert Roland) led over three hundred starved and weary Cheyenne Indians from their reservation in the Oklahoma Territory to their former traditional home in Wyoming. The U.S. government sees this as an act of rebellion, and the sympathetic Captain Thomas Archer (Richard Widmark) of the U.S. Army is forced to lead his troops in an attempt to stop the tribe. As the press misrepresents the natives' motives and goals for their trek as malicious, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz (Edward G. Robinson) tries to prevent violence from erupting between the Army and the natives. Also featured are James Stewart as Marshal Wyatt Earp, Dolores del Río as Spanish Woman, and Carroll Baker as a pacifist Quaker school teacher and Archer's love interest.[3]
Opening scene narrated by Richard Widmark
"The beginning of a day. September 7th, 1878. It dawned like any other day on the Cheyenne reservation... in that vast barren land in the American Southwest... which was then called Indian Territory.
But this wasn't just another day to the Cheyenne. Far from their homeland... as out of place in this desert as eagles in a cage... their three great chiefs prayed over the sacred bundle... that at last, the promises made to them... when the white man sent them here more than a year ago... would today be honored. The promises that had led them to give up their own way of life... in their own green and fertile country, 1500 miles to the north."
Cast
· Richard Widmark as Capt. Thomas Archer
· Carroll Baker as Deborah Wright
· Karl Malden as Capt. Wessels [Fort Robinson commander]
· Sal Mineo as Red Shirt
· Dolores del Río as Spanish Woman [Red Shirt's mother]
· Ricardo Montalban as Little Wolf
· Gilbert Roland as Dull Knife
· Arthur Kennedy as Doc Holliday [in Dodge City]
· Patrick Wayne as Second Lieut. Scott
· Elizabeth Allen as Miss Plantagenet [in Dodge City]
· John Carradine as Jeff Blair [in Dodge City]
· Victor Jory as Tall Tree
· Mike Mazurki as Sr. First Sergeant
· George O'Brien as Major Braden
· Sean McClory as Dr. O'Carberry [Fort Robinson]
· Judson Pratt as Mayor Dog Kelly [in Dodge City]
· Carmen D'Antonio as Pawnee Woman
· Ken Curtis as Joe [cattle drive and in Dodge City]
· and James Stewart as Wyatt Earp [in Dodge City]
· Edward G. Robinson as the Secretary of the Interior, Carl Schurz
Uncredited (in order of appearance)
Walter Baldwin Quaker elder Jeremy Wright, Deborah Wright's uncle
Bing Russell Telegraph operator sharing coffee with Captain Archer
Ben Johnson Trooper Plumtree who is told by Archer to check for visiting congressmen
Harry Carey Jr. Trooper Smith, whom Archer calls "Jones" and then "Brown"
Chuck Hayward Trooper
David Humphreys Miller Trooper
Bill Williams Trooper
Carleton Young Aide to Carl Schurz
Charles Seel New York Globe publisher
Denver Pyle One-armed senator whom Carl Schurz addresses as "Henry"
William Forrest Senator visiting Carl Schurz
Shug Fisher Skinny, cattle drive trail boss; also in Dodge City
Chuck Roberson Cattle drover; also in Dodge City
Jeannie Epper Entertainer in Dodge City with Miss Plantagenet
Harry Strang Bartender in Dodge City
Charles Morton Bartender in Dodge City
Joe Brooks Bartender in Dodge City
Harry Hickox Bartender in Dodge City
John Qualen Svenson, townsman in Dodge City
Philo McCullough Townsman in Dodge City
Rudy Bowman Townsman in Dodge City
Mae Marsh Townswoman in Dodge City
William Henry Infantry captain in the fort before Fort Robinson
James Flavin Sergeant of the Guard in Fort Robinson
Walter Reed Lieutenant Peterson in Fort Robinson
Montie Montana Trooper in Fort Robinson
Jack Williams Trooper in Fort Robinson
Ted Mapes Trooper in Fort Robinson
Willis Bouchey Colonel at Victory Cave whose orders are challenged by Carl Schurz
Production
Preproduction
John Ford long wanted to make a movie about the Cheyenne exodus. As early as 1957, he wrote a treatment with his son Patrick Ford, envisioning a small-scale drama with non-professional Indian actors. Early drafts of the script drew on Howard Fast's novel The Last Frontier. However, the film ultimately took its plot and title from Mari Sandoz's Cheyenne Autumn, which Ford preferred due to its focus on the Cheyenne. Elements of Fast's novel remain in the finished film, namely the character of Captain Archer (called Murray in the book), the depiction of Secretary Carl Schurz and the Dodge City, Kansas scenes.[4]
Reluctantly abandoning the docudrama idea, Ford wanted Anthony Quinn and Richard Boone to play Dull Knife and Little Wolf as well-known actors with some Indian ancestry. He also suggested black actor Woody Strode for a role. The studio insisted on Ford's casting Ricardo Montalban and Gilbert Roland.[5]
Filming
The film was photographed in Super Panavision 70 by William Clothier, whose work was nominated for an Academy Award. Gilbert Roland earned a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
The original version was 158 minutes, Ford's longest work. Warner Bros. later decided to edit the "Dodge City" sequence out of the film, reducing the running time to 145 minutes, although it was shown in theaters during the film's initial release. This sequence features James Stewart as Wyatt Earp and Arthur Kennedy as Doc Holliday. Some critics have argued that this comic episode, mostly unrelated to the rest of an otherwise serious movie, breaks the flow of the story.[6][7] It was later restored for the VHS and subsequent DVD releases.
Locations
Much of the film was shot in Monument Valley Tribal Park on the Arizona-Utah border, where Ford had filmed scenes for many of his earlier films, especially Stagecoach and The Searchers. Parts of the film also were shot at the San Juan River at Mexican Hat, Professor Valley, Castle Valley, the Colorado River, Fisher Canyon, and Arches in Utah.[8] Although the principal tribal leaders were played by Ricardo Montalban and Gilbert Roland (as well as Dolores del Río and Sal Mineo in major roles), Ford again used numerous members of the Navajo tribe in this production.
Native language
Ford used Navajo people to portray the Cheyenne. Dialogue that is supposed to be in the "Cheyenne language" is actually Navajo. This made little difference to white audiences, but for Navajo communities the film became very popular because the Navajo actors were openly using ribald and crude language that had nothing to do with the film. For example, during the scene where the treaty is signed, the chief's solemn speech just pokes fun at the size of the colonel's penis. Some academics now consider this an important moment in the development of Native Americans' identity because they are able to mock Hollywood's historical interpretation of the American West.[9]
Reception
The reviews were mixed. Bosley Crowther, critic for The New York Times, praised it highly, calling it "a beautiful and powerful motion picture that stunningly combines a profound and passionate story of mistreatment of American Indians with some of the most magnificent and energetic cavalry-and-Indian lore ever put upon the screen."[6] He was disappointed, however, that after the humorous (if "superfluous") Dodge City sequence, "the picture does not rise again to its early integrity and authenticity", and the climax is "neither effective and convincing drama nor is it faithful to the novel".[6] The New Yorker's Richard Brody cited the "rueful, elegiac grandeur of John Ford's final Western".[10]
Variety disagreed, however, calling it "a rambling, episodic account" in which "the original premise of the Mari Sandoz novel is lost sight of in a wholesale insertion of extraneous incidents which bear little or no relation to the subject."[11] The New Republic's Stanley Kauffmann wrote "the acting is bad, the dialogue trite and predictable, the pace funereal, the structure fragmented, the climaxes puny".[12]
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
· 2008: AFI's 10 Top 10:
o Nominated Western Film[13]
Award nominations
· Nominated: Academy Award for Best Cinematography: William H. Clothier
· Nominated: Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture: Gilbert Roland
Documentary Short
Before the release of Cheyenne Autumn, a 19-minute documentary, Cheyenne Autumn Trail, was put into production. Narrated by James Stewart, the short featured clips from the feature, recounting the historical events depicted in the film, depicting memorials to Little Wolf and Dull Knife and presenting life on the reservation in 1964 for descendants of the Cheyenne who participated in the Northern Cheyenne Exodus. Cheyenne Autumn Trail is included as an extra feature on the Cheyenne Autumn DVD issued in 2006.
References
1. This figure consists of anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Big Rental Pictures of 1965", Variety, 5 January 1966 p 6
2. Wilson, Joshua (August 5, 2016). "CHEYENNE AUTUMN: A SAD STORY OF GOOD INTENTIONS". F for Films / essays on the movies by Joshua Wilson. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
3. Fujiwara, Toshi (May 2009). "The People. Who Will Tell Them? Who Will Tell The People? Cheyenne Autumn". Undercurrent issue no. 5. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
4. McBride, Joseph. Searching for John Ford: A Life. pp. 644–646.
5. McBride 652
6. Crowther, Bosley (December 24, 1964). "Cheyenne Autumn (1964)". The New York Times.
7. Schwartz, Dennis (January 2, 2006). "A big mess". Ozus' World Movie Reviews. Retrieved September 9, 2013.
8. D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. .
9. Real, Michael R. (1996). Exploring Media Culture: A Guide. SAGE.
10. Brody, Richard (December 17, 2012). "Cheyenne Autumn". The New Yorker.
11. "Review: "Cheyenne Autumn"". Variety.
12. Kaufmann, Stanley (1968). A world on Film. Delta Books. p. 169.
13. "AFI's 10 Top 10 Nominees" (PDF).
Young Cassidy (1965)
Directed by
Jack Cardiff
John Ford
Produced by
Robert Emmett Ginna
Robert D. Graff
Screenplay by
John Whiting
Based on
Mirror in My House, 1956 novel by Seán O'Casey
Starring
Rod Taylor
Julie Christie
Maggie Smith
Music by
Sean O'Riada
Cinematography
Edward Scaife
Edited by
Anne V. Coates
Distributed by
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
22 April 1965
Running time
110 minutes
Country
United Kingdom
Language
English
Budget
$1 million (est.)[1]
Young Cassidy is a 1965 film directed by Jack Cardiff and John Ford and starring Rod Taylor, Julie Christie, and Maggie Smith.[2] It is a biographical drama based upon the life of the playwright Seán O'Casey.
Plot
Set in 1911 and the growing protest against British rule in Ireland, young John Cassidy (Seán O'Casey)[3] is a labourer by day and a pamphleteer by night. When the pamphlets he has written incite riots, Cassidy realizes he can do more for his people with the pen than with the sword. He writes a new play, The Plough and the Stars, which he submits to the Abbey Theatre (which had already rejected another of his plays, The Shadow of a Gunman), and is surprised when W. B. Yeats, the founder of the Abbey, accepts and produces his new play. The opening of the play causes the audience to riot, and he loses many friends; but he is undeterred and is soon acclaimed as Ireland's outstanding young playwright.
Cast
· Rod Taylor as John Cassidy
· Maggie Smith as Nora
· Julie Christie as Daisy Battles
· Michael Redgrave as W.B. Yeats
· Edith Evans as Augusta, Lady Gregory
· T. P. McKenna as Tom
· Jack MacGowran as Archie
· Siân Phillips as Ella
· Flora Robson as Mrs. Cassidy
Production
As early as 1907, performances of John Millington Synge's The Playboy of the Western World resulted in riots by theatergoers, which had to be quelled by police.[4] The real W. B Yeats, a friend of both authors, said similar words at or after both riots.[3][5] Young Cassidy brings this parallel history (the riots of The Plough and the Stars and The Playboy of the Western World) to vivid life, tied together by the character of Yeats.
Based on Seán O'Casey's autobiography Mirror in my House (the umbrella title under which the six autobiographies he published from 1939 to 1956 were republished, in two large volumes, in 1956), the movie began production in 1964, changing his name in the film to John Cassidy. O'Casey had read earlier drafts of the movie, and gave his approval to the script, as well as to the choice of lead actor, Rod Taylor.[6]
Rod Taylor stepped in when the original choice for the role, Sean Connery, had to drop out because of scheduling conflicts with the James Bond movie Goldfinger. Prior to Connery, Richard Harris was attached.[7]
The movie was initially directed by John Ford (who had already directed a movie version of The Plough and the Stars in 1936), but he fell ill about two weeks into production and was replaced by Jack Cardiff. Filming was held up for two weeks. Only one member of the cast was replaced – Sian Phillips came in for Siobhán McKenna.[8] O'Casey died shortly before production on the film finished.[9]
Sean O'Casey: The Spirit of Ireland
During the making of the film, a behind-the-scenes documentary, Sean O'Casey: The Spirit of Ireland, was filmed looking at the making of Young Cassidy. Narrated by Herschel Bernardi, the film intersperses footage from Young Cassidy with footage of the actors preparing for their roles.[6]
Home media
Young Cassidy was released to DVD by Warner Home Video on 6 September 2012 via the Warner Archive DVD-on-demand system available through Amazon.
References
1. Vagg p 106
2. IMDB: Young Cassidy (1965)
3. Sean O'Casey on Dublin Info page.
4. Seán O'Casey article on the similarity of The Plough and the Stars and Playboy riots.
7 Women (1966)
Directed by
John Ford
Produced by
Bernard Smith
John Ford
Written by
Janet Green
John McCormick
Based on
"Chinese Finale," 1935 short story by Norah Lofts
Starring
Anne Bancroft
Margaret Leighton
Flora Robson
Sue Lyon
Music by
Elmer Bernstein
Cinematography
Joseph LaShelle
Edited by
Otho Lovering
Color process
Metrocolor
Distributed by
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
January 5, 1966 (Los Angeles)
Running time
87 min.
Country
United States
Languages
English
Mandarin
Budget
$2.3 million[1]
7 Women, also known as Seven Women, is a 1966 Panavision drama film directed by John Ford and starring Anne Bancroft, Sue Lyon, Margaret Leighton, Flora Robson, Mildred Dunnock, Betty Field, Anna Lee, with Eddie Albert, Mike Mazurki and Woody Strode. Made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was produced by Bernard Smith and John Ford, from a screenplay by Janet Green and John McCormick, based on the short story "Chinese Finale" by Norah Lofts. The music score was by Elmer Bernstein and the cinematography by Joseph LaShelle. This was the last feature film directed by Ford, ending a career that spanned approximately fifty three years.
Plot
In rural China, in 1935, all but one of the white residents of a remote Christian mission post are women. The strict Miss Agatha Andrews (Margaret Leighton) is the head of the mission, assisted by the meek Miss Argent (Mildred Dunnock). Charles Pether (Eddie Albert) is a mission teacher who always wanted to be a pastor; his peevish, panicky, self-centered and domineering middle-aged wife Florrie (Betty Field) is pregnant for the first time. Emma Clark (Sue Lyon) is the only young staff member, whom Miss Andrews treats as if she was her daughter.
The mission is elated to learn that a much-needed doctor is arriving. However, they are shocked to discover that Dr. Cartwright (Anne Bancroft) is a Chicago woman who smokes, drinks alcohol, swears, wears pants and short hair, disdains religion and sits before grace. She and Miss Andrews are soon at odds. Emma, who has led a very sheltered life, is fascinated by the newcomer, much to Miss Andrews's dismay.
After she has settled in, Dr. Cartwright urges Miss Andrews to provide money to send Florrie Pether to a modern facility, as her age means that giving birth is high risk, but Andrews refuses.
Meanwhile, there are rumors of atrocities committed by the militia of Mongolian warlord Tunga Khan (Mike Mazurki). Miss Andrews is certain that the mission will be safe, as they are American citizens. After a nearby, even poorer British mission is sacked by Tunga Khan, Miss Andrews reluctantly accepts survivors Miss Binns (Flora Robson), Mrs. Russell (Anna Lee) and Miss Ling (Jane Chang), but only for a short time, as she is unwilling to harbor those of any other denomination for long.
Immediately after the arrival of the survivors, a cholera outbreak erupts. Dr. Cartwright quickly takes command, treating all the Chinese of the area. Miss Andrews's initial hostility to her subsides when Emma gets sick and she implores Dr. Cartwright to save her life. After the emergency is over and Emma is well again, the relationship between Andrews and Cartwright starts to soften. but deteriorates when Cartwright shows up drunk in the dining room with a bottle of whiskey, and tries to make all the pious women drink as well.
One night, Charles and Cartwright see a fire on the horizon and hear gunfire. The next morning, the Chinese soldiers of the nearby garrison evacuate in a hurry, as Tunga Khan and his men are believed to be approaching. Miss Andrews is still convinced the mission is untouchable, but Charles is now determined to be assertive. He and Kim, an English speaking male Chinese mission staff member, drive out to investigate the situation, while urging everyone else to be prepared to leave the mission, despite Miss Andrews's opposition. After a while, they hear the car's horn, but once the gate is opened, bandits on horseback charge in firing their guns and quickly take over the mission. Before being executed by the bandits, Kim tells the women Charles was murdered when he tried to rescue a woman being assaulted by Tunga Khan's men. Then Miss Ling, coming from a powerful Mandarin family, is taken away to act as Tunga Khan's young wife's servant, while the seven white women are herded into a shed.
They watch as Tunga Khan has every Chinese in the mission executed, women and children included, to Emma's shock. Tunga Khan comes into the shed and tries to take Emma. Realizing that they are mostly American women, he decides to ask for a ransom.
With Miss Andrews panicking and Florrie in labor, Dr. Cartwright asks for her desperately needed medical bag. Tunga Khan offers to exchange it for her sexual submission to him. The doctor agrees, and helps Florrie give birth to a baby boy. After Cartwright goes to fulfill her end of the bargain, an increasingly deranged Andrews vilifies her, calling her "whore of Babylon". The others, however, understand the sacrifice the doctor has made and why.
In the evening, the Mongols gather in a circle and organize wrestling matches for entertainment, with Dr. Cartwright watching the spectacle at Tunga Khan's side, as his new concubine. When the lean warrior (Woody Strode) who had been ogling Cartwright all evening steps into the ring to face the winner of a bout, Tunga Khan insists on accepting the challenge himself and breaks the man's neck.
Cartwright manages to convince Tunga Khan to let the other women go, including Miss Ling. Before Miss Argent leaves, she sees the doctor hide a bottle that she had earlier called poison. She urges Cartwright not to do what she is planning, but to no avail. With the others safely away, Cartwright, now in a geisha outfit, goes to Tunga Khan's room and secretly poisons two drinks. She subserviently offers a cup to Tunga Khan, as she utters, "So long, ya bastard." After Tunga Khan drinks, he immediately keels over dead. Then, after a moment's hesitation, Cartwright drinks from the second cup.
Cast
· Anne Bancroft as Dr. D. R. Cartwright
· Sue Lyon as Emma Clark, Mission Staff
· Margaret Leighton as Agatha Andrews, Head of Mission
· Flora Robson as Miss Binns, Head of British Mission
· Mildred Dunnock as Jane Argent, Andrews' Assistant
· Betty Field as Mrs. Florrie Pether, Charles' pregnant wife
· Anna Lee as Mrs. Russell, Mission Staff
· Eddie Albert as Charles Pether, Mission Teacher
· Mike Mazurki as Tunga Khan, Bandit Leader
· Woody Strode as Lean Warrior
· Jane Chang as Miss Ling, Mission Staff
· Hans William Lee as Kim, Mission Staff
· H. W. Gim as Coolie
· Irene Tsu as Chinese Girl
Accolades
The film also appeared in several lists. These include:
· Most Important American Films (1977, Enno Patalas)
· Most Important American Films (1977, Luc Moullet)
· Genre Favorites: Adventure (1993)
· Alternative Choices to Sight and Sound's 360 Films Classics List (1998)
· 100 Essential Films (2003–Present, Slant Magazine)
· Favorite Films (1975, Syndicat Francais de la Critique de Cinema)
Cahiers du cinéma voted it the 6th best film of 1966[2] and Andrew Sarris rated it the third-best of 1966 (only being beaten by Blow-up and Gertrud).[3]
The film is currently ranked #784 on the They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? (TSPDT) list of the 1000 greatest films of all time. The list is based on a poll of 1,825 film critics, scholars, and cinephiles, as well as a culling of over 900 existing "greatest film" lists.
Production
The original story, Chinese Finale, was presented as an episode of Alcoa Theatre in March 1960 with Hilda Plowright as Miss Andrews and Jan Sterling as Dr. Mary Cartwright.[4]
John Ford considered both Katharine Hepburn and Jennifer Jones for the role of Dr. Cartwright, and Rosalind Russell lobbied for the part, but eventually Patricia Neal was cast. Ford began the film on 8 February 1965 on the MGM backlot, but after three days of filming, Neal had a stroke. Anne Bancroft took over the role of Dr. Cartwright but Ford was unhappy with Bancroft and called her "the mistress of monotone".[5] Ford originally considered Carol Lynley for the role played in the film by MGM contract star Sue Lyon, whom the studio insisted on.[6] Shooting finished on April 12, only six days behind schedule.[1]
Ford chose Otho Lovering to edit the film; they had first worked together on Stagecoach (1939). Lovering edited most of Ford's feature films in the 1960s.
The film was not released until 1966.
Analysis
As Ford was a devout Catholic, the film shows the difference between the claim of being moral and the act of morals; the stark contrast between compassion and sacrifice to the austere holier-than-thou philosophy.[7]
1. Nat Segaloff, Final Cuts: The Last Films of 50 Great Directors, Bear Manor Media, 2013, p.103-105,
2. "Cahiers du Cinema Top 10's - 1966".
3. "Andrew Sarris Top 10's - 1966".
4. "Alcoa Theatre (1957–1960) : Chinese Finale". .
5. p. 332 Davis, Ronald L. John Ford: Hollywood's Old Master University of Oklahoma Press, 1997
6. "ROLES THAT COULDA, SHOULDA BEEN: CAROL LYNLEY". Sixties Cinema. September 11, 2011. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
7. "Ten Underappreciated John Ford Films".