The Good
This film oozes realism in every frame. Nobody doled out justice like The Duke.
The Bad
I wish they had recorded John Wayne talking about this movie and then they cut that into the commentary track.
True Grit is the well told tale of U.S. Marshall, Rooster Cogburn (John Wayne). Directed by Henry Hathaway, this film follows Rooster, a drunk and burly sort who is hired by Mattie Ross (Kim Darby) to find the man who killed her father. So Rooster sets off on his mission and somehow Mattie convinces him to let her come along. Things get even worse when La Boeuf (Glen Campbell) joins up with them, but eventually laughs are had, action ensues and Rooster doles out the western sort of justice that we have come to expect from both John Wayne and his characters.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
What made True Grit so much fun to watch is the fact that it is littered with such memorable characters. Wayne was honestly terrific in this role that brought him an Academy Award. He has a sense of honor and duty, even though his character seems to be close to falling off the wagon all the time. Kim Darby brought a very interesting take to the Mattie character because she’s tough, yet to look at her one wouldn’t see it. There is a deep determination that she easily conveys with her eyes and body language. Glen Campbell helps provide a healthy dose of comic relief, yet his role is no less poignant.
Features
Filled with the voices of Jeb and J. Stuart Rosebrook as well as Bob Boze Bell, these Old West Writers give us a very didactic account of this film and what it meant to the Western genre. They talk about Charles Portis who wrote the novel before it was a film, and how John Wayne was so good in this movie because he felt challenged in the role of Rooster. Apparently, Kim Darby really helped him bring his game up to another level because of how she played Mattie. They also talk about how good Wayne looks on a horse, while contrasting, in a joking way, that Glen Campbell does not. My only problem with this track is that these guys comment too much on the action happening on screen and they don’t really tell too many stories of its production.
The Law and The Lawless
True Writing
The people from the commentary track are on hand here as they talk about the effect of True Grit on America. In 1969, it seems that our country wanted a John Wayne western simply because they wanted something on screen that made them feel safe. Since the bulk of the people talking are western writers, they also talk about things like how Charles Portis got the story “right on the page.” We also hear from people like Kim Darby and Glen Campbell as they discuss playing their roles and what drew them to the project. Also, the screenwriter Marguerite Roberts talks about John Wayne and his politics and how she didn’t think he would like her screenplay. Apparently, she was wrong.
Working with The Duke
With John Wayne, according the people who worked with him, what you saw was what you got. This theme seems to pervade this piece as the actors on this movie discuss working with the legend. I love that Kim Darby somehow didn’t really too much about John Wayne’s legend (what? she didn’t go to the movies?). I also am fond of John Wayne’s line (which is quoted), where supposedly he said, “Nobody should go to the movies if they don’t believe in heroes.” Amen. Certainly check out this piece if you don’t know too much about John Wayne.
Aspen Gold: Locations of True Grit
Video
This film is presented in Widescreen Format. I loved the way that this movie looked. In every scene, no matter if it was outside or inside, the colors looked very sharp and rich. In fact, it is because of this that this movie has the sense of realness that it does. There is a strength to the picture that plays really nicely within the drama of this film. When we see these characters in a saloon, or riding the open range, the depth of the shots and the strength of the images creates a true sense of reality. Locations in a film like this are so important, it seems like great pains have been made to present them as clearly as possible.
Audio
Dolby Digital. Close Captioned. The audio in this film is big. It is certainly the kind of sound that should be listened to with multiple speakers. Not only is it rich and full, but even when things are quiet, there are is that bed of ambient sounds that rests under the images. A movie like this reminds me of why Hollywood has the amount of luster surrounding it that it does.
Package
There is an embossed cover that goes over the amaray case that stores this DVD. The cover is black and dark tan, and it features a pencil-like drawing of Rooster Cogburn. The back features another pencil-styled drawing of the three main cast members, a description of what True Grit is about, a Special Features list, a cast list and technical specs. The amaray case has color images of the cast on the cover (they look like promo shots), and the back features color pictures from the movie and the same information previously mentioned.
Final Word
One cannot study cinema and not know about True Grit. This is simply one of those movies that you hear about. I hadn’t seen this movie in any of my film courses but I was privy to other John Wayne classics like The Searchers and The Quiet Man. As I mentioned in another review, Wayne did something as a performer that was very unique. While playing different roles he essentially stayed the same. Yet, this didn’t seem to hurt his characterizations. The role of Rooster, while not too much different from his roles in the aforementioned films, was different because of the subtle things Wayne did. In fact, they are so subtle its hard to really pin point them but they are there and if you watch the films you will see slight variations in tone and character that speak volumes.
If you are a DVD collector, True Grit needs to be somewhere close to your collection.
True Grit was released June 11, 1969.
