Monday, January 17, 2011

1917 - BUCKING BROADWAY, early John Ford silent western


Silent John Ford western where the rancher's daughter is about to be married to Cheyenne Harry the foreman.  A city slicker shows up, sweeps her off her feet and takes her to New York City.  It's up to Harry and his cowboy friends to rescue her.


Ford is about 10 years away from making a big splash with The Iron Horse.  Yet, you can start to see a lot of his style of film making, scenes placing men in strong visual compositions in the landscape, the corny humor and a rugged cowboy star in Harry Carey, who is the prototype for Ford's western leading man, the character that John Wayne eventually took on. 


The climax of the film has the cowboys coming to the rescue riding down a city street which is probably Los Angeles rather than New York.  It all ends in a big knockdown fight in a swanky hotel.


This film is found on the supplemental disc on Criterion's Stagecoach release, along with a long interview with Ford where he screws with the reporter for about an hour not really revealing much about himself or his films.

Bucking Broadway is a lot of fun.

53 minutes.

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