Tag Archives: John Wayne

For D-Day: John Ford’s They Were Expendable (1945)

Posted on June 6, 2025 by sheila

In 2019, for D-Day, I wrote about John Ford’s magnificent They Were Expendable, one of the best war movies ever made. Thank you to all those who sacrificed their lives — not just Americans — in the name of liberty … Continue reading →

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“I never made a message picture, and I hope I never do.” — Howard Hawks

Posted on May 30, 2025 by sheila

It’s his birthday today. My favorite director. I’ve written so much about his movies, here and elsewhere, it’d be too much to link to all of it. I’ve seen it all. Only Angels Have Wings is my favorite movie ever … Continue reading →

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An Acting Lesson: John Wayne and the “Reality of the Doing”

Posted on May 26, 2025 by sheila

An old piece, re-posted for John Wayne’s birthday: In one lengthy scene in Hondo, filmed in one almost unbroken take, Wayne makes horseshoes in the little outdoor smith in the yard. Geraldine Page hovers nearby. He talks to her about … Continue reading →

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“You know, as character actors we play all kinds of sex psychos, nuts, creeps, perverts, and weirdos. And we laugh it off, saying what the hell it’s just a character. But deep down inside, it’s you, baby.” — Lee Marvin

Posted on February 19, 2025 by sheila

It’s Lee Marvin’s birthday today. In Liberty Valance, Lee Marvin is almost a force of nature. And let’s face it, it’s not easy to be credible as a threat to John Wayne, or the HEAVY opposite Wayne. But Marvin pulls … Continue reading →

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“The main thing about directing is: photograph the people’s eyes.” — John Ford

Posted on February 1, 2025 by sheila

It’s his birthday today. For Film Comment, I wrote about his somber, emotional WWII movie, with the title that really BITES: They Were Expendable. And they really were expendable. It’s an amazing film and – in my opinion – one … Continue reading →

Posted in Directors, Movies, On This Day | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Stuff I’ve Been Reading

Posted on August 25, 2022 by sheila

— My good friend Charlie Taylor is on fire in the LA Review of Books, reviewing Steve Erickson’s American Stutter. — Conversations with Friends, by Sally Rooney. Like everybody else on the planet, I read and loved Rooney’s Normal People … Continue reading →

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“If you’re going to make a gesture, make it.” — John Wayne

Posted on May 26, 2022 by sheila

For his birthday: One of my favorite quotes about acting comes from John Wayne. It’s included in Peter Bogdanovich’s Who the Hell’s in It: Conversations with Hollywood’s Legendary Actors: Peter Bogdanovich: Your gestures in pictures are often daring — large … Continue reading →

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Happy Birthday, John Ford: Doorways in The Searchers

Posted on February 1, 2022 by sheila

Are you going in or are you staying out? In the world of John Ford’s The Searchers you must choose. You can’t have both. The Searchers takes place on the threshold of that choice, in the abyss of the borderlands, … Continue reading →

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June 2021 Viewing Diary

Posted on July 3, 2021 by sheila

La Notte (1961; d. Michelangelo Antonioni) Pauline Kael included La Notte in her infamous essay titled “The Come-Dressed-As-the-Sick-Soul-of-Europe Parties”. Now you can debate her on this opinion – and I think she’s off (although I think it’s a hilarious title). … Continue reading →

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For John Wayne’s Birthday: Hondo (1953) at MoMA: John Wayne in 3D

Posted on May 26, 2021 by sheila

In real life John Wayne was huge, 6’3″, with broad shoulders, a lean waist, and long ambling legs. He towered over everybody. And yet, he was always graceful. His athleticism is extraordinary, his physicality smooth and controlled. So he was … Continue reading →

Posted in Actors, Movies, On This Day | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 44 Comments