Stubborn Romance

Classic Hollywood boasted quite a few actor-actress duos that had such good chemistry, studio execs paired them again and again. Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Rock Hudson and Doris Day come to mind. But of all the classic on-screen matches, my favorite remains John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. 

Now, this might have something to do with the fact that John Wayne is my favorite actor, and Maureen O’Hara is my favorite actress. So having them together onscreen would be a special treat for me even if they didn’t display both great chemistry and a wonderful camaraderie. 

John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara both excelled at playing strong-willed, strong-minded characters who did not back down from a fight, who had to be definitively won, not simply wooed. In real life, they were good friends, which I find endearing. I suppose it’s that real-life friendship that made them appear so natural together onscreen. 

In a 1974 speech, John Wayne joked, “I’ve been in more battles than Napoleon and more wars than Germany. I’ve captured Bataan, Corregidor, Fort Apache, and Maureen O’Hara.”* That’s part of what fascinates me—their characters were always almost military opponents as much as lovers. There’s a sense that their characters are excited to have found a worthy opponent at last, and it’s that worthiness that attracts them to each other, even though they spend more time battling than romancing. 

Wayne and O’Hara played opposite each other five times in just over twenty years, and I’d like to recap each of those films for you here. 

In Rio Grande (1950), hard-nosed Cavalry officer Kirby Yorke is tasked with training a bunch of raw recruits, including his son, whom he hasn’t seen in many years. Yorke’s estranged wife Kathleen arrives to take their son away again because she thinks Yorke is being too hard on him. Kirby and Kathleen bicker and fight and slowly fall in love again despite an Indian uprising, a court-martial, and their own proud and stubborn natures. 

In The Quiet Man (1952), ex-prize fighter Sean Thornton returns to his ancestral homeland of Ireland to retire in peace. He soon falls in love with Mary Kate Danaher and marries her, despite the objections of her boorish brother. But when Sean refuses to fight her brother over an insult, Mary Kate declares he’s not a real man after all and leaves him because she doesn’t know about the secrets he’d fled from back in America. 

The Wings of Eagles (1957) tells the true story of Navy pilot Frank ‘Spig’ Wead, who puts aviation above his marriage to Min, causing his personal life to decline until an accident paralyzes him, and he has to learn to live without the things he thought defined him. 

McLintock! (1963) is a loose adaptation of The Taming of the Shrew. Cattle baron G.W. McLintock has his hands full trying to deal with a headstrong daughter, his estranged wife, farmers, Indians, and dishonest government officials. He tries to keep everyone happy and peaceful, with comic results. 

And in Big Jake (1971), Jacob McCandles returns home after many years at the request of his estranged wife, who needs him to help rescue their kidnapped grandson. 

I’ve seen both Wayne and O’Hara in many, many movies, opposite many different stars. And, while they could convincingly play love stories opposite others, their five movies together possess a special zing the others lack. I think it goes back to them finally having truly worth opponents, someone who forces them to be at their best in conversation, romance, argument, and everything in between. The actors probably enjoyed acting opposite someone who would go toe-to-toe with them in any scene, the competition forcing them to utilize all their talents instead of falling into predictable or routine acting. 

The question, then, is why am I so entranced by this pair of stars playing generally cross lovers? I think a lot of it is because I am stubborn and strong-willed, so I enjoy seeing characters similar to myself find someone who can challenge them and who enjoys matching wits and wills with them. Also, their real-life friendship shines through in these performances, making their characters’ affection for each other feel warm and genuine even when they’re disagreeing. 

Of the five films John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara co-starred in, my favorite is definitely The Quiet Man. It has the happiest ending for their characters as a couple, and the finest scenes between them overall as well. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys an unusual love story in a charming setting.

*p. 139, Duke in His Own Words, by Editors of the Official John Wayne Magazine. Media Lab Books: NY, 2015.

(This post originally appeared in the January/February 2016 issue of Femnista magazine.)

It's John Wayne's birthday today, so I thought it was the perfect time to repost this Femnista article :-)  Happy birthday, Duke!

What Makes Me Want to Watch It?

I recently posted a list of ten things that make me want to try out a book over on my book blog.  I had so much fun figuring those out that I thought I should do the same about movies.  What makes me think, "Yup, that is something I would like to watch?" about particular films?  I've come up with ten magnets that will always draw my attention.

1.  It's a western.  I will try basically any movie or TV show based solely on the fact that it is a western.  I don't have to know what it's about.  I don't have to know or care about anyone who's in it, the director, the composer, anything.  It's a western?  I'm there.  (With the obvious caveat that, if I learn it's skanky, I will either proceed with caution or skip it.)

2.  It stars someone I hold dear.  For a fairly large number of actors and actresses, not even remotely limited to my top favorites (actors, actresses), I will try nearly any movie or show.  Nearly -- I do have some standards, so even top favorites occasionally have made something I will pass on.  But the presence of someone I hold dear ties with "it's a western" for the top thing guaranteed to get me to watch something.

3.  It's set during WWII.  I mean, my top favorite TV show of all time (Combat! [1962-67]) is based in WWII.  That should tell you a lot.  A WWII-era setting, whether it's a war zone or the home front, will always grab my interest.

4.  It's based on a good book.  Bonus points if it's a classic book, but yeah, I love movies that are adaptations of books!  I often watch them first to find out if I like the characters and story, then go read the book if I do.  That makes the book feel like an expanded version of the story, rather than making the movie feel like a condensed version of a book I've read.

5.  It has heroes in it.  Yes, that includes superheroes, but it includes a lot more than that, too.  You throw words like "hero," "rescue," "sacrifice," and "courage" at me, and I am instantly paying attention.  I do enjoy superhero movies, but it's heroism in general that draws me to so many action movies, fantasy and sci-fi movies, and so on.  Westerns and war movies appeal to me because they so often involve heroes.

6.  It's film noir.  Got some gritty stories and mean streets and fatally attractive women and weary almost-heroes and murky shadows you could drown in?  I'm here for it.  Yes, heroes are thin on the ground in this genre, but they're there.  And antiheroes abound.

7.  It revolves around a platonic friendship.  If there are two characters who have or form a close bond of friendship, and that's the main relationship that the story centers around, I am interested right away.  So many of my favorite movies and TV shows revolve around either a pair of friends or a group of them!  "Found families" play into this -- group friendship bonds interest me just as much as a friendship between just two people.

8.  It's set in the 1960s.  My husband likes to tease me that I grew up in the sixties.  I didn't -- I wasn't born until the eighties -- but when I was growing up, most of the movies and TV shows we watched at home were made in the sixties because that's when my parents grew up, so that's what formed their taste.  And so, it's what formed my taste.  Whether a movie or show was made in the sixties or later on, if that's when it's set, I want to try it out!

9.  Someone I trust tells me I would like it.  I definitely will try movies just because specific people tell me I should.  My parents, my brother, DKoren, and two or three other people can get me to watch a movie on their recommendation alone.

10. It has a detective in it.  Yes, I love mysteries.  I particularly love to read them, but I enjoy watching them too.  Many of my favorite TV shows revolve around detectives solving crimes, and I like movies about them too.

So, basically, if it has a certain setting or specific types of characters, or simply stars particular people, I'm interested!  

My Ten Favorite Action Movies -- 2023 Update

I'm narrowing my criterion for this list more than I did for my original list in 2013.  Only movies set in the 20th or 21st century allowed.  No swords.  Movies with lots of swords recently got showcased on my Ten Favorite Swashbucklers post anyway!

1. The Fugitive (1993)  Dr. Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford) is wrongly convicted of his wife's murder, escapes, and goes hunting for the real killer while U.S. Marshal Sammy Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) hunts for him. My second-favorite movie of all time.

2. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015) An American (Henry Cavill), a Russian (Armie Hammer), and a German (Alicia Vikander) team up during the Cold War to stop neo-Nazis from creating a nuclear bomb. This is an unabashedly fun movie, and I love it ever so dearly.

3. The Bourne Identity (2002) Amnesiac Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) races across Europe, evading unknown pursuers, seeking answers about his past, and falling in love with a quirky stranger (Franka Potente). The movie that changed my mind about Matt Damon. And based on one of my favorite books.

4. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Archaeologist/adventurer Dr. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) tries to keep the Ark of the Covenant away from the Nazis. One of the finest adventure movies ever made. I had the deep joy of seeing this on the big screen a few years ago, and it was even more spectacular there than I had hoped.

5. Witness (1985) Detective John Book (Harrison Ford) goes undercover to protect a little Amish boy who is the only witness to a murder. Taut and sweet at the same time, and one of the very, very few R-rated movies I own.

6.  Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) What's better than one Dr. Jones? Two Dr. Joneses! Indy and his dad (Sean Connery) try to keep the Holy Grail away from the Nazis. The chemistry between the two of them is as perfect as possible. This movie makes me laugh so much.

7. GoldenEye (1995) James Bond (Pierce Brosnan) battles his ex-partner (Sean Bean) to save Britain from an electronic meltdown. The first thing I ever saw Brosnan, Bean, and Judi Dench in -- and I became a total fan of all three.

8. Conspiracy Theory (1997) Paranoid cab driver Jerry Fletcher (Mel Gibson) convinces the woman he loves (Julia Roberts) to help him uncover a conspiracy. I think this is the first thing I ever saw Patrick Stewart in other than Star Trek: The Next Generation. It manages to be twisty and tender, creepy and sweet, all at the same time.  And it's also another of the very small number of R-rated movies I own.

9. Skyfall (2012) James Bond (Daniel Craig) must confront, not his own bitter past, but M's (Judi Dench) when MI6 headquarters is attacked.

10. R.E.D. (2010) Retired black-ops agent Frank Moses (Bruce Willis), his new girlfriend Sarah (Mary-Louise Parker), and a bunch of his old pals (Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, Helen Mirren) and enemies (Brian Cox) team up to figure out who's trying to kill them, and why. Hilarious from beginning to end. You guys wanna get pancakes?

Do we share any favorites?  Do any of these surprise you?  I'm curious!

Movie Music: Erich Wolfgang Korngold's "The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938)

Time to share a film score that is a classic in every possible way a soundtrack could be. From long ago, still enjoyable today, and something others might try to imitate but can never duplicate. And it even comes with an adventure story of its own, separate from the one in the movie it accompanies! 

Composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold and his family escaped Vienna just before the Nazis invaded in 1938 thanks to this film score. According to the liner notes of my copy, Korngold was offered the job of composing the score for The Adventures of Robin Hood in Hollywood, and that gave him a legitimage reason to leave Austria in what was becoming an increasingly dangerous time.  He was able to bring his wife and younger son along, but had to leave his older son with family in Austria. They arrived safely in California, where Korngold promptly turned down the job because there was too much action in the film! He wrote operas and scored romantic movies, not action films, and he didn't think he could match the studio's needs and expectations. But they prevailed on him to try, so he stayed, and wrote the entire score in six weeks. During that time, Hitler invaded Austria, and the Korngolds were relieved to learn that their other son had escaped with his grandparents to Switzerland just before the Nazis arrived.

This score went on to with Korngold his second Oscar, which is amazing when you think that he didn't want to write it at all at first. It's a very sweeping, lyrical score, one I enjoy listening to on a glum morning to help boost the mood for me and my kids. They're actually the reason I bought this album in the first place -- they love the movie and kept asking why I didn't have the soundtrack. Well, I didn't have it because the original recording isn't available -- all you can get are re-recordings. I did some research and consulted with a knowledgeable friend, and learned that the 1988 recording available from the Varese-Sarabande label is the best available, so that's the one I got. It was produced by George Korngold, the composer's young son who accompanied him to Hollywood on the trip to compose the score. 

When we listened to this when they were younger, my kids would tell me exactly what's happening in the movie during different parts of the music, and sometimes act it out :-) Very fun, though sometimes a bit disruptive of breakfast. 

The first cue, "Prologue (Main Title)," begins with a lot of rollicky, boisterous prancing that lets you know this is the sort of movie that will make you bounce up and down in your seat and cheer. Then the mood shifts and a softer theme weaves its way in, alerting the audience to the fact that yes, there will be a love story here too. But that doesn't last long -- the piece ends with a some bold and vaguely regal flourishes.

This score has some of the most cheerful action music you'll ever hear. "Escape from the Castle" is a joyous romp from start to finish, lots of flourishes and musical galloping. 

My favorite track is "The Archery Tournament." It's brash and playful and ready to have a good time. Rather like Robin Hood (Errol Flynn) in this version, come to think of it.

This is a really fun movie. If you haven't seen it, I strongly encourage you to! You can read my review of it right here if you want to know more about it.  And you can listen to the soundtrack album here on YouTube.

(This review originally appeared here at J and J Productions on February 15, 2016.)

"The Trouble with Harry" (1955)

What IS the trouble with Harry?

Well, Harry is dead.  And, the trouble is, nobody really minds that he's dead.  They just can't quite decide what to do with his body.  Should they bury him where he died, out in the middle of the New England countryside?  Should they leave him out in the open for the authorities to find?  Should they report his death to the authorities?

Harry was a stranger to the little New England community where he died, but not to one person who lives there -- Mrs. Jennifer Rogers (Shirley MacLaine).  She is, in fact, his widow now.  She was originally married to Harry's brother, with whom she had her little boy Arnie (Jerry Mathers), but then her husband died, and Harry decided it was his duty to marry his brother's widow and provide a home for her and his brother's son. 

But it's not Jennifer who finds Harry's body.  He dies on a sunny woodland hillside, possibly mistaken for a rabbit and shot.  Possibly killed by a blow from an outraged spinster.  Possibly from being hit over the head with a bottle by someone else.  His body is found at various times by little Arnie, a wandering doctor reciting poetry, a tramp, Captain Wiles (Edmund Gwenn), Miss Gravely (Mildred Natwick), and artist Sam Marlowe (John Forsythe).  

In the midst of burying and unburying Harry multiple times for various reasons, hiding him and leaving him out in the open, and hiding him again, and so on, two people fall in love, several people make new friends, and someone's fortune is made.  It's a black comedy from Alfred Hitchcock, with many little surprises along the way, but none of the fear or fright that his movies are usually known for.  And I love it!  In fact, it's my third-favorite Hitchcock film :-)

Is this movie family friendly?  Yeah, basically?  There's a little conversation about a couple's wedding night going unconsummated, but it's very vague.  No bad language, no real violence, nothing else objectionable UNLESS you find black humor objectionable.  Then you won't like this at all.

This has been my contribution to the Master of Suspense Blogathon hosted this weekend at Classic Film and TV Corner.  Be sure to check out the other fun entries!

The Shades of Shane Blogathon

Welcome to the Shades of Shane Blogathon!  Shane was released on April 23, 1953 -- seventy years ago this weekend!  Join us this weekend in celebrating the actors and actresses who appeared in Shane (1953) by talking about their other films, their careers, and so on.

Click on the posters or movie titles to visit each individual post!

The Roster

Review of The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)

at Classic Film and TV Corner

Shane Connection: Van Heflin

Review of Drum Beat (1954)

at Hamlette's Soliloquy

Shane Connections: Alan Ladd, Elisha Cook, Jr.

Review of The Evening Star (1996)

at Realweegiemidget Reviews

Shane connection: Ben Johnson

Review of Presenting Lily Mars (1943)

at Taking Up Room

Shane connection: Van Heflin

Review of Edge of Eternity (1959)

at Silver Scenes

Shane connection: Edgar Buchanan

Review of The Glass Key (1942)

at Whimsically Classic

Shane connection: Alan Ladd

Review of A Foreign Affair (1948)

at Silver Scenes

Shane connection: Jean Arthur

I will update this roster as new entries come in, so check back every now and then for new posts to enjoy!

"Drum Beat" (1954)

Drum Beat has an unusual protagonist: an "Indian fighter" who has been tasked by the President with forming a lasting peace between whites and American Indians in the far West.  It brings up interesting questions of nature vs. nurture, the hold habits can have on people, and the way others will react when someone changes their ways.

Drum Beat is based around the Modoc War, an actual event in 1872-3 that took place in California and Oregon.  A Modoc warrior called Captain Jack, or Kintpuash, led about 150 Modoc people off the Klamath Reservation.  They evaded the US Army for quite some time, and the climax of this film seems like a pretty accurate portrayal of a real-life peace talk gone wrong.  You can learn more about the actual events of the Modoc War here.

When we first see Johnny MacKay (Alan Ladd), he's outside the White House, wondering how to get in to see the President.  He's gotten an invitation there, but he doesn't know how you're supposed to get inside.

It turns out the way to get inside to see President Grant (Hayden Rorke) is just to walk inside the White House and ask to see him.  This kind of shocks MacKay, as he was expecting there to be a lot more pomp involved.  It kind of shocks modern viewers too.

President Grant and his wife and daughter are entertaining a few people that evening, including Miss Nancy Meek (Audrey Dalton) and Dr. Thomas (Richard Gaines).  MacKay's arrival is perfectly timed because Dr. Thomas is here to plead the case of some renegade Modoc warriors who have left their reservation and are threatening settlers.  Dr. Thomas is convinced that these warriors are just high spirited, and that they pose no real threat.  Nancy is happy to hear this, since she is planning to travel West to live with her uncle and aunt.  

Johnny MacKay is completely skeptical about the Modoc renegades' intentions.  He's been a scout and a guide all his life, negotiating with various American Indian tribes to gain safe passage for travelers and pioneers, and fighting against them when they refused.  He also knows the leader of the renegades, Captain Jack.  He thinks Dr. Thomas is a starry-eyed fool.  But he understands why Nancy Meek might want to live in the West, as he loves it there.

Nancy Meek finds MacKay pretty fascinating, as you can see.  It may help that he's wearing a gorgeous fringed buckskin jacket.  I myself have a great weakness for those.

President Grant asks MacKay to be a peace commissioner and find a way to settle this Modoc uprising without bloodshed on either side.  MacKay doesn't think he's the right man for the job, but Grant insists he's the only one respected by both the whites and the Modocs, and he has a better chance at brokering a peace deal than anyone else.  Reluctantly, MacKay accepts.  He's much less reluctant to accept the job of chaperoning Nancy Meek on her journey west :-)

The first time we see Captain Jack (Charles Bronson), he's also alone, but against a much different backdrop from the one where we first saw Johnny MacKay.  They filmed the exteriors for this in Sedona, Arizona, and they are gorgeous.

Captain Jack (and, yes, I have a really hard time not typing "sparrow" after that name) is having a peaceful-so-far parlay with Colonel Meek (Richard H. Cutting), who is on his way to meet his niece Nancy at the stagecoach stop.  Captain Jack argues with Colonel Meek over some medals Meek is wearing but won't give to Jack, but Colonel Meek is able to smooth things over and go on his way.

The stagecoach MacKay and Nancy Meek were on, driven by Bill Satterwhite, is attacked.  Satterwhite's sweetheart is killed, and he goes off seeking vengeance.  MacKay drives Nancy out to her uncle's ranch.  The scenery they pass through is amazing, but they get more and more worried the closer they get without having met up with her uncle.  Sure enough, tragedy has struck the ranch.  Captain Jack wasn't so ready to give up on getting those medals from Colonel Meek after all.

MacKay takes Nancy back to the local Cavalry outpost, where he enlists the help of Captain Clark (George J. Lewis) and Lieutenant Goodsall (Peter Hansen) in meeting up with the friendly Modoc Indians who have not left the reservation.  Maybe they can help protect settlers while MacKay figures out how to arrange some peace talks with Captain Jack the way the President wants.

The daughter and son of the last Modoc chief, Toby (Marisa Pavan) and Manok (Anthony Caruso), arrange to take MacKay to one of Captain Jack's strongholds.

There's no reason for this picture to be here except that it is so breathtakingly beautiful I can't leave it out.

In order to meet with Captain Jack, MacKay must climb up onto the top of a half-sunken structure, then climb down inside through a hole in the roof.  Toby and Manok think this is a trap, but MacKay knows he has to show Captain Jack he's not afraid if Jack will respect him at all, so in he goes.

This is my favorite scene in the movie.  Jack and MacKay face off, measuring each other, testing each other with words, each trying to find a weakness in the other.  All while being as calm and cool as possible.

They both do a lot with body language, which I find really fascinating.  MacKay starts out with his hands on his hips, looking down at the seated Captain Jack.  Captain Jack is quite still for most of the scene, only shifting his position once in a while, while MacKay walks around, gestures to the assembled crowd, and overall tries to act as comfortable as possible.

Eventually, MacKay sits down, casual and calm, and they get down to talking man-to-man instead of appealing to the crowd.

Captain Jack agrees to think about peace.  You'll notice that there is only one scene in this film where Captain Jack wears sleeves.  The filmmakers weren't about to let Charles Bronson's magnificent arms go to waste.  Which I appreciate.

Unfortunately, right as MacKay leaves this talk with Captain Jack, someone shoots a Modoc warrior in retaliation for a recent attack on a stagecoach.  This infuriates the Modoc renegades, and they go on a killing spree.

Captain Jack and his followers take refuge in an almost impregnable mountain fortress, which is just gorgeous, isn't it?  Also, there are actually stunt guys climbing those ladders.  Yikes.

Manok and Toby convince Captain Jack to discuss peace with some representatives of the US government.  Again.  They're really brave, these two, risking their own lives again and again on behalf of the white people.

MacKay advises the Cavalry on how to proceed.  This picture is mostly here for the nice way Alan Ladd is leeeeeaning on that railing.

We have a couple of thrilling skirmishes between the Modoc warriors and the Cavalry soldiers.  It seems like Captain Jack's stone fortress is impregnable, and he'll be able to just keep burning ranches and killing settlers with impunity for as long as he likes.  So much for that peace MacKay is supposed to be arranging on the President's behest.

Meanwhile, MacKay and Nancy Meek have been encountering each other pretty often since she's still living at the fort.  A mutual fondness has sprung up.

They take a stroll together one evening, and end up sitting on a river bank discussing serious facts about the future.  This is my other favorite scene because... it doesn't get sappy.  Both characters are quite straight-forward about their attraction to each other AND the danger and problems that surround them.  

They don't try to disguise the age gap between the actors playing these characters, either.  Ladd was 41 and Dalton was 20, and so she plays Nancy as more hopeful and playful, while he's the experienced and somewhat weary one.  He's a little reserved toward her, but her enthusiasm is infectious, and they both start to think maybe a relationship between them would work out.  You know, if they manage to live through this whole situation with the Modoc renegades.

My favorite random tiny little thing about this whole movie is how they're just sitting there companionably by the water, and then Nancy just swings around and leans back against MacKay's upturned knee.  It's very cute and sweet and playful, and it's not really a romancing set-up you see a lot in movies, so I just... am enchanted by it.

Clearly, MacKay is too.  I mean, more flirty scenes should be staged like this.  So cute.

And it so neatly facilitates a few smooches!

Anyway, the plot interrupts all that blossoming romance.  Captain Jack has agreed to a peace talk with Johnny MacKay.  He brings some warriors, and MacKay brings a general and his Modoc friends Toby and Manoc, plus that annoying Dr. Thomas from the beginning of the movie, who has come out here because he's sure Captain Jack and his followers are just misunderstood.  They're really good and peaceable at heart.

Yeah, sure they are.  What happens next is that peace-talk-gone-wrong I mentioned at the beginning, a real-life incident that left quite a few people dead on both sides.

For a bit, we think that includes Johnny MacKay.  Which we kind of know can't be true, since Alan Ladd is starring in this, and if he's starring in a movie, he won't die until the very end.  If at all.  Never three-quarters of the way through.

So I really don't think it's a spoiler to tell you he's just wounded.  

Slightly random aside, but this shot of MacKay peeking over a rock feels like a total callback to this shot of Alan Ladd in Whispering Smith (1948).  It's probably just a coincidence.  But maybe not.

Anyway, we all know this whole thing has to come down to a one-on-one fight between Captain Jack and Johnny MacKay.  Which it does.  They fight with guns and knives and fists in a long and glorious brawl that involves them both getting delightfully wet in that river you see here.  Also, most of the wide shots look like it's really Bronson and Ladd flailing around in the river.  Only a couple of the widest shots looked like doubles.  Alan Ladd did love to swim and did as many of his own water stunts as the studios would stand for, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

Unfortunately, fights like that are hard to screencap, so I can only share this one shot from the end of a sopping wet Alan Ladd finally getting the upper hand.  You'll just have to go watch it yourself to get the full effect, I guess.

In reality, several other leaders of the renegades were captured along with Captain Jack, but the movie streamlines it to just be him.  

In real life, they tried and convicted all of the leaders, and a few were hung while the rest went to prison.  In the movie, it's Captain Jack who's been convicted of murder and is awaiting hanging.  He's very philosophical about his impending death, even kind of cheerful and charming.  MacKay comes to talk to him in the stockade, and they part amicably.

The film ends with some beautiful shots of the peaceable Modocs riding beside a lovely river, going about their lives.

As for Johnny MacKay and Nancy Meek, they are going about their lives too -- lives that will involve getting married and rebuilding her uncle's ranch.  Awwww!

This has been my contribution to the Shades of Shane blogathon that I am hosting here all weekend.  That event is all about celebrating other films by the people who acted in Shane (1953), and this movie has two of them: Alan Ladd and Elisha Cook Jr.  Stop by to see all the other things people are contributing!