Post by joekiddlouischama on Mar 25, 2021 11:06:02 GMT
I first saw True Grit fifteen years ago, in March 2006 on AMC (which, granted, meant that commercials interrupted it every so often and the original aspect ratio, while not widescreen, proved a bit compromised). It seemed ... okay, in an unsubtle way.
I next viewed True Grit twice in the theater in February 2018 and enjoyed it much more—"pretty good/good" (both times), meaning slightly less than a full-fledged "good" film, but close. My appreciation increased.
I last experienced True Grit in May 2019 in the theater and enjoyed it further still—"good/very good." The film has grown on me, and it now strikes me as one of Wayne's best late Westerns—not as sharp and potent as The Cowboys (Mark Rydell, 1972) or as elegiac and graceful as The Shootist (Don Siegel, 1976), but surprisingly savvy. The range of actors and their performances create texture, flavor, humor, and drama, the dialogue is quaintly lyrical, Elmer Bernstein's music is both endearing and rousing, the direction by Henry Hathaway is consistent, and most impressive is the Western cinematography by Lucien Ballard. Various shots and landscapes are simply classic and awe-inspiring, and the high-country gunfight in which Rooster Cogburn takes on the villains single-handedly proves iconic. Monumental low-angle shots of riders on horseback, the occasional point-of-view shot from high-speed horseback, still frames, stillness within the frame, concisely dynamic movement within the frame, and rustic, autumnal colors contrasting with darkly foreboding figures—all tied together by Warren Low's crisp editing—combine for what we might now term a "masterclass" in how to stage a gunfight from horseback.
If you eventually enjoy a chance to see True Grit in the theater, take it—the compositions, natural lighting, and editing pay off, creating a truly iconographic Western.
I next viewed True Grit twice in the theater in February 2018 and enjoyed it much more—"pretty good/good" (both times), meaning slightly less than a full-fledged "good" film, but close. My appreciation increased.
I last experienced True Grit in May 2019 in the theater and enjoyed it further still—"good/very good." The film has grown on me, and it now strikes me as one of Wayne's best late Westerns—not as sharp and potent as The Cowboys (Mark Rydell, 1972) or as elegiac and graceful as The Shootist (Don Siegel, 1976), but surprisingly savvy. The range of actors and their performances create texture, flavor, humor, and drama, the dialogue is quaintly lyrical, Elmer Bernstein's music is both endearing and rousing, the direction by Henry Hathaway is consistent, and most impressive is the Western cinematography by Lucien Ballard. Various shots and landscapes are simply classic and awe-inspiring, and the high-country gunfight in which Rooster Cogburn takes on the villains single-handedly proves iconic. Monumental low-angle shots of riders on horseback, the occasional point-of-view shot from high-speed horseback, still frames, stillness within the frame, concisely dynamic movement within the frame, and rustic, autumnal colors contrasting with darkly foreboding figures—all tied together by Warren Low's crisp editing—combine for what we might now term a "masterclass" in how to stage a gunfight from horseback.
If you eventually enjoy a chance to see True Grit in the theater, take it—the compositions, natural lighting, and editing pay off, creating a truly iconographic Western.