The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance 1962

• Director: John
• Seen by this director: The Grapes of Wrath and probably others whose titles I don’t remember
• Based on the story by Dorothy M Johnson
• Cast: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin, Edmond O’Brien, Andy Devine, Jeanette Nolan, Woody Strode
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• James Stewart – Shenandoah, Bell Book and Candle, Vertigo, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Harvey, Rear Window, maybe others
• John Wayne – The Longest Day, The Alamo, probably others
• Vera Miles – Psycho and many, many TV series, including The Twilight Zone
• Lee Marvin – Cat Ballou, Paint Your Wagon, many TV series, including The Twilight Zone
• Edmond O’Brien – Seven Days in May, The Longest Day, Julius Caesar
• Andy Devine - many TV series, including The Twilight Zone
• Jeanette Nolan - many TV series, including The Twilight Zone
• Woody Strode – Spartacus
• Why? Nostalgia.
• Seen: Once, as a child. Now 10 September 2021.      

       Do I dare watch this again? I loved it as a kid, I love James Stewart, I love Gene Pitney’s song, I love black and white films. But I don’t like John Wayne, I don’t like westerns and I don’t like stories about pacifists who try but the gunman solves the problem.

       But wow. This could be about today. Big business in cahoots with armed villains. The free press under threat of violence. Voters stopped by big business and bad guys. The law of the land vs guns.

       Trump and the storming of the capitol come to mind.

       No, I don’t like John Wayne nor his obnoxious macho gun-slinging character, nor westerns, and the politics of the good guys are a bit gung-ho patriotic, and Gene Pitney’s song isn’t included.

       That said, it’s a great film. I still love it, not completely but almost. 

4* of 5.