JakeStevens Blog

While I thought the cinematography was wonderful, I found myself yawning often during this Oater. But don't get me wrong - even though it's not my style, I appreciate it for what it's worth: it changed the Western as we know it forever. Never before had a "hero" been so unlikable. His wears his racism on his sleeve, and it's ugly to see. The Duke also isn't one of my favorite actors (I'd rate him pretty low, actually), but who else at that time could have altered the genre as much as he did...than him? It's an important milestone in film history...but it's just not my bag, man. Maybe another viewing will change my mind...

It's always hard when you've got a cast full of "main" characters like this to make sure each one of them gets enough screen time to get fully fleshed out for the audience to empathize with, but this one seems to work. I found myself laughing often in this underrated gem, although they were "smaller" laughs. There is no one particular moment where you'll lose it (ala the "frank and beans" scene in "There's Something About Mary"), but it's a decent rental on a weekday night when you've seen everything else, and you just want to laugh.