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This
is simply an amazing movie. Critics
and cult-film enthusiasts alike have been arguing over this film for years,
trying to determine its meaning and figure out its unrelenting and seemingly
satirical intensity. Is this
Western a parody, is it a political allegory of McCarthyism, or is it
a movie which is just consistently a little bit 'off' in many different
ways? Martin Scorsese cites
Johnny Guitar as one of his primary influences.
He says the movie is filmed at an "operatic pitch." Such is certainly the case -- every line of dialogue is virtually
shouted with undiluted angst. Mercedes
McCambridge sets the shrieking pitch of the film as the lynch mob leader
with an insane hatred of Joan Crawford.
The movie is filled with constant, inexplicable confrontations,
and the tension is undiminished throughout.
Out of nowhere, one man challenges Ernest Borgnine:
"Bart, you don't drink, you don't smoke . . . you're mean
to horses -- what do you
like?" Sterling Hayden's
speech about what a man really needs is a gem.
He and Crawford are perfectly cast
and give this peculiar, operatic dialogue as much credence as it
can carry. Among the odd
delights of the movie is Crawford's saloon/casino, certainly the least
frontier-looking room any Western has ever displayed.
The
women are in charge in Johnny Guitar, a welcome twist to Western stories.
What the film goes on to do with this twist is anyone's guess.
But guesses should be made -- this movie is certainly worthy of
investigation and highly entertaining to boot.
The oddities and mystery of the film make this an indispensable
view for Western enthusiasts. |
| Director: Nicholas Ray (Also directed Rebel Without a Cause, 1955) |
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Screenwriter: Philip Yordan from Roy Chanslor's novel Cast: |
| Date: 1954 |
| Theme Song: Johnny Guitar, Peggy Lee |
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