This post is part of the Texas Blogathon hosted by The Midnite Drive-In.
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Confederate soldiers Dan (William Holden) and Tod (Glenn Ford) look to Texas for opportunities when the war ends. Upon witnessing a stagecoach robbery, the close friends ambush the outlaws and confiscate the stolen funds. Tod wishes to return the money, but Dan wants to keep it. After a sheriff gives chase, each man runs off on his own. They are reunited after some time, but with Tod now an honest ranch hand and Dan an outlaw cattle rustler, the two do not know if their friendship can survive.
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I was originally going to write a bona fide review of ‘Texas’, but I have a lot of scattered thoughts and comments to make concerning it, so I thought I might as well do a list thingy instead. (There will be spoilers.) (And if you want a more conventional review of this movie, I recommend this post.)
~I’m highly amused by the cheery music that plays as ‘…The paths to the market were bloody trails of Indian depredations, outlaw, rustlers…’ scrolls across the screen.
~William Holden and Glenn Ford are, like, baby-year-olds in this film. And very adorable. I’m sort of used to Young William Holden because I’ve seen ‘Arizona’ (was ‘Texas’ supposed to be a sort of companion piece to ‘Arizona’?). Young Glenn Ford is very attractive and he and William Holden both have cute dimples. Plus, their acting is great.
~William Holden tends to play jerky guys, at least in most of the films I’ve seen him in. I don’t really care for Dan (Holden’s character). I mean, he joins up with cattle rustlers and doesn’t seem much bothered by it. And he steals Tod’s girl (though he might not have known that extent of Tod’s feelings at first).
~The fight near the beginning is HILARIOUS. My siblings and I laughed so hard during it when we first watched the movie.
~Edgar Buchanan makes for a chilling bad guy. I’ve only ever seen him playing kindly/harmless old codgers, but he was something else again as Doc. Lots of nastiness, and it’s surprising twist considering his usual screen roles.
~I love how Tod stands up and says his piece after Windy Miller makes his offer of two dollars a head of cattle. If I were Mike, I’d have fallen for him right then and there (Tod, not Miller).
~*snickers at how Dan wants to keep the money and Tod tries to talk him out of it because Glenn Ford’s character in ‘The Sacketts’ does the exact opposite and why am I snickering about this when the situation is actually kinda heartbreaking in ‘The Sacketts’?*
~Thanks to certain comments on Hamlette’s review of ‘Texas’ (see link above) I will forever get Tod and Dan’s names mixed up in my head.
~Man. The way that sheriff and the posse are so quick to lynch Tod puts ‘The Ox-Bow Incident’ to shame.
~Also, the ending of ‘Texas’ is a bit of a downer and not something I expected from a 40’s ‘B’ western. But I guess it all comes down to the fact that Dan’s life was in a mess and there wasn’t enough time to bring resolution, reconciliation, and redemption to him, so they killed him off. *sigh*
~Overall, though, a fun, entertaining, and enjoyable western film, one that I’ll be sure to watch and re-watch over the years.
Have you ever seen this film? What did you think of it?
Eva
I’ve never seen that film, but I want to watch more old movies and you got me interested in this one! 🙂 Loving your blog!
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I’m glad. 🙂 Thanks!
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Haven’t even heard of it. But my Glenn Ford experience is pretty lean. Never really got into him. But with Holden in it, I might try to find it. Thanks for joining.
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You’re welcome! And thanks for hosting. 🙂
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I blame the ending on the Code. Good had to be rewarded and evil had to be punished, and they didn’t have enough time for Dan to have a redemption arc, so punishment, it is.
Loved reading your thoughts! And yeah, Dan and Tod’s names just… are confuzzling. I have to look them up to be sure I’m talking about the right guy.
And awwww, you linked to my post! You’re sweet. ::sends an extra hug::
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Okay, the ending makes a lot more sense now. I still don’t like it though. (Duh.)
Glad you liked this post!
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Yeah, with 20 more minutes, they could have made it much happier, less abrupt, and still satisfying for the Code. But it’s a B movie, so you take what you get.
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Yep.
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Dan and Tod’s names are easy! Just think Dan/Deb and the first letters will lead you to the right character. 😀
I really love this movie. The whole beginning is fun and exciting, and then it gets more serious. Edgar Buchanan is indeed so scheming in this. And this movie really makes me not want to go near dentists. LOL! Fun list of comments, Eva!
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Thanks!
(Dentists are horrid.)
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Haha! Dan = Deb. I might be able to remember that.
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Gah, I just revisited this, and DKoren, now we know what happened at the dentist!!!!! You had a bad bicuspid!!!!!!! Just like Dan. Poor you 😦
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Okay, but I really kind of love Glenn Ford’s tweed jacket in that next-to-last photo. It’s very snazzy.
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It IS snazzy!
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William Holden and Glenn Ford were both quite the heartbreakers when they were young. Very handsome indeed. And Claire Trevor is always worth watching, so I will put this one on my list!
Great post, and as always some beautifully curated photos.
– Chris
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Yes, they were. 😉 Hope you enjoy ‘Texas’ when you get a chance to see it!
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Nope, and your mention of the Ox-Bow incident seals the deal on my NOT watching it. My attempts to watch Westerns have NOT gone very well. Are there any satisfactory and happy Westerns or is that an oxymoron?
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Actually, the lynching thing is almost humorous, it’s so stupid. And Tod gets rescued from that, so it’s all good (for a while). Happy westerns? Well, ‘Support Your Local Sheriff’ with James Garner is happy/funny, because it’s a comedy. I haven’t seen as many westerns as, say, Hamlette, so you’d probably get more suggestions from her. 🙂
(I feel your pain concerning ‘The Ox-Bow Incident’. I hate, loathe, and despise that movie.)
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Happy westerns, you say? Well, depends on how you define “happy.” If you mean “light-hearted,” then yes, Support Your Local Sheriff is a good bet.
If you mean “the good guys live to the end, justice is served, and everyone has a shot at living happily,” then I can recommend the following:
Rio Bravo
Angel and the Badman
Branded
The Desperadoes
The Mark of Zorro
Silverado
The Rare Breed
North to Alaska
None of those have even melancholy endings, much less sad, and some are downright jubilant.
There are lots more, those are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head. Most of them are family-friendly, too. Silverado is more recent and has some bad language.
(I watched The Ox-Bow Incident once, and NEVER AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!)
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Of all those, I’ve only seen Rio Bravo. 😛
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I feel I’m failing you as a friend. NO WONDER your sister thinks she doesn’t like John Wayne, if she hasn’t seen “Angel and the Badman” yet!
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We actually started watching it once but never finished. The picture quality was quite poor.
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Yeah, it’s in the public domain, so there are very cruddy versions out there. The best one I’ve found/heard of is from Olive Films — they do really nice transfers and restorations. I’ve got several of their DVDs and have been really pleased with them. So much so that I tend to seek them out.
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I believe I watched the Olive Films version of The North Star and, yes, it was excellent quality. Thanks for the tip!
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