Stagecoach

John Ford’s Stagecoach reinvented the western genre and marked the debut of the “John Wayne” persona that the legendary actor refined over the next 40 years.

The plot sees an outlaw (John Wayne), a prostitute (Claire Trevor), a drunken doctor (Thomas Mitchell), a gambler (John Carradine) and others take a perilous stagecoach trip through Indian country.

Stagecoach’s influence as a genre piece cannot be overstated. Prior to Ford’s effort, westerns boiled down to little more than formula pieces, with the good guys in white and the bad guys in black. Like so many of the Lone Star productions featuring John Wayne in the years prior, characters were cardboard cutouts, hardly distinguishable from one picture to the next.

Ford changed all that by featuring a colorful cast of characters painted in shades of grey. The outlaw is a hero, the gambler is chivalrous, and the prostitute has a heart of gold. Of course, this wonderful characterization doesn’t preclude Stagecoach from delivering some great action sequences, particularly a rousing Indian attack sequence that stands out as one of the best-edited sequences ever put on film.

Capping all this is a breakout performance from John Wayne. Under John Ford’s eye Wayne’s years of practice in the Lone Star oaters finally pays off and he owns the screen from his now classic entrance to the closing frames.

Contrary to popular belief, Stagecoach didn’t make Wayne a mega-star. It did give him a sizeable career boost, but Wayne would still be taking second and third billing for years to come.