The Searchers
New York Magazine called this film “ the most influential movie in American history,” although I am unsure why. Ebert explains that this movie was made at a time where the concept of a western was evolving. The view of Native Americans as savages was becoming less and less expected, but it is difficult to know if this movie was attempting to expose the prejudice or inadvertently encourage it.
John Wayne’s character, Ethan is a Civil War veteran whose family is attacked and killed by a group of Indians. His niece Debbie is kidnapped and thus begins his search for her. From the very beginning you are able to see his prejudice for the Native Americans, which turns into the hatred after the attack on his family. He finds Debbie many years later and realizes she is living with a chief and has a new life among the tribe. This was complication Ethan didn’t anticipate and it creates a new dilemma. Rescuing her may no longer be his objective, he now is consumed with rage and talks of killing Debbie.
This film takes the time developing multiple storylines, but when it comes to the last scene involving Ethan and Debbie it seems contrived and unexpected. The audience is not privy to Ethan’s thought process and thus his actions seem out of character.
This film may have been groundbreaking at the time of its release, but viewed through my lens, it seems lacking.
John Wayne’s character, Ethan is a Civil War veteran whose family is attacked and killed by a group of Indians. His niece Debbie is kidnapped and thus begins his search for her. From the very beginning you are able to see his prejudice for the Native Americans, which turns into the hatred after the attack on his family. He finds Debbie many years later and realizes she is living with a chief and has a new life among the tribe. This was complication Ethan didn’t anticipate and it creates a new dilemma. Rescuing her may no longer be his objective, he now is consumed with rage and talks of killing Debbie.
This film takes the time developing multiple storylines, but when it comes to the last scene involving Ethan and Debbie it seems contrived and unexpected. The audience is not privy to Ethan’s thought process and thus his actions seem out of character.
This film may have been groundbreaking at the time of its release, but viewed through my lens, it seems lacking.
posted by Bethany Clarke at
7:24 PM
1 Comments:
Another film that is perhaps most interesting for where it sits in film history.
How did Hollywood get from the sugary films of the 50's (like Singin' in the Rain) to Scorcese's violent bloodfests of the 70's (like Taxi Driver)? While movies like the Searchers help fill in the gap.
It would be interesting to see how an audience would have responded to the racism of the Wayne character. Sympathetic or repulsed. It's hard to tell what the director thought? Was Wayne's quest a dark one or one that was legitimate and honorable? Perhaps that is not even the point. What makes this film work in many ways is that it is the story that matters most, not the dogma of whether this racist man is right or wrong. That said, at the end of the film we are left with the Wayne character by himself seperate from the reunited family. At the very least, his actions have proven to marginalize him.
By
Nate Clarke, at 12:12 PM
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