# Watching Stagecoach for the first time! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 25, 2010, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972 "2010-07-25T19:52:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/1 "2010-07-25T19:52:08Z")
I’ve never seen \*\*Stagecoach \*\*before, but I put the blu ray into my Netflix queue. How does it hold up? I enjoy Westerns, but my tastes usually run more toward Clint Eastwood and Spaghetti Westerns. I’m also considering renting **They Died With Their Boots On**. How do these movies hold up today? ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/2 "2010-07-25T20:14:29Z")
Classics like these never grow old. John Ford (_Stagecoach_) and Raoul Walsh (_They Died With Their Boots On_) are probably the two greatest directors of Westerns and both movies are masterclasses in the filmmaker’s art. Watch out for Thomas Mitchell’s Oscar-winning performance in _Stagecoach_ as Doc Boone. And Errol Flynn as Custer in They Died With Their Boots On is, well, he’s Errol Flynn, the camera just loves the guy. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/3 "2010-07-25T20:31:17Z")
I think this was the first big role for John Wayne. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/4 "2010-07-25T21:09:52Z")
John Carradine cuts a deck of cards before making a decision … timeless! ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/5 "2010-07-25T21:10:08Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > How do these movies hold up today? I don’t know about _Boots_, but _Stagecoach_ never gets old. Watch for John Wayne, then watch again for John Carradine’s performance, then Mitchell’s, again for the scenery. We’ve had some western movies threads, if you need more recommendations for the older movies. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/6 "2010-07-25T21:21:18Z")
**Stagecoach** is as fresh today as it was when it was filmed. It’s the touchstone for all westerns made afterwards. This is the movie that made John Wayne the archetypal western hero and John Ford the archetypal western director. In addition, it vividly established the type of characters that populated Westerns from then on. It was also the archetype for the “Ship of Fools” type film, where people of different backgrounds and walks of life have to travel together. I’ve seen arguments that, at the time **Stagecoach** was released, the genre was dying and people were thinking that there was nothing more that could be done, other than create cheap adventure films for children. **Stagecoach** showed that you could still deal with more sophisticated drama and themes within the genre. Watch it. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/7 "2010-07-25T22:34:15Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Watch it. Just don’t watch the remake with Bing Crosby, Ann Margaret and Red Buttons. It’s. . .okay, but nowhere near the classic of the original. I have no idea about the TV version with Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, et al. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/8 "2010-07-25T22:45:27Z")
Be sure you’ve got a good quality DVD, of couse. I’ve seen some crappy prints. And it’s black and white, and slower paced than today’s films, if that matters to you. And it’s got the same problem that Shakespeare has – lots of it has become cliche. So, yeah, it holds up (and I think is a Great film) but you’ve got to approach it with a little sensitivity to the time it was made. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/9 "2010-07-25T23:20:29Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > Be sure you’ve got a good quality DVD, of couse. I’ve seen some crappy prints. And it’s black and white, and slower paced than today’s films, if that matters to you. And it’s got the same problem that Shakespeare has – lots of it has become cliche. So, yeah, it holds up (and I think is a Great film) but you’ve got to approach it with a little sensitivity to the time it was made. Shakespeare is cliche? Dude, seriously. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2010, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/10 "2010-07-25T23:44:35Z")
Dex didn’t say Shakespeare was cliched. But so many later writers followed in Shakespeare’s footsteps that some of his work can appear cliched when you first encounter it. ---
**Author:** ![Rocketeer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocketeer/32/4437_2.png) [@Rocketeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rocketeer)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/11 "2010-07-26T16:15:55Z")
…and once you’ve seen **Stagecoach** , watch **Rio Bravo**. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/12 "2010-07-26T16:37:29Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > …and slower paced than today’s films, … _Stagecoach_? a slow pace? ooooookay. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/13 "2010-07-26T16:50:15Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > Be sure you’ve got a good quality DVD, of couse. I’ve seen some crappy prints. If it’s the Blu-Ray, I’m assuming it’s the Criterion Collection edition, which means it will be the best print quality out there. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/14 "2010-07-26T16:58:41Z")
The wife and I watched _Stagecoach_ for the first time about a year ago. Loved it. The special features pointed out there was a legendary stuntman who worked on it whose specialty was falling off horses that are shot. Great stuff. Did it so many times over the years. And yes, this was John Wayne’s big break. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/15 "2010-07-26T17:08:58Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > And it’s got the same problem that Shakespeare has – lots of it has become cliche. It’s a joke, and I thought a well-known one. “The problem with Shakespeare is that he writes so many cliches.” The joke is that he **created** the phrases that today we think of as cliches. Ditto with John Ford, STAGECOACH re-invented the western, and many of the characters and situations have been repeated so oft, that an unaware viewer may think of them as cliche. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/16 "2010-07-26T17:16:37Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > The wife and I watched _Stagecoach_ for the first time about a year ago. Loved it. The special features pointed out there was a legendary stuntman who worked on it whose specialty was falling off horses that are shot. Great stuff. Did it so many times over the years. And yes, this was John Wayne’s big break. That stuntman was Yakima Canutt & his truly legendary life would make an excellent movie. If they could find somebody to do the stunts. He worked on the 1925 _Ben Hur_ & coordinated the Chariot Race in Charlton Heston’s version… (Among his [many amazing adventures](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakima_Canutt).) Wasn’t the Mexican innkeeper’s Apache wife named “Yakima”? (I’m not a serious Western fan but I love _Stagecoach_.) ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/17 "2010-07-26T18:34:40Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > > [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > > > And it’s got the same problem that Shakespeare has – lots of it has become cliche. > > It’s a joke, and I thought a well-known one. … That’ll teach you to paraphrase a “well-known” joke. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/18 "2010-07-26T18:56:18Z")
> [@BMalion](#): > > > [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > > > …and slower paced than today’s films, … > > _Stagecoach_? a slow pace? Movies from the 30s were usually very fast paced (especially Warner Brothers movies). Settings and characters were established quickly, with a shot or two (in **Stagecoach** see how they establish the character of the banker). I was reminded of that years ago when I watched the Mel Gibson **Maverick**. On scene showed him walking out of the hotel, through a western town, and finally going into the sheriff’s office. A 30’s version would have started the scene with him going into the sheriff’s office. No need to establish the background – just get on with it. Modern films have a lot more action, and get to the action scenes quickly, but they are long and drawn out. But anything to do with character or plot nowadays is deathly slow as compared to the 30s films. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/19 "2010-07-26T19:55:39Z")
[quote=“Bridget\_Burke, post:16, topic:547972”] > [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Wasn’t the Mexican innkeeper’s Apache wife named “Yakima”? > > (I’m not a serious Western fan but I love _Stagecoach_.) Probably. Those Wayne movies always seem to have a woman named ‘Montana’ or ‘Iowa’ or ‘Cincinnati’, etc. It was almost a trademark. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2010, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972/20 "2010-07-26T20:15:32Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > Wasn’t the Mexican innkeeper’s Apache wife named “Yakima”? [Yes.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031971/fullcredits#cast) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/watching-stagecoach-for-the-first-time/547972.md?page=2)