Big Jake

Aging Texas cattleman Jake McCandles(John Wayne)is looked upon by some of his peers as being too old to cut the mustard; but this man's man musters into action when ruthless cutthroats led by John Fain(Richard Boone) kidnap his grandson. Big Jake returns to join his estranged family in the search of the youngster called Little Jake. Once again The Duke is paired with the beautiful Maureen O'Hara as his wife; real life son Patrick plays sharpshooting son James. Robert Mitchum's son Christopher plays Big Jake's son Michael. Boone is the perfect villain. And his minions are faithful, but dumb enough to die for him. Plenty of gun play and violence to befit a Wayne western. Beautiful, but rugged scenery filmed entirely in Mexico. Other players include: Glenn Corbett, John Doucette, Jim Davis, Harry Carey, Jr., Bruce Cabot and Wayne's own son Ethan plays Little Jake. Maybe not a big money maker as some, but one of The Duke's most popular movies. I personally consider it one of his best.

First I have to say that I am a huge JW fan. In this film JW is his classic Kick A** self. There is some sentimental stuff in here, about the old man's relationship with his grown sons. Basically it is good old John Wayne Action. When the bad guys get the drop on him, all you can think is "Big mistake" This film is set in the early 1900s. There is an interesting parallel between the passing of the baton from one generation to the next (Jake and his grown sons) and the passing of technology. We see new fangled weapons and a motor car. (Naturally Jake rejects these) Finally: You got to love the idea of Big Jake owning a dog named ..... DOG.

John Wayne is undeniably my favorite of all actors, and I'm happy that he was still around when I came into the world (He died when I was 5). Here's where the Duke does the stuff he's good at, dry humor, laying down the law, and pulling no punches. The whole "Your fault, my fault, nobody's fault..." exchange is Classic!! It's a great family reunion (John, Patrick, and Ethan). His oft costar Bruce Cabot does great in his supporting role. As well, the Duke and O'Hara show splendid chemistry in their final costarring. Not to mention the very intimidating performance by Richard Boone as the big villain. Gotta' love this one!!

This is not John Wayne's best film or his worst either, for me it leans towards the watchable but disappointing category. It is definitely watchable, especially for the handsome photography and scenery. Also the first five minutes was inspired I think, and the score was more than adequate. While past his prime, John Wayne is good here, I liked how Maureen O'Hara was so elegant and Richard Boone is very entertaining. Sadly, Big Jake is also quite lazily directed, and the plot is disappointingly meagre. The script is an uneven mix, one minute it flows well, the other it feels stilted, while the ending could have been better rounded off. Out of the cast, I liked Wayne, I liked Boone, I liked O'Hara, but I thought Chris Mitchum and Patrick Wayne were pretty awful. All in all, it is a watchable effort but doesn't quite work. 5/10 Bethany Cox

A later John Wayne western that contains a surprising amount of graphic violence. This is by no means another "Wild Bunch" but there are more bloody gunshot wounds than usual. The plot concerns the search and rescue of a kidnapped grandson that Wayne has never seen. The banter between Jacob McCandles(Wayne) and his estranged sons is the source of many of the film's great lines. When Patrick Wayne tries to provoke the Duke by calling him "Daddy", the retort by the old man is priceless. A good villan(Richard Boone), another pairing with Maureen O'Hara, some great one-liners and several references to older Wayne films make this a great choice from the westerns section at Blockbuster. Elmer Bernstein's music is wonderful too, sounding much like his "Magnificent Seven" score.

That's one of my favorite lines from this picture and the way it's delivered, both times, is thrilling. Violent and bloody (and Bernstein's music makes one of the machete attacks even worse, his sense of drama is so good!) so don't let pre-teens or the impressionable see it! Boone is an awesome villain and Wayne and his "dog" make an odd hero combo. Big Jake is a big film, depicting the end of the cowboy era, without bemoaning the passing, and deftly incorporating new technology with the old. The tension between Wayne and his three boys is fine and there's some funny scenes, too. Highly recommended. PS: a Big Jake fan wrote into Entertainment Magazine in the 80s that this was one of his favorite Wayne films; the EM staff had never heard of it. I canceled my subscription.

He is not dead...NOT HARDLY!! This movie was great. I can't believe I had never seen it. I loved the way he put his kids in place every time they got out of line. Especially that guy with the mustache (Wayne's real life son). I have seldom seen movies where there is so much suspense. The mean man with the blanket was super good also at being a MEAN AND BAD GUY!!!! John Wayne is the best cowboy ever. He looked and acted tough and was apparently TOUGH in real life. I wish Maureen O'Hara would have been in this movie more. She is so good looking. John Wayne was so fearless. I loved the way he bled RED PAINT. Back then, the blood looked like RED PAINT. Haha. I give this movie a perfect 10!