Stoddard was the only man in town who would stand up to Valance and if Valance wasnt stopped, hed continued to destroy and hurt people. He appears to be a roguish heroic type at first blush, but when you look deeper, you find a very self-centered character. From the time Ford first teamed up with Wayne inStagecoachin 1939, Waynes towering persona was Fords chief instrument in conceiving and propagating the myths about the old west. That he does this by mixing in history, humorous supporting characters and a poignant romance is typical; his films were complete and self-contained in a way that approaches perfection. Fords westerns portrayed truth, honor, courage, family and community as the chief weapons by which the American West was won. He comes into conflict with Liberty Valance again when the town has to elect two representatives to the Statehood Convention; Sotddard and the townspeople want statehood--it would mean government protection of their rights, the establishment of schools and the railroad. Escena del funeral de Tom Doniphon tomada del hombre que mato a Liberty Valance. It was exacerbated by his failing health and his drinking problem, as the cantankerous Ford became even more of a misanthrope, thus alienating the big studios from hiring him. Doniphon and Valance, then, represent the individuals of Ford's West, Doniphon standing for order, Valance for anarchy. It turns out an unseen Doniphon shot Valance with a rifle from across the street and he later came to regret saving Stoddard as he lost Hallie to the lawyer, but he pushes him to pursue a career in politics to make Hallie proud. In this movie Ransom Stoddard is a well educated attorney from the East who comes to the West to find new opportunity and a place to practice law. Tom Doniphon shoots the outlaw thug Liberty Valance from the shadows, keeps it a secret, then realizes that his girl Hallie is in love with Ransom Stoddard, whereupon he burns his house to the ground (starting with the new wing he'd built for her. But in addition to drawing on Americana, Ford created it; the characters and situations in his westerns, from The Iron Horse to Stagecoach to Ford Apache to The Searchers to The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, have become as much a part of American tradition as those on which Ford originally drew. (One stylistic touch: In this film, he habitually calls Stoddard "Pilgrim," which expresses an insight into the lawyer's character.). John Gotti's ability to avoid the long arm of the law earned him the nickname the Teflon Don. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. You put that thing up, youll have to defend it with a gun. In The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, the newspaper editor says, "This is the West. Marvin is magnificent as the snarling villain. Stoddard's first confrontation with Doniphon reveals absolutely no understanding between them; they eye each other as if the other were a strange animal. Valance and his two sidekicks hold up a stagecoach on the way to town, and when one of the passengers, Ransom, stands up to him Liberty nearly whips him to death. Ford was very angry about it, having to secure a favor from his protge and he doubled down on his venom on Wayne during the shooting. Ford uses a flashback structure to tell the story; Fords films are usually very linear, and he seldom uses a scattered narrative. He is the author. His attempt to teach Stoddard to shoot only had the result of humiliating him. But his is the old form of Western prowess; its Stewart who represents the territorys future. Edmond OBrien Dutton Peabody Ford turns the ending into a rousing beginning and constructs an elaborate mythology for the American military. Though the audience tends to identify with Doniphon's individualism and to feel instinctively a desire to preserve the simplicity of the old West, the social change brought about by the railroad and the need for staehood slowly make the Doniphons and Valances obsolete. When the shooting ends, Valance is dead; Stoddard is hailed a hero as the man who shot Liberty Valance.. The corpse is being held in a plain pine box, and when he views it Stoddard is angered to see the boots have been stolen. Hes mocked by Valance who trips him, causing him to spill Doniphans meal. But the films of John Ford make no attempt to take us into the past; they are about the past. John Ford died in 1973, and even though they didnt make any more films together, John Wayne would remain close to his mentor till his death. As a young lawyer, he comes to practice law in a lawless Western town and on the way into town, hes on a stagecoach thats robbed by Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). They soon learn that their father gambled away the family ranch, leading to his own murder. [Doniphon kicks Floyd in the face as he bends down to retrieve the tray] [Doniphon has just faced down Valance in the diner] UPDATE: Whoa, looks like I am two days ahead of an official discussion of this film, my apologies. The characters in Liberty Valance are the archetypal figures of all Ford westerns brought together for a last reunion, in order that they might be destroyed. In How Green Was My Valley, Ford's adaptation of Llewellyn's novel of Welsh coal miners, the story resembles a dream, seen in retrospect by a man who has had his entire life to romanticize the past: his childhood and his family. (LogOut/ This is also the last western he would make with his most favorite actor John Wayne, with whom he did close to 14 films. Earlier, we have seen Doniphon training Stoddard in the use of guns, but findingStoddard not up to the task, Doniphon had humiliated him. When Hallie says to Stoddard at the end, "This country used to be a wilderness. 1. At the time of the films release, it was dismissed as a minor work from a master filmmaker, but watching it now , it shows his extraordinary growth as a filmmaker, which is not just restricted to its thematic resonance, but also extends to its visual and narrative stylistics. The body of Tom Doniphon is at rest in a plain, wooden casket. At the convention, Stoddard and an ally (a local newspaper and town drunk played by Golden Globe Winner Edmond OBrien) are elected, but Valance threatens to kill him. Ransom Stoddard believes in the U. S. Constitution, the rule by law, the trust in government. This is fascism against democracy: the tyranny of the strongman over the ordinary people. However, he is rescued by Doniphan. And he holds the center stage in a film, with his quiet dignity and powerful, charismatic presence, where everybody else, including Stewart, is giving highly exaggerated, even cartoonish performances. The year is 1910. There was nothing more for Ford to do with Wayne, at least in the western genre. As the film opens, U. S. Senator Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) is arriving in Shinbone by the new railroad with his wife Hallie (Vera Miles). He goes to the convention and sees Stoddard break down and try to flee rather than stand for election. Ransom Stoddard, a young Eastern lawyer traveling West on Horace Greeley's advice, is in the stagecoach held up just outside of Shinbone by Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin), "the toughest man south of the Picket Wire." The story sees James Stewart's idealistic younger lawyer Stoddard arriving in a remote town with the intention of introducing law, order and education to the townspeople. Waynedid not use any scenes shot by Ford in the film (much to the chagrin of Ford) while Wayne was angry with the general impression that was created that it was Ford, and not him, who directed The Alamo; others believed Ford was jealous of Dukes increasing success compared to his own sudden decline. And as they swarm around the senator for details, Stoddard starts recalling the events leading up to that day and, the film cuts to a flashback. When Doniphan and Valance prepare to have a shootout over who will pick up the food, Stoddard intervenes, humbles himself, and picks up the food. But the fact is that Wayne is really good as Tom Doniphon; Both he and Stewart, who were 54 and 53 respectability, were too old for the parts, but the film could not have been made without them. He and two sidekicks (played by Lee Van Cleef and Strother Martin) wreck the newspaper office and badly beat Peabody. And so Stoddard tells them the story, one they decide not to print because, in this case, legend has become fact. Three men stand at the center of the story: Stoddard, Doniphon, and Valance. Hallie attends to Stoddards wounds and it appears to Doniphonthat she has fallen in love with Stoddard. Tom has long considered Hallie "my girl," and is adding a room to his farmhouse that has a nice porch with a rocking chair, in preparation for the day he has no doubt she will marry him. Instead, we are left with the typical 'John Wayne was an amazing hero' ending. Tom repeatedly helps Ransom and the two become a competitive force against Liberty Valance. Even his house is far outside the town (whereas Stoddard lives in its heart: at the restaurant and newspaper office). And so begins the political career for the lawyer from back East. Cattlemen do not. Want to keep up with breaking news? Valance and his two henchmenterrorize Shinbone, while the bumbling Marshal Link Appleyard (Andy Devine ) lacks the courage and gun fighting skills to challenge him. Liberty Valance: Three against one, Doniphon. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But today I saw it and came away with a different conclusion. Ford would make one more Western (without Wayne),Cheyenne Autumn (1964),the penultimate movie of his career which told the story of the Old-west from the perspective of the Native Americans. His films appeared very simple and, at times, very simplistic, but they dealt with huge themes: the expansion of American military might, the conflict between the European settlers and native American civilizations, the establishment of law & order in the wilderness, and the coming of religion, trade and commerce; all these themes are reflected in one way or the other in all his westerns. He built a home which he assumed Hally (Vera Miles) would share with him as his wife, but he lost her to the hero of the moment, Stoddard. Add to that the fact that he kills the villain, not face to face, but pretty much shooting him from the back- something that he abhorred and always criticized Clint Eastwood for doing. So Ford had to go back to his favorite son to get this picture made, and he didnt like it at all and neither did Wayne. It's pronounced Paw-rick, not Pad-raig. In all other respects, hes the same character John Wayne played in countless films throughout his career, the competent hero, cool under fire, respected by all. Adam Graham is a follower of Christ and currently a political Independent. What Doniphon craves most is domesticity, but by finally shooting Valance, he loses that opportunity; thismakes Doniphon the most tragic character that John Wayne has ever. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend., Tom Doniphon: It aint mannerly out west to let a fella drink by himself., Tom Doniphon, about to leave town and knowing the newspaper is about to pick a fight with Liberty Valance: Take note of what goes on around here, because by the time I get back there aint gonna be no newspaper to read it in., Linc Appleyard, on the prospect of getting tough with Liberty Valance: The jails only got one cell, and the locks broke and I sleep in it., John Wayne as Tom Doniphon, the one man in Shinbone willing to stand up to Liberty Valance in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), James Stewart as Ransom Stoddard, victim of a stage holdup in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Vera Miles as Hallie trying to talk Ransom Stoddard out of a showdown in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Andy Devine as Lince Appleyard, the rather meek sheriff of Shinbone in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Ken Murray as Doc WIlloughby, realizing the day hes wished for has arrived in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Woody Stode as Pompey, welcoming Ransom and Hallie Stoddard back to Shinbone in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), ohn Qualen as Peter Ericson, father of Hallie and owner of a restaurant in Shinbone in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), Jeanette Nolan as Nora Ericson, taking English lessons at Ransom Stoddards school in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), John Wayne as Tom Doniphon, sharing a secret about the night an outlaw died with Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), James Stewart as Ransom Stoddard and Vera Miles as Hallie Stoddard, reflecting on their visit to Shinbone in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962). He has no fear about standing up for what he believes is right, regardless of his physical inability to defend it or himself. "At the heart of the Western", argues John Lenihan, was always Doniphon revealed how he was hidden on a side street with Pompey when the showdown occurred. Almost no traces of the old Shinbone can be found at the beginning and end of the film. Wayne was always against doing End of the west westerns, because End of the west means end of the western which translates as end of John Wayne. John Wayne, James Stewart, Vera Miles and Lee Marvin star in this compelling story of secrets, lies, fame, fortune and redemption.. The reputation of the film continues to grow over the years, and it was a big influence on Sergio Leone, who called this his most favorite Ford film. Design a site like this with WordPress.com, Follow MANK'S MOVIE MUSINGS on WordPress.com. He would have rolled with Todd Beamer on Flight 93, rushed the terrorist on the French train, and helped save lives at Las Vegas just not very effectively. (LogOut/ When someone tried to comfort him that Doniphon was full of ambiguity and his mindset may help his performance, Wayne snapped back, Screw ambiguity I dont like ambiguity. But, it was in direct opposition to the Western code. Why does Doniphon hesitate? The film was a direct influence on Leones own end of the west westernOnce upon a time in the West. His illiterate students include Hallie. When John Ford and John Wayne set out to make this film, both of them were at a low stage in their life and career and, in their relationship with each other. This makes Doniphon a very passive character with respect to Valance, which explains why a direct confrontation never takes place between them, though at many points in the film, they come close. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.. He films mostly on sets, but we're not particularly aware. In a final act of self-negation, he tells Stoddard the truth, absolving him of the act of killing (to which Stoddard had remained steadfastly opposed throughout his ordeal in the West), and taking the sin on himself to suffer alone. The first time we see it, James Stewart is bullied and wounded but miraculously shoots Valance, who seems to have woefully underestimated him. Just finished watching The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. The story focuses on Ransome Stoddard (Jimmy Stewart), an American senator arriving at the town of Shinbone with his wife, Hailey (Vera Miles), to attend the funeral of Tom Doniphon (Wayne). These westerns are memory films, filled with the traditions of the past, created from the anecdotes, fables, and songs that sprang from American history. His composition is classical. His mental downfall afterwards still makes sense if he didn't secretly shoot Valance. In the film, except for two notable acts that change Stoddard's life forever, Doniphon isn't quite so proactive with an eye to Stoddard's future. The main conflict in the film, then, is not that between the gunslinger Tom Doniphon and the outlaw Liberty Valance; the real conflict is that between "the Old West" (Doniphon and Valance) and the forces of "progress" (Stoddard). They were playing dual archetypes of the myth: the grizzled veteran cowboy and the idealistic, young, city-slicker lawyer. Wayne is seen by many as the hero because he realized the only way you could deal with someone like Liberty Valance was through force and he did the deed that had to be done.
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