Rating: G
Genre:
Western
Release Date: 05/22/2007
Flags: Mild Violence, Suitable for Children, Western Violence
Distributor/Studio: Paramount
In fine Hollywood tradition,
John Wayne had to play a "one-eyed fat man" before the Motion Picture Academy considered him worthy of an Oscar. In
True Grit,
Wayne plays grumpy, pot-bellied U.S. marshal
"Rooster" Cogburn, hired by 14-year-old
Mattie Ross (
Kim Darby) to find
Tom Chaney (
Jeff Corey), who killed her father. The headstrong
Mattie could have had her pick of lawmen, but selects the aging
Cogburn because she believes he has "true grit" (she talks this way all through the picture, so be prepared). Also heading into Indian territory in search of
Chaney is Texas Ranger
La Boeuf (
Glen Campbell), who wants to collect the reward placed on the fugitive's head for his earlier crimes. Complicating matters are
Chaney's scurrilous cronies
Ned Pepper (
Robert Duvall),
Quincy (
Jeremy Slate), and
Moon (
Dennis Hopper), who have no qualms about killing a troublesome teenaged girl like
Mattie. While the plot of
True Grit, adapted (and streamlined) by
Marguerite Roberts from the novel by
Charles Portis, maintains audience interest throughout, the glue that truly holds this
Western together is
John Wayne, delivering one of his finest performances (though some believe he was better in
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon).
Wayne's casual charisma is infinitely more effective than the mannered method acting of
Kim Darby and the floundering
non-acting of poor
Glen Campbell. And who could not love the climatic face-off between
Duvall and company and
John Wayne, whose "Fill your hand, you son of a bitch!" is not only a classic bit of dialogue, but the apotheosis of the
Wayne mystique. In 1975,
Wayne repeated his
True Grit characterization opposite
Katharine Hepburn in
Rooster Cogburn, but the film failed to match its predecessor and the overall effect was blunted.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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