georgewilliamnoble
I saw this movie on its first release way back when at a long gone local cinema.
53 years on, it seems somewhat more romanticised, and just a little bit pretentious than way back then. None the less this is a rollicking good cowboy yarn. And nobody sounds more granite strong and with total conviction of the american ideal, than the big man himself John Wayne, boy could he deliver a manly speech. The plot well there is one with bad guy's but oh how that score from Elmer Bernstein soars above the whole movie rousing action-full and stirring! as the movie blasts away with shoot out's a plenty and good old Johnny Cash gruff's out a catchy theme song for good measure - A those good old cowboy movie from days of yore! - and no revisionism here!
Leofwine_draca
THE SONS OF KATIE ELDER is an old-fashioned western with the kind of plot you'd see in a 1930s-era movie, updated to the 1960s with glorious colour and a bigger budget allowing for great backdrops and expansive landscape scenes. It brings together two lions of the western genre, expert and experienced director Henry Hathaway, with veteran old-timer John Wayne to tell a story of suspense and revenge.This is a very good film and one I thoroughly enjoyed thanks to the solid pacing and never-ending suspense right from the word go. The idea of having the four sons having to band together to solve a murder mystery and then subsequently take their revenge is a very strong one and really powers forth from beginning to end. Even hints of romantic sub-plots fall by the wayside in favour of the action-adventure template, and the strong set-pieces are endless; the outstanding bridge set-piece being the highlight for me.Wayne is his dependable self and this is the best I've seen from him after THE ALAMO and TRUE GRIT. Dean Martin provides veteran support, but the most fun performances come from the up-and-coming stars like George Kennedy and Dennis Hopper. Inevitably the real winner is Hathaway himself, whose lush visuals and endlessly dramatic cinematography add up to a great addition to the western genre.
Wuchak
Released in 1965 and directed by Henry Hathaway, "The Sons of Katie Elder" is a Western starring John Wayne, Dean Martin, Earl Holliman and Michael Anderson Jr. as four brothers who reunite at their Southwest home town after the death of their mother. They try to solve the mysteries of who shot their dad in the back six months earlier and how her their mother was swindled. James Gregory plays Morgan Hastings while George Kennedy appears as a hired heavy. A young Dennis Hopper is also on hand while Martha Hyer appears as the requisite babe, but she's relatively underused, unfortunately.The main problem with this movie is the difference in ages between the oldest son, played by John Wayne, and the youngest, who's only 18. But let's assume Katie had her eldest son when she was about 16, which was common at the time, and birthed the youngest son when she was in her mid-40s. It's not out of the realm of plausibility and has been known to happen, particularly back then when women had more kids than in modern times. True, Wayne was too old for the role at 58 years-old, but without him there would be no movie.Beyond that, I found this a satisfying Duke Western of the same general quality as some of his other Westerns of the time, like "The Comancheros" (1961), "El Dorado" (1966), "The War Wagon" (1967), "Rio Lobo" (1970), "Chisum" (1970) and "The Train Robbers" (1973). While it may not be on the level of "The Horse Soldiers" (1959), "The Alamo" (1960), "North to Alaska" (1960), "True Grit" (1969), "The Cowboys" (1972) and "Rooster Cogburn" (1975), it's better than 1956's overrated "The Searchers" IMHO. It's a slow-build drama with entertaining highlights, a quality score (for the era) and a compelling final act. The focus on the four reunited brothers is a unique approach for a Wayne Western, or any Western.The film runs 122 minutes and was mostly shot in the Durango, Mexico, area with studio work in Mexico City and the opening train shots done in Durango, Colorado.GRADE: B
SnoopyStyle
The four Elder boys return to Clearwater, Texas for their beloved mother Katie's funeral after some time. The eldest John (John Wayne) is an infamous gunslinger. Tom (Dean Martin) is a gambler. Matt (Earl Holliman) had an unsuccessful hardware store. The youngest Bud (Michael Anderson, Jr.) was sent away to school after he was accused of stealing a horse. Their father had sold the family ranch to new land baron Morgan Hastings (James Gregory) under mysterious circumstances. The bank insists that Katie had no money despite selling the land. Hastings hired gun thug Curley (George Kennedy) just in case. Sheriff Billy Wilson tells the boys that Hastings says their father gambled the money away and then got shot in the back, all in the same night.Bud Elder is terribly annoying and the young actor is doing very broad acting. This is all very old-fashion. For any old western fans, this is a perfectly fine watch. It also has a younger Dennis Hopper as well as big names like John Wayne and Dean Martin. The story is pretty interesting with some compelling villains. It's not one of the great westerns but it is a well made traditional one.
AD
