Hondo (film)

Hondo
1953 film poster
Directed by	John Farrow John Ford (uncredited, final scenes only)
Produced by	Robert M. Fellows John Wayne
Written by	screenplay by James Edward Grant from a short story by Louis L'Amour
Starring	John Wayne Geraldine Page Ward Bond Michael Pate James Arness Leo Gordon
Music by	Hugo W. Friedhofer Emil Newman
Cinematography	Robert Burks Louis Clyde Stoumen Archie J. Stout
Edited by	Ralph Dawson
Production company	Batjac Productions Wayne-Fellows Productions
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	November 27, 1953 (1953-11-27)
Running time	84 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3,000,000
Box office	$4,100,000[1][2]

Hondo is a 1953 Warnercolor 3D Western film directed by John Farrow and starring John Wayne and Geraldine Page. The screenplay is based on the July 5, 1952 Collier's short story "The Gift of Cochise" by Louis L'Amour. The book Hondo was a novelization of the film also written by L'Amour, and published by Gold Medal Books in 1953.^[3] The supporting cast features Ward Bond, James Arness and Leo Gordon.

The shoot went over schedule, and Farrow had to leave the production as he was contractually obligated to direct another movie. The final scenes featuring the Apache attack on the circled wagons of the Army and settlers were shot by John Ford, whom Wayne had asked to finish the film; Ford was uncredited for this work.^[4]

Plot summary

In 1870, at a remote ranch in the Arizona Territory, homesteader Angie Lowe (Geraldine Page) and her six-year-old son Johnny (Lee Aaker) come upon a stranger (John Wayne) on foot, carrying only his saddle bags and a rifle. The man tells them only his last name, Lane, and that he was riding dispatch for the US Army Cavalry. He had lost his horse in an encounter with some Indians. Angie tells Lane her ranch hand had quit before he had a chance to break her two horses for riding, so Lane offers to break a horse himself. Lane deduces from the neglected ranch that her husband has been away for some time, a fact she confesses is true. When night falls Angie offers to let Lane sleep in her home. Angie sees his rifle is inscribed "Hondo" Lane, who she knows had killed three men the year before. She attempts to shoot him, but due to the chamber being empty, Hondo is not hurt. He loads the chamber and tells her to keep it that way. Hondo tells Angie she reminds him of a woman from his past, and kisses her before he leaves.

At the ranch, Angie and Johnny are beset by Apaches, led by Chief Vittoro (Michael Pate) and his main under-chief, Silva (Rodolfo Acosta). Angie is not nervous in their presence as they have never attacked her family before. This time, they begin manhandling Angie. Johnny emerges from the house with the pistol and shoots at Silva. As Silva recovers and approaches him, he throws the pistol at Silva. Vittoro is impressed by Johnny's bravery and makes him an Apache blood brother. Vittoro wonders where Angie's husband is and tells her that unless he returns soon, she must take an Apache husband as the boy needs a father.

Hondo returns to his Cavalry post, where he meets up with his friend Buffalo Baker (Ward Bond). He reports to his commanding officer that C troop, which was sent to gather and bring in settlers to the north, was killed by Apaches. It is clear to the Major (Paul Fix) that the Apaches are raiding and killing settlers. In a saloon, Hondo gets into a fight with a stranger, and beats him severely. Baker tells Hondo the man called himself "Ed Lowe" (Leo Gordon), and Hondo suspects he is Angie's husband. Meanwhile, Vittoro shows Angie some prospective husbands from among his men. She insists she is still married, and he gives her a deadline: if her husband does not return by the time of the planting rain, she must take an Apache husband.

Feeling guilty, Hondo leaves to return Angie's horse. Lowe and a guide (Frank McGrath) follow Hondo, who camps near a river but leaves when he detects two Indians stalking him. Lowe enters the camp and he and his guide are attacked by the two Indians. The guide is killed, but Hondo shoots the Apache about to kill Lowe. Lowe is briefly grateful but turns his gun on Hondo in retaliation for the beating. Hondo is forced to kill Lowe. Hondo finds a tintype of Johnny on Lowe's body, confirming his identity.

Hondo runs into an Apache party, and is captured. They are torturing him to get information about the Cavalry when Vittoro appears. An Indian shows Vittoro the picture of Johnny, and Vittoro assumes Hondo is Angie's husband. Silva declares the blood rite as Hondo had killed his brother. Silva stabs Hondo in the shoulder, but Hondo pins Silva to the ground, and gives him the option to take back the blood rite or die. Silva gives in. Vittoro takes Hondo to Angie's ranch, and when Vittoro asks if Hondo is her husband, she lies, saving Hondo. The Chief warns Hondo to raise Johnny in the Apache way and leaves. Before the Apache party leaves, Silva ultimately gets his revenge against Hondo by killing his dog, Sam, and leaving the body in front of the porch as a message to Hondo that their feud is not over.

Hondo and Angie grow close as he recuperates. Hondo attempts to reveal the truth of her husband's death, but is interrupted by Vittoro's return. The chief tells them that the pony soldiers will soon return. He asks Hondo not to join them and to keep the Indians' location a secret. Hondo promises to do the former but not the latter, and Vittorio shows respect for Hondo's truthfulness. Angie tells Hondo she loves him.

The Army arrives at the ranch, commanded by ambitious but inexperienced Lt. McKay (Tom Irish) and accompanied by scouts Baker and Lennie (James Arness). McKay is determined to protect the settlers in the area by relocating them to the Army post and defend the area against Apache attacks. Lennie reveals he discovered Lowe's body and matched the horse tracks to Hondo's horse. He wants Hondo's Winchester rifle in exchange for keeping quiet about how Hondo bushwhacked Lowe. Angie overhears Lennie's demands.

Hondo prepares to leave, but before he goes, he tells Angie the truth about her husband's death. Hondo also wants to tell Johnny, but she persuades him not to, telling Hondo she didn't love her husband any longer. She says it would be unkind to tell the boy the truth of his father's death and that the secret won't follow them to Hondo's ranch in California. Hondo responds to her emotional plea with an Indian word that seals a squaw-seeking ceremony, "Varlabania", which he tells her means "forever". The Army leaves to move further on into Apache territory. As promised, Hondo refuses to go with them, but tells Buffalo that McKay is leading them into a massacre. Buffalo knows, but he also knows that scouts such as he have been helping to train young West Point officers for many years.

The Army returns causing the Apaches to retreat. Realising the danger they are in Hondo, Angie and Johnny join the Cavalry and head to the fort. The column is attacked by the Apaches, and form a wagon circle that barely holds together. Amidst a chaotic counterattack to save some stragglers, Hondo loses his mount and is attacked by Silva, but amidst the dust Hondo kills him. The Indians then retreat. Lt. McKay says that General Crook will be arriving in the territory with a large force to pursue the Apache. Hondo sadly notes the end of the Apache "way of life". The movie ends with the idea that once back to the fort, Hondo, Angie and Johnny will continue on to Hondo's ranch in California as a family.

Cast

Filming locations

• San Francisco de Conchos

Development and production

Wayne's newly formed production company Batjac purchased the rights to Louis L'Amour's short story "The Gift of Cochise" in 1952, and set Wayne's friend and frequent collaborator James Edward Grant to write the adaptation, which expanded the original story, introduced new characters, and added the cavalry subplot. L'Amour was given the rights to write the novelization of the film, which became a bestseller after the film's release. The film shoot was scheduled for the summer of 1953 in the Mexican desert state of Chihuahua.

Wayne and his producing partner Robert Fellows wanted to shoot the film in the trend-setting 3D format. Warner Brothers supplied the production with the newly developed "All Media Camera," which could shoot in any format, including 3-D, using twin lenses placed slightly apart to produce the stereoscopic effect necessary for it. Despite the fact that they were smaller than the twin camera process used previously for 3D, the All-Media Cameras were still bulky and made the film shoot difficult, causing delays when transporting the cameras to remote desert locations. Further, the director John Farrow and DP Robert Burks were unfamiliar with the new technology and had trouble adjusting to using it, while the cameras were frequently broken due to wind blowing sand into the mechanism or from other inclement weather conditions. Farrow used the technology to produce fewer gimmicks than other 3D films did at the time, with only a few scenes show people or objects coming at the camera, such as gunfire or knives. Instead he preferred to use it to increase the depth of the expansive wide shots of the Mexican desert, or figures against a landscape.

The casting of Geraldine Page as the female lead was considered quite puzzling to many in Hollywood at the time. Though Hondo was not her first film, she had been known primarily as a Broadway stage actress and employed the Method acting style deemed too introspective for film, and especially for Westerns. However, she delivered what many consider a nuanced performance completely appropriate to her character which later garnered her an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, the first of only two acting nominations ever for a film shot or presented in 3D. (The award went to Donna Reed for From Here to Eternity.)

John Ford shot the final scenes of the wagon train attack as a favor for Wayne when Farrow had to leave the film before its completion due to a conflicting contractual obligation to begin another film. Ford accepted no credit for directing the last sequence of the film.

John Wayne later said John Farrow "didn't really have a great deal to do with" the film. "Everything was set up before he came on it... It was written and I went out and looked for locations and picked the locations where each scene would be shot. I went back and brought the cameraman, and they said there's no color here. I said wait until I show you, and within seventeen miles of town I had white molten rock, blue pools of water, black buttes, big chalk-white buttes. We were using 3-D. We made it in 3-D but then it was never released in that, because Warner Brothers decided to give up and use the Fox system."^[5]

Theatrical release

Even with the production troubles that came with the location shooting in 3D, the studio felt it was a worthwhile venture since 3D pictures were at the height of popularity at the time of the film's development.^[6][7] However, by the time the film was completed, public interest in 3D had started to wane.^[8] The distributing studio Warner Brothers did everything it could to promote its new 3D camera process and how it went beyond the typical gimmicks used by other popular 3D films at the time such as House of Wax, producing a richer sense of perspective.

Hondo was released on November 27, 1953, and was presented in the 3D format in most first-run theaters. However, by 1954, the more smaller theaters were unable to show the film in the stereoscopic format because the Polaroid 3D projection system required a brighter and more light-reflective screen, referred to as a "silver screen," which was an added cost these theater owners were reluctant to pay.^[8][9]

The film has an intermission, which comes right after Hondo is captured by the Apaches. This is included on the DVD version.

The film ended up becoming quite popular with audiences, eventually grossing $4.1 million at the box office and placing it in the top 20 money-makers for that year.^[10]

Restoration and DVD release

An initial restoration of Hondo was overseen by Wayne's son Michael, head of Batjac Productions, in the late 1980s culminating in a syndicated broadcast of the film in June 1991 on American over-the-air stations in anaglyph 3D. 3D glasses were sold to viewers, with proceeds going to charity.

A frame-by-frame digital restoration by Prasad Corporation of the film was later completed, and the DVD of it was released on October 11, 2005.^[11]

The 3D version of Hondo has yet to be released on either DVD or Blu-Ray.

A restored 3D theatrical version was exhibited for a week in 2015 at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and also projected the following year at New York's Film Forum, introduced at both venues by Michael Wayne's wife Gretchen Wayne.

Notes

The script focuses on psychological descriptions and the drama of the Native Americans from New Mexico. The original book depicted the events taking place in Southeast of what is now Arizona. The action scenes and the 3D photography are also highpoints of the film.

John Farrow, the director, and Michael Pate, who played Vittoro, were both Australian. The Second Unit Director is Andrew McLaglen, who later directed the Wayne vehicles McLintock! and The Undefeated.

Film footage from Hondo was later incorporated into the opening sequence of Wayne's last film, The Shootist, to illustrate the backstory of Wayne's character.

This film marked one of the first appearances of Geraldine Page, who had been a popular stage actress.

Part of a 1988 episode of Married... with Children, entitled "All in the Family", has Al Bundy readying himself to watch Hondo in peace during a three-day weekend, but Peggy's family comes to visit, and their ensuing problems prevent him from seeing the film, just as their antics prevented him from seeing Shane the year before. Moreover, a 1994 episode of Married... with Children, entitled "Assault and Batteries", has a subplot in which Al is desperate not to miss a television airing of Hondo because, as he explains, it is the best John Wayne movie and it only airs "once every 17 years". Al does miss this airing at the end of the episode and will have to wait until February 18, 2011 to see it again.^[12] Al holds the film in very high esteem, once telling Peggy's family members, "Your lives are meaningless compared to Hondo!"

One of the most prevalent images of John Wayne remains a full-length publicity photo from the film in which Wayne wears the buckskin suit and military hat.

The two male and female main character names from Hondo ("Lane" and "Mrs. Lowe") reappear in John Wayne's 1973 western film The Train Robbers, with Ann-Margret instead of Geraldine Page as Mrs. Lowe.

NBA legend John Havlicek of the Boston Celtics got his nickname "Hondo" from the film.

Hondo Lane's wanted poster is hanging on the wall of the Sheriff's office in the movie Rio Lobo.

References

External links

• Hondo on IMDb
• Hondo at AllMovie
• Larry Cohen on Hondo at Trailers from Hell
• Hondo at the TCM Movie Database
• Screenshot of Hondo