Rent My Darling Clementine (1946)

Poetic, Cinematic Masterpiece - My Darling Clementine review by GI

On his return from duty in the Second World War director John Ford chose to make this as his first film back as a civilian. It's an interesting choice because although Ford now has renown for his westerns he had in fact only previously made one 'talkie' western, Stagecoach (1939). His choice of Henry Fonda to play the lead is also an interesting one. Fonda had been in other Ford films of course but as an actor he exemplified a quiet dignity rather than an outright man of action like John Wayne for example, a style not normally attributed to westerns of this period. The resulting film is now deemed one of the great American films, certainly one of the greatest westerns, and it's a poetic, lyrical masterpiece and a film that all true film lovers should study. The story of Wyatt Earp and the Gunfight at The OK Corral has been filmed many times yet here Ford chose to abandon historical accuracy in order to make a heroic, almost gentle version (creating legend from fact!). Fonda plays Wyatt who along with his brothers (including another Ford stalwart Ward Bond) are taking a cattle herd to California. A stopover in Tombstone results in the theft of their herd and the murder of their younger brother. Wyatt takes on the job of the local lawman in order to find the culprits. This brings him into conflict with the wayward Doc Holliday (Victor Mature in a rather good performance reputedly obtained by ruthless bullying from Ford) and the sullen Clanton family led by Walter Brennan. It all culminates at the Ok Corral but this is a film about much more than a gunfight, which here is somewhat underplayed. Into the narrative is built a complex relationship with Holliday and two dysfunctional romances, one with the prostitute Chihuahua (Linda Darnell) and the other with the 'respectable' Clementine (Cathy Downs). Ford adds in a structure built around community and stability and leaves the film's end unresolved. This is a truly classic piece of film making and if you are interested in film then make sure you see this.

A likeable period piece - My Darling Clementine review by (NONE)

This was a remarkable film in its time. But that time is long gone. All films about the most famous gunfight in history are now judged by the Burt Lancaster / Kirk Douglas chef d'oevre. So everyone knows that Doc Holliday did NOT die in that battle (he died years later, in bed, of tuberculosis). And the Earps did not come to Tombstone because the Clantons had stolen their cattle. So why, telling the story of a real event, did they change it so? But meanwhile this is a beautifully staged and photographed film which can be viewed with pleasure as of its time. But time has totally upset its story line.

Standard Ford. - My Darling Clementine review by Steve

Quintessential John Ford western which climaxes with the legendary gunfight at the OK Corral. But takes a long, circuitous route getting there. Don't expect to find any genuine history because there isn't any. We get a slow shuffle of the director's usual motifs: a vocal harmony group, a lot of sentimentality and knockabout comedy, and a bashful romance.

Walter Brennan does his Walter Brennan impression as old man Clanton and there's the standard stuff about the coming of law to the west. It's set in Monument Valley... even though Tombstone isn't in Utah. Ford claimed he got the lowdown on what actually happened from Wyatt Earp! Well, maybe, but he doesn't reveal it here because the wrong people die!

Which hardly matters. It's an entertainment. Anyone who likes the director's films will love this. Best on show is Joseph MacDonald's striking high contrast b&w photography which gives it a noir feel. Henry Fonda brings his usual candid integrity to the role of Earp but fails to spark with the impassive Victor Mature as Doc Holliday.

Which is a flaw, as their bromance is usually the main driver. Other characters invented for the screen come and go without leaving much impression of why they are there, like Linda Darnell as Doc's rainy day gal. Alan Mowbray drops by to do a drunken soliloquy from Hamlet! There's everything but a punch up. It's rated a genre classic... but won't convince the uncommitted.