'Hondo' Review

'Hondo' is a 1953 film featuring John Wayne, who was renowned for his role in many western films in this era. The film is based on a short story called "The Gift of Cochise" by Louis L'Amour, who is known for his Western stories.

Hondo Lane (John Wayne) arrives on foot at a ranch where Mrs. Angie Lowe (Geraldine Page) and her son Johnny (Lee Aaker) have been deserted by her husband for months. Part Apache, Hondo tries to avoid confrontation with war chief Vittorio (Michael Pate), but finally bails out inexperienced West Point graduate Cavalry Lieutenant (Tom Irish) and old friend scout Buffalo (Ward Bond). When Hondo finally admits he had to kill Mr Lowe (Leo Gordon) in self-defense, Angie reveals her husband was a gambler, unfaithful, unkind, and only married her for her inheritance. She disagrees with Hondo's devotion to "truth", calls his desire to confess to Johnny selfish, and asks to leave with him and the remains of a wagon train heading towards his farm that looks just like hers. (Source: IMDb)

Hondo is a lone cowboy, whose character fulfils the exact stereotype of a cowboy in a western at the time. He travels solo on a horse with only a dog for companionship, and his clothing is exactly what is expected: a leather jacket with tassels, leather boots, a cowboy hat and a bandana round the neck- all of which are the cowboy 'uniform'. Hondo's character expresses traditional gender roles of a man whose job it is to provide for and look after a family, despite said family not being his own, and following this, the Mrs Angie Lowe is portrayed as very delicate and is seen as incapable of bringing up her son properly by both Hondo and the Apache Indians, who think it is vital that her son has a father figure around in order to become a proper man. There is an obvious recognition of the position of women in society- 'A woman only has the man she marries, even if he's no good, that's still all she has'- this is, perhaps, a product of it's time, as this notion of male supremacy was very much prevalent even in the 1950s. In the film John Wayne's character is portrayed as neither good or bad, and is outcast from society, welcome in neither the white community or the Apache Tribe. 'Hondo' is often said to be one of John Wayne's most memorable western roles, with an excellent performance, his character helps create a very entertaining Western. (Source: Groucho Reviews) This is a western that is thought of as being very much in the style of a John Ford western; 'This is the best John Ford western that John Ford never made'. (Source: Emanuel Levy Reviews)

However, he is known for being a gunfighter, and could be seen to be trying to leave that life behind, by acting as the father figure of Mrs Lowe's son. While he stays on Mrs Lowe's ranch, a romance appears to blossom between them, which is just as well, because he is the one who killed her husband, so is able to fill the void left by her absentee, and now late, husband.

Initially, 'Hondo' would appear to be your typical Cowboys-and-Indians film, however, is becomes evident that it is not. In my opinion, this film transcends the typical portrayal of the native Indians. Though they are still portrayed as less civilised but not savage, as they were so often portrayed in Westerns, they were also portrayed as victims of the White Americans, with Hondo showing recognition of the broken treaties and the ways in which they were mistreated when the Anglo-Americans were settling the west: 'There is no word in the Indian language for 'lie', and they've been lied to', this enables them to be sympathised with, which is quite unusual for a western.