Product: Fort Apache (Color Enhanced) [VHS] (1948)
Rating: 5.0
Classic John Ford Western With His Two Favorite Leading Men
John Ford must have felt very fortunate (although he would have never have admitted it)to have had John Wayne and Henry Fonda star in Fort Apache.Wayne and Fonda were by far the great director's favorite leading men - he made Wayne a star in "Stagecoach," and went on to direct him in some of the best-loved, best remembered Westerns ever, "She Wore A Yellow Ribbon," "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," and one of the greatest movies of any genre, "The Searchers." Fonda appeared in many movies with Ford as well, including "Drums Along The Mohawk," "The Grapes of Wrath," and another immortal Western, "My Darling Clementine."Following a pattern that he would continue in "Liberty Valance," Ford analyzes the mythology of the West, in particular the valiant heroic cavalry officer who bravely and unavoidably leads his men to certain death, thereby obtaining immortal glory. Fonda plays an arrogant, by-the-book stiff commander who will have nothing less than a to-the-death struggle with Cochise. Wayne is his subordinate, trying desperately to avoid catasrophe.This film has it all, great performances, great direction, and great cinematography. It is way past time that this great film be released on DVD, but it is well worth the wait.