The Horse Soldiers (1959) -John Ford's Descent into Cynicism
On multiple levels, "The
Horse Soldiers" is the halfway point between “The Searchers” and “The Man
who shot Liberty Valance.” The eleventh collaboration between John Ford and
John Wayne, the film was released in 1959, three years after “The Searchers”
and three years before “Liberty Valance.” Yet the “The Horse Soldiers” is not
only a bridge between these two films chronologically. The film marks a shift
in Ford’s perspective on the West, as he slowly grows disenchanted with its
myths.
The
film takes place in 1863 during Grant’s siege of Vicksburg. Colonel John
Marlowe (John Wayne) is a tough as nails cavalry commander who is ordered to
lead his brigade behind enemy lines and destroy a Confederate rail hub. Cut off
from supplies and surrounded by hostile rebels, Marlowe must complete his
objective and lead his men safely back to Union lines, or else he’ll spend the
rest of the war in Andersonville prison. To make matters worse, Marlow must
deal with Major Henry Kendall (William Holden) a military doctor who is just as
stubborn as Marlowe. There’s also the issue of Hannah Hunter (Constance Towers)
a Southern Belle captured by Marlowe who is not too eager to assist the
Yankees.
“The
Horse Soldiers” is by no means Ford’s best film. Which is not to say that it
isn’t entertaining. John Wayne and William Holden do an admirable job disliking
each other on screen. (Holden and Wayne also disliked each other off screen as
well, and both vowed never to work together again.) Ford is the master of
actions scenes, and there are great shots of the cavalry silhouetted against
the horizon. Yet the film lacks the vision present in Ford’s other films. It
doesn’t have the grandeur of “The Searchers,” nor the introspection of “The Man
who Shot Liberty Valance.”
In fact, the film’s
greatest fault is that it lacks identity. Hokey scenes of the brave cavalry
riding off to fight for the good old US of A are intercut with ghastly moments
of brutal warfare. Ford shows us the inside of a war hospital, and we see young
boys beg for comfort as they succumb to their wounds. Tonally the film feels
stitched together, like a Frankenstein monster of myth and reality.
A tension pervades
the film, and there’s a frenetic energy that makes it uncomfortable to watch. It’s
as though Ford is trying to hold onto the last vestiges of the Western myth,
but cynicism keeps creeping into his vision. It’s not until “The Man who Shot
Liberty Valance,” that the cynicism will blossom, and we’ll see Ford’s final
disillusionment with the myth he created.
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