RARE JOHN FORD
One of the most accomplished, prolific and influential of American directors, John Ford tried his hand at almost every genre in a career that covered six decades. In February, we present three hard-to-see Ford movies that demonstrate his great versatility, beginning with Ford’s first feature, the 1917 silent Western Straight Shooting. The 1932 aviation drama Air Mail finds Ford setting the template for several films by his contemporary Howard Hawks and the 1959 British detective story Gideon of Scotland Yard is an episodic vehicle for English actor Jack Hawkins. None of these Ford gems are currently available on DVD.
- Fri., Feb. 1 | 7:00 PM4070 Vilas Hall
Ford’s first feature follows Cheyenne Harry (Carey), a freelance outlaw hired to intervene in a dispute between a scheming rancher and a farmer. Both a tragic murder and growing affection for the farmer’s daughter leads Harry to a moral reckoning regarding his gun-for-hire ethos. The film “received critical acclaim for its graceful blend of raw action, infectious characters, compelling situations, and artful, unaffected photography…characteristics in which we can glimpse the mature Ford of later years.” (Tag Gallagher, John Ford: The Man and His Films) Archival print courtesy of the Library of Congress. Live piano accompaniment by David Drazin. (MC)
- Fri., Feb. 1 | 8:15 PM4070 Vilas Hall
Talented-but-reckless airman Duke Talbot (O’Brien) runs off with the wife of a freshly-deceased fellow pilot, forcing the even-tempered Mike Miller (Bellamy) to finish the downed pilot’s mail route. When Miller’s plane crashes into a mountain during the job, Talbot must decide whether to use his daredevil aviation skills to save his injured comrade. Ford’s stirring yarn combines a Hawks-ian ardor for male camaraderie and professionalism with an undercurrent of moody darkness, accentuated by the Expressionist-influenced cinematography of Karl Freund (frequent cinematographer of Ford favorite F.W. Murnau). Archival print courtesy of the Library of Congress. (MC)
- Fri., Feb. 8 | 7:00 PM4070 Vilas Hall
This unusual departure for director Ford depicts a day-in-the-life of a busy London detective (Hawkins), whose work includes hunting murderers, thwarting bank robberies, and exposing corrupt colleagues. Released in the U.S. in a shortened, black and white version, this archival 35mm print of the European release restores the Technicolor and about 10 minutes of footage.