The Searchers (1956)

Another box ticked. I'd never seen The Searchers before, and it's regarded in many circles as being the best film ever made, at the very least, the best western. I would agree with neither of these statements (the former is a stupid claim to make of any film really) but there's no doubt John Ford's tour de force is one of the most important documents in Western genre history. After his brother's family is slaughtered by a group of Comanches shortly after his return home from war, Ethan (John Wayne) sets off in pursuit after discovering that two of his nieces are alive and being held captive by the Comanches. The phrase 'sweeping epic' seems to be one frequently attributed to The Searchers, and although sweeping is impossible to argue with, I do take slight issue with epic. The film is 'only' two hours long (a film should take as long as it needs) but there are a few very swift scenes that feel inserted simply to show us a different season, or indeed one shot of a few seconds that represents a few years. It's an entirely personal preference of course, and I'll be interested to know whether that feeling changes on multiple viewings, but it was hard to fully accept the length of the story when held against the length of the film. This is a minor quibble though. John Wayne is an absolute bastard of a man as Ethan, he doesn't take any shit from anyone and imposes himself on other characters so swiftly that you fully believe in his character. I'm not well versed in Wayne westerns, but this is a man that looks incredibly at home on the plains of the Old West, and I look forward to exploring his work further. I also have no idea how the BBFC have awarded this film a U certificate; not only is the film harrowing, it's genuinely tense, menacing, and scary in places. And above all, it's also bloody good too (although not in the gore sense of the word). 8.3/10