A lot of fun.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

For the first 20-30 minutes, "Hondo" seems like it just might transcend the "typical Duke western" label. Some SPOILERS AHEAD: The title character (played by Wayne) wanders out of the dusty plains and into a homestead run by Angie (Geraldine Page) and son Johnny (Lee Aaker). After helping Angie with some work, Hondo quickly discovers that her husband has deserted her. Riding back to the U.S. Calvary regiment that he sometimes scouts for, Hondo gets into a barroom fistfight with a local scoundrel...a scoundrel who turns out to be Angie's "lost" husband!At this point in the film, I thought it had real potential to be a great western tale. A lot of interesting pieces were established that could have been built upon. Unfortunately, from that point onward it becomes stock cowboys vs. Indians fare. Director John Farrow tries to weave a subplot about the white men and the Indians co-existing with each other, but everything we see/feel on screen says otherwise.At the end of the film, after a group of Cavalry men have fought off a warring band of Indians, Hondo makes the following quote: "It is the end of a way of life. A good way." This after an entire movie of killing more Indians than anyone else on screen. Now, I realize that movies (and especially westerns like this one) were made for different reasons and even different audiences than today and should be partially judged as such. However, in today's Hollywood, that type of empty moralizing is inexcusable. History, then, is not kind to a film like "Hondo".Overall, "Hondo" is a decidedly average (or maybe even a bit below) western. I give it three stars because the Duke gives a good performance and the setup did hold my interest for a time. In the wide view, though, I think the only reason this movie gets as much "press" as it does is because it became quite rare before coming out on DVD. When history has its say, it doesn't really stand out in any way.

What I liked most about HONDO is the film's simplicity. It's this simple story set in a big, sprawling and rugged landscape in which the vistas are almost characters in themselves. The story is classically simple, about a woman and her boy trying to survive in a hostile landscape which is constantly under threat of Apache attack. Into this world comes the larger-than-life John Wayne, complete with his lovable dog companion, and he makes everything right again.HONDO is as simple as that and the end result is pure cinema. As a western, this is a great success, full of quality action scenes that build to a wildly impressive climax. Geraldine Page is fine as the put-upon mother and the kid actor isn't annoying for a change, but really this is Wayne's film and he knows it. He has it all here: the drawl, the swagger, and the endless and natural charisma. Ward Bond and James Arness play in support.

A gripping action-romance, "Hondo" showcased Hollywood's newest gimmick, 3-D, but scores instead as a centerpiece for a much older cinematic device, John Wayne in a cowboy hat.Wayne is Hondo Lane, a scout and dispatch rider for the U. S. Cavalry who comes upon a woman and her son in hostile Apache territory. Hondo tells her to pack up, but she doesn't want to leave her family farm or her missing husband. Hondo protects them instead, both on his own volition as well as that of the Apache leader making war with the white man, Vittorio.Despite adhering to many of the day's cinematic conventions involving westerns, "Hondo" is a modern film. The woman, Mrs. Lowe (Geraldine Fitzgerald), is no afterthought but the center of our emotional engagement. And while hardly the first western to question the legacy of western expansion, "Hondo" presents the Apache side of the story with bracing sympathy."There's no word in the Apache language for 'lie,' and they've been lied to," Hondo tells Mrs. Lowe in explaining why the treaty she counts on to protect her and her son is no good anymore.In fact, the most honorable character in the film may be Vittorio (Michael Pate), who demonstrates great concern for both Mrs. Lowe and her son, the latter a reminder of his own sons the white man killed. He's as much her savior as Hondo is, when you look at the arc of the movie, yet Pate plays him without any of the "noble savage" ahistorical stylings common with revisionist westerns of later vintage. "Hondo" finds a way to make its points without weighing down a taut, 84- minute film.Director John Farrow deserves credit for keeping matters economical (and the 3-D tricks to a minimum), but the true force behind the scenes is screenwriter John Edward Grant, working from an early Louis L'Amour story which he augments nicely. Grant was Wayne's usual writer, and his screenplays could get awful woolly, but here he's on point and lifts the film with a kind of terse wisdom that hangs with you after the gunplay is over."Sam's independent," Hondo says, talking about his canine companion. "He don't need anybody. I want him to stay that way. It's a good way."For a lot of the movie, Mrs. Lowe seems an amiable sop for Hondo's one-liners, yet Grant keeps her in focus, and pays this off magnificently when she reveals her true feelings for her husband and for Hondo. Yes, it is a wifely ideal she holds to, but the strength of her character when revealed is too formidable for even Hondo to buy off with one of his self-reliance quips.There's a wonderful scene early on, when Mrs. Lowe talks about "destiny" guiding love. Hondo regards this with laconic if polite amusement, but the joke's on him as we discover later on.Fitzgerald got her first of eight Oscar nominations here, oddly for a supporting role when she is actually the female lead. Her performance is off-pitch in places, too stagy as some say, but when she lands a good line, she's quite effective.The supporting cast is also excellent. Ward Bond is entertaining as always, while James Arness impresses as a more dubious character with whom Hondo must tangle.The film isn't quite a classic. The handling of the final battle scene (directed by an uncredited John Ford) is exciting but perfunctory, and the resolution of the Hondo-Mrs. Lowe relationship is brushed over too lightly. I could see a longer "Hondo" being one of Wayne's classic films, but I could also see it running out of steam, which this compact production never does.As far as Wayne is concerned, this is one of his most assured performances, light in tone but with the sort of shadings he was beginning to master. You see him coming out of the screen in the opening moments of the film, making for the best 3-D effect. It stays like that for the rest of the picture, Wayne giving us a layered, tactile performance both enjoyable and deep. "Hondo" is a keeper for Wayne fans, and anyone else not scared of cowboy movies.

This is a John Wayne Western that has been Overlooked Somewhat, maybe because it was Unavailable for almost 40 Years, but More Likely because it wasn't Directed by Ford or Hawks. It was also Overshadowed by the Overrated Shane that came out about the Same Time. As a Whole and Scene for Scene it is a Better Movie than Shane and is Richer and has a Broader Scope, is More Violent and Action Packed and is just More Entertaining. The Violence in Hondo is Blunt and a Bit Brutal at Times. The Battles with the Indians Show some Very Effective Fighting and there are also Scenes of Fistitcuffs and Knife Wielding that are Up Close and Personal. Sam, the Dog has Many Memorable Scenes and One is a Clincher.Geraldine Page does Fine as the Western Widow and Her Scenes with the Duke are Outstanding. The Kid is not as Irritating as the Kid in Shane just to put an Amen to it. Overall this is One of John Wayne's Best and is a Colorful, Thoughtful, and Well Written Movie that is the Duke at His Most Likable.