Stagecoach

I really enjoyed this film. It sparked a lot of questions in my mind during the screening. I wondered why Dallas (Claire Trevor) was getting exiled from the town but after my conversation with Professor Talbird, it revealed that she was likely a prostitute and the women in the town were not accepting of that. I thought it was very clever the way the director John Ford hinted toward her profession throughout the film. The way the other characters treated her was a dead giveaway but it still flew over my head. In today's film industry it would have been more blatant than subtle as it was in Stagecoach. I enjoyed the drunk doctor as well, I found similarities between the idea of a drunk doctor in this film and the idea of the "crazy" psychiatrist in the previous film we watched (BUB). It was more enjoyable in this film because I felt the humor was more natural than overbearing like in "Bringing Up Baby". Thomas Mitchell who plays Dr. Josiah Boone played his character beautifully, from the comedic scenes to the supporting scenes even down to the serious scene he had with Luke Plummer(Tom Tyler) at the end. I also appreciated the tone of acceptance I received at the end between Dallas and Mrs. Mallory. Throughout the film, Mrs. Mallory(Louise Platt) openly shunned Dallas at every turn even when Dallas was attempting to extend the olive branch Mrs. Mallory refused to interact with her. It was until her time of sickness that she really appreciated Dallas and realized that she was a good person despite her profession. I also enjoyed Ringo's(John Wayne) masculinity that was displayed in the film even when pursuing Dallas, he was persistent but didn't come across as a nuisance or overly emotional. He told her what he wanted and didn't stop until he got it. He was a man of his word and that was highlighted throughout as well. What was odd was Mrs. Mallory's relationship with Hatfield(John Carradine). In the endless pursuit to get to her husband, she meets this stranger and allows him to court her (in a sense). I was really confused by the scene in which he contemplates shooting her, holds the gun to her head but is then shot himself. Why was he trying to kill her? To spare her? Was he mad she didn't mention the baby to him? Did he think there was hope for them to be together? The silent scenes at the very end featuring Luke Plummer and the patrons in the bar were very intense. I still have yet to come to a conclusion on what those scenes ultimately stood for. Were the patrons aware of his pending demise? Were they just scared? Were they just ready for the showdown that's been overdue to be done already? The film overall was a great introduction to John Wayne and I see how his star rose quickly after this film.