The Range Feud (1931)

That was an excellent one.

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The Range Feud (1931) ** (out of 4) Standard "B" Western has Buck Jones playing Sheriff Buck Gordon who finds himself in the middle of rival families battling over land. Soon Clint Turner (John Wayne) is accused of killing the father of the rival family and Buck must race to try and clear his name.THE RANGE Feud really isn't any different than countless of other Westerns that were made during this era. Heck, even by 1931 standards the film is pretty old-fashioned and using clichéd tricks that went out of style in the silent era. With that said, the film will contain a little interest thanks in large part to Wayne having a small role. While the film is mildly entertaining in its own way, can you really say people would be watching it today if it wasn't for Wayne? The biggest problem is the fact that this is pretty much like any other cheap Western. The filmmaking is "good" enough to get a decent looking film on the screen. The story is your typical Romero and Juliet type of story dealing with a rivalry and murder. Jones makes for a good lead and I thought Wayne was pretty good in his small role. What else can really be said? If you're a fan of these types of films then it's worth watching.

The open range, range war, rustling oppose two families, threats are uttered, one of the landowners is killed; the town's sheriff, played by Jones (already wearing a suit), should have to solve a murder case (but the only step he takes, as a lawman, is imprisoning Clint and waiting), and there is something to understand. As has been observed by others, Jones had, despite his proletarian look, a largely unmanly, affected acting style, he had the looks of a Gabin or a Cagney, but a strong bad taste in acting. Wayne plays one of his '30s naives. A nicer script would of required from the sheriff to compensate Clint's defenselessness by his own knowledge and wit; but this sheriff is just angry and prostrate by turns. But it might be subtler than that: beyond the sermonize-rs' ineffectiveness, with the mob who cheers the sheriff's burst of anger, there is another, quiet world, such as that of Clint's dad and of the oldster who finds a clue after the rustled cattle has been set free.The sheriff beats someone who dared to doubt his integrity. This is meant to express his inner turmoil and unbalance, but comes across as silly. (On the other hand, the sheriff was right in his choice of a victim.) The world of the sermonize-rs and the cheering mob, eager for a fight, and the quiet world, of the people who actually think; this pair is in the movie. There is a fine take with Clint's dad, after both Clint and the sheriff have left, the 1st running away, and the 2nd chasing him. The dad, standing near the door, tired of his own grit and anger, throws his weapon.As a footnote only, 'The Feud' is cathartic, it has been so for me, not uplifting, but cleansing, so it did me good.In his early talkies, Jones was knocked down, it happens in an earlier vehicle, where his white horse brings the girl (after they have found the missing cattle, and Jones chased the outlaws), it happens here. His character (a drifter there, a sheriff and a man of the place, here) is shown as brave and impulsive, but not quiet and shrewd, nor resourceful or witty; instead, more of an everyman, a proletarian, streetwise in an earlier vehicle, sententious in this one, plus the affected and overacted, over-expressed side. But Jones did have something striking, as opposed to the supposed blandness of other western actors. He didn't always use that strength. He indulged in impersonating silent movie stars, or his own idea of them. The scripts of his westerns have some dramatic interest.A common trait of 'Range Feud' and 'Shadow Ranch' are, beside the social fights of the deep, grassroots pastoral world, the likable bit players, such as both ranchers in this one (but especially Clint's dad), or, here, the cattle seller, who has been called to establish the provenience of the disputed cattle. They root the storyline.Wayne had a loose, playful, somewhat boyish style.As another footnote, this time to the genre: Jones was overacting (yet much of what he was doing was intriguing, despite his very wrong idea of what a cowman should be like), Wayne had a generic playfulness (as a serene country lad, sure of his good looks, and there is a large stream of underplayed irony in his early roles, perhaps a kind of a superiority complex, as he felt superior to what he was doing, or to what he has been given to act), Steele was self-conscientious sometimes, but efficiently humorous when needed, Ritter played his own quiet charm, even unto that undertone of eeriness and honest self-confidence of a fairy tale character (hence, the most intriguingly folkloric of them all), a singer who seems mundane and earthly yet comes across as wholly folkloric.

This film is worth seeing, first because of Buck Jones, who is quite good, in my opinion he is the best of the cowboys of the 30's. Also because of John Wayne, for a change playing the young guy, eventually in most of Wayne's film his character would be more like Buck's, but it is fun seeing him in the part that would be equivalent to James Caan in Eldorado or Ricky Nelson in Rio Bravo. The sizes of the hats worn in the film are quite larger than what we are used to see. Also the dresses worn by Susan Fleming look more like dresses worn in the thirties than at the time the story of the film takes place. The fistfight scenes also look speed up and without noise. But one thing you can say about the film: you don't get bored seeing it. But the title of the film you see at the beginning: "Range Feud" ???? Where did they get this name???

Most people today don't realize that for over a decade, John Wayne appeared mostly in cheaply made B-westerns. While none of John Wayne's Bs from the 1930s are great, they were, by and large, very enjoyable and provided a lot of entertainment---all within a tightly written an hour. Although Wayne DID star in a major film early in his career ("The Big Trail"), because of the film's failure he was soon cast as a sidekick--with stars such as Tim McCoy and Buck Jones. But, because of his great screen presence, within two years, he was starring in his own Bs."Range Feud" is one of those films made between "The Big Trail" and Wayne's starring Bs. In this movie, he is Buck Jones' sidekick--and clearly he is the subordinate in the plot and spends much of the film in jail--in other words, not doing much of anything through the middle of the film. BUT, for Wayne fans this isn't all bad, as the movie IS more interesting than the average Wayne movie and I just found it exciting to watch him hone his craft and play a role with which we aren't terribly familiar.The plot isn't the most original I've seen. It concerns two bosses of rival ranches--a common theme (such as in "The Big Country") but how it was handled was uncommon. See the film to see what I mean--and to discover how Wayne's character is convicted of murder!!By the way, the opening credits appear to have been added later...and by an idiot. That's because they misspelled the name of the movie! See what I mean when the film begins and it reads "Range Feud".