It's been objected that Straight Shooting uses static camera positions, but especially in the long shots fine action and scenery are captured, like lines of horsemen coming down a hillside. In the story characters make interesting choices: a cowboy aids a farmer, a bandit gets the band of a chum of his to come fight against the bad guys who want possession of the whole territory and especially its water. The Bess played by Mollie Malone (a more solid presence than some other actresses) gets her gun ready as does another woman. And Bess too makes some interesting choices. If I can judge by the hat, a Mexican guy steals a jar of jam, but he's helped save the farm, one of the ways Ford and Hively avoid the sexism and racism of D. W. Griffith's Battle of Elderbush Gulch of a few years previous. That said, the Prague print I saw has gaps following out threads of the story. There's a pretty good shootout with the two guys using long rifles--this is the older west, though already the myth had been around quite a while.
14 Reviews
Strikingly prophetic early Ford film
mgmax4 October 1999
Apparently the earliest Ford film to survive intact, Straight Shooting could hardly be bettered as a prototype for so many films later in his career-- there are moments that are reproduced almost exactly in The Searchers in particular, and to a lesser extent in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, etc. While this modest genre film doesn't treat these themes with the deep emotional resonance of the later classics, it is surprisingly serious and thoughtful, and shows that the young Ford was unusually responsive to the emotional gravity that an older star like Carey could bring to a simple shoot 'em up-- the film is more mature than many of his 20s films with George O'Brien.
Keep your eye out for the door frame.
PCC092111 October 2020
This film is important, because it was John Ford's first. You can see some of the camera-work and styles, first being born in this film, that he would use in his later classics, most notably Ford's classic "Front-Door" shot. He always shot the front door from inside the house, framing the outside world in the doorway as the characters walk in. It's one of his biggest shots in The Searchers (1956) and there is one in this film too. It also begins Ford's relationship with then silent superstar, Harry Carey and they would do 22 films together just in the period between 1917-1920.
In this film, Harry's character learns that you need to see both sides of what is being said before you make your choice. Bad guy Cattleman Flint sends other bad guys to harass a farming family only to see his own men turn on him to protect the innocent farmers. There are also cool shots of the open-West and prairie, which would be a huge part of the western film's allure that would follow for the next 60 years. Wide shots of beautiful scenery always helped to drive the western forward and those shots are in this film too.
But, it is however still a very basic plot (part of the pioneering film-making evolution), and the film can be tedious at points. As always, I try to put myself into 1917. I try to enforce on myself a mind-set, an attitude and emotion that helps me understand what it was like to be a person living in 1917 and seeing this film for the first time. It's also pretty cool to think that the characters/settings in this film took place in a part of history that, for this film, only happened about 35 years before, as opposed to 135 years before for 2020. Everyone should see this entry into film-history.
7.3 (C+ MyGrade) = 7 IMDB
In this film, Harry's character learns that you need to see both sides of what is being said before you make your choice. Bad guy Cattleman Flint sends other bad guys to harass a farming family only to see his own men turn on him to protect the innocent farmers. There are also cool shots of the open-West and prairie, which would be a huge part of the western film's allure that would follow for the next 60 years. Wide shots of beautiful scenery always helped to drive the western forward and those shots are in this film too.
But, it is however still a very basic plot (part of the pioneering film-making evolution), and the film can be tedious at points. As always, I try to put myself into 1917. I try to enforce on myself a mind-set, an attitude and emotion that helps me understand what it was like to be a person living in 1917 and seeing this film for the first time. It's also pretty cool to think that the characters/settings in this film took place in a part of history that, for this film, only happened about 35 years before, as opposed to 135 years before for 2020. Everyone should see this entry into film-history.
7.3 (C+ MyGrade) = 7 IMDB
The Good Bad Guy!
bsmith55526 September 2017
Warning: Spoilers
"Straight Shooting" is notable as John (aka Jack) Ford's first feature length film. He had directed a few two-reelers earlier. In fact this film started out as a short but was expanded to feature length during production. It stars Harry Carey as a recurring Ford character, Cheyenne Harry.
The plot is what would be a staple among westerns, the cattlemen against the nesters. Leading the cattle ranchers is Thunder Flint (Duke Lee) who wants to drive the farmers off of their land. Sweet Water Sims (George Berrell) and his comely young daughter Joan (Molly Malone) and son Ted (Ted Brooks) represent (for budgetary reasons) the struggling farmers.
Flint hires wanted criminal ($1,000 reward no less) Cheyenne Harry (Carey) to drive the nesters out. Harry is a hard drinkin', hard smokin' fast on the draw hombre. He even gets into an all night drinking bout with Flint co-hort Placer Freemont (Vestor Pegg). Before Harry can take action on the farmers, Flint dry gulches young Ted Sims, killing him. Harry comes upon the burial service and takes pity on them, the lovely Joan in particular. Joan has been the apple of cowhand Sam Turner's (Hoot Gibson) eye during all of the trouble.
Harry sees the error of his ways and sides with the farmers. Flint orders Freemont to kill Harry. In a showdown, Harry prevails. Flint then gathers a large gang of cattlemen and plans an attack on the farmers. Seeing that the farmers are badly outnumbered, Harry seeks help from a former outlaw pal Black-Eye Pete (Milton Brown) and his gang. A large battle ensues and...............................
Harry is then faced with a dilemma. Does he get Joan to mend that tear in his shirt or does he ride on?
Many of Ford's future trademarks are in this film. He always liked plenty of hard ridin' horsemen complete with horse falls with plenty of action. Long panoramic shots such as the shot of a cattle drive from the top of a hill impress. Lots of gun play, a sympathetic good/bad hero and a little romance thrown in. The trademark "Fordian" humor would come later. By the way, what happened to the price on Harry's head?
A good start to a long and rewarding career.
The plot is what would be a staple among westerns, the cattlemen against the nesters. Leading the cattle ranchers is Thunder Flint (Duke Lee) who wants to drive the farmers off of their land. Sweet Water Sims (George Berrell) and his comely young daughter Joan (Molly Malone) and son Ted (Ted Brooks) represent (for budgetary reasons) the struggling farmers.
Flint hires wanted criminal ($1,000 reward no less) Cheyenne Harry (Carey) to drive the nesters out. Harry is a hard drinkin', hard smokin' fast on the draw hombre. He even gets into an all night drinking bout with Flint co-hort Placer Freemont (Vestor Pegg). Before Harry can take action on the farmers, Flint dry gulches young Ted Sims, killing him. Harry comes upon the burial service and takes pity on them, the lovely Joan in particular. Joan has been the apple of cowhand Sam Turner's (Hoot Gibson) eye during all of the trouble.
Harry sees the error of his ways and sides with the farmers. Flint orders Freemont to kill Harry. In a showdown, Harry prevails. Flint then gathers a large gang of cattlemen and plans an attack on the farmers. Seeing that the farmers are badly outnumbered, Harry seeks help from a former outlaw pal Black-Eye Pete (Milton Brown) and his gang. A large battle ensues and...............................
Harry is then faced with a dilemma. Does he get Joan to mend that tear in his shirt or does he ride on?
Many of Ford's future trademarks are in this film. He always liked plenty of hard ridin' horsemen complete with horse falls with plenty of action. Long panoramic shots such as the shot of a cattle drive from the top of a hill impress. Lots of gun play, a sympathetic good/bad hero and a little romance thrown in. The trademark "Fordian" humor would come later. By the way, what happened to the price on Harry's head?
A good start to a long and rewarding career.
A Beginning
davidmvining10 August 2021
You can do subtlety in silent film, but it requires a certain attention to specific moments that go well beyond what we normally expect from sound films. You need to focus down with a small scope and bring out details that are harder to do without some level of explanation that can happen through dialogue or even tone of voice. John Ford's first silent feature length film is not at all interested in subtlety. This is a land war in the West with very clear good guys, bad guys, and stakes. This is meat and potatoes Hollywood filmmaking from when the medium was still brand new. Having pretty much committed fraud in order to get the budget from the studio for a feature length film instead of a short (by saying their shot footage had been destroyed when it was all fine), the young Ford built something that almost feels like a whole story around what had surely been the central conflict. The ending almost makes the film, but only almost.
It's pretty obvious looking at the final product that Ford and George Hively, his screenwriter, didn't have the time or inclination to figuring out how to expand the film into feature length in the most elegant of ways. It feels like most of the added footage came in the first half. There are the standard scenes introducing our small hero family of farmers, Sweet Water Sims (George Burrell) and his two children Joan (Molly Malone) and Ted (Ted Brooks), the evil rancher who wants to kick them off the land by cutting off their supply to water, Thunder Flint (Duke Lee), the young man who works for Flint who loves Joan, Danny Morgan (Hoot Gibson), and the gunslinger hired by Thunder to chase them off, Cheyenne Harry (Harry Carey). It's the sort of quick and dirty series of introductions you would expect from a silent film. It's all archetypes through and through. The kindly old man with his innocent adult children. The rancher with a twirling evil mustache. The handsome gunslinger. It's all there in proto form.
I have little problem with this, but the issues come up around Cheyenne Harry. There's a long section where he hangs out in the local tavern with another rancher, and it's just a really long scene that far outstays its welcome as they get drunk and into a fight. It really feels like it's there for padding. There's also a fair amount of unclear storytelling going on to muddy things up in the first half hour, things like the largely unexplained movements of a gang led by Black-Eye Pete (Milton Brown).
I was kind of down on the film a bit until about the halfway point when things began to turn around. Ted goes to get some water from the creek now denied him and his family, and one of Flint's men shoots him dead. Sweet Water and Joan, along with Danny, reclaim the body and take him back just as Harry is coming around to do the work he's meant to do. Seeing Ted dead, having been shot in the back, does something to Harry. He has a sense of honor, and the idea of shooting a man in the back turns his stomach so much that he turns on his employer and decides to help the farmers in their conflict with the ranchers. I should also note, that I'm pretty sure Ted gets shot in the stomach, but the "shot in the back" thing may be more figurative than literal.
Anyway, this is when the pieces begin to come together at rapid pace. Joan runs around to all the farmers to prepare for the oncoming attack that Danny's heard about. Harry leads the men in their defense. The ranchers send their men, and a giant shootout commences. This is really bravura filmmaking, this extended fight. There's a lot going on, and Ford expertly crisscrosses between the action inside the central building, outside as the ranchers' men encircle the place firing inside, and the sudden appearance of Black-Eye Pete to help save the day. This is really fun stuff.
And then the movie decides to have a love triangle in its final ten minutes, and it's a really weird thing to insert at the end of a movie that doesn't really work. Joan wants to love Harry, and Sweet Water wants Harry to marry Joan, but Harry is unsure if he should. And then there's Danny who's been loving Joan the whole movie who sort of just gets cast aside.
As the first John Ford film, knowing enough of the highlights of his filmography to come, this has some interesting moments that will reappear in later films. The very first shot of his very first feature length film is of a cowboy, iconically framed on a hillside with a herd of cattle behind him is just the greatest introduction to the career to come. Harry deciding whether he can settle down to far, leaving behind the violent life behind feels like what's going to happen to John Wayne, to a certain subtler extent, in The Searchers.
No, I don't think it works overall. The last minute love triangle along with the muddled first half hour makes this less than what it could have been. However, it's almost there with an obvious technical talent working with archetype and action in ways that he would only refine later.
It's pretty obvious looking at the final product that Ford and George Hively, his screenwriter, didn't have the time or inclination to figuring out how to expand the film into feature length in the most elegant of ways. It feels like most of the added footage came in the first half. There are the standard scenes introducing our small hero family of farmers, Sweet Water Sims (George Burrell) and his two children Joan (Molly Malone) and Ted (Ted Brooks), the evil rancher who wants to kick them off the land by cutting off their supply to water, Thunder Flint (Duke Lee), the young man who works for Flint who loves Joan, Danny Morgan (Hoot Gibson), and the gunslinger hired by Thunder to chase them off, Cheyenne Harry (Harry Carey). It's the sort of quick and dirty series of introductions you would expect from a silent film. It's all archetypes through and through. The kindly old man with his innocent adult children. The rancher with a twirling evil mustache. The handsome gunslinger. It's all there in proto form.
I have little problem with this, but the issues come up around Cheyenne Harry. There's a long section where he hangs out in the local tavern with another rancher, and it's just a really long scene that far outstays its welcome as they get drunk and into a fight. It really feels like it's there for padding. There's also a fair amount of unclear storytelling going on to muddy things up in the first half hour, things like the largely unexplained movements of a gang led by Black-Eye Pete (Milton Brown).
I was kind of down on the film a bit until about the halfway point when things began to turn around. Ted goes to get some water from the creek now denied him and his family, and one of Flint's men shoots him dead. Sweet Water and Joan, along with Danny, reclaim the body and take him back just as Harry is coming around to do the work he's meant to do. Seeing Ted dead, having been shot in the back, does something to Harry. He has a sense of honor, and the idea of shooting a man in the back turns his stomach so much that he turns on his employer and decides to help the farmers in their conflict with the ranchers. I should also note, that I'm pretty sure Ted gets shot in the stomach, but the "shot in the back" thing may be more figurative than literal.
Anyway, this is when the pieces begin to come together at rapid pace. Joan runs around to all the farmers to prepare for the oncoming attack that Danny's heard about. Harry leads the men in their defense. The ranchers send their men, and a giant shootout commences. This is really bravura filmmaking, this extended fight. There's a lot going on, and Ford expertly crisscrosses between the action inside the central building, outside as the ranchers' men encircle the place firing inside, and the sudden appearance of Black-Eye Pete to help save the day. This is really fun stuff.
And then the movie decides to have a love triangle in its final ten minutes, and it's a really weird thing to insert at the end of a movie that doesn't really work. Joan wants to love Harry, and Sweet Water wants Harry to marry Joan, but Harry is unsure if he should. And then there's Danny who's been loving Joan the whole movie who sort of just gets cast aside.
As the first John Ford film, knowing enough of the highlights of his filmography to come, this has some interesting moments that will reappear in later films. The very first shot of his very first feature length film is of a cowboy, iconically framed on a hillside with a herd of cattle behind him is just the greatest introduction to the career to come. Harry deciding whether he can settle down to far, leaving behind the violent life behind feels like what's going to happen to John Wayne, to a certain subtler extent, in The Searchers.
No, I don't think it works overall. The last minute love triangle along with the muddled first half hour makes this less than what it could have been. However, it's almost there with an obvious technical talent working with archetype and action in ways that he would only refine later.
Some history
BandSAboutMovies28 July 2020
Warning: Spoilers
A landmark in the history of the Western, this was John Ford's - here using the name Jack - first feature and the comeback for Harry Carey, who began playing the character of Cheyenne Harry a year before in A Knight of the Range and would portray the character until 1936's Aces Wild.
Cheyenne Harry may be an outlaw, but he has a good heart. In this movie, he's hired by a rancher named Thunder Flint to kick the Sims family off his farmland. It all ends up as most of these stories do, with the rich ranchers against the poor farmers.
Hoot Gibson, who was second to only Tom Mix as a star between the World Wars, also appears.
Cheyenne Harry may be an outlaw, but he has a good heart. In this movie, he's hired by a rancher named Thunder Flint to kick the Sims family off his farmland. It all ends up as most of these stories do, with the rich ranchers against the poor farmers.
Hoot Gibson, who was second to only Tom Mix as a star between the World Wars, also appears.
Notable weaknesses, but suitably enjoyable all the same
I_Ailurophile8 November 2022
Truly wonderful as many (most?) silent films are, there are unquestionably some qualities of the era that may may make them difficult to abide for some modern viewers. The older the picture, the more one can observe such idiosyncrasies. Chief among these are a very strictly regimented plot development, and discrete divisions between shots and scenes, leading to a somewhat stilted flow to the feature and a heightened awareness that the course of events is staged (i.e., suspension of disbelief somewhat takes a knock). While it's no fault of the cast, it's also worth noting that there's sometimes such a startling lack of diversity among the assembled actors that, especially for lack of verbal dialogue, characters might be all but entirely indistinguishable from one another, lending to easy confusion about what is happening in a scene. By all means, such movies can be worthy of their own accord, and entertaining, but I can get why they don't appeal to all. I'd have said the same of myself, once, and even still it's not as easy to engage with titles of this kin - and 'Straight shooting' is certainly characterized by such peculiarities to one extent or another.
If one can overlook such matters, there's nonetheless a fair bit to enjoy here. Though limited by the basic nature of how films were made in the 1910s, I think the cast do well with what they're given; at some points the acting is rather impressive, not least in light of the need for body language and facial expression alone to carry the day. The visual presentation is quite fine, including sets, costume design, stunts, and those effects that are employed. John Ford's direction seems capable, with the execution of some moments coming off particularly well, and the core of George Hively's story is duly compelling. It's perhaps nothing remarkable standing next to all this feature's many brethren, but it's a swell tale all the same, ripe for cinematic storytelling.
The value herein is troubled by those facets suggested above, and also a small tinge less focus in the narrative than would be desirable. The more 'Straight shooting' steps to the side from the central thread of villainous ranchers antagonizing earnest farmers, the more one is given pause while watching. The ending sadly feels overdone, for example. Above all I think of the sequence in the first half of the picture, around twelve minutes all told, in which a number of characters all find themselves in the same hotel/bar. Nowhere is the problem of the casting more evident as it's hard to discern who characters are, or what they're actually doing, and this scene doesn't even seem notably crucial to the plot.
Even at that, more so than not this is well made, and fairly fun such as it is. The climax is surely the highlight, that part of the movie that I'd be most likely to point to as an illustration of its worth. The story is reasonably engrossing, and everyone involved clearly put in hard work to make this the picture that it is. A bit more mindfulness would have helped this to meet greater success and stand out more, but it's decent enough as it is - and anyway, what it comes down to is that the faults of 'Straight shooting' are mostly issues that were common to productions in the silent era in the first place. Ultimately this falls rather short of being essential, and anyone who isn't already enamored of early cinema won't find anything here to change their mind. If you're looking for something light, though, something to watch as passing entertainment, it just might be what you're looking for.
If one can overlook such matters, there's nonetheless a fair bit to enjoy here. Though limited by the basic nature of how films were made in the 1910s, I think the cast do well with what they're given; at some points the acting is rather impressive, not least in light of the need for body language and facial expression alone to carry the day. The visual presentation is quite fine, including sets, costume design, stunts, and those effects that are employed. John Ford's direction seems capable, with the execution of some moments coming off particularly well, and the core of George Hively's story is duly compelling. It's perhaps nothing remarkable standing next to all this feature's many brethren, but it's a swell tale all the same, ripe for cinematic storytelling.
The value herein is troubled by those facets suggested above, and also a small tinge less focus in the narrative than would be desirable. The more 'Straight shooting' steps to the side from the central thread of villainous ranchers antagonizing earnest farmers, the more one is given pause while watching. The ending sadly feels overdone, for example. Above all I think of the sequence in the first half of the picture, around twelve minutes all told, in which a number of characters all find themselves in the same hotel/bar. Nowhere is the problem of the casting more evident as it's hard to discern who characters are, or what they're actually doing, and this scene doesn't even seem notably crucial to the plot.
Even at that, more so than not this is well made, and fairly fun such as it is. The climax is surely the highlight, that part of the movie that I'd be most likely to point to as an illustration of its worth. The story is reasonably engrossing, and everyone involved clearly put in hard work to make this the picture that it is. A bit more mindfulness would have helped this to meet greater success and stand out more, but it's decent enough as it is - and anyway, what it comes down to is that the faults of 'Straight shooting' are mostly issues that were common to productions in the silent era in the first place. Ultimately this falls rather short of being essential, and anyone who isn't already enamored of early cinema won't find anything here to change their mind. If you're looking for something light, though, something to watch as passing entertainment, it just might be what you're looking for.
Historical; often more interesting than entertaining; often muddled, but exciting
morrisonhimself17 January 2018
"Straight Shooting" is of historical interest for many reasons, including the grouping of Harry Carey, Hoot Gibson, and John Ford.
Even this early in his career, Ford knew how to frame a shot, and many a beautiful shot here involved framing in doorways and windows.
Carey's character seemed often modeled on those so frequently portrayed by William S. Hart, whom Carey in some ways copied: both were Easterners who wanted to be Westerners, and both beautifully presented to us a picture of the rugged and basically decent character we want to think of as the essential Westerner.
Hoot Gibson was about 25 here but looked younger. He never was especially good-looking but he was always, in every movie I've seen him in, likable, and always one of the greatest of cowboys. At this stage, he'd been in pictures for about seven years.
Providing the love interest, but also much more, was a lovely young lady -- though at age 29 not so young as the part she played -- who frequently reminded me of the wonderful Mae Marsh. She seems to be relatively unknown although she has 88 credits here at IMDb, all in silent films.
So, yes, there is motion picture history here, the early years of some movie icons, a foreshadowing of some great careers, but the editing ... oy.
Many early movies suffered from some scenes, frequently static, that seemed to run on and on and on. Even D.W. Griffith allowed some pointless, non-moving shots to just hang, for no apparent reason.
Here we have the exact opposite problem. Probably because of sloppy editing, far too many scenes or angles are just cut off. It's hard to tell who is doing what to whom, and why. Even in the middle of the big battle, people aim, others fall, and it is confusing as to who is who and whether we should care: bad guys or good guys?
Yet, some other scenes, of Cheyenne Harry just staring, do go on and on, a fairly amateurish effort at showing the character pondering ... and pondering ... and pondering. By no means just once.
Perhaps, too, at least part of the problem is the version presented at YouTube. Though official run time is listed as 57 minutes, the version I saw is 2 hours and 13 minutes! For who-knows-what-reason, after "The End," the middle of the movie starts again! (Frankly, at YouTube, many a movie is uploaded by a liar or an incompetent, or both! And there seems to be no way to get YouTube to call down the offender.)
"Straight Shooting" is a movie every Western fan, every John Ford fan, every Harry Carey fan, every Hoot Gibson fan -- and each of those includes me -- should watch, if only for the chance to see the early years of their film work.
More than that, though, it is a good story, with good characterizations, and so intriguing in the directing.
There is a lot of evidence of D.W. Griffith influence, and at least one shot seems directly taken from "The Birth of a Nation." But "Straight Shooting" is generally exciting as well as interesting and very definitely worth watching.
Even this early in his career, Ford knew how to frame a shot, and many a beautiful shot here involved framing in doorways and windows.
Carey's character seemed often modeled on those so frequently portrayed by William S. Hart, whom Carey in some ways copied: both were Easterners who wanted to be Westerners, and both beautifully presented to us a picture of the rugged and basically decent character we want to think of as the essential Westerner.
Hoot Gibson was about 25 here but looked younger. He never was especially good-looking but he was always, in every movie I've seen him in, likable, and always one of the greatest of cowboys. At this stage, he'd been in pictures for about seven years.
Providing the love interest, but also much more, was a lovely young lady -- though at age 29 not so young as the part she played -- who frequently reminded me of the wonderful Mae Marsh. She seems to be relatively unknown although she has 88 credits here at IMDb, all in silent films.
So, yes, there is motion picture history here, the early years of some movie icons, a foreshadowing of some great careers, but the editing ... oy.
Many early movies suffered from some scenes, frequently static, that seemed to run on and on and on. Even D.W. Griffith allowed some pointless, non-moving shots to just hang, for no apparent reason.
Here we have the exact opposite problem. Probably because of sloppy editing, far too many scenes or angles are just cut off. It's hard to tell who is doing what to whom, and why. Even in the middle of the big battle, people aim, others fall, and it is confusing as to who is who and whether we should care: bad guys or good guys?
Yet, some other scenes, of Cheyenne Harry just staring, do go on and on, a fairly amateurish effort at showing the character pondering ... and pondering ... and pondering. By no means just once.
Perhaps, too, at least part of the problem is the version presented at YouTube. Though official run time is listed as 57 minutes, the version I saw is 2 hours and 13 minutes! For who-knows-what-reason, after "The End," the middle of the movie starts again! (Frankly, at YouTube, many a movie is uploaded by a liar or an incompetent, or both! And there seems to be no way to get YouTube to call down the offender.)
"Straight Shooting" is a movie every Western fan, every John Ford fan, every Harry Carey fan, every Hoot Gibson fan -- and each of those includes me -- should watch, if only for the chance to see the early years of their film work.
More than that, though, it is a good story, with good characterizations, and so intriguing in the directing.
There is a lot of evidence of D.W. Griffith influence, and at least one shot seems directly taken from "The Birth of a Nation." But "Straight Shooting" is generally exciting as well as interesting and very definitely worth watching.
Derivative Beginnings
Cineanalyst14 September 2005
This is notable for being an early directorial effort by John Ford, the great Western filmmaker. It's short and simple--about a feud between ranchers and farmers over water supply. The print I saw was missing some brief footage, and the film isn't in the best shape. Still, it is clearly unimpressive. There are plenty of shots with open doorways, and one might find similarities with Ford's later work, but the static camera positioning is prosaic even for 1917.
Harry Carey's Cheyenne Harry is a bandit turned good after seeing an attractive female--a role too similar to the one William S. Hart had already introduced to the screen in nearly every one of his vehicles. And, the climax of "Straight Shooting" seems to be taken straight from D.W. Griffith; it especially resembles "The Birth of a Nation" in a clumsy, derivative way. Eventually, Ford would improve upon past films and film-making, but here he was just copying others.
Harry Carey's Cheyenne Harry is a bandit turned good after seeing an attractive female--a role too similar to the one William S. Hart had already introduced to the screen in nearly every one of his vehicles. And, the climax of "Straight Shooting" seems to be taken straight from D.W. Griffith; it especially resembles "The Birth of a Nation" in a clumsy, derivative way. Eventually, Ford would improve upon past films and film-making, but here he was just copying others.
Ford and Carey near their best!
JohnHowardReid24 July 2014
Warning: Spoilers
The fifth film in Harry Carey's "Cheyenne Harry" series, and the first of feature length (namely 5 reels), this was also the third in the series to be directed by John "Jack" Ford. Already actor Carey had established the persona that he would interpret for the rest of his career. He was still playing similar lead roles in the 1940s, most particularly in Henry Hathaway's "Shepherd of the Hills" (1941). When he made "Straight Shooting", Carey was 39 years old. Pleasingly, he acts his age and no attempt is made to disguise this fact. If anything, he actually looks a bit older. Typically, the romantic sub-plot centers around Carey's age. Will he marry a girl less than half his age? (Actually Molly Malone was 29 when this film was made, but she looks 18 at the very most). "Straight Shooting" was director Ford's first feature film. He had previously directed three two-reelers and one three-reeler. Ford is not feeling his way here. He obviously already knows what he wants to achieve and how to obtain these results. "Straight Shooting" is a sophisticated movie, centering on the Cheyenne Harry character, and Ford is not afraid to paint his hero in less than glowing terms. The movie is full of scenes and choices which stay in the memory. Even when you see the movie and are familiar with the choices the characters make, you want to see the action unfold again and again. Available on a watchable Alpha DVD.
base to build upon
B1gBut19 February 2023
Dividing the film in two acts. The first introduces the characters, establishes the quarrel and builds up tension for the second act which comprises of preparation, showdown and aftermath. Simple and basic but good enough as a blueprint. Whats not good enough is the execution.
The first act drags on for too long losing the tension it couldve built up. It has many scenes and characters that add nothing to the plot and arent visually pleasing with still boring shots of actors staring and talking. Some characters seemed like they were going to be important but just faded out as if they ran off ( fremont, the sheriff, ... ##apparently the movie was censored, so some things may be the result of that). Fortunately, the first act ends with the best scene in the film with harry "going straight" after the boy's death. The camera doesnt linger too long on the close-ups and carey and malone save the film giving the audience everything they actually need going into the second act.
The second act starts out strong but goes downhill during the shootout. Influence of griffith is pretty obvious here. Not considering how fair, the comparisons with the birth of a nation are inevitable and they arent favorable. In the birth of a nation, the audience are riding to the rescue with the actors. The cross cutting and the fighting is natural and superb. Here, its all nonsensical. With hilarious shooting and a camera thats always detached and in the wrong place (except in the interior shots). How fair is it to compare straight shooting with one the greatest movies ever considering their budget,time of release, director experience and ..... is up to you but the griffith influence certainly encourages it. It also showcases how good scarlet days is compared to other westerns of the time.
Even though i personally wouldnt recommend this to someone looking for a good film that isnt a john ford fan. I do appreciate its historical value as a base for future ford films and westerns in general (even if it is the minimum and poorly executed) and what they were able to achieve with a two reel film budget.
The first act drags on for too long losing the tension it couldve built up. It has many scenes and characters that add nothing to the plot and arent visually pleasing with still boring shots of actors staring and talking. Some characters seemed like they were going to be important but just faded out as if they ran off ( fremont, the sheriff, ... ##apparently the movie was censored, so some things may be the result of that). Fortunately, the first act ends with the best scene in the film with harry "going straight" after the boy's death. The camera doesnt linger too long on the close-ups and carey and malone save the film giving the audience everything they actually need going into the second act.
The second act starts out strong but goes downhill during the shootout. Influence of griffith is pretty obvious here. Not considering how fair, the comparisons with the birth of a nation are inevitable and they arent favorable. In the birth of a nation, the audience are riding to the rescue with the actors. The cross cutting and the fighting is natural and superb. Here, its all nonsensical. With hilarious shooting and a camera thats always detached and in the wrong place (except in the interior shots). How fair is it to compare straight shooting with one the greatest movies ever considering their budget,time of release, director experience and ..... is up to you but the griffith influence certainly encourages it. It also showcases how good scarlet days is compared to other westerns of the time.
Even though i personally wouldnt recommend this to someone looking for a good film that isnt a john ford fan. I do appreciate its historical value as a base for future ford films and westerns in general (even if it is the minimum and poorly executed) and what they were able to achieve with a two reel film budget.
Portraying the Real West!!
kidboots6 June 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Along with "The Virginian" and William S. Hart's gritty West depictions, "Straight Shooting" seemed to herald in a more realistic approach to the sage brush drama and was justly praised by critics of the day.
John Ford (billed as Jack) brutally showed a bitter clash between cattlemen and homesteaders and Harry Carey put his stamp on the role of "Cheyenne" Harry, initially hired by the ranchers but after seeing the tragic and senseless death of a young homesteader joins farmer Sweet Water Sims. As well as Harry Carey, a young Hoot Gibson was also promoted to featured player status on the strength of his role as Sam, a young cowboy, again employed by the ranchers but who is in love with pretty Joan Sims.
There are some stunning sequences - when Thunder Flint is introduced there is a beautiful tracking shot showing horses grazing on a hill which was to become a Ford signature piece and also the rain. It never seems to rain in westerns but it does in this one and seeing the tethered horses being drenched by rain as well as the cowboys larking about in the mud, just adds to the realism.
The boy's funeral affects Harry immensely and he then vows to reform and work for the good. He has to get the ranchers before they get him - which they plan for that night. There is also a gunfight, high noon style, between Harry and the man hired to track him down and who, incidentally, was the same coward who gunned down Joan's brother!! And in another interesting twist (for 1917) Harry fights fire with fire by recruiting his old gang of cut-throats - the Black Eyed Gang!!
Interesting actress, Molly Malone - she looks such a kid but even though she made her film debut only the year before in 1916, she was really a late bloomer having been born in 1888. Being almost 30 (at a time when most of the young actress were barely out of their teens) was no barrier and she went on to have a lengthy career.
John Ford (billed as Jack) brutally showed a bitter clash between cattlemen and homesteaders and Harry Carey put his stamp on the role of "Cheyenne" Harry, initially hired by the ranchers but after seeing the tragic and senseless death of a young homesteader joins farmer Sweet Water Sims. As well as Harry Carey, a young Hoot Gibson was also promoted to featured player status on the strength of his role as Sam, a young cowboy, again employed by the ranchers but who is in love with pretty Joan Sims.
There are some stunning sequences - when Thunder Flint is introduced there is a beautiful tracking shot showing horses grazing on a hill which was to become a Ford signature piece and also the rain. It never seems to rain in westerns but it does in this one and seeing the tethered horses being drenched by rain as well as the cowboys larking about in the mud, just adds to the realism.
The boy's funeral affects Harry immensely and he then vows to reform and work for the good. He has to get the ranchers before they get him - which they plan for that night. There is also a gunfight, high noon style, between Harry and the man hired to track him down and who, incidentally, was the same coward who gunned down Joan's brother!! And in another interesting twist (for 1917) Harry fights fire with fire by recruiting his old gang of cut-throats - the Black Eyed Gang!!
Interesting actress, Molly Malone - she looks such a kid but even though she made her film debut only the year before in 1916, she was really a late bloomer having been born in 1888. Being almost 30 (at a time when most of the young actress were barely out of their teens) was no barrier and she went on to have a lengthy career.
Straight Shooting review
JoeytheBrit18 April 2020
A hired gun swaps sides when hired by a rancher to see off a farming family that needs the rancher's water to survive. John Ford's first feature demonstrates just how on top of shot composition he was even in those distant, primitive days. The story is nothing to write home about, but Harry Carey shows just why Ford later eulogised about him being the 'bright star of the early Western sky.'
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