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She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

Drama · Western · 1949

On the eve of retirement, Captain Nathan Brittles takes out a last patrol to stop an impending massive Indian attack. Encumbered by women who must be evacuated, Brittles finds his mission imperiled.

Movie details

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

“John Ford's new and finest picture of the fighting cavalry!”

1949 Drama · Western 1h 44m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.9 / 10

Community rating

On the eve of retirement, Captain Nathan Brittles takes out a last patrol to stop an impending massive Indian attack. Encumbered by women who must be evacuated, Brittles finds his mission imperiled.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over She Wore a Yellow Ribbon?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Hombre

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Forty Guns

Forty Guns

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An authoritarian rancher rules an Arizona county with her private posse of hired guns. When a new Marshal arrives to set things straight, the cattle queen finds herself falling for the avowedly non-violent lawman. Both have itchy-fingered brothers, a female gunman enters the picture, and things go desperately wrong.

Rancho Notorious

Rancho Notorious

Drama · 1952

A man in search of revenge infiltrates a ranch, hidden in an inhospitable region, where its owner, Altar Keane, gives shelter to outlaws fleeing from the law in exchange for a price.

Heaven's Gate

Heaven's Gate

Drama · 1980

Harvard graduate James Averill serves as the sheriff of prosperous Jackson County, Wyoming, standing at the center of a conflict between impoverished immigrants and affluent cattle farmers. Politically connected ranchers enlist mercenary Nathan Champion—who is also vying for the affections of local madam Ella Watson—to combat the immigrant uprising. As tensions escalate, both Averill and Champion start to question their decisions.

The Horse Soldiers

The Horse Soldiers

Western · 1959

A Union Cavalry outfit is sent behind confederate lines in strength to destroy a rail supply center. Along with them is sent a doctor who causes instant antipathy between him and the commander. The secret plan for the mission is overheard by a southern belle who must be taken along to assure her silence.

Stagecoach

Stagecoach

Western · 1939

A group of people traveling on a stagecoach find their journey complicated by the threat of Geronimo, and learn something about each other in the process.

The Searchers

The Searchers

Western · 1956

As a Civil War veteran spends years searching for a young niece captured by Indians, his motivation becomes increasingly questionable.

Open Range

Open Range

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A former gunslinger is forced to take up arms again when he and his cattle crew are threatened by a corrupt lawman.

Yellow Sky

Yellow Sky

Western · 1948

In 1867, a gang robs a bank and flees into the desert. Out of water, the outlaws encounter a ghost town called Yellow Sky and its only residents, a hostile young woman and her grandfather.

Warlock

Warlock

Western · 1959

A band of murderous cowboys has imposed a reign of terror on the town of Warlock. With the sheriff humiliatingly run out of town, the residents hire the services of Clay Blaisedell as de facto town marshal. He arrives along with his friend, Tom Morgan, and sets about restoring law and order on his own terms whilst also overseeing the establishment of a gambling house and saloon.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

John Ford

Written by

James Warner Bellah · Laurence Stallings · Frank S. Nugent

John Wayne

John Wayne

Capt. Nathan Cutting Brittles

Joanne Dru

Joanne Dru

Olivia Dandridge

John Agar

John Agar

Lt. Flint Cohill

Ben Johnson

Ben Johnson

Sgt. Tyree

Harry Carey Jr.

Harry Carey Jr.

2nd Lt. Ross Pennell

Victor McLaglen

Victor McLaglen

First Sergeant Quincannon

Mildred Natwick

Mildred Natwick

Abby Allshard

Court is in session

Put She Wore a Yellow Ribbon on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.