John Ford

[grandpa_chum]

I just saw the quiet man the other night... and i hate to say this but john fords best movie, imo, is not a western and the same goes for john waynes performance, two things i never thought i'd say... and if your looking for leone influences(i have no proof of course) or just one of the best-shot sequences in movie history then watch the flashback sequence in the quiet man... it's astonishing... half the shots resemble shots i'd only seen prior in a leone film.

I know there are some ford fans here... anyone else think the quiet man is horribly underrated and/or his best film?

[Belkin]

I'm with you Granpa chum, it's a bona fida classic. I could watch THE QUIET MAN every day. if you haven't seen it, check out THE LONG VOYAGE HOME. Another FORD classic!

[DJIMBO]

I have 2 say guys i prefer The Man who Shot Liberty Valance and The Searchers.

I think The Quiet Man is pure sickly sweet, but theres no doubt its one of Ford's best.

[grandpa_chum]

It's simply amazing what this guy did... he basically churned out 2 great movies a year... to make that many movies that fast at that quality is amazing.

[Belkin]

Check out SEARCHING FOR JOHN FORD: A LIFE, written by JOSEPH McBRIDE. A wonderfully detailed book about the great man. A difinitive study.

[John Baldwin]

Leone thought The quiet man was the worst Joh Ford's movie. He thought it was the only error of Ford as director.

[grandpa_chum]

where did you hear/read that?

well this is one of the few times i completely disagree with leone.

[John Baldwin]

I read this in "Conversations with Sergio Leone", of Noël Simolo.
In French:
En 1970, on reparlait beaucoup de l'IRA. Etiez-vous particulièrement sensible à la révolution irlandaise?

"A propose de l'Irlande, je voudrais dire que John Ford a fait un film honteux dans sa vie. C'est L'Homme Tranquille. C'est l'inverse aberrant de la réalité irlandaise. (...) L'histoire se passe en Irlande, et il ne parle pas de l'IRA. Il nous montre ce pays comme si c'était une utopie paradisiaque. Et il ne déclare jamais que c'est une utopie. Il laisse même croire que c'est le quotidien."


In English:
"In 1970, we spoke a lot of the IRA. Were you particulary sensible at the Eire révolution?

"About Eire, I would say that John Ford has make a shame movie. It's The quiet Man. It's the contrary of the Eire reality.(...) THe story takes place in Eire, and he doesn't speak about IRA. He shows this country as an utopie (?). And he never asks it's an utopie. He lets think us it's the quotidien (daily?)."

In fact, he reproches to Ford not showing what's really appenend in the country at the moment of his movie, about IRA.

If you can, read this book, it's very very very interesting!!!

[DJIMBO]

Leone loved Ford's storytelling and direction, its just he always disliked Ford's ideology of an American (and in this case, Irish) utopia about the 'great American way'. To be fair, I agree with him, i think Ford is guilty of that - he is so cheesy sometimes, but at his best he's great.

[Belkin]

The Quiet Man remains what it was, a comedy, and a damm fine one at that. Nothing more, nothing less!

[grandpa_chum]

I don't have a problem with ford showing it as a utopia... sure it's not the way leone would do it... but i still like the movie... you could say the same thing about his westerns... that he portrayed the old west as a utopia only with some indians added for good measure.... like you said the american way.

[dave jenkins]

I don't know if this has been posted anywhere else, but there's an amazing website dedicated to Ford here: http://www.directedbyjohnford.com/

[Groggy]

Leone thought The quiet man was the worst Joh Ford's movie. He thought it was the only error of Ford as director.

Can we assume he never saw Judge Priest or What Price Glory?

[dave jenkins]

Olive Films will bring out The Quiet Man on blu in January. They are claiming a 4K scan of the negative and a restoration, both from 2012.

[noodles_leone]

Can we assume he never saw Judge Priest or What Price Glory?

What Leone actually meant is that he didn't like the way Ford handled reality in it. He has no criticism over the story or the way it's done (its more obvious when you read the whole answer in the Conversations). And if you ask me, that's just Leone trying to show everyone he is an Auteur.