Big Jim McLain

Big Jim McLain (1952)

  • 55% of users liked it
    (221 ratings)

Of all the "kill the commies" cold war films of the 1950s, John Wayne's Big Jim McLain may well be the worst. Certainly it's the hardest one to sit through today. The Duke and his partner Jim Arness (Wayne's real-life protege) head to Hawaii to investigate a subversive pro-Red… More

Unrated,
Directed By
Genres
Western, Drama, Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense, Classics
In Theaters
Aug 30, 1952 Wide
WARNER BROTHERS PICTURES

Critic Reviews

  • Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

    Pathetic anti-Communist propaganda film with a snarling John Wayne at his ugliest as a macho windbag special agent for HUAC.

  • Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

    The name of Wayne's special agent for the HUAAC had the same initials as those of Senator Joseph McCarthy, which was not a coincidence, and Wayne himself believed that his popular propagandistic film helped McCarthy's reelection campaign.

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Dean M


    <i>Big Jim McLain</i> features one of John Wayne's best walk-through; he looks a little sheepish, but he's so amiable you forget he's really not in character. The drama at hand is tidied up rather quickly, yet the film is directed with a steady hand and has… More

  • jay n


    Seeks to glorify the loathsome Joe McCarthy and his venal lot. Wayne was a well known ultra conservative so his presence here is no surprise but that this thing exists at all is a shame.

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Cast

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