The Searchers Reviews and Ratings


  • ancestry80
    November 24, 2009
    ancestry80
    Call me crazy, but The Searchers is not my favorite Duke movie. I know, it usually ends up on the list of best Westerns ever made (and on some best movies ever made). Don't get me wrong, it's a great movie. But, it drags in places and I enjoy some of the more light hearted Duke o...( read more)fferings. That being said, The Searchers is a darn good film, and the Duke did some solid acting in this one.
  • karla168
    November 20, 2009
    karla168
    Knocked off half a star for the Jorgensen subplot. Wow, what an amazing movie.
  • flixsterman
    November 14, 2009
    flixsterman
    One of John Wayne's darkest and most complex roles. It's easy to see why The Searchers is widely considered to be the Duke's best film. Unlike many of his other characters where their disposition and development is set according to type, Ethan Edwards (Wayne) is blatantl...( read more)y racist and morally flawed. He's a walking, talking paradox in the sense that you applaud what he is trying to do but you're appalled by how he's doing it. For example: During the course of his career in the western genre, John Wayne must have shot and killed hundreds of American Indians. But how often have you seen Wayne, after killing an Indian, ride over and shoot out the eyes of the corpse? Not only did he want to kill the man, he wanted him to stumble around blind in the hereafter. That scene, as filmed, shows a level of contempt that no Wayne character possessed before or since.

    This isn't the be-all/end-all of John Wayne's films, and neither is it the only time Wayne played a character with depth and substance, but it is arguably his most challenging and triumphant performance. A film deserving of it's status as one of the best westerns to ever grace the big screen.
  • fandangoforever
    November 10, 2009
    fandangoforever
    Still not certain why this movie is considered one of the greatest Westerns ever? I mean, I love John Wayne but this movie has just never done it for me.
  • fluturash
    October 1, 2009
    fluturash
    i'd take john wayne any day. and this one is really fantastic.
  • ElCochran90
    September 20, 2009
    ElCochran90
    Absolutely fantastic. Best John Wayne western ever, and one of the finest of the genre as well.

    95/100
  • crdodson
    September 20, 2009
    crdodson
    A different role for John Wayne but he carried it great.
  • Jriff87
    September 18, 2009
    Jriff87
    John Wayne's has the performance of a lifetime, in what may be one of the Five Best US movies ever. Wayne and Hunter are the lead players in a tale of racism, misguided honor and family, amidst the epic backdrop of the white man's conquest of the West. Touching, gloomy, exiciting...( read more) and funny, it is a marvelous film.
  • jscottcorley
    September 5, 2009
    jscottcorley
    2nd best western ever. Chew on it, Rohan!!!
  • devlincade
    September 2, 2009
    devlincade
    I am not a fan of Westerns. But the themes in this movie transcend genre. Well worth a look. May be Wayne's finest performance. Hunter does an excellent job.
  • cmwalden
    August 28, 2009
    cmwalden
    I was stunned the first time that I saw this movie. It was a real departure from other things that I had seen Wayne do and I found it emotionally gripping. I think this is some of his best work.
  • geor1772
    August 21, 2009
    geor1772
    The greatest western of all time!!
  • jackgiantkillr
    July 30, 2009
    jackgiantkillr
    Really dark if you think about the subject matter. John Wayne should've won an oscar for his racist intensity. It's full of memorable lines from him, beautiful John Ford direction w/Monument Valley filling in for west Texas, Ward Bond as the preacher/Texas Ranger Captain. All sor...( read more)ts of subtleties, and unaswered questions. A real classic.
  • shchase2000
    July 25, 2009
    shchase2000
    Saw it before and really love his movies
  • palphilly91
    July 20, 2009
    palphilly91
    Love it cry every tim I see it.
  • maryscristal
    July 19, 2009
    maryscristal
    It's my favorite western movie. He was very handsome.
  • jsdv8
    July 16, 2009
    jsdv8
    I do not recall seeing this film
  • PhinsterBeakly
    July 9, 2009
    PhinsterBeakly
    I can't watch this movie enough. It's brutal and heart-wrenching.
  • HarleenQuinzel
    July 6, 2009
    HarleenQuinzel
    Strangely touching movie, if not a bit overlong and tiring at times. Still very worth a watch.
  • robertovinicius
    July 4, 2009
    robertovinicius
    Recomendation : Filmcritic
  • macabrescribe
    June 13, 2009
    macabrescribe
    This is one of the major highlights of Wayne's career? It was racist and slow. And the ending did not impress me.
  • lateagain790
    June 9, 2009
    lateagain790
    Add a review (optional)...
  • rosepenny246
    June 3, 2009
    rosepenny246
    "My name is John Wayne and my westerns always get a good rating."
    John Ford is the reason why I started watching westerns. He was dedicated and he knew what he wanted to show with his movies. John Wayne is the pop image of the old West. Typical American hero. Good combination. Th...( read more)e Searchers is a very good example of what the cooperation between Ford and Wayne could achieve. The Monument valley, where Ford had filmed a lot of westerns, works as the perfect landscape. The main character, Ethan, is in the center of the action; portrayed perfectly by Wayne. The main theme of the film is racism, which is one of the large steps John Ford made in order to improve the western genre, and hate. A lot better than Rio Grande and a striking moment in cinema history.
  • MajorWhitlock
    May 24, 2009
    MajorWhitlock
    Sorry, not big on Westerns...
  • calumprice1
    May 9, 2009
    calumprice1
    John Ford's classic Western, has inspired many quest movies and tv series since its release. The film is a series of episodes linked by the 10 year quest for a niece stolen by Indians as a child. Wayne's Ethan Edwards, an embittered Confederate veteran shows only hatred for all r...( read more)edskins and is uncomprimising in his intended treatment of his niece when he finds her. Modern cinema audiences may find this uncomfortable, especially since western folklore has been reassessed over the last 20 years. But don't let this put you off. Ford's treatment is a modern allegory and Ethan can be forgiven his sins when, at the final denoument, one act of kindness gives us hope, and we feel Ethan has learned an important lesson. Tolerance. Everything about this film makes it a classic and perhaps the best in its genre. Ford's direction is as impeccable as ever, Frank Nugent's script and Winton Hoch's cinematography give us some of the classic images of the cinema. John Wayne, as ever, doesn't even need to act. He just sits tall in the saddle and perpetuates the myth.
  • closedmouth
    May 9, 2009
    closedmouth
    I had this pegged as something else, something critical of the views it displays. But it's not. It revels in them. And it's rather disgusting. But it looks great. And that's all that matters. Right?
  • nowhotnnm
    April 19, 2009
    nowhotnnm
    John Ford and John Wayne at their very best. Noir Western?
  • tsigur
    March 31, 2009
    tsigur
    Amazing film and watching it on blu ray is a commercial for the technology itself because it looks gorgeous. John Wayne is great in the film and I love the fact that he toys with his own iconography. It was one of the best characterizations I have seen in a Western. Good story an...( read more)d the landscapes are breathtaking. And now I know what movie they are watching in Mean Streets. And I also understand why that last shot is so legendary.
  • jonnycrumley
    March 23, 2009
    jonnycrumley
    Good western. I suppose I was expecting something grander, as I was really looking forward to this one. But it still did the business. John Ford direction never disappoints. His cinematography in The Searchers, is some of the best I've seen out of all his movies. John Wayne is ma...( read more)gnificent, with his darkest performance since Red River. I was little disappointed with the dialogue, and there was some terrible acting from an annoying Hank Worden as the crazy man, and Jeffrey Hunter as Martin. But it's still a good western with plenty of memorable moments.
  • ima365ryder
    March 11, 2009
    ima365ryder
    Outstanding movie John Wayne is my family favorite actor
  • dikrapio
    February 28, 2009
    dikrapio
    The flawed but still classic western.
  • videositios
    February 6, 2009
    videositios
    Mas fotos y videos en: http://www.videositios.com
  • DrStrangeblog
    January 30, 2009
    DrStrangeblog
    One of the very best Westerns, a genre I've had my fill with. Heck, it's a great movie period. Many memorable scenes and scenery - the Indian/cavalry standoff, farmhouse raid, famous final shot, and of course driven by a different, more complex John Wayne than moviegoers are us...( read more)ed to seeing. A long, gripping physical and psychological journey.
  • runforrest66
    January 29, 2009
    runforrest66
    A classic western!! I thought John Wayne was outstanding as "not so likable" civil war veteran. The cinematography takes your breath away and the story will as well.
  • malacaynomuerto
    January 28, 2009
    malacaynomuerto
    un hombre parte tras su sobrina que ha sido raptada por los indios es la excusa para este fantástico western
  • McKunz
    January 18, 2009
    McKunz
    Fuckin class! John Wayne's a complete racist beyatch in it an Ward Bond kicks ass as the sheriff/reverend. Motherfuckin highly recommended!!!
  • nettieking2000
    January 16, 2009
    nettieking2000
    this is a good one for john wayne lovers
  • benjaminguilbert2
    January 12, 2009
    benjaminguilbert2
    I never quite understood John Ford. I mean yes, the whole thing's beautiful, some shots are brilliant, but still the actual interest of this type of westerns totally eludes me.
  • stopitgoaway
    January 10, 2009
    stopitgoaway
    The Searchers(1956) has been reflected to death by many filmmakers in their own work with main ideas, situations, and plot as guide. Many elements of The Searchers(1956) influenced film directors ranging from Brian De Palma, George Lucus, Martin Scorsese, Paul Schrader, and Sergi...( read more)o Leone. There are scores of other movie makers whom I cannot list at the top of my head that were affected by this one film. Obvious film influences are Once Upon a Time in the West(1968), Obsession(1976), Taxi Driver(1976), Star Wars(1977), and Hardcore(1979). It shows that great works of cinema are also able to inspire many admirers and disciples. Only films(stories) by Akira Kurosawa has been reflected more often by film directors than The Searchers(1956).

    John Wayne was legendary American film star and big box office draw by 1956. The Searchers(1956) lends creedence to John Wayne being an exceptional actor enforced by his multi-layered performance. In a career that spanned five decades, The Searchers(1956) is the efflorescence of John Wayne. John Wayne gives a complex/flawed portrait of a man looking for redemption and salvation. One fine moment that examplifies the multi-layerness of John Wayne's performance is the look on Ethan Edwards face as he feys over what will happen to his brother and family. The Searchers(1956) was to John Wayne's career what Treasure of the Sierra Madre(1948) was to Humphrey Bogart and Vertigo(1958) was to James Stewart.

    Story is about drifting, trying find something which is self-meaningful. Ethan Edwards is such a drifter who is always in search of a purpose. The Searchers(1956) is really about drifting in the American Frontier and search for self-discovery. There were many drifters like Ethan Edwards in the Old West especially in the wake of the Civil War. The Cowboy drifter in the Old West is almost the equivalent of the Samurai ronin in Tokugawa Japan Era. These drifters were men who were on the go, had temporary employment, and always wondered about their existence in life.

    Rare individualistic motion picture in the old studio system days when many Hollywood films were studio controlled. The Searchers(1956) defies the typical 1950s Hollywood film presentation because its a director's picture. Excells on a visual level with interesting camera placement. Camera framing also plays a psychological and visual role in representation of two conflicting worlds(Civilized West and Wild West). Helped by crisp and flawless editing that flows the plot along effortlessly. Shades of Homer's THE ODYSSEY are penetrated into the heart of the story with irony.

    Deals with racial prejudice with honest and truthful gusto. Racial prejudice in The Searchers(1956) is filmed in terms of emotional and psychological depth. The racial prejudice of the protagonist echos the prejudice of many white people in the Old West felt towards native Americans. The relationship between Ethan Edwards and Martin Pawley is met by distrust, prejudice, and sarcasm. Only towards the end does Ethan Edwards begin to show some sign of acception and respect for Martin Pawley. Shows that people are willing to change if they are willing to confront the dark side of humanity.

    John Ford was the one director who was able to channel the talents of John Wayne to full heights. He made it possible for John Wayne to become an American film star by casting him in Stagecoach(1939). The other major director John Wayne had great success with was Howard Hawks. The Searchers(1956) is the greatest film of the Ford-Wayne tandem. Each are at their highest and most professional peak as film artists. In film working relationship they were halves of one and one of halves.

    Ethan Edwards fullfills the requirements of hero and villain in narrative plot structure. This makes him an anti-hero with human strengths and flaws so typical of this type of protagonist. Its funny that John Wayne detested Italian Westerns and yet played a character in The Searchers(1956) who fits the mold of the Spaghetti Western anti-hero. Ethan Edwards is the closet thing to a villain John Wayne played in the movies. At the beginning Ethan Edwards lives only for hate and revenge. By the end he becomes merciful and forgiving.

    On-location photography gives the film its rugged character. Monument Valley is depicted with beauty, mystery, and savagery. The people in the story are represented by their environment and location. Monument Valley was a favorite film location of John Ford who was obsessed by its untamed and individualistic nature. Monument Valley site is explored on a physical, psychological, and social level. Scenery is an important character of the Classic American Western and none so more true then in The Searchers(1956).

    Another major motif in The Searchers(1956) is redemption. The path of hate and vendetta is replaced by compassion and forgiveness. Its this motif as well as others that makes the story a subtle Catholic driven tale. Redemption is the saving grace for a destructive and negative character like Ethan Edwards. Revenge until the climatic moment takes importance over everything else in Ethan Edwards life. Redemption is one motif from The Searchers(1956) that influenced Scorsese and Schrader.

    Martin Pawley goes with Ethan Edwards on revenge pledge as way of following path of fealty. The moment of Ethan picking up his niece and holding her with compassion is a tender one. Jeffrey Hunter as Martin Pawley provides a nice foil to John Wayne's Ethan Edwards. Cinematography in The Searchers(1956) is forceful and graceful. In time The Searchers takes place, drifters like Ethan Edwards are dime a dozen but by the period depicted in films of Sergio Leone and Sam Peckinaph, they are nearly extinct. The Searchers(1956) is a milestone in both American and World cinema.
  • keivank1kn
    January 9, 2009
    keivank1kn
    one of greatest movies
  • albenakazakova1
    January 6, 2009
    albenakazakova1
    I don't like westerns
  • MagicButterfly
    January 6, 2009
    MagicButterfly
    Solid western about John Wayne trying to rescue his niece from injuns. Wayne's character is interesting; he's so racist that he actually does keep the viewer in suspense as to whether he'll rescue his niece or shoot her for being raised by indians. He's also pretty much a dick ...( read more)for the entire movie. That being said, it's still good.

Summary

The Searchers Summary