This is THE western

It's a rainy Sunday afternoon. The only thing on TV is an old western starring John Wayne (as always) and Robert Mitchum. Worth a watch then. Oh, Yes! This is the greatest western ever. Sure it is just another John Wayne vehicle but Robert Mitchum and James Caan would be total scene stealers if Wayne wasn't as great as was.

It's so different to find a western with such original characters. An old gunslinger who can admit to falling off his horse, a drunken heart broken sherriff, a strange young man with no gunslinging skill and a stupid hate, and a grizzled old indian fighter. They are vulnerable and imperfect, and the best heroes you could ask for.

The tone of the movie is fantastic. As an audience you genuinely come to feel safe holed up in the jail, and stricken with tension whenever they step outside. It'll have you leaving the house by the back door for a week afterwards.

Direction is fantastic, especially during the gunfights. The dialogue is wonderful, like a Tarantino western especially Mitchum's exchange with the panicking piano player, except it is far better and without the swearing. It'll have you chuckling all the way through.

If you only see one western in your whole life, which is an impossibility I know, see this one. And if you only see two, see this and Eastwood's Unforgiven.