Destry Rides Again (1939)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

George Marshall

Writers:

Felix Jackson (screenplay) &
Gertrude Purcell (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

29 December 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Western

Tagline:

THE GREATEST CAST EVER CORRALLED for a frontier drama like you've NEVER seen in all your born days!

Plot:

Kent, the unscrupulous boss of Bottleneck has Sheriff Keogh killed when he asks one too many questions...

Plot Keywords:

Sheriff | Poker | Singer | Arrest | Eviction

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Marlene Dietrich	...	Frenchy
James Stewart	...	Tom Destry Jr.
Mischa Auer	...	Boris
Charles Winninger	...	Washington Dimsdale
Brian Donlevy	...	Kent
Allen Jenkins	...	Gyp Watson
Warren Hymer	...	Bugs Watson
Irene Hervey	...	Janice Tyndall
Una Merkel	...	Lily Belle
Billy Gilbert	...	Loupgerou
Samuel S. Hinds	...	Judge Slade
Jack Carson	...	Jack Tyndall
Tom Fadden	...	Lem Claggett
Virginia Brissac	...	Sophie Claggett
Edmund MacDonald	...	Rockwell (as Edmund Macdonald)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Russian

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #5972) | UK:PG | Norway:16 | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Sweden:15 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario)

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Library of Congress, in 1996

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Destry first demonstrates his ability with a firearm by shooting at the knobs on the sign, he shoots a total of seven times. Although he is holding two Colt "Six-shooters", one in each hand, he fires only the pistol he holds in his right hand. Thus, he fired one round more than the gun could hold.

Quotes:

Washington Dimsdale: Oh, Tom! Look here! Look at this post! Soaked through and through with the blood of Sawtooth McGhee. Yeah, he objected to a petticoat a neighbor's wife was wearing... and they fit to a draw. Both are buried in the same grave.
Tom Destry Jr.: Sawtooth and the petticoat?
Washington Dimsdale: No! Sawtooth and the neighbor! And four innocent bystanders!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Se, jie (2007)

Soundtrack:

See What the Boys in the Back Room Will Have

Stewart gets handed the mop and cleans up the town

Jimmy Stewart, in the title role, is a pleasure to watch and listen to. The economy he brings to the role is surpassed only by his drollness. Marlene Dietrich is magical and when she and Stewart get together, it may not be exactly sparks but there sure is some heat.

This is one of the finer westerns of the period. It holds up very well into the 90s. The supporting characters are well cast and bring a nice feel of variety to the tiny town of Bottlenck.