Rio Bravo (1959)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Howard Hawks

Writers:

Jules Furthman (screenplay) and
Leigh Brackett (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

4 April 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Western | Romance | Drama

Tagline:

and Dean and Ricky sing, too! "Rio Bravo" "My Rifle, My Pony and Me" "Cindy"

Plot:

A small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a cripple, a drunk, and a young gunfighter...

Plot Keywords:

Small Town | Sheriff | Texas | Gunslinger | Jail

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

John Wayne	...	Sheriff John T. Chance
Dean Martin	...	Dude ('Borachón')
Ricky Nelson	...	Colorado Ryan
Angie Dickinson	...	Feathers
Walter Brennan	...	Stumpy
Ward Bond	...	Pat Wheeler
John Russell	...	Nathan Burdette
Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez	...	Carlos Robante (as Pedro Gonzalez-Gonzalez)
Estelita Rodriguez	...	Consuela Robante
Claude Akins	...	Joe Burdette
Malcolm Atterbury	...	Jake (stage driver)
Harry Carey Jr.	...	Harold (scenes deleted)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sheb Wooley	...	Cowboy (scenes deleted)
Walter Barnes	...	Charlie (bartender) (uncredited)
Nesdon Booth	...	Bit part (uncredited)
George Bruggeman	...	Clem (uncredited)
Yakima Canutt	...	Gunman on horse (uncredited)
Jose Cuchillo	...	Pedro (uncredited)
Robert Donner	...	(uncredited)
Fred Graham	...	2nd Burdette man in shootout (uncredited)
Joe Gray	...	Card player (uncredited)
Myron Healey	...	Barfly (uncredited)
Riley Hill	...	Messenger (uncredited)
Eugene Iglesias	...	1st Burdette man in shootout (uncredited)
Gordon Mitchell	...	Bar Cowboy - Watching fist fight (uncredited)
Tom Monroe	...	Henchman (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	...	Gunman (uncredited)
Bing Russell	...	Cowboy murdered in saloon (uncredited)
Joseph Shimada	...	Burt (undertaker) (uncredited)
Dean Smith	...	Card-Playing Burdette Henchman (uncredited)
Bob Steele	...	Matt Harris (Burdette gunman) (uncredited)
Ted White	...	Bit part (uncredited)

Directed by
Howard Hawks

Writing credits
Jules Furthman		(screenplay) and
Leigh Brackett		(screenplay)
B.H. McCampbell		(short story)

Produced by
Howard Hawks	....	producer

Original Music by
Dimitri Tiomkin

Cinematography by
Russell Harlan		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Folmar Blangsted

Art Direction by
Leo K. Kuter

Set Decoration by
Ralph S. Hurst

Costume Design by
Marjorie Best

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Paul Helmick	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Robert B. Lee	....	sound

Stunts
Bill Babcock	....	stunts (uncredited)
Joe Byrne	....	stunt double: Ricky Nelson (uncredited)
Yakima Canutt	....	stunt coordinator (uncredited)
Philip Dalton Crawford	....	stunt man (uncredited)
Fred Graham	....	stunts (uncredited)
Joe Gray	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bob Herron	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Hudkins	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	....	stunts (uncredited)
Dean Smith	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bob Terhune	....	stunts (uncredited)
Ted White	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Williams	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack N. Young	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Richard Doran	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Music Department
Dimitri Tiomkin	....	conductor
Sidney Cutner	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Maurice De Packh	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Manuel Emanuel	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Michael Heindorf	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Gus Levene	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
George Parrish	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leonid Raab	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Herbert Taylor	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Armada Productions (as An Armada Production)

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1959) (USA) (theatrical) (presents)
• Action Gitanes (1999) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2002) (USA) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Bros. (1959) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1959) (France) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2001) (Germany) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (Germany) (DVD) (special edition)
• Warner Home Video (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-Ray Disc)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2001) (Brazil) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo (UK) (complete title) (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

141 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Australia:G | Australia:PG (DVD rating) | West Germany:12 (nf) | USA:Approved (certificate #19034) | South Korea:15 (2007) | Finland:K-16 | France:U (re-release) | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | UK:U (original rating) (cut)

Filming Locations:

Old Tucson - 201 S. Kinney Road, Tucson, Arizona, USA

Company:

Armada Productions

Trivia:

Malcolm Atterbury is listed in the credits (Jake, the stage driver), but like Harry Carey Jr., does not actually appear in the final cut of the movie.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the Exchange of Joe for Dude, Colorado puts his hat on the window sill to his left, when the camera angles change, his hat is now to his right on the window sill.

Quotes:

[first lines]
John T. Chance: Joe, you're under arrest.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Disco Fever (1978/I)

Soundtrack:

Cindy

The traditional western that all others are judged by

It is my pleasure to make comments on Rio Bravo, considering all the hype that already has been written about it. True, it is not socially redeeming, nor does it make a political statement, it's just darn fun, i.e. entertaining. What's wrong with that? I couldn't care less if it is a redemption by Hawks for "High Noon"! I know one thing is for certain, when you watch John Wayne, Dean Martin, Walter Brennan, and the rest of the cast, you can tell that they had a really good time making the film, this, I believe is plain to see. Add a top notch script and very fine acting, good scenery, a love angle, and enough action to satisfy, and it adds up to a classic movie no matter how you judge it. 10 for 10.