Stagecoach

I watched the old movie Stagecoach this week, and I had forgotten what a well-done flick it was. It was, of course, the movie that made John Wayne's career. In the midst of an era of Saturday matinee B-grade westerns, it was a big-time show. Claire Trevor's performance as Dallas was classic, and Thomas Mitchell was Best Supporting Actor for his role as drunken Doc Boone. The tension during the race toward Lordsburg with Apaches in pursuit is great drama, and the final shoot-out with the Plummer boys is the appropriate finishing touch to a western. And, of course, there is romance of a different sort between Wayne and Trevor. Just a great movie.