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The Searchers
(1956)
In John Ford's classic and landmark epic western
- it was an emotionally-complex 'psychological' Western story about
a man's perilous, hate-ridden, obsessive, Homeric-style five year
quest for revenge (and self-discovery), set in post-Civil War
America. Following a Comanche massacre, the meandering tale
examined the inner psychological turmoil of a fiercely independent,
crusading man obsessed with vengeful hatred who was searching
for his two nieces (Pippa Scott and Natalie Wood) among the "savages"
over a five-year period.
The film's major tagline echoed the search: "he
had to find her...he had to find her." The script was
based on the best-selling 1954 novel by Alan Le May that was first
serialized as a short story in late fall 1954 issues of the Saturday
Evening Post, and first titled The Avenging Texans.
The film's complex, deeply-nuanced themes included
racial prejudice, sexism, individuality, the American character,
and the opposition between civilization (exemplified by homes, caves,
and other domestic interiors) and the untamed frontier wilderness. This
film was unquestionably Ford's finest, and featured breathtaking
cinematography of Monument Valley, his most popular locale, but this
exceptional film was not nominated for Academy Awards.
- the opening credits (portrayed in a Playbill font-face)
were displayed before a backdrop of an adobe brick wall, with the
words of the romantic Stan Jones ballad (sung by The Sons of the
Pioneers) that played during the credits, What Makes a Man
to Wander? - defining the central theme of the film - one
man's wanderings and obsessive search: "What makes a man to
wander? What makes a man to roam?..."
- as the film began in Texas of 1868, embittered loner
and Civil War ex-Confederate soldier Ethan Edwards (John
Wayne) entered on horseback; he suddenly appeared with no explanation
about where he had been, to arrive at the solitary, Texas
frontier farm of his estranged brother Aaron Edwards' (Walter Coy)
family with a radiant frontier wife Martha (Dorothy Jordan); everyone
expectantly watched and took positions on the homestead's porch,
including Ethan's two nieces: young 10 year-old Debbie Edwards
(Lana Wood, as 10 year old, Natalie Wood as older) and her older
teenaged sister Lucy (Pippa Scott); there
was an obvious tension between the two brothers, because of Ethan's
long-suppressed love for Aaron's wife Martha, his sister-in-law;
she greeted him: "Welcome home, Ethan"
Edwards' Family Members
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Ethan's Estranged Brother Aaron Edwards (Walter
Coy) with Wife Martha Behind Him
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Teenaged Lucy (Pippa Scott) with Brother Ben (Robert
Lyden)
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10 Year-Old Debbie (Lana Wood) with Family Dog
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- a strained relationship had already developed
between Ethan and Aaron's half-breed adopted
son, part-Cherokee (one-eighth) Martin "Marty"
Pawley (Jeffrey Hunter) - an orphan saved years earlier by Ethan from an Indian slaughter and
raised by Aaron's family; the tension came due to Ethan's prejudiced
racism against the Indians (and toward his own mixed-blood, estranged nephew)
- the next morning, a posse of Texas Rangers led by
its Captain - a preacher named Rev. Samuel Johnson Clayton
(Ward Bond), arrived at the frontier home with a posse of local
folks; a group was assembled to search for Comanche marauders or
cattle rustlers that had stolen some cattle from the nearby neighboring
Norwegian farmer Lars Jorgensen's (John Qualen) ranch; Aaron and
Marty were deputized to help the Captain and the Texas Rangers
find the cattle thieves (Ethan refused to be deputized); the group
of men rode off, without Aaron, not knowing that that they were
deliberately being lured away
- soon, after riding through majestic landscapes of
Monument Valley, they found the prized cattle 40 miles away, deliberately
killed with feared Comanche lances; the animals were slaughtered but
not eaten for food; Ethan realized that they had been tricked ("Stealin'
the cattle was just to pull us out. This is a murder raid"); the
victims were feared to be either the Jorgensen family (including
Lars' wife and daughter Laurie) or the Edwards family; in one of
the film's few closeups of Ethan's face, he stood over his horse,
agonizing and realizing that his brother's home (with Martha) could
be attacked
Marty Pawley (Jeffrey Hunter) and Ethan with Posse On Search for Cattle Rustlers
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Ethan Realizing They Had Been Purposely Lured Away from the Ranch
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Close-Up of Ethan - Fearing the Loss of Martha
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- before the dusk massacre of members of the Edwards
frontier family by retaliatory, raiding Comanche Indians in a war
party, there were some startling images: an hysterical close-up
of Lucy screaming after realizing a deadly Indian attack was imminent
and that they were in grave danger, and the sight of menacing renegade
Chief Scar (Henry Brandon) casting his dark shadow while standing
over young Debbie hiding out in a small family graveyard, before kidnapping her
- the posse returned to the burning, smoldering
frontier home, where they shockingly discovered that most of the
Edwards family (Ethan's brother Aaron, sister-in-law Martha and teenaged
nephew Ben (Robert Lyden)) were brutally butchered and tragically
murdered in the posse's absence by warring, blood-thirsty Comanche
Indians; Scar had kidnapped both of Ethan's two nieces, Debbie and
Lucy, ultimately making one of them - Debbie - his 'squaw'
- at the desert funeral ceremony
of the massacred Edwards family, the assembled people gathered
around the graves to sing Shall We Gather at the River;
Ethan was impatient to end the community's ceremony and anxious
to begin the search; Ethan was intent on taking the law into his own hands during the
vengeful search for his kidnapped kin; a search party was reassembled
and gave chase following the Comanche's trail, composed of Ethan,
Marty, teenaged Brad Jorgensen (Harry Carey Jr.) - Lucy's sweetheart
and fiancee, Captain Clayton, and other rangers
- along the way, the searchers found a fresh Comanche
grave - the body was buried under a large sandstone rock; Ethan
reacted by shooting out of the eyes of the Comanche body to prevent
it from entering the spirit world - and then explained how his
defilement of the Indian had thwarted the spiritual belief of the
Comanche, causing his spirit to wander forevermore: ("...but
what that Comanche believes. Ain't got no eyes, he can't enter the
spirit-land. Has to wander forever between the winds")
Comanche Corpse Discovered in Makeshift Grave
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Ethan Shooting at the Corpse to Defile the Indian
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- the group's plan was to find
and ransom the girls alive rather than attack the Comanches and provoke
retaliation against the two hostages; however, the racially-hateful
Ethan was more interested in vengeance than in finding the girls
alive; when asked by the Reverend whether he
wanted to quit his vengeful search, the invulnerable, assertive Ethan
replied with his favorite trademark retort: "That'll be the day"
- Ethan announced to the other searchers in the posse
that he wanted to continue on alone without interference: "All of
ya. I don't want you with me. I don't need ya for what I gotta do"; however,
Ethan reluctantly agreed to be accompanied by Brad Jorgensen
(Lucy's beau) and his nephew Marty
- early during their hunt, Ethan delivered an ominous
statement to them after finding Lucy's mutilated
and raped body; he told Lucy's mistaken fiancee Brad Jorgensen, who
believed that Lucy was still alive: "What
you saw was a buck wearin' Lucy's dress. I found Lucy back in the
canyon. Wrapped her in my coat, buried her with my own hands. I thought
it best to keep it from ya....What do you want me to do? Draw ya
a picture? Spell it out? Don't ever ask me! Long as you live, don't
ever ask me more"; crazed with grief and believing that Lucy was still alive, Brad rode
into the Indian camp and was shot to death
- Ethan's perilous, extensive,
relentless, maniacal and grim search for his kidnapped niece (conveyed
by a series of flashbacks) extended for five long years; during
his quest, Ethan often conflicted with his nephew - Aaron's adopted
son Martin Pawley, who was equally determined to save the girl'
- in a continuing sub-plot, Marty was in a relationship
wiith loyal, tomboyish, aggressive and expectant girlfriend Laurie
Jorgensen (Vera Miles), who wanted him to settle down with her; however,
Marty felt compelled to continue with Ethan on his search for Debbie;
he began to suspect that Ethan's intentions
were to kill the Chief who abducted her AND to kill his corrupted,
tainted, disgraced niece to 'save' her from her savage captors; in
Marty's absence, Laurie was courted by Charlie McCorry (Ken Curtis),
an oafish, dim-witted country bumpkin/cowboy; for a short while,
while on the search with Ethan, Marty accidentally married an Indian
bride (Beulah Archuletta) who was re-named 'Look'; tragically shortly
later, 'Look' ran away and was murdered in an Indian camp by troops
from the Seventh Cavalry; in a similar situation, the exasperated
and impatient Laurie was about to marry Charlie when Ethan and Marty
arrived during their search and interrupted the ceremony; Marty fought
his rival to defend his right to marry Laurie, and after an end
to the fight was declared, Charlie announced that the wedding was called off
- in the fifth year of their quest, the searchers eventually
followed Scar's trail into the New Mexico territory (or somewhere
south of the border); Ethan and Martin (posing as traders) were led
to Scar's camp in the desert (again Monument Valley); Ethan and Scar
stared each other down, only inches from each other's faces; it was
revealed that Scar had four wives in his teepee, and displayed a
few grisly scalps of whites he had killed (one of them was Debbie's
mother!); they glanced up to their right to see an older, now-adolescent
Debbie - renegade Chief Scar's Indian squaw, dressed in full native
costuming (a light-brown velvet blouse held by a silver conch belt,
and a purple skirt), with braided hair and a beaded necklace
- as Ethan and Marty were camped by a creek,
Debbie appeared unseen behind them in a magnificent image - first
on the horizon of a distant sand dune; she ran down and spoke privately
to Marty, telling him that they should leave her with her people;
however, she poignantly remembered her childhood ("I remember from
always") - but she had been assimilated into the tribe and had accepted her
heritage as Scar's wife ("These are my people")
- Ethan appeared with his pistol drawn - his first reaction was to kill his "ruined"
niece rather than bring her home, and he ordered Martin: "STAND ASIDE!";
Martin shielded Debbie with his body, and reached for his own gun to
protect her; suddenly, Ethan was struck in the shoulder by a poisonous
arrow from the bow of a nearby Comanche warrior, while Debbie ran back
to her tribe; the two fled on horseback to the mouth of a cave,
where they briefly defended themselves against a menacing war
party - an attack that subsided when Scar fell off his horse
- as Marty helped to treat Ethan's wound, Ethan composed
his last will and testament - he named his comrade Martin as his
heir (and kin), but disclaimed Debbie; Martin refused to be named
as Ethan's heir and condemned Ethan's avenging attitude toward Debbie,
his "blood kin," even though she had been living with a Comanche "buck"
- after being sidetracked, Marty and Ethan learned that
Debbie was likely to be located at Seven Fingers of Brazos in NW Texas
- the new encampment of Scar's band; in the pre-dawn hours before an all-out cavalry assault
on the Indians, Marty volunteered to attempt to rescue Debbie sleeping
in Scar's teepee; he told her: "I'm gonna take you away.
I'm gonna get you out of here, Debbie," and she seemed pleased; during
the daring effort, he shot and killed the Indian chief and escaped
with Debbie; Ethan rode into the camp with the cavalry, found
Scar's corpse in the tent, drew his bowie knife, and scalped the dead chief
- in the next dramatic scene,
Ethan set his sights on capturing Debbie; when she noticed him and
knowing of his hatred, she ran from Martin and
Ethan toward some rocks to escape; he chased on
horseback after Debbie down a steep rocky slope and toward a cave
opening - ostensibly to kill her, as Martin yelled out: "No,
no, Ethan!"; she tripped and fell as he called out to her: "Debbie!"
- in a marvelous gesture, he forcefully
grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted his terrified, Indianized
niece aloft into the air in one motion and told her: "Let's go home, Debbie"
Vengeful Ethan About to Chase Debbie
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Fearful Debbie Spotting The Threatening Ethan Before Running Away Toward
a Cave
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Debbie's Retreat Down a Rocky Slope
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Ethan Chasing After Debbie on Horseback to Cave Entrance
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Ethan Reaching for His Niece
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"Let's go home, Debbie"
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- the film concluded with a family reunion back at
the Jorgensen frontier home where Debbie was delivered to the front
porch and welcomed home, and Martin was reunited with his long-suffering
and patient fiancee Laurie
- during the reunion, everyone entered the Jorgensen
home but Ethan, an outsider. He was framed and isolated by the silhouetted
dark doorway (in front of the harsh outdoor sunshine) and watched
as reunited friends and family entered the homestead, grasping his
right elbow with his left hand; Ethan was left out, 'cursed' and
doomed to wander - and so he turned and ambled away as the door shut
behind him, turning the screen black
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Frontier Woman Martha Edwards (Dorothy Jordan) on Her Porch
Watching Brother-in-Law Ethan Edwards Approaching on Horseback
Ethan Edwards (John Wayne) - Arrival at the Edwards' Farm/Ranch
Lucy Edwards' Scream Before an Anticipated Indian Massacre
Menacing Chief Scar (Henry Brandon) Standing Over Young
Debbie Edwards Sitting in Graveyard
A View of The Destruction of the Edwards' Homestead
Rev. Samuel Johnson Clayton (Ward Bond)
Ethan with Lucy's Fiancee Brad Jorgensen (Harry Carey,
Jr.) - Telling Him of Lucy's True Fate
Grown-Up Debbie's Appearance to Marty and Ethan as They Camped by Creek
Martin Shielding Debbie From Being Shot by Ethan
Martin and Ethan Chased Into Opening of Cave by Indians
Debbie Rescued by Marty
Ethan Preparing to Scalp Dead Chief Scar
Ethan Riding Up to the Jorgensen Homestead
- Carrying Debbie to the Porch
The Film's Iconic Ending Image: Outsider Ethan Was Framed
By Jorgensen Doorway
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