My Darling Clementine. 1946. Directed by John Ford.

(2/8/00-2/11/00)

I wonder if the old west ever looked as good as it does in My Darling Clementine. It is a beautiful-looking film and it absorbed me from beginning to end. It is about a town planted in the middle of nowhere.

I think Doc Holliday is the most interesting character, though Wyatt Earp is certainly an appealing person to watch. Doc is a refined man of culture living in this rough-and-tumble environment. He is obviously not a well man, but his illness isn't specified. His interaction with Wyatt Earp is, dramatically, the most interesting part of the film.

I liked especially how Earp tries to befriend Doc Holliday at the same time having to be very careful to work around his "macho" qualities. It is sad that he can't just sit down and talk frankly with him.

I really enjoyed Henry Fonda's low-keyed performance. It is interesting to watch the attempt to really make a town in the wilderness and create a community. Earp is welcome to be a part of that community, but he remains an outsider. At the end he doesn't choose to stay, but merely expresses an intention to pass through again. And Clementine is obviously interested in him, so he has something to come back for. So even though he is a wanderer, like many western heroes, there is a suggestion that he just might settle down and participate in the building of the new civilization.