Fort Apache (1948)
It’s not surprising that the dancing portion of Fort Apache is featured as the backdrop for the opening credits; it’s the best part of the movie. The rest of the two hours is very slow and boring. Shirley Temple and John Agar were married at the time (and she was expecting a child), and the audience was given the opportunity to see Shirley as a romantic young woman. However cute it was at the time to see them blushing and smiling at one another, hindsight doesn’t make it cute any longer. We all know how terribly he treated her, and we want to shout at the screen, “Listen to your father!”
Shirley’s onscreen dad, Henry Fonda, disapproves of the match. He’s the new commander at Fort Apache and he immediately clashes with the young soldier. John’s dad, Ward Bond, likes Shirley well enough but doesn’t want to be connected to her family either. The star-crossed lovers have to sneak longing looks from across the dance floor, until Henry gets mad and sends John on a dangerous mission through Indian territory.
Given the cast, I wanted to like this movie. But it was very slow, and hardly interesting. Henry Fonda was made out to be the villain because he didn’t approve of John’s reckless behavior; but since I was on his side, I wasn’t rooting for the main plot to succeed. John Wayne had a surprisingly small part, and while Ward Bond’s proud Irish energy and strong sense of masculinity is always appreciated, he doesn’t steal the show. There have been so many other cowboys vs. Indians movies, so pick another one if your goal is simply a good movie instead of watching Shirley Temple and her husband.
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More Ward Bond movies here!
Shirley’s onscreen dad, Henry Fonda, disapproves of the match. He’s the new commander at Fort Apache and he immediately clashes with the young soldier. John’s dad, Ward Bond, likes Shirley well enough but doesn’t want to be connected to her family either. The star-crossed lovers have to sneak longing looks from across the dance floor, until Henry gets mad and sends John on a dangerous mission through Indian territory.
Given the cast, I wanted to like this movie. But it was very slow, and hardly interesting. Henry Fonda was made out to be the villain because he didn’t approve of John’s reckless behavior; but since I was on his side, I wasn’t rooting for the main plot to succeed. John Wayne had a surprisingly small part, and while Ward Bond’s proud Irish energy and strong sense of masculinity is always appreciated, he doesn’t steal the show. There have been so many other cowboys vs. Indians movies, so pick another one if your goal is simply a good movie instead of watching Shirley Temple and her husband.
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thank "Lod Mer" for posting!
More Ward Bond movies here!