Rio Lobo

This is probably the hardest film to watch that either Howard Hawks or John Wayne ever took part in, surpassing even Wayne's early days in Republic's "Three Mesquiteer" series for forced acting and situations. The 1930s pictures are more forgivable because the budgets were limiting and the outings were approached routinely. But for such a refined director as Hawks to end his career on a note like this, having made some of the finest films in the history of American cinema, is an atrocity not worth the silver used in the negative. The story isn't so bad, taking place soon after the Civil War. Union captain Wayne teams up with two Confederate soldiers to track down t...