Comfort Classics: McLintock! {Movie Review}

I’m continuing my series on classic movies, where I review a classic film from my list of favorites. I can’t talk about classic movies without mentioning John Wayne! President Ronald Reagan said, “John Wayne was more than an actor. He was a force around which films were made.”

There are quite a few John Wayne movies that I love, but today I’ll highlight my all-time favorite movie of his – McLintock!

Rundown:

• Year: 1963
• Starring: John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara

Synopsis from IMDB: Wealthy rancher G.W. McLintock uses his power and influence in the territory to keep the peace between farmers, ranchers, land-grabbers, Indians and corrupt government officials.

Why I Love It:

• This is a movie that I’ve enjoyed watching with my Pappa, my Dad and now my husband. I feel like it has the perfect blend of “cowboy stuff,” romance and humor to make it perfect for date night.
• The dialogue: This is such a quotable movie!
• It’s classic Americana. John Wayne’s character, George Washington McLintock, embodies the spirit of the American dream – making something from nothing, standing up for the underdog, being a man and a gentleman, and having general disdain for government. 🙂
• John Wayne had a group of actors that appeared in many of his movies, from the 1930’s through the 1970’s. McLintock includes many of my favorites: Chill Wills, Bruce Cabot, Hank Worden, his son Patrick Wayne and of course – Maureen O’Hara!

It’s Worth Mentioning That:

John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara have such great on-screen chemistry. This might be my favorite scene in the whole movie.

GW (John Wayne) and Katherine (Maureen O’Hara) have been married for a long time at this point. Katherine has grown unhappy with some things in her marriage – she has a right to be unhappy about some of them, I think – and decides to give her husband a taste of his own medicine.

Katherine looks for satisfaction outside of her marriage and toys with the idea that a fresh start might bring her the happiness she longs for. GW refuses to give her a divorce and slowly (not perfectly) pursues her as he reminds her of why they are so great together.

I love the scene where GW shares his heart with their young adult daughter, Becky:

“Becky…You’re going to have every young buck west of the Missouri around here tryin’ to marry you – mostly because you’re a handsome filly, but partly because I own everything in this country from here to there. They’ll think you’re going to inherit it. Well, you’re not. I’m going to leave most of it to, well, to the nation really, for a park…What I’m going to give you is a 500 cow spread on the Upper Green River.

Now that may not seem like much, but it’s more than we had, your mother and I. Some folks are gonna say I’m doin’ all this so I can sit up in the hereafter and look down on a park named after me, or that I was disappointed in you – didn’t want you to get all that money. But the real reason, Becky, is because I love you, and I want you and some young man to have what I had, because all the gold in the United States Treasury and all the harp music in heaven can’t equal what happens between a man and a woman with all that growin’ together.”

I feel like there’s some deep truth there! In my 10 years of marriage, I’m proud of the fact that I chose to stay when escaping seemed very tempting. I’m filled with awe and increasing love when I think back to the times my husband pursued me in my most unlovable state. The longer you’re married, the more those times become part of your foundation and less of an earthquake.

But lest you think this is a deep, serious movie…here’s another one of my favorite scenes! 🙂

Where To Watch It:

Currently it’s included with Amazon Prime and is available to rent on YouTube. If your library is allowing movie rentals right now, you might be able to find it there on DVD.

You might even be able to find it for free on YouTube. Just saying. 🙂

If You Like This, You Also Might Enjoy:

• El Dorado – my second favorite John Wayne movie!
• The Quiet Man – this isn’t one of my favorites, but it’s another one with great John Wayne/Maureen O’Hara chemistry. My husband (Paul) really likes this one.
• Paul’s Recommendation: The Alamo

I tried not to give any spoilers in the clips I shared above. You’ll have to watch it to find out what happens!

Have you seen McLintock? If not, have I convinced you to give it a watch?

Read More:

• Comfort Classics: The Philadelphia Story
• Comfort Classics: Casablanca
• The Truth About My Marriage