It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Executive producers: John Ford, Merian C. Cooper. An Argosy Pictures Production, released through RKO-Radio Pictures. Copyright 26 July 1949 by Argosy Pictures Corp. New York opening at the Capitol: 17 November 1949. U.S. release: 22 October 1949. U.K. release: 8 May 1950. Australian release: 25 May 1950. 9,514 feet. 105 minutes. SYNOPSIS: Cavalry captain enters his last week of service before retirement. Encouraged by Custer's defeat, the various Indian tribes join together to fight their common enemy: the white man. NOTES: Hollywood's most prestigious award went to Winton C. Hoch (only) for Best Color Cinematography of 1949, defeating The Barkleys of Broadway, Jolson Sings Again, Little Women, and Sand. Locations in Monument Valley, Utah. Shooting commenced early November 1948, winding up early December 1948. COMMENT: A terrific film - except for one thing: the unconvincing slapstick involving Victor McLaglen. This seems pretty artificial when it starts (even though it does serve a useful purpose in providing necessary background information), but gets progressively less bearable until culminating in a ridiculous brawl. Fortunately, aside from the climactic all-in, these contrived scenes fail to spoil the picture as a whole. They could in fact easily be eliminated (though it would mean the loss of Francis Ford's part). Otherwise, script, locations, action and acting are absolutely perfect. Wayne, in a character role, gives the best performance of his career. With the exception of the hammy McLaglen, he's given solid support too, with memorable cameos from Tom Tyler as an injured corporal, Rudy Bowman as the dying Trooper Smith, and Chief John Big Tree as the conciliatory Pony That Walks. Amongst the principals, John Agar (Mr Shirley Temple at the time) is adequate enough, Ben Johnson is better, whilst Mildred Natwick is outstanding. But I thought the most winning portrayal came from the beautiful, talented but much under-rated Joanne Dru. Although he had worked with cinematographer Hoch on his immediately previous Three Godfathers, producer-director Ford was unhappy with the amount of time Hoch (a technical perfectionist) took to light his locations whilst cast and the rest of the crew broiled in the desert sun. A showdown came when Ford ordered Hoch to continue shooting during a thunderstorm. Hoch filed an official complaint with his union, alleging that the likely sub-standard photographic quality of the shots would damage his reputation. To Hoch's amazement, the executive board of the American Cinematographers Society sided with Ford, saying the director was within his rights to insist that photography be attempted even though lighting and other conditions may have been unfavorable. Hoch protested vehemently and even canvassed the option of tendering his resignation, when he was hit with a second surprise. His photography captured the Society's award for the best color work of the quarter and subsequently went on to win America's most prestigious award for Best Color Photography for 1949. The thunderstorm sequence was singled out for praise. Belatedly realizing that outstanding photography does not result from mere technical perfection but from an artistic creativity that on occasion involves the taking of risks and bending of rules, Hoch thanked Ford profusely for forcing his hand and expressed the desire to work with the director again. Ford took Hoch at his word, assigning him to The Quiet Man (1952), for which Hoch won yet another award from The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences!

Skip it – People associate the words "cavalry," "Indians," and "John Wayne" with the word "action movie." But where's the action in this one? This is a very disappointing western because it has only two small skirmishes in the entire movie. They are not even long enough to be called battles. Sure, John Wayne is great in his role as an aging cavalry officer mere days away from his retirement. But this is a cavalry "fort soap opera," and if you're not careful you'll find yourself nodding off to sleep. This is the second of the John Ford/John Wayne cavalry trilogy of 1948-1950. Wayne's character is different than the one he plays in "Fort Apache" and "Rio Grande." Yet this story has several characters from those other movies played by the same actors (ex. Ben Johnson as "Tyree" and Victor McLaglen as "Quincannon.") FYI, Even though the trilogy has overlapping characters, it is not meant to be watched in any particular sequence. 1.5 action rating

*****Minor Spoiler***** I've seen this film many times over the years and only now did it really hit me how John Ford treasured the value of a single life. Other reviewers have already covered well John Wayne's acting and the awesome photography in Monument Valley. But think about the lives lost or wounded in the film. In the first action against the Indian warriors Capt. Brittles orders his men to "shoot high" and..no warriors are killed or wounded. In later actions one trooper is wounded and much is made of his subsequent operation and good prognosis. One trooper (the ex-Confederate officer) does die from his wounds and again, this is not treated lightly, either by ex-Confederate or ex-Union.Most films of this genre leave countless bodies all over the place. Not so this one and that's what I take away from the film. That Ford felt life was to be treasured, that it was rare and not to be wasted. Perhaps this comes from his wartime service? Even the stampeding of the Indian ponies results in no casualties..on either side. I think Ford wanted his audience to go away thinking there are better ways than war and the wasting of lives.

Something inspired John Ford to make a cavalry trilogy in the late 1940's. It started in 1948 with Fort Apache, continued by She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, one year later, and the last of the trilogy Rio Grande (1950). The film in the middle, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, was the only one shot in color and that is one of the things people remember it by. The gorgeous soulful images of the wild west gave Winton C. Hoch an Oscar for Best Cinematography. The reason why Ford decided to make the trilogy is simple; he and his crew took part in WWII which was an experience that changed his career for ever - all of his subsequent films would be about war in one way or another; no matter whether it was a comedy (The Quiet Man) or a ruthless western (The Searchers).An old captain Nathan Brittles is five days away from being retired but the death of 200 hundred soldiers lead him to his last mission. He's not sure what to do after he gets retired because the cavalry is where he belongs. He is in between of past and future, and is unable of talking about his feelings; except the monologues to the grave of his wife which represents direct discussion with history - the only time he feels as his own; the theme of aging was a very common theme for John Ford.She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is a nostalgic western characterized with beautiful images full of sentimentality about the past of a nation, history and presence. It's important to remember that a historic film is always a description of two different ages, intentionally or unintentionally, the age portrayed and the age the film was made in. John Ford's films of the cavalry trilogy are without a doubt allegorical tales of post-war States; meanings and feelings about the war. The trilogy most certainly isn't escapism that someone might easily think it is - the topic is very serious, history isn't the main topic - but the presence.The film is remembered for its soulful imagery, not just because of the beauty in them, but because they defined the film. She Wore a Yellow Ribbon speaks through images and sounds - not through the story. Sentimentality, emotions about yearning and loss, the dignity of recessive men are passed to the audience through sights and sounds - not through textual themes.The visual magnificence of She Wore a Yellow Ribbon really speaks to its viewer. The extraordinary, mythical, colors are like directly from a beautiful mural where small details just start to melt and lose their meaning - personal melancholy clearly exhales from these soulful sights and sounds.