terrible... so disappointed.

Lack of good storyline.

Brilliant and touching

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

In "Two Rode Together" John Ford returns to the theme he had earlier dealt with in "The Searchers", that of white people raised or held captive by the Indians. (In "The Unforgiven" from the previous year, Ford's rival John Huston had dealt with the opposite theme, that of an Indian girl- strangely played by a miscast Audrey Hepburn- raised as white by her adoptive family). The "two" of the film's title are Marshal Guthrie McCabe and his friend Lieutenant Jim Gary who are tasked by Gary's superior, Major Fraser, with the job of ransoming any white captives being held by the Comanche. Because Fraser is coming under pressure from relatives of the captives the two are authorised to use any means to achieve this end, including offering modern rifles to the Comanche in exchange, even though it is normally taken for granted in Westerns that the greatest reason any white man can commit is to sell weapons to the Indians.Ford's normal favourite actor John Wayne does not appear in this film; the leading roles are taken by James Stewart and Richard Widmark. In the early part of his career, Stewart was not an actor particularly associated with Westerns ("Destry Rides Again" being an exception) but in the fifties he got a taste for the genre and made a number of fine ones with director Anthony Mann. He fell out with Mann after the latter withdrew from "Night Passage", but this did not affect his love for the Western and he found a new collaborator in Ford. They did not, it would appear, get on particularly well on the set of "Two Rode Together", but nevertheless went on to make three move films together, including "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" and "Cheyenne Autumn".One weakness that occasionally crept into Ford's movies was a tendency to introduce some inappropriate humour into an otherwise serious film. That was even true of films as good as "The Searchers" and "Cheyenne Autumn", and it is certainly true here. The film is based around some serious themes such as ethnic identity, racism and the relationship between Native Americans and white settlers. It purports to examine the bigotry shown by many whites towards both the Indians themselves and any whites felt to be "tainted" by association with them. (Those captives whom McCabe and Gary eventually rescue are not made welcome by their own people). It includes some violent incidents such as a woman being stabbed to death and a teenage boy being lynched by a mob. Yet the tone is at times curiously light-hearted, especially in its depiction of the relationship between McCabe and Gary.The main culprit is Stewart, who had done some great work with Mann but here seems far too laid-back. McCabe is far from being a spotless hero; when we first meet him he is acting as the business partner of a "saloon owner", which here is a polite euphemism for "brothel keeper", and living off a percentage of her immoral earnings. His motives for accepting Fraser's commission are mostly mercenary ones. Now in his collaborations with Mann Stewart (who in the earlier part of his career had generally played clean-cut "Mr Nice Guy" characters) created some memorably flawed heroes, such as Howard Kemp in "The Naked Spur", but seems unable to do the same here. Ford was not particularly satisfied with "Two Rode Together"; he believed that he had treated the same theme far better in "The Searchers". (He was dead right there). This is not perhaps the worst Ford film; that must be that horribly overrated sentimental piece of Irish blarney, "The Quiet Man". It is, however, the worst Ford Western I have seen, and probably the worst Stewart Western as well. 5/10

Marshal James Stewart and cavalry lieutenant Richard Widmark go searching for white captives of Comanches. OK western is not among Ford's or Stewart's bests. It's watchable and enjoyable enough for western fans, however. Stewart offers the best performance in the film. His character is cynical and mercenary. Widmark is fine. Woody Strode plays a militant young Comanche warrior named Stone Calf. There are several similarities with Ford's masterpiece The Searchers. There's the plot, of course, about two men going after white people held by Comanches. The Comanche leader in the Searchers is played by Henry Brandon, who also plays a Comanche leader here. John Qualen, Olive Carey, and Harry Carey, Jr. appear in both films, although with significantly bigger parts in The Searchers. Ken Curtis plays a very similar comic relief character in this film as he did in The Searchers and even has a comedic fight over a woman as he did in that film. Obviously this movie is nowhere near the level of The Searchers. This is an OK western but nothing extraordinary. The Searchers is one of the greatest films ever made. Sadly, all of this just serves to remind you that you're watching a movie that really could have been directed by anybody. Ford only did this for the payday and hated it by all accounts. He reportedly took his frustrations out on the cast and crew, particularly Jimmy Stewart. Ford would make only one more great film in his career after this, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

No wonder director Ford considered the movie "crap". That may be a little too strong, but the results are definitely sub-par for the legendary filmmaker. If The Searchers (1956) dealt with whites kidnapped by Indians, the plot here is a reversal: Whites raised as Comanches are ransomed back into the white world, and in the process of reintegration, settler bigotry is exposed. That's a good thoughtful premise but the screenplay can't seem to provide a focus on anything. As a result, the story meanders from event to event in generally unfocused fashion. For whatever reason, writer Nugent can't seem to organize the elements into a coherent, effective narrative.Then there's the miscasting, especially Widmark as a 45-year old West Point lieutenant, who's supposed to romance a 26-year old Shirley Jones, who looks and acts like she just stepped out of a malt shop. And shouldn't forget poor 55-year old Andy Devine, a very un-cavalrylike cavalry sergeant. Somehow, his grossly over-weight figure is just not that funny. On the other hand, Stewart's not miscast, but this may be the only movie where his usual low-key style gives way to some serious over-acting, which unfortunately overshadows his low-key co-star Widmark. His character is, however, surprisingly dark and combative, an interesting feature.At the same time, for a western, there's little action, mostly just palaver and clumsy stabs at humor. However, the lynching scene is well staged and a real grabber. Anyway, it's pretty clear that director Ford's heart wasn't really in the production for whatever reason. Unfortunately, the end result is one of the least of his many fine Westerns.

"Two Rode Together" is considered by many to be one of John Ford's lesser westerns (including Ford himself). It's basically a vehicle for the film's two stars James Stewart and Richard Widmark.The basic plot has army lieutenant Jim Gary tricking town marshal Guthrie (that's right) McCabe (Stewart) into returning with him to his fort where he is cajoled into embarking on a search for white captives of the Commanches in order to return them to their families who are waiting nearby as part of a wagon train. Gary and McCabe then proceed into the camp of Commanche chief Quanah Parker (Henry Brandon). They return with two captives, Elena de la Madriaga (Linda Cristal), the wife of Commanche rebel Stone Calf (Woody Strode) and a teenage warrior Running Wolf (David Kent). Tragic events follow.Ford borrows ideas from many of his previous westerns. The opening scene for example, shows Stewart sitting back in his chair with his feet up on the railing much like Henry Fonda in "My Darling Clementine" (1946). The whole premise of "Two Rode Together" is the search for white captives not unlike the plot of "The Searchers" (1956) even to the extent of casting Henry Brandon in much the same role he played in the earlier film. The Cleggs (Ford Rainey, Harry Carey Jr., Ken Curtis) are similar to the point of using the same surname as characters in "Wagonmaster" (1950). There is even a commanding officer's ball much like that in "Fort Apache" (1948).The film is light on action....hardly a shot is fired. Except for individual clashes there are no major incidents between the cavalry and the Indians. There is but one fistfight, and that is played for laughs.There are however, some memorable moments in this film as there are in every John Ford picture. One involves a lengthy scene on a riverbank between Stewart and Widmark where they trade humorous remarks. The meeting in the Indian camp of the captive mother of the Clegg boys (played by silent star Mae Marsh) is very moving. The plea of John Qualen for the return of his daughter is also very touching.As in most Ford westerns, there is a large cast. The female lead is a miscast Shirley Jones complete with braided pig tails who is seeking her captured brother, the husband/wife team of John McIntire as the crusty Major Frazer and Jeanette Nolan as a slightly mad Mrs. McCandles, Andy Devine, along for comedy relief as Sgt. Posy and Willis Bouchey as Mr. Wringle who tries to buy his son, any son's return. Also in the cast are Ford Regulars Anna Lee and Jack Pennick and look for a very young Ted Knight as Lt. Upton.Not his best western, but any John Ford western is worth a look if only to see what parts he assigned to his so-called stock company.