Destry Rides Again

"They make the fighting sinful west blaze into action before your eyes!"

1939 1h 34m EN

👍

7.2

SOLID

🔥

96%

CERTIFIED FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

7.6

IMDB

★7.2TMDB · 205🍅96%Rotten Tomatoes●81Metacritic★7.6IMDB · 13,252

WesternComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Tom Destry, son of a legendary frontier peacekeeper, doesn’t believe in gunplay. Thus he becomes the object of widespread ridicule when he rides into the wide-open town of Bottleneck, the personal fiefdom of the crooked Kent.

“They make the fighting sinful west blaze into action before your eyes!”

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Cast

James Stewart
Tom Destry Jr.
Marlene Dietrich
Frenchy
Mischa Auer
Boris
Charles Winninger
Washington Dimsdale
Brian Donlevy
Kent
Allen Jenkins
Gyp Watson
Warren Hymer
Bugs Watson
Irene Hervey
Janice Tyndall

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: George Marshall
Writers: Felix Jackson, Felix Jackson, Henry Myers
Languages: English, Russian
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

87 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Russian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by George Marshall, shot by Hal Mohr. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Frank Skinner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Milton Carruth shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

James Stewart and Marlene Dietrich and Mischa Auer carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "They make the fighting sinful west blaze into action before your eyes!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0031225 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

George Marshall directs. Hal Mohr behind the camera. Frank Skinner scores. Milton Carruth cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

187 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Russian.
3Directed by George Marshall, shot by Hal Mohr. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Frank Skinner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Milton Carruth shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6James Stewart and Marlene Dietrich and Mischa Auer carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "They make the fighting sinful west blaze into action before your eyes!".
8IMDB entry: tt0031225 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Hal Mohr
Original score: Frank Skinner
Editing: Milton Carruth
Costume design: Vera West
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Destry Rides Again (1939)
Rotten Tomatoes: 96% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 81/100
IMDB rating: 7.6/10 · 13,252 votes
MPAA: Approved
US box office: $345,000

Awards

5 wins total

Also by

George Marshall

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2014-08-28
★ 8/10
Welcome to Bottleneck. Deputy Tom Destry Jr. (James Stewart) rides in to Bottleneck and sets about ridding the town of its riff-raff elements - without guns! Based on the novel by Max Brand, Destry Rides Again simultaneously spoofed the Western genre whilst reinvigorating Marlene Dietrich's flagging career. At first glance it seemed an odd casting choice to choose Dietrich as the bawdy saloon chanteuse, Frenchy, especially since Paulette Goddard was originally cast for the role. But it really comes off, where Dietrich's loud and brusque portrayal perfectly plays off of Jimmy Stewart's laid back and gentle mannered Destry performance. The role of Destry is tailor made for Stewart, his everyman charm sits perfect for a character who is at first painted as a wimp, he drinks milk - he carries no guns, but who better than Stewart to fully realise a character that uses brains over brawn to great effect? A film of this type, though, is only as good as its villain, and thankfully Brian Donlevy steps up to the plate with a suitable grumpy sneer, it's a fine performance from a very undervalued performer. Directed by the highly experienced George Marshall, Destry Rides Again is chock full of the elements that make a good family film even better than it should be, jokes a plenty, goodies and baddies, songs and quality slices of drama, all combine here to make this a very entertaining and rewarding picture indeed. While for those into girl power really need to check out the ending of this picture for sure. Little Joe, Little Joe... 8/10
talisencrw2016-07-31
★ 9/10
This was very interesting and I enjoyed it significantly. It's weird watching very early James Stewart--he's not what one would consider a conventional romantic male lead--and this is a very bizarre Western/comedy/musical. Anything starring Dietrich of this vintage is priceless, no doubt. Very weird, especially considering America's ever-present right-to-bear-arms controversy, watching a film like this, too. A purely magical film that's essential to own and re-watch for any Stewart, Dietrich or Western enthusiasts--and a strong reason why 1939 was the greatest year ever for American cinema.
CinemaSerf2022-06-26
★ 7/10
Brian Donlevy ("Kent") and Malrene Dietrich ("Frenchy") pretty much run the town of Bottle Neck. Everyone comes to their saloon where they blow off steam and where she regularly serenades them with some toe-tappers. Upstairs, "Kent" runs a crooked poker game and together they fleece gullible old "Claggett" out of his ranch. He goes to the sheriff who promises to intercede, and pretty soon the town drunk has a new job! This new sheriff "Dimsdale" (Charles Winninger) worked for the original "Destry" back in the day, so determined to clean up the town for good, he sends for his son "Tom" (James Stewart). Nobody is prepared for the rather dapper gent who disembarks from the stage without a gun. Everyone assumes he is going to be a bit of a washout, but of course there is more than one way to skin a cat - as we are about to discover. Stewart is on good form in this much more subtle and enjoyable western. He plays a perfect foil to the undoubted star in Marlene Dietrich whose face just lights up the screen, and whose voice with "See what the boys in the backroom..." and "Little Joe" has that legendary tone to it that has this raucous crowd eating out of her hand. There is a solid and entertaining supporting cast, and though the conclusion is maybe a bit rushed, it all ends the only way it can and Emmeline Pankhurst would have been proud.