Hondo

"Out of the gun smoke into her heart!"

1953 1h 24m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

🔥

90%

CERTIFIED FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

IMDB

★6.5TMDB · 258🍅90%Rotten Tomatoes●79Metacritic★7IMDB · 13,214

Western

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Army despatch rider Hondo Lane discovers a woman and her son living in the midst of warring Apaches, and he becomes their protector.

“Out of the gun smoke into her heart!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

John Wayne
Hondo Lane
Geraldine Page
Angie Lowe
Ward Bond
Buffalo Baker
Michael Pate
Vittorio
James Arness
Lennie
Rodolfo Acosta
Silva
Leo Gordon
Ed Lowe
Tom Irish
Lt. McKay

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Farrow
Writers: James Edward Grant, Louis L'Amour, Louis L'Amour
Languages: English
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

RUNTIME

Did you know

84 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

73 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Farrow, shot by Robert Burks. 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 Hugo Friedhofer. 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 Ralph Dawson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

ERA

Did you know

John Wayne and Geraldine Page and Ward Bond carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Out of the gun smoke into her heart!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0045883 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Farrow directs. Robert Burks behind the camera. Hugo Friedhofer scores. Ralph Dawson cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

184 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
273 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by John Farrow, shot by Robert Burks. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Hugo Friedhofer. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Ralph Dawson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6John Wayne and Geraldine Page and Ward Bond carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Out of the gun smoke into her heart!".
8IMDB entry: tt0045883 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Robert Burks
Original score: Hugo Friedhofer
Editing: Ralph Dawson
Makeup / hair: Web Overlander
Runtime: 84 min · 1h 24m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Hondo (1953)
Rotten Tomatoes: 90% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 79/100
IMDB rating: 7/10 · 13,214 votes
MPAA: PG

Awards

Nominated for 2 Oscars. 2 nominations total

Also by

John Farrow

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Selected frames

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Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2017-05-03
★ 8/10
A man oughta do what he thinks is right. Leonard Maltin proudly does the intro for the DVD special edition of Hondo, his regard for the film is obvious. Maltin, who also provides a commentary track for the film, muses on the importance of Hondo in light of the 50s tonal shift in the Western genre. A time when the Western cast off its one dimensional approach of cowboy/cavalry heroes slaughtering the enemy (Indians) purely as an entertainment medium. But is Hondo any good? And is it also worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as Delmer Daves'-Broken Arrow (Maltin again) which ushered in the 50s with a bold and poignant crack of the whip? The answer to both questions possibly depends on how much you enjoy John Wayne movies in the first place. Here The Duke, playing a half bred Indian it should be noted, is wonderfully framed amongst the Camargo, Chihuahua (Mexico) location. The plot (starting off like Shane, released the same year) follows an interesting course, requiring Hondo to ultimately protect those he has fell in for, while simultaneously understanding his enemy since his blood contains the very same. Also of interest is that Hondo has very much become a solitary man of the wilderness, so when his emotions lean towards love and fatherly instincts, it makes for a nice bit of in character confliction. Something that Wayne delivers with much conviction. Geraldine Page was Oscar nominated for her role as Angie, and rightly so as well. Strong-willed and waiting out of loyalty for her thuggish husband Ed (Leo Gordon) to return to the family home. Angie herself is conflicted by her regard for the Apache and the stirrings brought about by Hondo's considerable masculine presence. Especially when a revelation later in the piece calls for her to decide her life course. All of which gives Page the license to feed off Wayne's presence, to which it provides great interplay that makes the film a potent and intriguing character piece. Stock players such as Ward Bond and James Arness aren't given much to do, and due to the film having originally being shot in 3D, the thrusts at the screen by various weapons are more quirky than impacting. But still, backed up by a fine score from Hugo Friedhofer and containing a rousing battle laden finale (apparently filmed by John Ford as director John Farrow had been called elsewhere), Hondo is a cinematic treat for like minded individuals. It's not as important as Maltin and many others would have us believe, but that doesn't stop it being an essential watch for fans of Wayne, Page and particularly those into Westerns in general. 7/10
CinemaSerf2022-06-24
★ 7/10
Though the premiss here is hardly original, I still found this to be one of John Wayne's better efforts. He is the eponymous army rider who happens on a remote ranch inhabited by "Angie" (Geraldine Page) and her young son "Johnny" (Lee Aaker) who appear to have been deserted by her husband. He knows that the local Mescalero Apache are disgruntled because the army have broken the truce, but cannot persuade them to leave their home. His visit to the nearby fort confirms his suspicions and after a deadly altercation with her husband on his way back to the ranch, he encounters the warring natives who - luckily for him - have taken the family under the protection of their chief "Vittorio" (Michael Pate). His death, however, changes that dynamic and now "Hondo" must reconcile his need to protect his new family with his decency towards the wronged Apache. It's short and sweet, this. There is plenty of action to keep it flowing along quickly and Page injects quite a bit of grit and determination into her character that is well complemented by a confident young Aaker. Ward Bond crops up now and again, but it's clearly just a vehicle for the star, and he does well enough.