Customer Reviews

Destry Rides Again

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Destry Rides Again" is a five star, ten gallon hat of an adventure that casts gangly James Stewart as the unassuming Marshall of a lawless town. At first, Tom Destry's unassuming good nature pegs him as a push over amongst the criminal element in the neighborhood, as well as by the spurious ladies of the evening, fronted by the erotic intercontinental harlot, Frenchy (Marlene Dietrich). However, very soon Destry begins to reassert his power as the law of the land - a pivotal epiphany that leads to violence and death. There's also some great comedy to be had - particularly in a scene in which Destry decides to cool Frenchy off - literally, by soaking her with some ice water. Dietrich's rendition of "See What The Boys In The Backroom'll Have" proves why she was the toast of Berlin cabarets for many years before coming to Hollywood. The forgotten Mischa Auer co-stars as Boris - a simple-minded philanderer in a comedic subplot, who gets his comeuppance in the end. Jack Carson, Una Merkel and Charles Winninger also give credible performances.
THE TRANSFER: The genuine disappointment is that Universal doesn't quite understand they have a winner in this film. The transfer is so terribly marred by fading, age related artifacts and a poorly balanced print that there is very little to recommend this film on DVD. Contrast levels appear under exposed during night scenes and slightly over exposed elsewhere. There's a glaring and distracting amount of film grain present throughout the transfer that really distracts from the visual style and performances. Fine detail is lost in most scenes. Rarely does the quality of this disc surpass mediocrity. The audio is mono and fairly presented, though the critical ear will note distortions present.
EXTRAS: As usual for Universal classics - NONE!
BOTTOM LINE: This film should be seen because it is a gem among westerns - just not in its current condition!

Before I watched this highly-amusing comedy, with "dramatic" touches, it had always seemed so strange (to me), the coupling of reliable & naive Jimmy Stewart with the exotic, alluring and sophisticated Marlene Dietrich...and above all, in a western!!

It's true that she (Dietrich) had starred previously with equally naive and all-american Gary Cooper in both in "Morocco" and "Desire", but the former was a Pre-Code set in Von Sternberg's "exotic" vision of the world (the desert in this case) and the latter wasn't "outside" Diretrich "bounds" either (as a myth), because it was a sophisticated continental romance, produced by Lubistch.

But boy!, in this film Marlene is so different from her previous roles an highly convincing as a notorious saloon singer, "Frenchy" (she's from New Orleans, Louisiana), who's the mistress of the town's villain (Brian Donlevy, great).

After Bottleneck's sheriff (the name of the town) is killed, in rather "obscure" circumstances, Donlevy arranges that the town's drunk (engagingly played by Charles Winninger) is given the job, `cos it's for sure that he wouldn't cause any trouble at all...

But, he's wrong, as everybody else, because Winninger calls for Tom Destry to become his deputy-sheriff, whose heroic father he knew when he was young, ....but, wait a minute!!... this mild-mannered guy (Stewart) cannot be "notorious" Destry's son...but not all is said, `cos this peculiar guy is a no-nonsense man!

Great support too from Mischa Auer, as Winininger's hilarious Russian brother-in-law, so desperately trying to be addressed by his own last name (Androvsky? or sth. like that), and not as "Callahan", his wife's (Una Merkel) very respectable, late first husband.

Mention apart deserves one of the best women-fight I ever saw onscreen, between Merkel and Dietrich.

The only thing that displeased me was one "aspect" of the ending, which I'm sure must have been imposed by the strict Production Code regulations (you'll know what I'm talking about after watching the movie yourselves), but in all, it's a great film!

The DVD copy is OK, considering the film's from 1939.

I think that just about every film made in 1939 was great and "Destry Rides again" is certainly no exception to that claim..1939 was truly the Golden Age of Hollywood.I won't bother to review the plot as it is well covered in the many other reviews. I hesitated to buy the DVD as there were a few reviews claiming that the transfer was not up to par,overexposed,scratches etc. but I always loved this film and was willing to chance it and was glad that I did purchase it as the transfer to DVD was excellent,clear as any film made today if not clearer..I can only surmise that the reviews that claim that it was a poor transfer were referring to the VHS version and not the DVD.It certainly held up well for all it's 69 years and to see and hear Marlene Dietrich sing " See what the boys in the backroom will have" was worth the price of the DVD.

William J. Landis

The box my DVD came in really played up the humor in this flick, going so far as to call it "hilarious." That's dumb. It had humor in it, it also had a good old fashioned plot. And Jimmy Stewart and Marlene Dietrich. And great songs (Loesser only wrote the words for this one, and with only one false rhyme - cousins/dozens/husbands), all put across by an amazingly flexible (lots of different feelings, not just the usual stoneface and deadpan delivery I've come to expect of her) Dietrich. I loved it. I won't give away the ending in case there's someone left who doesn't know it, but I wonder whether the musical (Rome, Griffith, Gray) ended the same, of course I never saw the Bway show, and it irks me not to know. This movie actually made me dislike the Rome score that I have loved and enjoyed for years, and it also made me wonder how good Andy Griffith was in Jimmy Stewart's role. I can't imagine it. That part was made for Stewart. All the parts were well-cast and well done I thought. It's a great flick and I loved it. Not so funny though. A very serious plot with people getting killed. No carnage, blood and guts like you would expect today, but dead is dead. Still it was lightly done.

This is one of my favorite westerns and definitely one of my favorite Jimmy Stewart movies. In this film, Deputy Tom Destry rides into the rough town of Bottleneck to clean the place up...without a gun. Although he's an officer of the law, he's also a firm believer in taking care of business without a shooting iron. His father was the legendary Tom Destry, Sr., who was shot in the back in cold blood. Although he had the fastest hand in the West and the sharpest eye, as young Destry says of his dad and guns, "They didn't seem to do him much good."

But don't worry. There's still plenty of shoot-'em-up action in DESTRY RIDES AGAIN as well as the kind of rare, witty dialogue you just couldn't find in most westerns from way back when or today. DESTRY also features one of the defining performances in the career of Marlene Deitrich. For those who love the parody of her in BLAZING SADDLES, most of that was taken from DESTRY.

Although DESTRY RIDES AGAIN is now 66 years old, it has aged quite gracefully, and is still funner than ever to watch. It's a great movie, which very few people will not be pleased to watch over and over again.

With 2 entertaining couples (Dietrich-Stewart & Merkel-Auer), 2 excellent actors (Donlevy & Winninger), a very good supporting cast, all directed by one of the best (George Marshall) with a perfect mix of seriousness and fun with (more than) a touch of self-derision, my only wonder is how could anyone (including Marshall) think they could get a remake to be worthwhile, and how come it does not rank in the top 10 of the genre: 7 years before 'My Darling Clementine', it showed much more invention and acting???

In DESTRY RIDES AGAIN Jimmy Stewart is an easygoing deputy sheriff trying to clean up a corrupt frontier town without much help from his drunken boss. The movie has everything. It has action, suspense, comedy, romance and at least one very memorable song by Marlene Dietrich who plays a dance hall singer. Charles Winninger is the alcoholic sheriff and Brian Donlevy owns the dance hall which spawns most of the trouble in the area.

Marlene Dietrich is the sparkle which makes this film far superior to most other westerns and she is the reason it will remain a classic for a long time. A strong supporting cast includes Samuel S. Hines, Jack Carson, Mycha Auer and Allen Jenkins.

The movie received no Oscar nominations undoubtedly because of the stiff competition provided by its numerous first-class competitors in 1939 such as GONE WITH THE WIND. George Marshall also directed YOU CAN'T CHEAT AN HONEST MAN starring W.C. Fields in that same year.

For those who are not aware of the brilliant comedy western genre, this DVD will be a delight. The quiet, straight guy, James Stewart, the typical dance hall queen, Marlene Dietrich, and the superior comedy of Mischa Auer, combine to keep the action moving, while the 'bad guys' get found out and peace is restored to the town again.

All of this with humour and fun, which makes it rank as one of the true classic westerns of all time.

If you have never seen Stewart or Dietrich on the screen, or even if you have never heard of them, this film will give you a glimpse of the hay-day of the American Cinema, when Hollywood was turning out hit after hit in 1939.

I highly recommend it to anyone of all ages.

Everything that others have said about the quality is this fine Western satire is true. Amazing movie. Problem here is on a standard TV, the sound is unlike any other Universal DVD title I own: horrible tinny, hallow and echoey unacceptable sound.

Someonje really screwed up during the mastering process. (I have checked two copies and they are both hallow sounding...)

"Mr. Destry," says Kent, the tough gambler who runs the wide-open town of Bottleneck, "before we start drinking, I think you and me oughta come to an understanding." "Well, I'm all for folks understandin' each other. That's a mighty fine idea, Mr. Kent.," says Tom Destry, Jr., the town's new deputy sheriff. "I'm glad you agree with me," Kent says, "so I'll start by telling you that I have a very peculiar hobby." "So have I," says Tom. "Mine's carvin' napkin rings. What's yours?" Kent looks puzzled for a moment. "Mine's collectin' deputy sheriff's guns," he tells Tom. "Whenever I meet a new deputy, I always ask him for his gun. And I ask 'em real nice." "Well, I'm sorry Mr. Kent, I'm afraid this here's one gun your collection's gonna be minus." "You mean I'm gonna have to take it?" Kent says. "If you can. Now hold on, hold on. Don't get excited here. I was just tryin' to tell ya that I ain't got any guns. You see, if I would have had a gun there, why, one of us might have got hurt - and it might have been me. I wouldn't like that, would I?"

Is Destry Rides Again a spoof of cowboy movies, or a comedy, or a farce? Who knows? Who cares? It's one of the great films that emerged in 1939, and features excellent performances by James Stewart as the lanky, laconic, gun-averse Tom Destry and Marlene Dietrich as Frenchy, the saloon singer who has been playing a key role for Kent (Brian Donlevy) in cheating farmers and ranchers out of their property. Tom's been recruited by Wash Dimsdale, the town drunk, who was made sheriff by Kent as a joke when the previous sheriff disappeared with an apparent case of lead poisoning. Wash was friends with Tom's father, a tough, gun-wearing law enforcer who was shot in the back. When he sends for Tom, Jr., he's expecting a man as tough as Tom's father was. What Wash gets is Tom, Jr., who doesn't wear guns, tells stories to make a point, believes in law and order, and may just prove to be the smartest guy around.

Wash at first isn't convinced Tom can tame the town and beat Kent just by using the law. "The only way to do that is fill 'em full of lead," Wash tells Tom. "No, no, no, what for?" Tom says. "You shoot it out with 'em and for some reason or other, I don't know why, they get to look like heroes. But you put 'em behind bars and they look little and cheap, the way they oughta look." Destry's relationship with Frenchy is complex. In a way, he likes her but not what she stands for. He also thinks there's something better under the makeup than even she knows. "Oh now come on," he tells her. "I don't think you're half as bad as you make out to be." "Never mind what I am." she yells. He looks at her. "I'll bet you've got kind of a lovely face under all that paint, huh? Why don't you wipe it off someday and have a good look...and figure out how you can live up to it." She eventually does. The end of the movie is a curious, satisfying mixture of violence and sacrifice...and then humor and happiness.

Stewart does a perfect job as Destry. He's no one's fool, he's determined, he has a sense of wry humor. The surprise is Marlene Dietrich as Frenchy. She had been labeled box office poison. She took the assignment to create a better image for herself. She's still the glamour girl, but she's earthy, relaxed and funny to go along with that perfectly made-up face. Her wrestling match in the saloon with Una Merkel is a high point for both the movie and the new Dietrich. The two used no stunt doubles and went at each other with hair-pulling, wrestling holds, crashes against tables and all-out rolling around on the floor.

The cast also features a nice performance by Donlevy. He's ruthless and a killer, but, as with all Donlevy roles except for Beau Geste, there still is something likable about him. The cast includes some great character actors, including Charles Winninger, Mischa Auer, Jack Carson, Una Merkel and Billy Gilbert. My favorite is Samuel S. Hinds, who plays the tall, corrupt, tobacco-chewing, shrewd-eyed and elderly town mayor and judge. It's a clever performance.

Dietrich sings three saloon numbers in the movie, with music by Frederick Hollander and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The best, and best-known, is "See What the Boys in the Back Room Will Have..."

...And tell them I'm having the same.
Go see what the boys in the backroom will have,
And give them the poison they name.

And when I die, don't spend my money
On flowers and my picture in a frame.
Just see what the boys in the backroom will have,
And tell them I sighed,
And tell them I cried,
And tell them I died of the same.

Dietrich was lucky with Hollander. Nine years earlier in the movie that made her reputation, The Blue Angel, he gave her this song (with lyrics by Sammy Lerner):

Falling in love again, I never wanted to
What am I to do, I can't help it.
Love has always been my game, play it how I may
I was made that way, can't help it.

Men cluster to me like moths around a flame,
And if their wings burn, I know I'm not to blame
Falling in love again, I never wanted to
What am I to do, I can't help it.

Destry Rides Again is a first--rate movie that holds up over repeated viewing, thanks to an amusing, touching story, two inimitable performances by Stewart and Dietrich and a whole town's-full of skilled character actors. The DVD is bare-bones, but looks just fine.