Customer Reviews

Johnny Guitar

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Joan really is the actress of the 20th Century, and beyond... In the 1950's during a boring time in her career (this movie is smack-dab in the middle of Torch Song and the even more obscure, "Female On The Beach") she decided to re-invent herself as a western rebel in "Johnny Guitar." However I hate to admit it, but "Johnny Guitar" is one of those incredibly rare Joan Crawford movies that I would have thoroughly munched on even if she weren't in it!

Oh, before I forget, here's the particulars of this cult-classic:
Johnny Guitar (May 27, 1954) (Studio: Republic)
Distributor: Paramount (Although correct me if I'm wrong, but I honestly believe that Turner/Warner Home Video has their hand in just about all of Joan's films, even those that aren't from the MGM or Warners libraries.)
Director: Nicholas Ray
Runtime Listing: 110 mins
Color/BW: Color (Trucolor)
(Joan played: Vienna)
Brief Synopsis:
A lady saloon owner battles a female rancher out to frame her for murder.

And here's the main cast (actually, these are my favorites, from the main cast!:)
Joan Crawford ~ The Star of the Show ~ Vienna
Mercedes McCambridge ~ Emma Small
Sterling Hayden ~ Johnny 'Guitar' Logan
Scott Brady ~ Dancin' Kid
Ben Cooper ~ Turkey Ralston
Ernest Borgnine ~ Bart Lonergan
Royal Dano ~ Corey
Frank Ferguson ~ Marshal Williams

"Johnny Guitar" is actually based on a novel by Roy Chanslor and is undisputedly the granddaddy of the Female Western Film, because it proudly serves as the original prototype of this genre. It's also a little known-fact that there really was a real Johnny "Guitar!" Johnny "Guitar" Watson was a well-known musician, who adopted his moniker after he saw Sterling Hayden play the title-role. Although, that's really where the similarities end.

...Vienna, a saloon owner of the Old Wild-West is just as tough and heavy-fisted as the men that frequent her establishment. Vienna's nemesis is the (almost) equally-equipped Emma Small. Emma wants to run Vienna out of town because she believes that she is a wanton woman that was behind her brother's death.

Ms. McCambridge was such an understated actress; I'm not sure why. Needless to say, I really enjoyed her in this movie. And, I loved those stare-downs that Emma gave Vienna. Emma looked at her like she was some finger-lickin' good tender-vittles! Perhaps, the real reason why Emma loathed Vienna so much was because Vienna wasn't interested. Vienna was hungry for meat, not flesh! But really, wasn't Emma totally digging Vienna like she was a bowl of fancy-fiest...? I honestly think that Joan, oops, I mean Vienna (wink wink) was not into chicks. She didn't swing that way (now the boys in this picture, that's a different story.) Maybe she patted a few bottoms and was a little touchy-feely, but that was about it.

This movie has many important messages, subtexts, subplots and perhaps even some hidden meanings. IMHO if you're watching "Johnny Guitar" and miss some of this, then you're really missing a big part of the element of this film. ...The battle of good over evil... The battle to be the alpha male... ...Trying just to fit in and be accepted... ...The socioeconomic division between Emma and Veinna's "gangs"... But, the main message that I learned, is that a gun and a woman with (severe) sexual-frustration is a very dangerous mix!

Perhaps the biggest difference between Emma and Vienna was that Emma was a nut, and Vienna was not. ...Instead, there really was something about Vienna that was so primal and perhaps even bent because I picked up that she was distraught, lonely and even desperate, at times. You could almost see her lip quivering as she barked out orders to her boys. She was also terrified of losing control. Perhaps, Vienna mimicked Joan. Frankly, I have always believed that at least a couple of Joan's hubbies had some sugar in their respected tanks which only made her more starved for a little bit of attention and affection. I'm sure she spent many nights alone, hating herself. Joan was the type of woman that loved being around other people and was petrified of being alone. She wasn't a picky lady; she just wanted to hear a heartbeat. What's wrong with that? Only a very cold person who is incapable of any type of real human emotion could not relate to her; Vienna and Joan, respectively.

Over the past sixty years, it's been intimated that there was a personal rivalry between Miss Crawford and Bette Davis. I have no idea if that's true or not, but I am certain of one thing; the personal hatred between Joan and Ms. McCambridge was very real (not to mention surreal!) And, that's what made their characters so absorbing and amusing. Anyone looking at them shoot each other down could tell that they each had pure spite in their eyes. Both ladies were desperately jealous of each other (both on the silver screen and off!) Remember, back in '54, Mercedes was still considered a young ing'enue who was hot after her Oscar win; I bet Joan wanted to wrap that nude golden-statue around her flabby little neck!

I also enjoyed Sterling Hayden and the legendary Mr. Ernest Borgnine. Both men were amazing actors (actually, Mr. Borgnine still is!) who are total geniuses when it comes to the theatrical arts. But another actor in this movie that I adored (at least more than any of the other guys,) is little Ben Cooper. Wasn't Turkey so adorable? He looked almost like the love-child of Jason Priestly and Jimmy Dean! I love how he'd try to play tough so the other big-boys would play with him; prompting Vienna to hiss, "that's pretty good Turkey, for a boy" in a condescending and hateful tone. ...What wound up happening to him was tragic because Emma only used Turkey for her own selfish need for self-gratification. But wasn't it funny watching Emma goad Turkey into "outing" Vienna. Did you notice that huge smile on Emma's face (as her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree) while she was trying to get Turkey to fess up? This woman was loving every second of it! And, frankly, so was I! (BTW, I included some pics of Ben Cooper from this movie on this page since I had a lot of difficulty find others, elsewhere.)

...Joan was a very kind woman who always looked out for her family, friends and fans. But, she could also be very competitive, especially where another woman was concerned. ...While filming the pickup scenes, Joan felt that Mercedes was getting away with murder. So what does she do? Joan runs into Mercedes' dressing room and cuts up her costumes in a blinding, seething rage! Hell hath no fury like Miss Crawford PO'd! Of course, no one had the balls to tell Miss Crawford to calm down! Although, Miss Crawford never publicly "dissed" Ms. McCambridge (or any of her colleagues, because that was totally unprofessional and a big no-no as far as she was concerned,) her counterpart was always more than happy to badmouth Joan to anyone who would listen, stating that she was, "a mean, tipsy, powerful, rotten-egg lady." Powerful is right!

Can we talk a little about the colors and the apparel chosen for this film? I really believe the colors were very symbolic. Did you notice Emma was dressed in green when she first confronted Vienna who had that monochromatic blouse on! And, I loved those cute bows (or are they ascots?) that Joan wore because it reminded everyone that even though she was the leader of the pack, after all is said and done, she was still, just a girl! I especially love the scene when Vienna was playing the piano, wearing that floor-length white gown. And did you see how she was playing the piano, she was so in to it! It was just so outrageous and in-your-face! It was like she was having this intense o-r-g-a-s-i-m (it's too bad Emma wasn't around, I'm sure she would have loved to have been a part of it.) Total narcissistic entertainment! The costumes for the boys didn't change much. I don't know about you, but as far as I'm concerned, there's nothing sexier than watching a manly man strut around in a cowboy hat and skin-tight pants! And I loved that black funeral ensemble that Emma wore with the veil. So over-the-top and dramatic!! Wasn't it so funny watching her run around dressed like this with her gun in hand, ordering her boys to go after Vienna!

Another aspect (and perhaps a cause?) of the rivalry between Emma and Vienna (not to mention Joan and Ms. McCambridge!) was that both ladies were vying to be the almighty Queen Bee. And, although one can attempt to try, in the end it's futile because you just can't fit two Queen Bees inside a hive packed with men! And no matter how careful you are, no matter what happens, if you screw with the Queen Bee you'll always wind up getting stung! I absolutely adore the part in the beginning of the film where Vienna is standing on the stairs, in her saloon, and Emma says to her "I'm going to kill you" and Vienna says without flinching, "if I don't kill you first..." Wasn't Emma's voice so terrifying? She's was more scarier than Bea Arthur, Leona Helmsley and Ms. Barbra Streisand all put together! (BTW it's no coincidence that Ms. McCambridge was the voice of The Exorcist , although, the poor thing had to turn around and sue just to get billed for this!) ...If I was a gambler, I'd put my money on Joan to win this barroom brawl! Because Joan's the Best of the West...!

Why isn't "Johnny Guitar" on DVD, yet? I don't understand; what are they waiting for? Fortunately, it's at least on home-video. And, it does come on television often; usually on TCM or Encore Western. But wouldn't it be great if the powers that be were to release a special edition boxed set? They could even interview some of the remaining cast. I know that Ben Cooper is still very much alive. Although, sadly Ms. McCambridge passed away 4 years ago (at the age of 87.) Keep in mind, there is also a non-region specific DVD from South Korea. The South Korean DVD includes both English and Korean subtitles, however it's very easy to turn them off, and this DVD will certainly play fine on a regular region 1 player. It's distributed by company called "YDM DVD Video." I'm very happy with this DVD because it's the next best thing to having a special edition/boxed set.

Some of my favorite lines from this picture:

Vienna (to Johnny, after the bank holdup): You don't know her, I do.

Emma (to Vienna:) You're just a railroad tramp.

Vienna (to Turkey after he asks her what he should do when Emma & co. catch him:) Save yourself.

Emma (to Vienna:) Look at you staring down at us with that gun.

Emma (said to the Marshall and his men when no one will come forward to hang Vienna:) I will pay $100 to any man.

Vienna (to Emma's crew:) I've never done anything to hurt any of you, don't make me do anything now.

Turkey (said to Vienna in a very meek voice after he was badly injured:) Help me.

Vienna (said to Emma when none of the other boys will come forward and hang Vienna:) You're going to have to do it yourself Emma.

The Marshal (said to Emma after she asks him why they aren't racing to Vienna's to take her prisoner:) You have 5 years of hate, you can give my boys 5 hours.

I really love how the movie ended. It was just so dramatic, especially when the theme-song played and so beautiful, too. I think my favorite part was watching Vienna and Johnny kiss beneath the waterfall. It was so romantic.

This film was originally billed as "Joan's Greatest Triumph." I certainly don't know if I'd agree with that and I'm certain that if Miss Crawford could speak to us from up above she would thoroughly disagree with this assessment. Some fans have referred to "Johnny Guitar" as "Mildred Pierce with a Gun." But if Joan could hear them now she'd slap anyone silly for daring to mention her defining-film in the same breath as this one! Joan was always ashamed of "Johnny Guitar" and felt it disgraced her long and impressive film-resume, and sadly, she never forgave herself for making it. In the late 70's, when reflecting on her life and accomplishments, Miss Crawford could only remember her failures when asked about this feature film, "I should have had my head examined. No excuse for a picture being this bad or for me making it." (I love those quotes by the way, because it only makes me want to watch this movie even more!) But I am certain of one thing, if Joan is watching us above in heaven, she would be very pleased to know that there is an entirely new generation of fans who are totally turned on to "Johnny Guitar" and more importantly, to her!

JOHNNY GUITAR is a very enjoyable western melodrama with Joan Crawford, strikingly filmed in colour, as Vienna the misunderstood saloon owner who spearheads the drive for a railroad to be built through her small town. She comes under the hatred and scorn of her fellow townsfolk, not the least of which a scary pariah called Emma Small (played wonderfully by Mercedes McCambridge in another of her trademark characters with bull-dyke tendencies). Vienna's only help lies in her former love, Johnny Guitar (Sterling Hayden). When Vienna is accused of taking part in a robbery it sets into motion a chain of events that could end in her lynching...

This film is a hair's breath from being high-camp. Joan Crawford plays Vienna in her usual style, exchanging insults and threats with McCambridge in the film's most memorable scenes. A choice line of McCambridge is "She's nuthin' but a railroad tramp". Watching their scenes made me think of Faye Dunaway and Diana Scarwid in MOMMIE DEAREST, they seem to create the same energy on screen, perhaps they watched JOHNNY GUITAR in preparing for their performances?...

JOHNNY GUITAR is more than a western, and a must-see for fans of Crawford.

Bizarre Western directed by the great Nicholas Ray and starring Joan Crawford as Vienna, a tough saloon/casino owner. Vienna is waiting for a railroad to come through to make her business boom but Emma Small (Mercedes McCambridge) wants her dead. Emma hates Vienna supposedly because The Dancin' Kid (Scott Brady) likes Vienna instead of her. Vienna hires Johnny Guitar (Sterling Hayden) to play guitar in the saloon. They are old lovers from Vienna's dance-hall girl days. But all hell breaks loose when a bank robbery goes wrong and Emma implicates Vienna as the leader and leads a posse to lynch her. Vienna is rescued and takes refuge in the Dancin' Kid's hideout. Emma and Vienna will face off before it's over. Incredible tale written by Philip Yordan and laden with symbolism that has caused some to compare this film to the McCarthy witch hunts of the 50's. It's a fascinating piece all right. It's in color and features a great supporting cast with Ernest Borgnine, Ward Bond and John Carradine. McCambridge is pure hellfire as the self-righteous Emma and Crawford is noble and stoic as Vienna and supposedly did her own stunts. Allegedly, Crawford and McCambridge despised each other on the set and this information kind've adds to the fun of the film. Peggy Lee sings the haunting title ballad. A must see. Watch for it.

Two giant actress ; two strong characters, two Oscar winners : Crawford and Mc Cambridge play hard and displace the man condition to invited guests . Both women will assume the action decide what is wrong and right , create her own conduct codes and fight for her happiness , never wait for the man decision , but vice versa.
But Nick Ray goes far beyond there is still more . Ray avails this original gaze to illustrate the central dramatic nucleus : Emma represents the antique Status Q ; she opposes to the railroad construction because it goes against her interests over the territory while Vienna is the progressive vision of business and knows the railroad will enrich her possession .
As you know both positions in conflict had been focused among the Indians and White men but never among two women .
Think it carefully and try to link this film with another one which is extremely related : Thelma and Louise . The first is a real combat ; the second is evasion . But both of two have many commons aspects . The man is relegated to a second plane . They only are stone spectators and only act as product of the circumstances ; I mean act reactively but never assume the control of the things . They are concerned around the effects not the causes.
Bernardo Bertolucci properly called this film "The first of the baroque westerns" and Francois Truffaut commented : It's not about horses and guns , it is about people and emotions" while Andrew Sarris stated : "Freudian feminism" .
Based on Philip Yordan and Roy Chanslor `s novel this is to me one of three gems of Nicholas Ray in his emblematic career , the other two would be Rebel without cause and Bitter victory .

An unconventional take on the conventional Western genre.

On the surface you have title character "Johnny Guitar"---onetime ace gunfighter, now laconic loner and wanderer who has renounced his violent past and refuses to wear his guns. He looks up an old saloon-girl love (Joan Crawford as "Vienna") only to discover a town in turmoil---both his gal and the General Good need defending...

You might think you see what's coming: Johnny, after agonized moral deliberation, straps on his guns again and rights the prevalent wrongs, possibly with the help of his lady-friend, who's ambivalent about his violent past... A la "High Noon", et al.

But NO... Which is what makes this movie such an interesting, important milestone in the Western genre. Johnny G's role in the proceedings is almost immediately negligible; he hangs around the saloon and watches his past amour Vienna first boss around her employees, then confront the angry lynch-mob that stomps in, then placate the bunch of alleged outlaws who drunkenly seek refuge from a sandstorm and proceed to tussle with the already-assembled law folk... Vienna vanquishes all foes, with Johnny making smart remarks, but doing little else, throughout. Even after the law leaves and Johnny brawls with a gang-member, all of his action is off-camera---while we see Vienna parry verbally with one outlaw inside the saloon, we hear the sounds of scuffling outside, then witness the defeated bad guy come stumbling through the swinging doors. (Now WHEN has a Western EVER deprived us of a good old-fashioned street-brawl?? Aside from gunfights, that's the next best excuse for action.)

Johnny and Vienna DO kiss and make up, of course. But on the morning after, even though Vienna IS wearing a dress rather than the slacks we first saw her in, the two immediately head to the town bank, where Vienna again plays an active role in the goings-on while Johnny waits passively outside... He eventually does strap on the guns again, but it's certainly a minor plot point by that time: The final obligatory shoot-out has nothing at all to do with him.

Joan Crawford seems absolutely WIRED in her performance here, especially in the first half of the film, before the more conventional chasing/lynch-mob stuff starts. The early scenes in the saloon are especially fascinating and tension-filled because of Crawford's weirdly quivering intensity. She later regretted taking the role ("I should have had my head examined"), but time has proven her wrong---both she and the film are truly worthy of the cult status they've achieved.

For starters, I am not the biggest fan of the Western in general. It really takes a lot to win me over in this particular genre, since I have placed a stigma on the mere title and always tend to walk into these films with a layer of apprehension that is hard to shake off. Some have prevailed, but most (even the lauded ones) fail to do anything special for me. In all honesty, I would have never watched this film had some friends lauded the heck out of Crawford's performance; otherwise I would have steered clear (considering that Crawford is not really one of the legends I am eternally fond of).

I cannot say that this is a good film, because it's overridden camp values are far too uneven to be anything commendable, but there are certain facets of this film that are outstanding in all honesty (Crawford included) that it certainly deserves to be seen and discussed.

The story revolves around a saloon owner named Vienna who is loathed by a sexually repressed woman named Emma. Emma is infatuated with the outlaw known as the Dancin' Kid, but the Kid is semi-smitten with Vienna, who really isn't interested in his nonsense. Instead, Vienna has just hired Johnny Guitar, formally badboy Johnny Logan, and is obviously interested in picking up where they left off (he is an old flame), but Logan is hesitant considering that the Kid's advances seem rather forthright and possibly reciprocated. Emma, seeking revenge upon Vienna for being more of a woman than she'll ever be, attempts to have the entire lot of them hung when the Kid and his cohorts rob a local bank. This leads to a lynch mob being formed and Logan finally snapping out of his catatonic stupor long enough to `get the girl'.

The movie is kind of a mess. The sad reality is that it somewhat lays flat throughout half the film. The film is really three or so long scenes drug out for dramatic effect, but Crawford (and to an extent Scott Brady) seem to be the only ones understanding the dramatic nature of the piece. Everyone else is either overdoing it to horribly caricatured degrees or not attempting anything at all. Sterling Hayden is lifeless in the role. He doesn't brood in the way that makes you wonder whats going on inside, he simple fizzles before your very eyes. Mercedes McCambridge (in perma-stank face) is atrocious here. Her acting is the epitome of poor, overdoing every gesture and facial expression to the point where she comes across like a psychotic eleven-year-old suffering from constipation. I just wish that the initial premise had been more deeply explored to create a fuller film. At the end of the day, `Johnny Guitar' feels somewhat hollow.

But then there is the good. Crawford is simply divine. Like I mentioned, she isn't really my cup of tea. I've liked her before, but I never understood the hoopla surrounding her celebrity before. She was on the lower tier of celebrated actresses, nowhere near as profound or talented as the likes of Ingrid Bergman, Bette Davis or Deborah Kerr. She was constantly too aware of her face, contorting it to express herself in a way that read falsified and far from natural. That `problem' was actually a major plus for her here because it played to the campy nature of the film while building a background for this woman that wasn't truly expounded on within the script. Then there was the cinematography, which was delightful (even if most of the backdrops were obviously painted), and that score by Victor Young (complete with that song sung by Patti Page is sublime. The score may be one of the greatest film scores of all time; seriously.

So in the end, I recommend this. You may like it far more than I, considering my apathy towards the genre in general. It is certainly a mess, but a hot one at that.

What a movie. The emotions, tensions, and prejudices are all writ large, so there's no need to go digging for subtleties here. Body language, dialogue, color, and set design all clamor for our attention. It's a very noisy, violent movie from that point of view. Extremely stylized.

The sexual tension is not just between Crawford and Hayden, but between Crawford and McCambridge as well (surprising for a movie of its time). McCambridge's Emma has that hate that clearly comes from denied lust; Crawford's Vienna has just enough disdain to suggest she's not quite indifferent, but since Johnny's in town, there'll be none of That.

Also note that these two women hold all the power in town, while the men wander around being outlaws and ex-gunslingers and patsies, all the while talking about how important they are. Who's kidding whom? Crawford is the entrepreneur with her eye on the future and the railroad coming through; McCambridge is the conservative banker determined to shut Crawford down and keep the town (and the men) to herself.

Watch it once. That's probably all the average viewer will need.

We're (not) sorry for keeping you waiting the releases of good movies on DVD, since we are too much busy releasing truckloads of all the crap from TV (sorry for the redundancy). We consider essential to give priority to vulgarity-lovers who enjoy the uninterrupted flood of trash. After 'Iron Age', 'Bronze Age', 'Renaissance', you have to realize we've now fully entered the 'Vulgarity Age', and that 'Quality' is not any longer politikally korrekt.

"Johnny Guitar" is a perverse and fascinating Western where sexual drive plays an important part in the story... It is known that Emma's madness/hysteria is a result of sexual repression... She detests Vienna, who has her choice of men, when the only man she can stir up herself is ugly Bart... And what is especially enraging for Emma is that while she is desperate for the Kid's love, Vienna, who now has Johnny back, turns the Kid away and still he doesn't stop being loyal to her... Even before Johnny returned to her life, Vienna had reached control over her sexual desires; but Emma hasn't such will power...

Johnny Guitar rides into a small town in the wilds of Arizona... He has been hired to work as guitarist by an aggressive lady of fortune, owner of a saloon-casino... Five years earlier they had been lovers, but he walked out on her, too restless to settle down...

There is a stage robbery, and a banker is killed... Emma Small (Mercedes McCambirdge), the dead man's sister, comes to Vienna's accompanied by the town marshal (Frank Farguson), and the wealthy rancher John McIvers (War Bond), and a bunch of vigilantes...

Emma and McIvers are determined to keep the area an open range for cattle... Emma also despises Vienna because the man she loves, the Dancin'Kid (Scott Brady), is attracted to her... She would rather see the Dancin'Kid dead than with Vienna, and tries to convince her companions that Vienna, the Kid, and the Kid's partners-- stingy Bart (Ernest Borgnine), sickly Corey (Royal Dano), and young Turkey (Ben Cooper)--are responsible for her brother's death and should be hanged... Neither the marshal nor her ally McIvers will go along with her without real evidence, but McIvers orders Vienna and the Kid's gang to clear out the town...

That night, Vienna and Johnny admit they still love each lover... They agree to start again, but neither is certain the other can be relied upon... Vienna doesn't like Johnny's violent nature and Johnny is jealous that Vienna has had many lovers...

The following day, the Kid and his three companions decide to rob Emma's bank - figuring that as long as they are being forced to flee the area it might as well be for a genuine crime and not a stage robbery which they had no part in... The bank robbery takes place just as Vienna was withdrawing her money...

Joan Crawford wears black and packs six-guns... She makes all the decisions, initiates the action, and takes the majority of heroic stands--Privileges traditionally denied women in Westerns... Vienna dreams of a railroad and a new town... She wants to remain neutral, and sit and wait for the railroad to come and make her rich... She is at her best when she refuses to allow Emma and the vigilantes to arrest her for the murder of Emma's brother... She sees herself still in love with Johnny... She searches his face in every man she mets... Now she finds it hard keeping the peace between the two men who love her...

As Johnny Guitar, Sterling Hayden is a loner with a past... His character struggles to control hostile impulses... In fact, he begins with true explosion that occurs when he rides across the screen... Soon he finds himself compelled to strap on his gun again to protect his love...

Dressed in a black funeral dress, Mercedes McCambirdge is a highly frustrated Emma who constantly reminds the cattle people that Vienna is a foreigner, having lived in the region only five years... Appealing to their bigotry, she warns them that if the railroad comes through as Vienna plans, dirt farmers will push the cattlemen out of the territory...

As the Dancin'Kid, Scott Brady is a left-handed-draw, leader of a wild bunch, whose only desire is 'to leave the town so broke.' He tosses a coin into the air, promising Johnny Guitar he'll kill him if it turns out "head."

Nicholas Ray will be always remembered for "The Lusty Men," "Run for Cover," "The True Story of Jesse James," and "Johnny Guitar," his first film in color... With great skill, he makes a fantastic Western with two gun-carrying ladies in a showdown to-the-death...

this movie i saw on vhs tape.just reading the word JOHNNY GUITAR brings back the memory of the appearance of Joan Crawford coming down the stairs of her Saloon and Sterling Hayden- he is like clint eastwood comes to save the tense situation-specially with his deep voice he has. Mercedes mcCameridge , her acting is stunning-specially the whole drama boiling down to a fantastic climax. it is one of those rare movies which leaves a lasting impression .You will love it.