Customer Reviews

Tycoon

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

 

 

Tycoon
The Movie
Here we have the Duke as a railroad man blasting tunnels thru a mountain. He falls for a weird rich mans daughter. Then all the drama begins. It takes a long time to get to it too. It is slow paced not edited well and not one of the dukes best films. That's not to say its bad it just doesn't move along and doesn't pull you into the story

The Video
The video is bright lots of color in full frame. It has some damage here and there but all in all a watch able print.

The Audio
Mono 1.0 no update which is a shame with all the dynamite it been nice to have a 5.1 mix too rattle the windows.

The Extras
Hollywood Wonderland
Sixteen minutes of a musical about Hollywood made in 1947. I am not sure what this has to do with the movie but its here it's a Disney like parade of music and dance with some cameos interesting once but like most extras never watched twice.

Red Hot Rangers
A Tex Avery cartoon with two bears trying to put out a forrest fire. Most of us have seen this one before but due to the smoking in the first scene it is not shown on regular tv anymore.

Summary
As for my collection of duke movies it is a most. For the casual fan it's a rent if u can find it. For six bucks though it is priced right. Frankly the cartoons better than the movie on this one.

The UK movie magazine Empire ran a feature a year or so back on "The most under-rated actors in movies ".Kevin Bacon "won" and John Wayne came second ,the article going on to point out that he was often dismissed as a "star" and a "presence"rather than an actor.It is a valid point and for my money one area where he especially excelled was in playing "driven" men -those keen to get things done at whatever price .He showed this talent in two undeniable classics -Red River and The Searchers .Tycoon is nowhere near to being a classic but it does enable the Duke to show this facet of his talent to good advantage

He plays an engineer,Johnny Munroe ,entrusted with the task of building a trans -Indian railroad and not unduly fussy about methods ,driving his work force long and hard .He does not let his obsession prevent him from amorous dalliance with Maura (Laraine Day )who just happens to be the daughter of his boss Frederick Alexander (Sir Cedric Hardwicke) who objects to Munroe over both the courtship of his daughter and the draconian methods Munroe applies .Conflict is inevitable and a bitter spirit enters his soul driving him to even further levels of obsession

Wayne is fine and there is solid back up from Hardwicke and Judith Anderson with a young Anthony Quinn as a devious baddie .Day is a little flat but the love scenes with Wayne she her raise her game -it was reputed they were an off screen item as well

The script by Borden Chase and John Twist might politely be described as funtional and it really needed a stronger director than studio hack Richard Wallace to drive the movie forward .The action is plentiful and well staged with an especially good storm scene and the Technicolor photography is splendid

A solid slice of vintage Hollywood hokum is the result of all this .It is enjoyable and entertaining but not quite top drawer Duke or top drawer movie making either

...throws off a lot of heat as a romantic leading man. He and Laraine Day look beautiful together, and any gal could imagine succumbing to Wayne's considerable charm and good looks. Far from a romance only, there is plenty of thrilling action in the last quarter of the film, in which Wayne shows his chops as an action hero as well. The complete package movie star, Wayne is well supported by an accomplished cast, especially James Gleason as Wayne's loyal partner and Cedric Hardwicke as Day's creepy father. The film drags a bit in spots, but is well worth watching. Don't miss this ladies, I bet the Duke will give you the vapors.

TYCOON is an RKO release that features John Wayne as a construction engineer named Johnny Monroe. His job: tunnel through an Andean mountain. The task is complicated by Frederick Alexander (Cedric Hardwicke), the project's millionaire bankroller. His insistence on corner-cutting (a refusal to line the tunnel with concrete to prevent collapses), and Johnny's romantic pursuit of his daughter Maura (Laraine Day), is also problematic. She has a penchant for following the curious local courting customs, while her father wants Johnny to steer clear of his girl entirely.

After she's sent to the country, Maura defies the old man and makes her way toward town. Meanwhile, Johnny heads out in his jeep on the same road. They meet halfway; Johnny gives Maura a ride to Tenango, but he runs out of gas near some Incan ruins. That night as they huddle by a fire, Mr. Alexander and a search team locate them. To settle matters, Johnny and Maura get married-- and that event marks the beginning of their problems.


John Wayne's next picture after this was the John Ford classic, FORT APACHE (1948).


Parenthetical number preceding title is a 1 to 10 imdb viewer poll rating.

(6.0) Tycoon (1947) - John Wayne/Laraine Day/Cedric Hardwicke/Judith Anderson/James Gleason/Anthony Quinn/Grant Withers/Paul Fix/Fernando Alvarado/Harry Woods/Michael Harvey/Charles Trowbridge/Martin Garralaga (uncredited: Jan Sterling)

I might have enjoyed this film more had the original actress slated for John Wayne's love interest been cast in place of Laraine Day. That would have been the incomparable Maureen O'Hara. But, you have to take them as they are and as such this film was just okay (should have been better considering all the money they poured into the production). The biggest problem it faced was length; it was too long by 30 minutes or more. It could also have involved more action sequences (quite a few promising scenes took place off screen!). Other than that, it did feature a fantastic villain (of sorts): Sir Cedric Hardwicke as a smug, manipulative, controlling father, and businessman. Rounding out the cast was the ever-amusing James Gleason as Pop, Paul Fix, Judith Anderson, and in a throwaway role he couldn't do much with, Anthony Quinn. At least the final sequence was worth some of the wait. But I've got better John Wayne movies in my collection that I'd definitely watch repeatedly, this is one I'd never want to see again: not a keeper.

I have just finished viewing the movie Tycoon with John Wayne and Laraine Day and found it very entertaining. The video was in excellent shape and so was it case.
For a new twist on the "Duke" try watching this movie.

I'm a big John Wayne fan, have more DVDs with him in them than those with any other actor. This one put me to sleep though! Very nice Technicolor, lovely on location South American scenery, competent performances from the Duke and a good supporting cast but it just drags, especially in the first half of the film. Even if you're a major Wayne fan as I am and want to see everything he made I'd save my money and wait until this one plays again on Turner Classic Movies. Big disappointment in my humble opinion! The entertaining short and cartoon were better than the feature!

John Wayne stars as an engineer struggling to build a rairoad tunnel to reach the mines as his task becomes more complicated when he falls for the bosse's daughter.This is a great early John Wayne Movie!!

This John Wayne movie is one many people have never seen as it rarely shows up on television/cable/satellite. This early Wayne film takes place in South America where he is the construction foreman building a railroad over the mountains. This story is more about romance and conflicting emotions rather than the usual "shoot'em" up western action film we usually associate with John Wayne. I found this to be a good film, good story and an essential addition to any John Wayne collection!

Tycoon is a 1947 RKO Technicolor film starring John Wayne and Laraine Day with Cedric Hardwicke, Judith Anderson, James Gleason, Anthony Quinn and Paul Fix.

John Wayne (1907-1979) was a box office draw at the time, having appeared in such hits as "Stagecoach" (1939), "Flying Tigers" (1942), and "They Were Expendable" (1944). But he wasn't yet the star he would become with films like "Red River" (1948), "Fort Apache" (1948) and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949) and his nomination for Best Actor for "Sands of Iwo Jima" (1949). So this is probably one the very last films he made as an actor before he became a true star.

Most of Wayne's film roles were either in westerns or in war films and he made few contemporary films, especially in the 40s, so this is a chance to see him in a rare contemporary role as an engineer building a tunnel in South America.

Laraine Day (1920-2007) plays the Boss' daughter and Wayne's love interest. Day made more than 40 films before transitioning to TV. She starred in several Dr. Kildare films in the 30s and 40s and appeared with Wayne in "The High and the Mighty" (1954).

Cedric Hardwicke (1893-1964) plays Wayne's boss. Sir Cedric's strong voice and stony appearance graced nearly 100 films. He played the evil bishop in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1939), Dr. Livingstone in "Stanley and Livingstone" (1939), and King Arthur in "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" (1949). I remember him best as the Pharaoh in "The Ten Commandments" (1956).

Judith Anderson (1898-1992) was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Rebecca" (1940) and 8 times for an Emmy, winning twice. In 1960 she was awarded the title "Dame" by Britain's Queen, and is usually called Dame Judith Anderson.
Anderson made only a dozen films as she specialized in theatre.

The versatile James Gleason (1882-1959) appears as a friend of Wayne. Gleason made more than 100 films and was nominated for an Oscar for his role in "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" (1941). I remember him best as Cuke Gillen in "The Last Hurrah" (1958), which was his last film.

Anthony Quinn (1915-2001) left us a great legacy of more than 100 roles, with films like "Zorba the Greek" (1961), "Lust for Life" (1956), "Viva Zapata" (1952), and "Wild is the Wind" (1957). He was nominated for an Oscar 4 times, winning twice for Best Supporting Actor. In 1947 he had yet to achieve the stardom that would come in the 50s and later. Quinn plays Hardwicke's nephew.

Paul Fix (1901-83) is best known for his role as the Sheriff in the TV series "The Rifleman" (1958-63), but this was only one of more than 200 roles he filled in a career that spanned more than 50 years. He was an acting coach for John Wayne and appeared in 26 of his films. I remember him best from "The High and the Mighty" (1954). BTW - Fix's daughter married Harry Carey Jr. whose father was a great friend of Wayne.

Richard Wallace (1894-1951) directs. Wallace was best known for his work with female actors and he made 3 films with Shirley Temple. The direction in this film is pretty flat. Characters stand and deliver dialogue and neither they nor the camera moves very much. As such, we are always watching the film rather than becoming involved in it.

1947 wasn't the best year for films. The Oscar winners were "Miracle on 34th Street" and "Gentlemen's Agreement" and the box office leaders included "Unconquered", "The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer", "Mother Wore Tights" and "Life with Father." Other notable films that year were "Dark Passage" (Bogart), "The Lady From Shanghai" (Orson Welles), and "Possessed" (Joan Crawford).

The film was RKO's most expensive production to date ($3.2M), and while it did well at the box office, it failed to earn back the production costs and lost more than $1 million. The NY Times found the film "missing the mark by a good country mile" and "slow and overlong", and Variety said "trimming as much as 30 minutes off the picture wouldn't have hurt."

If you're a John Wayne fan, you can probably endure the film. Otherwise it doesn't have that much to recommend it.