True Grit - Der Marshal

Es ist schon lange, sehr lange her, dass ich einen Western mit einer so tollen Geschichte und so hervorragenden Dialogen gesehen habe. Der Marshal ist ein hartes und witziges Roadmovie. Es erzählt die Geschichte von einem rachsüchtigen und hartnäckigen Mädchen, einem alternden Sheriff, der viel trinkt, und einem feschen Ranger, die während der zwei Stunden aneinander Geschmack finden. Sie sind auf der Jagd nach Dreckskerlen, die sich irgendwo im Indianergebiet verstecken. Es ist spannend, es ist unterhaltsam, es ist (vor allem am Ende) hart und kompromisslos und außerdem verdammt gelungen. Wayne hat den Oscar definitiv verdient (das Reiten mit der Repetierbüchse in einer Hand und dem Revolver in der anderen – wow!). Seine Schauspielkolleg*innen stehen ihm aber in nichts nach. Die Szene mit dem Erhängen der Verbrecher (das als Aufführung für Groß und Klein gestaltet ist) hat eine nostalgische Peckinpah-Stimmung.__PPS: Auf das Remake von den Coen-Brüdern freue ich mich jetzt noch mehr. (18.12.2010)

Dicker alter Mann ... leider trifft dies nicht nur auf den Heldenkorpus von John Wayne, sondern auch auf den Heldenkorpus dieses nostalgischen Westernspektakels zu, welches unter dem derzeitigen Gesichtspunkt wegen des extremst schweren Hinterns draufzahlen. Trotz einiger schönen Stellen ist dies nur eine plakatanmutende satte Pferdeshow für Rentner, die insbesondere nach dem alttestamentlich verdunkelten Coen-Remake in der Tat sehr wie ein Museumsexponat aussieht. (16.02.2011)

The film "Maršál", "True Grit", or "Opravdová kuráž" will be known by today's viewers, especially the younger generation, including myself, mainly in the new version by the Coen brothers. However, "True Grit" is primarily a novel by Charles Portis, which was first filmed in 1969 by Henry Hathaway (don't look for any connection to Anne Hathaway). The story tells of how a determined fourteen-year-old girl decides that she must exact justice at all costs. The murderer of her father must be avenged. Justice doesn't have much power, so she tries to convince the one-eyed marshal (hence the Czech title) Rooster Cogburn to help her. She knows what the killer looks like, so together they can track him down. However, Cogburn is a drunk and not exactly the kind of man who would believe a little girl, let alone rush into action with her. But then the Texan ranger LaBoeuf also enters the game, who also seeks the same killer as the girl Mattie. After many adventures, this trio sets out to hunt down the outlaws. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2013/02/marsal-1969-75.html (22.03.2013)

Wayne doesn’t steal this movie, but there simply isn’t anybody else of any interest. Campbell as a non-actor with that hair tsunami on his head can’t say one line right without it sounding stilted (and also his character is awfully flat) and Kim Darby is really annoying, although Mattie is a wonderfully powerful role. But I completely understand why, after appearing in this movie, this “actress" never made it out of second rate TV productions. Only Duvall makes any impression at all, but the five minutes he gets on screen just aren’t enough. And then we have Wayne who isn’t particularly impressive either, but holds the movie’s head above water. Primarily after the incredibly slow-moving first fifty minutes before they set out on the vendetta. In the second half Wayne is given further support from the camerawork which relished in beautiful technicolor landscapes shots. To tell the truth, if this movie hadn’t been woken from bored lethargy of unfunctional squabbling and turned into a real western half an hour before the end, I would have given it even fewer stars. (01.01.2011)

I only found out that the Coen brothers’ True Grit is actually a remake when I discovered this western film on TV. I watched it for the sake of comparison; plus it has John Wayne, so I was sure I was making a good decision. In the end, however, I am not so sure anymore. In Czech dubbing, the main character Mattie is so annoying that I hoped that some of the tough ranchers would dispatch her and we’ll get rid of her. However, as it’s a story about Mattie’s revenge, I knew this wasn’t likely. John Wayne had some decent shots there, but Mattie kept nagging so much that it turned into a parody rather than any decent film experience. In comparison with other western movies of the era, True Grit seems too childish and cheap. I liked the remake a lot more. (05.02.2020)