Destry (1954)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

George Marshall

Writers:

Max Brand (suggested by novel "Destry Rides Again")
Felix Jackson (story)

Release Date:

1 December 1954 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Tagline:

From the roaring , raucous, rowdy pages of the best-loved legend of the West!

Plot:

In the old West, a small frontier town is being controlled by ruthless mob boss Decker (Lyle Bettger) and his cronies...

Plot Keywords:

Sheriff | Deputy | Beautiful Woman | Shot In The Back | Poker

Cast

Audie Murphy	...	Tom Destry
Mari Blanchard	...	Brandy
Lyle Bettger	...	Phil Decker
Thomas Mitchell	...	Reginald T. 'Rags' Barnaby
Edgar Buchanan	...	The Honorable Hiram J. Sellers, Mayor
Lori Nelson	...	Martha Phillips
Wallace Ford	...	Doc Curtis
Mary Wickes	...	Bessie Mae Curtis
Alan Hale Jr.	...	Jack Larson
George Wallace	...	Curly Adams
Richard Reeves	...	Mac
Walter Baldwin	...	Henry Skinner
Lee Aaker	...	Eli Skinner
Mitchell Lawrence	...	The Professor
Frank Richards	...	Dummy

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #17121, General Audience) | Sweden:15 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Trivia:

'Audie Murphy' acted with Alan Hale Jr. in "Destry". Alan would go on to be Skipper in "Gilligan's Island" (1964). Audie made Ride Clear of Diablo (1954) with The Professor, Russell Johnson.

Quotes:

Bartender: Are you going to take over the whole job now?
Tom Destry: What job?
Bartender: Well, Rags was just in here and traded this
[his sheriff's badge]
Bartender: for a jug. I guess he figured it was better to be a first-rate drunk than a second-rate sheriff.

Movie Connections:

Remake of Destry Rides Again (1939)

Soundtrack:

Empty Arms

A good movie not given it due:

Because, it followed behind the 1939 classic, Destry rides again, the 1954 movie, titled Destry, was given very little credit for being a good film.

In fact I thought that it was better written than the original version.

Most movie critics, of the time, was more determined to compare the performances of Marlene Dietrich and James Steward, to that of Audie Murphy and Mari Blanchard.

Of course there is no comparison to the kind of acting talent that Steward and Dietrich had, but Destry was still a very good film that did justice to the original version.

The film also featured three actors that would go on to successful television shows.

Alan Hale and Russel Johnson of Gillian's Island, and Edgar Buchanan of Petticoat Junction.

It is a waste of time to compare either movie. Both versions are good, but the 1954 film is my personal favorite.