Rio Lobo (1970)

After the Civil War, Cord McNally searches for the traitor whose perfidy caused the defeat of McNally's unit and the loss of a close friend.

Director:

Howard Hawks

Writers:

Burton Wohl (screenplay), Leigh Brackett (screenplay),

Stars:

John Wayne, Jorge Rivero, Jennifer O'Neill

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Wayne	...	Col. Cord McNally
Jorge Rivero	...	Capt. Pierre Cordona aka Frenchy
Jennifer O'Neill	...	Shasta Delaney
Jack Elam	...	Phillips
Christopher Mitchum	...	Sgt. Tuscarora Phillips
Victor French	...	Ketcham (boss of Rio Lobo)
Susana Dosamantes	...	María Carmen
Sherry Lansing	...	Amelita
David Huddleston	...	Dr. Ivor Jones (Rio Lobo dentist)
Mike Henry	...	Rio Lobo Sheriff 'Blue Tom' Hendricks
Bill Williams	...	Blackthorne Sheriff Pat Cronin
Jim Davis	...	Rio Lobo Deputy
Dean Smith	...	L / Cpl. Bide
Robert Donner	...	Whitey Carter (Rio Lobo deputy)
George Plimpton	...	4th Gunman

Storyline

Col. Cord McNally an ex union officer teams up with a couple of ex Johnny Rebs to search for the traitor who sold information to the South during the Civil War. Their quest brings them to the town of Rio Lobo where they help recover this little Texas town from ruthless outlaws who are led by the traitor they were looking for.

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Plot Keywords:

sheriff | colonel | civil war | traitor | texas | 

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Taglines:

Give 'Em Hell, John.

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Genres:

Adventure | Western | Romance | War

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

18 December 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

San Timoteo

Filming Locations:

Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Batjac Productions, Cinema Center Films, Malabar

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Wayne was in poor health during filming, and had great difficulty getting on and off his horse.

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Goofs

The wrong sound effect is used for Phillips' rifle when he is at his ranch. What is heard is the sound that is used for Phillips' shotgun.

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Quotes

Cord McNally: [after being shot in the leg in front of the saloon] Owww!

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Connections

Referenced in Daria: Camp Fear (2001)

User Reviews

Howard Hawks loved this movie

This has to be unique in the history of Hollywood. Leading director and screen legend Howard Hawks loved this film so much that they made three variations of the same movie. By the time Rio Lobo was made, the theme was getting a bit thin, but it's still grand entertainment.

The first part of the film is set during the Civil War with John Wayne pursuing Confederates who are stealing army payrolls. He does catch up with them and the Civil War ends. He befriends his erstwhile enemies and asks for their help in locating the informer who was giving them information.

That all sets the scene for the third variant of Rio Bravo/El Dorado theme. Playing the old codger part is Jack Elam who by now had quit being a screen menace and was doing comedy and doing it well. The two younger sidekicks are the former Confederate enemies, Jorge Rivero and Chris Mitchum.

Rio Lobo had the presence of two stars of the Mexican cinema, Jorge Rivero and Susana Dosamantes. Dosamantes played Mitchum's girlfriend and Jennifer O'Neill played the Angie Dickinson part although Wayne was now deciding he was too old for the romance. She pairs off with Rivero.

In a small bit part is Sherry Lansing who left acting soon after Rio Lobo and really hit the big time, going into the production end of the movie business and becoming head of first 20th Century Fox and later CEO of Paramount.

The two principal villains are Victor French who played the neighbor on Little House On The Prarie and Mike Henry who was one of several screen Tarzans.

It's a good John Wayne western and that takes in a whole lot of territory pilgrim.