Big Jake (1971)

Director:

George Sherman

Writers:

Harry Julian Fink (writer)
Rita M. Fink (writer)

Release Date:

26 May 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Western | Action

Tagline:

They wanted gold. They gave them lead instead!

Plot:

The McCandles ranch is run over by a gang of cutthroats led by the evil John Fain. They kidnap little...

Plot Keywords:

Ransom | Presumed Dead | Motorcycle | Locomotive | Mexican

Cast

John Wayne	...	Jacob McCandles
Richard Boone	...	John Fain
Patrick Wayne	...	James McCandles
Christopher Mitchum	...	Michael McCandles
Bruce Cabot	...	Sam Sharpnose
Bobby Vinton	...	Jeff McCandles
Glenn Corbett	...	O'Brien, aka Breed
John Doucette	...	Texas Ranger Capt. Buck Duggan
Jim Davis	...	Head of lynching party
John Agar	...	Bert Ryan
Harry Carey Jr.	...	Pop Dawson (as Harry Cary Jr.)
Gregg Palmer	...	John Goodfellow
Roy Jenson	...	Gunman at bathhouse in Escondero
Virginia Capers	...	Delilah
Bill Walker	...	Moses Brown (as William Walker)

Also Known As:

The Million Dollar Kidnapping (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for western violence. (re-rating)

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | UK:15 (video rating) | UK:AA (original rating) | Canada:G (Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Australia:PG (TV rating) | USA:G (home video version) | USA:G (original rating) | West Germany:12 (f) (re-rated) | West Germany:16 (f) (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1972) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG-13 (re-rating 2001) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Durango, Mexico

Company:

Batjac Productions

Trivia:

The ranch house used for the McCandles ranch is the same house used for the Chisum ranch in Chisum (1970), a John Wayne western made a year earlier. Note the scenery around the ranch.

Goofs:

Continuity: The windshield glass in the first automobile disappears during the close-up shots.

Quotes:

Hotel desk clerk: I thought you were dead.
Jacob 'Big Jake' McCandles: Dead? The next person who says that I'm gonna shoot, so help me.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Daria: Camp Fear (#5.4)" (2001)

Don't call him "Daddy"!

A later John Wayne western that contains a surprising amount of graphic violence. This is by no means another "Wild Bunch" but there are more bloody gunshot wounds than usual.

The plot concerns the search and rescue of a kidnapped grandson that Wayne has never seen.

The banter between Jacob McCandles(Wayne) and his estranged sons is the source of many of the film's great lines. When Patrick Wayne tries to provoke the Duke by calling him "Daddy", the retort by the old man is priceless.

A good villan(Richard Boone), another pairing with Maureen O'Hara, some great one-liners and several references to older Wayne films make this a great choice from the westerns section at Blockbuster. Elmer Bernstein's music is wonderful too, sounding much like his "Magnificent Seven" score.