Rio Lobo (1970)

After the Civil War, Cord McNally searches for the traitor whose treachery 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
Jennifer O'Neill	...	Shasta Delaney
Jack Elam	...	Phillips
Christopher Mitchum	...	Sgt. Tuscarora Phillips
Victor French	...	Ketcham
Susana Dosamantes	...	María Carmen
Sherry Lansing	...	Amelita
David Huddleston	...	Dr. Jones
Mike Henry	...	Sheriff Tom Hendricks
Bill Williams	...	Sheriff Pat Cronin
Jim Davis	...	Riley
Dean Smith	...	Bide
Robert Donner	...	Whitey Carter
George Plimpton	...	4th Gunman

Storyline

Colonel Cord McNally, an ex-Union Officer teams up with a couple of ex-Confederate Rebels 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, for whom they were looking.

---

Plot Keywords:

shot to death | facial scar | capture | police corruption | corrupt sheriff | 

---

Taglines:

Give 'Em Hell, John.

---

Genres:

Adventure | Romance | War | Western

---

Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA Mexico

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

18 December 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

San Timoteo

Filming Locations:

Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$9,265,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinema Center Films, Batjac Productions, Malabar

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was meant to be shot in Durango, Mexico, on a budget of five million dollars. However, shooting on Lawman (1971) took up facilities there, so Howard Hawks and Cinema Center had to spend an extra one million dollars in order to shoot at Old Tucson, Arizona, and near Los Angeles, California.

---

Goofs

When McNally and his companions arrive at Phillips' farm, Phillips walks to the window saying a phrase without moves his lips.

---

Quotes

Shasta: [after McNaly slugs a bad guy from behind] Well you certainly *took* long enough! I was running out of things to *say*!
Cord McNally: *That*, I *can't* believe!

---

Connections

Remake of Rio Bravo (1959)

User Reviews

Wayne carries this movie single-handedly

As you might have noticed in some of my other reviews of John Wayne films, I am not exactly a huge fan of his later films (during the last 10 years of his life)--though there are exceptions, such as THE SHOOTIST. It's because the films look like they were just churned out--with occasionally silly scripts and Wayne playing more a caricature of himself than acting like he did in earlier films. Plus, in many of these films the supporting cast just seemed second-rate. This movie is a prime example of a second-rate cast. While Wayne is fine, there just isn't a lot of real support from anyone--no ensemble cast of Harry Carey (Junior OR Senior), Ward Bond, James Arness or even John Agar! Now considering some of these people were dead when the film was made, I could certainly understand the decision NOT to put them in the film. But, couldn't they have gotten some better actors instead? The only one worth watching was Jack Elam (who was GREAT) but he was only in the last half of the film and could have used a lot more screen time as the crazy old man. Although I've seen this movie 3 or 4 times, I can't even remember WHO the two supporting Confederate soldiers were or even what they looked like--and that's very unusual for me. The three ladies, though pretty, were also equally bland.

So, overall this is a decent time passer for the average viewer (you can take it or leave it) and important for fans of John Wayne.