Red River (1988)

A remake of the 1948 movie of the same name. Arness portrayed a rancher at odds with his son.

Director:

Richard Michaels

Writers:

Borden Chase (story), Borden Chase (screenplay)

Stars:

Bruce Boxleitner, James Arness, Gregory Harrison

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce Boxleitner	...	Matthew Garth
James Arness	...	Thomas Dunson
Gregory Harrison	...	Cherry Valance
Stan Shaw	...	Jack Byrd
Ray Walston	...	Groot
Ty Hardin	...	Cotton
Robert Horton	...	Mr. Melville, Cattle Buyer
John Lupton	...	Eli Pruitt
Guy Madison	...	Bill Meeker, Rancher
Laura Johnson	...	Kate
Zachary Ansley	...	Cal
Jerry Potter	...	Teeler
Burton Gilliam	...	Buster
L.Q. Jones	...	Sims
Travis Swords	...	Bunk Kennelly

Storyline

A remake of the 1948 movie of the same name. Arness portrayed a rancher at odds with his son.

---

Plot Keywords:

remake | cowboy | kissing while having sex | 

---

Taglines:

A tempestuous cattle drive across 1000 dangerous miles of Texas landscape.

---

Genres:

Western

---

Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 April 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fiume rosso

Filming Locations:

Tucson, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Catalina Production Group, The, MGM/UA Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Since there is no "Errors in astronomy" category, I guess this goes here. When Gregory Harrison (Cherry Valance) is wooing Laura Johnson (Kate) at night under a tree with a canopy you couldn't possibly see through, while she's holding a child, and she says she has to go, and he points out the big dipper to her to get her to stay. But the view shows a thick patch of stars with no pattern. Not the Big Dipper, which is in a northern region with much fewer stars where it's easily visible year-round if it's view-able.

---

Connections

Remake of Red River (1948)

User Reviews

I don't remember a whole lot about the original "Red River", except that it was a lot more rich and entertaining than its lackluster remake

The last time I saw the original 1948 "Red River" with John Wayne was when I was about ten years old. I don't remember a whole lot of it other than it was a rich, enthralling Western like "The Searchers" (1956) and in no need for a remake. But, four decades after its release, it was remade…and rather poorly, which is very disappointing since its two leads were very well-cast.

Wayne's friend James Arness takes his role in the remake and Montgomery Clift's role is redone by Bruce Boxleitner. These two would later work well again in one of the "Gunsmoke" movies. And even with this mincemeat teleplay, they manage to communicate much of the spirit that the original actors did in the original film.

However, that does not make the remake of "Red River" a good movie. Rather, it's a flat and mediocre adaptation of a beloved classic. There is some nice scenery, good performances, and swell intentions, but the problem is that the screenwriters wrote this with such low enthusiasm and maybe a little too much respect for the original, as if they realized in the process of writing that they couldn't even come close to the source and didn't bother to put much effort into it. It seems like they expected all viewers to already know the original "Red River" by heart and therefore be able to close up all the holes and gaps that were being formed here. The point of a remake is to at least illuminate the original, update it, and maybe strength a few weak spots, not open new ones. There is very little character strength, no real sense of connection, gaps of logic, a completely unnecessary addition of a love triangle, and an ending that is even more rushed than the surprisingly sudden ending of the original. In short, the remake of "Red River" can be described in two simple words: boring and unnecessary.