So lets go with first impressions
-Scenery: barren land, scrub brush, dry, mostly flat ground with hills in the background. Oh and I can't forget the oxen skulls, someone was trying to get to Oregon and their Oxen gave out.
-We have the 'good indians" who hate the Apache and will help the 'white man'
- We have the carefree music that seems happy and upbeat
- the town folk are uptight and rigid in their beliefs, but once you leave the town and head to outposts you have less rigid standards of morality and people are not only more welcoming they are less judgemental.
-Gatewood the banker shows the mentality of many when he says "what's good for the banks is good for the country" he is also a cowardly man who bluffs his way through life, prtending to be brave but just using anger and so called influence to get his way
-Mr. Peacock is confused several times for a clergymen, is this a dig that all men of the cloth are small, skittish, quiet, nervous men?
-the drunken Dr.Boone was pissing me off because I could not figure out where I knew him from, until half way through the movie when it hit me that he was 'Pa' to Scarlett in Gone With the Wind. He is a well meaning drunk who is able to sweet talk many people into doing what he wants...especially when it comes to giving him alcohol. He pulled through for me in the end when he was able to sober up and help Dallas when Mrs. Mallory goes into labor. He also treated Dallas with his own version of respect.
-The so called Gentlemen Mr. Hatfield was acceptable society to Mrs. Mallory even though he was a gambling man, yet Dallas is unfit to even speak to and Mrs. Mallory doesn't even know what offense Dallas has committed.
-Ringo the Kid (Wayne) treats Dallas with respect, which suprises Dallas and the other passengers of the stagecoach. He truly has the makings of a gentleman because he treats everyone with courteous manners. He genuinely cares about the welfare of both women, whereas the other so called Gentlemen ignore Dallas as if she isn't even there.
-Ringo says he used to be a good guy, but things happen. You get the impression the same thing happened to Dallas. Its not always in your power, sometimes good people become outcasts of society because of someone else, or a situation beyond their control. What is Dallas' crime to be kicked out of town?
-Curly, I'm guessing is a marshall and he and Ringo's dad were friends. He wants to put Ringo in jail for the money but also because he wants to keep Ringo safe from the Plummer family. Bad blood there.
-The Mexican we see (I think his name is Chris) is shown as polite, respectful, talkative, slightly dumb-witted and cross eyed (I wasn't sure if this was to show inbreeding or not)
-I think it is interesting that Dallas takes over when Mrs. Mallory goes into labor and the Doctor needs to sober up, yet when it is all over, its three cheers for the doctor, no thanks to Dallas.
-I thought it amusing that Hatfield became angry when Mrs. Mallory was in labor, just seemed like the typical male impulse- get angry if you feel helpless- accomplish nothing.
-When we see the Apaches for the first time the music playing is supposedly 'war music' but it sounded like plain old dramatic music with heavy solemn drums. My impression of the Indians was that some looked asian and that their mode of dress reminded me of wounded soldiers of the revolutionary war with bandages on their heads.
-I was curious if any animals were harmed in the making of this film...I saw an awful lot of horses falling down hills in the chase scene.
-When the Indians attack its a mad dash in an open space, keep running and hope to shoot as many as possible in an effort to survive. The odds are great, I counted at least 20 indians and there are 9 people with the stagecoach. The women get to just sit and hope they aren't captured, its up to the men to defend the women. It was interesting to see the reactions of each of the men. Hatfield seemed excited to be killing, while Buck was just scared and wanted to get as much speed as possible out of the horses. Ringo and Curly and the Doc are serious, I think they have had the experience of killing before and know the terrible toll it takes on one's soul. They are not thrilled to be taking the lives of anyone but know they must to survive. Once they are practically out of ammunition and it looks as if the stagecoach is going to be over taken by the Apaches Mr. Hatfield decides to shoot Mrs. Mallory, after all its apparently better to be dead and virtuous then alive and raped.
-I really want to know how the baby slept through all the shouting and shooting of guns going on around her?
-I hope the end of the movie shows all of the snobbish town folk respecting Dallas, as it is Mr. Peacock called her a lady. I guess adversity brings out the good in people.
