Nicholas Ray's camp classic Johnny Guitar turns standard Western film conventions on its ear by having two women tussling for supremacy while emasculating all the men. The film does hedge its bets by dressing star Joan Crawford like a man which leads to a wicked undercurrent of sexual tension racing in all directions. While subversive for its time much of this subtext likely flew over the heads of 1954 audiences but savvy modern viewers should pick up on it. When viewed through this lens the film is a seditious treat.
It opens with the title character (Sterling Hayden) riding through the wilderness toting a guitar instead of a gun. He is reformed gunslinger Johnny Logan summoned by his former lover Vienna (Joan Crawford) to assist in defending her property. After witnessing a stagecoach holdup from afar he arrives at Vienna's; a gambling house in the middle of nowhere. The structure is nearly as bereft of people as the landscape save for Vienna and her 4 employees. The solitude is quickly shattered by an angry mob headed by MacIvers (Ward Bond) and Emma Small (Mercedes McCambridge) who demand to know the whereabouts of the Dancing Kid (Scott Brady) whom they suspect in the holdup. The underlying hostility that will propel the plot is neatly laid out: interloper Vienna plans for her saloon to be the centerpiece of a new town that the future railroad will run through while MacIvers and Emma, who own everything else, want Vienna gone. They are both burned by the way she outsmarted them in getting the land while Emma despises her for more personal reasons.
The story itself isn't particularly original; the undercurrent makes it unique. The narrative mixes elements of McCarthyism and repressed sexual tension that eventually explodes in mayhem. Emma is desperate to eliminate Vienna and doesn't seem to care whether she's innocent or guilty of any crimes. She loudly denounces Vienna as a tramp not fit for decent company and everyone clearly feels threatened by her. Vienna unashamedly behaves like a man: dressing like one, being referred to as like one, and enjoying numerous lovers including the Dancing Kid. In one particularly nasty scene Emma manipulates an injured, scared teenager facing a lynch mob into implicating Vienna in a bank heist with the promise of setting him free. The boy complies, knowing full well Vienna is innocent but desperate to save his own life, and the mob hangs him anyway. The surface motivation for her vindictiveness towards Vienna is Emma's alleged unrequited love for the Dancing Kid and jealousy over his relationship with Vienna. However, as the story progresses, it becomes evident that it's not the Kid Emma longs for but Vienna. Of course, she can't admit this to anyone (not even herself) and this inner knowledge manifests itself in bloodlust.
Johnny Guitar will probably be an acquired taste for most: Batman-level camp value, Ed Wood type dialogue, an over-the-hill leading lady, and an absolutely bonkers performance by Mercedes McCambridge. Many aspects of the production will either irritate or endear depending on the spirit with which one views the film. The dialogue between Johnny and Vienna during their romantic moments is so howlingly bad that it's good. The Dancing Kid and his gang hide out in a secret abode they dub "the lair" which is somehow so secluded it's as if it exists in another dimension. The conventional use of sound stages and rear projection to ape location scenes are comically obvious; it is almost as if they were made deliberately phony for some artistic purpose. Lastly, the climactic shootout between Vienna and Emma on the porch of the interdimensional lair is poorly staged and edited and further undermined by how awkward both actresses look manipulating guns.
On the black side of the conventional cinema ledger are aspects that would be capital in any film. The opening scene of Johnny arriving at Vienna's is wonderfully atmospheric with howling winds and impenetrable dust blowing around to set up a foreboding atmosphere. The interior of the saloon is a fantastic set piece; a gambling house built into the side of a rock formation that plays home to the primary confrontational sequences. Outside there are a number of impressive explosions as the railroad men blast their way through the surrounding bedrock and sets the stage for one tense scene. The musical score, and particularly the haunting title ballad, is memorable and exquisitely establishes the appropriate moods.
Now we get to the acting and is there a lot to unpack here. Joan Crawford is unquestionably the star and delivers an iconic performance decked out in some garish shirts, pancake makeup, and a gun belt. While she occasionally projects vulnerability she is clearly not a woman to cross and definitely enjoys dominating the men. Despite being 20 years too old for the role it is impossible to imagine any other actress as Vienna and there is something undeniably cool about her single-handedly holding an angry mob at gun point while insightfully exposing their hypocrisy. The victim of this supremacy is costar Sterling Hayden who gets steamrolled by her and delivers a surprisingly poor performance. In any other film he would be the focus as the quick triggered guitar man but he is effectively neutered by Miss Crawford here. Hayden seems awkward both mouthing his more ridiculous dialogue and brandishing his firearm. Worse still he comes off as childish when frequently brooding about all the men Vienna has had in the five years they've been apart. Even more emasculated is Scott Brady as the Kid who endlessly moons over Vienna and gets into cat fights with Johnny over her.
There are several capable supporting performances by the familiar cast. Ward Bond initially presents himself as a rampaging locomotive of animosity who gradually becomes more timid until he's content to stand by and watch the women fight it out. Ernest Borgnine seems unaware of the camp classic he's in while providing another rendition of his bullying, double-crossing, dim witted thug persona. Surprisingly, in a film bursting with exaggerated acting, the most subtle performance comes from the master of ham, John Carradine, who dials it way back to deliver a touching characterization as Vienna's devoted companion. Keep an eye out for a thin, clean shaven Denver Pyle and genre regular Paul Fix in small roles.
The one performance everyone is likely to remember is Mercedes McCambridge as the sexually confused Emma Small. This is a powerhouse example of voracious scenery chewing as she dominates her male counterparts and displays an insatiable, uncontrollable mania to see Vienna dead. In almost any other film an over the top interpretation like this would likely be detrimental but here it is right on the money. It is quite a sight to see tiny Mercedes convincingly run roughshod over big, tough Ward Bond to the point where he'd be carrying her purse if she had one. The scene of her gloating with satanic glee through the flames of the fire she starts in the middle of Vienna's saloon is a moment one will not likely forget.
Over the years Johnny Guitar has built a reputation as a camp masterpiece while cementing Joan Crawford's status as a gay icon. The reversed gender domination angle was unique for 1954 and nearly unprecedented for the times. There is no question the film is polarizing and likely an acquired taste; those expecting a conventional shoot em up western will be disappointed. However, for those who revel in kitschy pop culture and rooting out deeper, seditious meanings in their cinema, this is unquestionably the gold standard and a highly enjoyable movie.
It opens with the title character (Sterling Hayden) riding through the wilderness toting a guitar instead of a gun. He is reformed gunslinger Johnny Logan summoned by his former lover Vienna (Joan Crawford) to assist in defending her property. After witnessing a stagecoach holdup from afar he arrives at Vienna's; a gambling house in the middle of nowhere. The structure is nearly as bereft of people as the landscape save for Vienna and her 4 employees. The solitude is quickly shattered by an angry mob headed by MacIvers (Ward Bond) and Emma Small (Mercedes McCambridge) who demand to know the whereabouts of the Dancing Kid (Scott Brady) whom they suspect in the holdup. The underlying hostility that will propel the plot is neatly laid out: interloper Vienna plans for her saloon to be the centerpiece of a new town that the future railroad will run through while MacIvers and Emma, who own everything else, want Vienna gone. They are both burned by the way she outsmarted them in getting the land while Emma despises her for more personal reasons.
The story itself isn't particularly original; the undercurrent makes it unique. The narrative mixes elements of McCarthyism and repressed sexual tension that eventually explodes in mayhem. Emma is desperate to eliminate Vienna and doesn't seem to care whether she's innocent or guilty of any crimes. She loudly denounces Vienna as a tramp not fit for decent company and everyone clearly feels threatened by her. Vienna unashamedly behaves like a man: dressing like one, being referred to as like one, and enjoying numerous lovers including the Dancing Kid. In one particularly nasty scene Emma manipulates an injured, scared teenager facing a lynch mob into implicating Vienna in a bank heist with the promise of setting him free. The boy complies, knowing full well Vienna is innocent but desperate to save his own life, and the mob hangs him anyway. The surface motivation for her vindictiveness towards Vienna is Emma's alleged unrequited love for the Dancing Kid and jealousy over his relationship with Vienna. However, as the story progresses, it becomes evident that it's not the Kid Emma longs for but Vienna. Of course, she can't admit this to anyone (not even herself) and this inner knowledge manifests itself in bloodlust.
Johnny Guitar will probably be an acquired taste for most: Batman-level camp value, Ed Wood type dialogue, an over-the-hill leading lady, and an absolutely bonkers performance by Mercedes McCambridge. Many aspects of the production will either irritate or endear depending on the spirit with which one views the film. The dialogue between Johnny and Vienna during their romantic moments is so howlingly bad that it's good. The Dancing Kid and his gang hide out in a secret abode they dub "the lair" which is somehow so secluded it's as if it exists in another dimension. The conventional use of sound stages and rear projection to ape location scenes are comically obvious; it is almost as if they were made deliberately phony for some artistic purpose. Lastly, the climactic shootout between Vienna and Emma on the porch of the interdimensional lair is poorly staged and edited and further undermined by how awkward both actresses look manipulating guns.
On the black side of the conventional cinema ledger are aspects that would be capital in any film. The opening scene of Johnny arriving at Vienna's is wonderfully atmospheric with howling winds and impenetrable dust blowing around to set up a foreboding atmosphere. The interior of the saloon is a fantastic set piece; a gambling house built into the side of a rock formation that plays home to the primary confrontational sequences. Outside there are a number of impressive explosions as the railroad men blast their way through the surrounding bedrock and sets the stage for one tense scene. The musical score, and particularly the haunting title ballad, is memorable and exquisitely establishes the appropriate moods.
Now we get to the acting and is there a lot to unpack here. Joan Crawford is unquestionably the star and delivers an iconic performance decked out in some garish shirts, pancake makeup, and a gun belt. While she occasionally projects vulnerability she is clearly not a woman to cross and definitely enjoys dominating the men. Despite being 20 years too old for the role it is impossible to imagine any other actress as Vienna and there is something undeniably cool about her single-handedly holding an angry mob at gun point while insightfully exposing their hypocrisy. The victim of this supremacy is costar Sterling Hayden who gets steamrolled by her and delivers a surprisingly poor performance. In any other film he would be the focus as the quick triggered guitar man but he is effectively neutered by Miss Crawford here. Hayden seems awkward both mouthing his more ridiculous dialogue and brandishing his firearm. Worse still he comes off as childish when frequently brooding about all the men Vienna has had in the five years they've been apart. Even more emasculated is Scott Brady as the Kid who endlessly moons over Vienna and gets into cat fights with Johnny over her.
There are several capable supporting performances by the familiar cast. Ward Bond initially presents himself as a rampaging locomotive of animosity who gradually becomes more timid until he's content to stand by and watch the women fight it out. Ernest Borgnine seems unaware of the camp classic he's in while providing another rendition of his bullying, double-crossing, dim witted thug persona. Surprisingly, in a film bursting with exaggerated acting, the most subtle performance comes from the master of ham, John Carradine, who dials it way back to deliver a touching characterization as Vienna's devoted companion. Keep an eye out for a thin, clean shaven Denver Pyle and genre regular Paul Fix in small roles.
The one performance everyone is likely to remember is Mercedes McCambridge as the sexually confused Emma Small. This is a powerhouse example of voracious scenery chewing as she dominates her male counterparts and displays an insatiable, uncontrollable mania to see Vienna dead. In almost any other film an over the top interpretation like this would likely be detrimental but here it is right on the money. It is quite a sight to see tiny Mercedes convincingly run roughshod over big, tough Ward Bond to the point where he'd be carrying her purse if she had one. The scene of her gloating with satanic glee through the flames of the fire she starts in the middle of Vienna's saloon is a moment one will not likely forget.
Over the years Johnny Guitar has built a reputation as a camp masterpiece while cementing Joan Crawford's status as a gay icon. The reversed gender domination angle was unique for 1954 and nearly unprecedented for the times. There is no question the film is polarizing and likely an acquired taste; those expecting a conventional shoot em up western will be disappointed. However, for those who revel in kitschy pop culture and rooting out deeper, seditious meanings in their cinema, this is unquestionably the gold standard and a highly enjoyable movie.