The Alamo (1960)

“I’d hate to say anything good about that long-winded jackanapes, but he does know the short way to start a war.” – Jim Bowie

Number of Times Seen – At least 5 times  (12 Feb 2000, DVD and 21 Jan 2014)

Brief Synopsis – The Epic story of the 185 men who fought and died to help ensure freedom for Texas from Mexico in 1837.

My Take on it – I have always been a fan of history, American History in particular, and was always fascinated by the story of The Alamo.

For those of you unfamiliar with the story, when Texas was trying to get it’s independence from Mexico and declare statehood, they had fierce battles with the Mexican President Santa Anna and his army.  A group of 185 soldiers and volunteers (including Davey Crockett and Jim Bowie) were holding up at an old Fort in San Antonio called the Alamo and they lasted 13 days against the massive Mexican army which gave time for the army of Texas to organize itself and eventually defeat the Mexican Army and declare their independence.  To read more about it, click here.

This movie tells that story in a truly epic fashion.

John Wayne tried getting this movie made for years and ended up financing a majority of it from his own pocket.  This was the first movie he directed and he also play Crockett here.

I used to like this movie a lot more than I do now.  I guess that’s because I was always just thinking about the message and courage of the men who fought there instead of seeing also how campy the dialogue and script were here.

There are still a few parts that are very emotional to watch including the scene with Jocko and his wife.

I think if Wayne would have spent more time on developing the characters, I might have enjoyed it even more than I did.

On a personal note, I was at a conference in San Antonio 5 years ago and skipped out on a morning session in order to go visit The Alamo.  I knew that I will probably never have that chance again in the future, so it was definitely worth skipping it to go and see this historic place where heroes fought and died.

For years I have loved his famous song about The Alamo (Warning, there be spoilers) 🙂

A remake was made in 2004 with Billy Bob Thornton, Jason Patrick, Dennis Quaid and Patrick Wilson, but I have yet to see it. (It’s on my list)

Bottom Line – Great movie, nicely done by Wayne.  Moving tale of heroism, but it seems a bit campy and doesn’t hold up as well over time. Recommended!

Rating – Globe Worthy

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