If you are after a good Western, avoid this for pity's sake. In a genre where clichés are part of the territory, this one packs so many into the first five minutes that nothing it has to say thereafter is going to carry much weight.
Jimmy Stewart is the only reason to watch Destry Rides Again. That buttoned down charm is always great to watch, and the character is a good role for him in many ways. The device of him telling stories about his friends as little parables works well in these capable hands.
Marlene Dietrich, by contrast, is awful: her singing, her looks and her acting made me ask why she was ever in movies.
It's the queasy attempted mix of comedy, musical and Western that really sink this film I think. In the end, it doesn't do any of them well.
Jimmy Stewart is the only reason to watch Destry Rides Again. That buttoned down charm is always great to watch, and the character is a good role for him in many ways. The device of him telling stories about his friends as little parables works well in these capable hands.
Marlene Dietrich, by contrast, is awful: her singing, her looks and her acting made me ask why she was ever in movies.
It's the queasy attempted mix of comedy, musical and Western that really sink this film I think. In the end, it doesn't do any of them well.