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Batjac Productions
Not part of a collection.
The Mission That Became a Fortress! The Fortress That Became a Shrine!
The legendary true story of a small band of soldiers who sacrificed their lives in hopeless combat against a massive army in order to prevent a tyrant from smashing the new Republic of Texas.
John Chard
Jan 10, 2019 · via TMDB
For what seems like 13 hours the film misses classic genre status. For 13 days these brave men hold the fort... The Alamo is not the film it should be, even after the 2004 remake (a great film that takes a reflective and thoughtful stance) we find ourselves still waiting for a blood pumping and stirring take on the folklore tale of what happened at the small missionary known as The Alamo. It's San Antonio, 1836 and General Santa Anna is marching his mighty armies into the contested territory of Texas, all that stands in his way is a small band of heroes, Jim Bowie, Davy Crockett and their trusty men who are led by the inexperienced William Travis. They must buy time in order for General Sam Houston to get an army together in which to crush Santa Anna's imposing forces. There really is no simpler way of putting it other than to say that The Alamo is an overlong misfire. Various cuts have been made to try and create an epic classic out of what was actually filmed, but neither of the cuts can succeed in making it the flowing genre piece it could have been. John Wayne directs and clearly cared about the project (with his own cash invested that was to be expected), but rumours have persisted that Cliff Lyons had to take up directing duties later in the picture, it's not hard to see why if that was the case, but various sources do poo poo this rumour, and is mostly believed to be Wayne's own work throughout the film. Wayne (having learnt from his mentor John Ford) had a great vision for the picture, and the scope is rather impressive, the recreation of The Alamo building in particular is first rate, whilst the formations of Santa Anna's armies finally rouse the picture out of its slumber. However, the high points in the picture are few and far between, the acting leaves a lot to be desired, with Wayne himself unable to let the Crockett character be anything other than the John Wayne show. Richard Widmark as Jim Bowie steadily holds his own and manages to eek out a bit of bravado interplay with Wayne and Laurence Harvey (William Travers), but outside of that there is not much to write home about. The final third just about saves the film from being a stinker, with the Academy Award for best sound richly deserved, but sadly The Alamo remains to this day a plodding dinosaur that bores when it really should be igniting the spirit. 5/10
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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John Wayne
Col. Davy Crockett
Richard Widmark
Jim Bowie
Laurence Harvey
Col. William Travis
Frankie Avalon
Smitty
Patrick Wayne
Capt. James Butler Bonham
Linda Cristal
Flaca
Joan O'Brien
Mrs. Sue Dickinson
Chill Wills
Beekeeper
Joseph Calleia
Juan Seguin
Ken Curtis
Capt. Almeron Dickinson
Jester Hairston
Jethro
Veda Ann Borg
Blind Nell Robertson
John Dierkes
Jocko Robertson
Denver Pyle
Thimblerig (the Gambler)
Hank Worden
Parson
William Henry
Dr. Sutherland
Wesley Lau
Emil
Chuck Roberson
Tennesseean
Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams
Lt. 'Irish' Finn
Olive Carey
Mrs. Dennison
Richard Boone
Gen. Sam Houston
Jack Pennick
Sgt. Lightfoot (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward
Tennessean (uncredited)
Fred Graham
Bearded Volunteer (uncredited)
Ted White
Tennessean (uncredited)
Big John Hamilton
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
Mickey Finn
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
Gerry Fisher
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
John Hudkins
Tennessean (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
Bob Morgan
Tennessean (uncredited)
Boyd 'Red' Morgan
Tennessean (uncredited)
Gil Perkins
Tennessean (uncredited)
Ricardo Rosales
Bowie's Charro (uncredited)
Dean Smith
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
Bill Williams
Tennessean (uncredited)
Bill Hart
Stunts
Bill Williams
Stunts
Bob Morgan
Stunts
Boyd 'Red' Morgan
Stunts
Chuck Hayward
Stunts
Chuck Roberson
Stunts
Cliff Lyons
Stunts
Dean Smith
Stunts
Fred Graham
Stunts
Gil Perkins
Stunts
John Hudkins
Stunts
Ted White
Stunts
John Wayne
Director
Cliff Lyons
Second Unit Director
John Ford
Second Unit Director
James Edward Grant
Associate Producer
John Wayne
Producer
Dimitri Tiomkin
Original Music Composer
James Edward Grant
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Dastoor
1991
Fluidity
2019
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
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