The Searchers (1956)

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Frank S. Nugent (screenplay)
Alan Le May (novel)

Release Date:

13 March 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Western

Tagline:

The story that sweeps from the great Southwest to the Canadian border in VistaVision.

Plot:

As a Civil War veteran spends years searching for a young niece captured by Indians, his motivation becomes increasingly questionable.

Plot Keywords:

Hatred | Texas | Civil War Veteran | Raid | Rescue

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

John Wayne	...	Ethan Edwards
Jeffrey Hunter	...	Martin Pawley
Vera Miles	...	Laurie Jorgensen
Ward Bond	...	Rev. Capt. Samuel Johnston Clayton
Natalie Wood	...	Debbie Edwards (older)
John Qualen	...	Lars Jorgensen
Olive Carey	...	Mrs. Jorgensen
Henry Brandon	...	Chief Cicatrice (Scar)
Ken Curtis	...	Charlie McCorry
Harry Carey Jr.	...	Brad Jorgensen
Antonio Moreno	...	Emilio Gabriel Fernandez y Figueroa
Hank Worden	...	Mose Harper
Beulah Archuletta	...	Wild Goose Flying in the Night Sky (Look)
Walter Coy	...	Aaron Edwards
Dorothy Jordan	...	Martha Edwards
Pippa Scott	...	Lucy Edwards
Patrick Wayne	...	Lt. Greenhill (as Pat Wayne)
Lana Wood	...	Debbie Edwards (younger)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Pipe Line Begishe	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Exactly Sonnie Betsuie	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Danny Borzage	...	Accordionist at Funeral (uncredited)
Ruth Clifford	...	Deranged Woman at Fort (uncredited)
Tommy Doss	...	Wedding Musician (uncredited)
Pete Grey Eyes	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Feather Hat Jr.	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Nacho Galindo	...	Mexican Bartender (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward	...	Man at Wedding (uncredited)
Jack Tin Horn	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Harry Black Horse	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Away Luna	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Robert Lyden	...	Ben Edwards (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons	...	Col. Greenhill (uncredited)
Peter Mamakos	...	Jerem Futterman (uncredited)
Mae Marsh	...	Dark Cloaked Woman at Fort Guarding Deranged Woman (uncredited)
Frank McGrath	...	(uncredited)
Bob Many Mules	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Jack Pennick	...	Sergeant at Fort (uncredited)
Lloyd Perryman	...	Wedding Musician (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	...	Ranger at Wedding (uncredited)
Smile White Sheep	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Many Mules Son	...	Comanche (uncredited)
Percy Shooting Star	...	Comanche (uncredited)
William Steele	...	Nesby (uncredited)
Chief Thundercloud	...	Comanche chief (uncredited)
Terry Wilson	...	(uncredited)
Billy Yellow	...	Comanche (uncredited)

Directed by
John Ford

Writing credits
Frank S. Nugent		(screenplay)
Alan Le May		(novel) (as Alan LeMay)

Produced by
Merian C. Cooper	....	executive producer
Patrick Ford	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Max Steiner

Cinematography by
Winton C. Hoch

Film Editing by
Jack Murray

Art Direction by
James Basevi
Frank Hotaling

Set Decoration by
Victor A. Gangelin		(as Victor Gangelin)

Costume Design by
Charles Arrico		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Web Overlander	....	makeup artist
Fae M. Smith	....	hair stylist (as Fae Smith)

Production Management
Lowell J. Farrell	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Wingate Smith	....	assistant director
Gary Nelson	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Dudley Holmes	....	properties

Sound Department
Hugh McDowell Jr.	....	sound (as Hugh McDowell)
Howard Wilson	....	sound

Special Effects by
George Brown	....	special effects

Stunts
Bill Cartledge	....	stunts (uncredited)
Philip Crawford	....	stunts (uncredited)
Dick Dial	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bryan 'Slim' Hightower	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Hudkins	....	stunts (uncredited)
Fred Kennedy	....	stunts (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons	....	stunts (uncredited)
Frank McGrath	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	....	stunts (uncredited)
Dale Van Sickel	....	stunts (uncredited)
Henry Wills	....	stunts (uncredited)
Terry Wilson	....	stunts (uncredited)
Billy Yellow	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack N. Young	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Alfred Gilks	....	photographer: second unit

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Frank Beetson Jr.	....	wardrobe: men (as Frank Beetson)
Ann Peck	....	wardrobe: women

Music Department
Murray Cutter	....	orchestrator

Other crew
Robert Gary	....	script supervisor
James Gooch	....	technicolor color consultant

Production Companies

• C.V. Whitney Pictures
• Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1956) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1990) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (1995) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1998) (USA) (VHS) (widescreen)
• Warner Home Video (1998) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Bros. Finland (1956) (1969) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1956) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Fazer Musiikki Oy/Fazer Video (????) (Finland) (video)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1979) (1997) (Finland) (TV)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2000) (Finland) (DVD)
• TV3 (1990) (Finland) (TV)
• Warner Home Video (1996) (Germany) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (Germany) (DVD) (special edition)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1987) (1992) (Finland) (TV)

Also Known As:

La prisonnière du désert (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Der schwarze Falke (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
Förföljaren (Finland: Swedish title) (Sweden) [sv]
Más corazón que odio (Argentina) (Chile) [es]
Çöl aslani (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
A Desaparecida (Portugal) [pt]
Centaures del desert (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Centauros del desierto (Spain) [es]
De zwarte valk (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
Etsijät (Finland) [fi]
Forfølgeren (Denmark) [da]
Mas corazón que ódio (Mexico) (cable TV title) [es]
Poszukiwacze (Poland) [pl]
Rastros de Ódio (Brazil) [pt]
Sentieri selvaggi (Italy) [it]
Tragaci (Serbia) [sr]

Runtime:

119 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Cherokee | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Canada:F (Ontario) | Canada:G (British Columbia/Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Canada:G (Manitoba) | Portugal:M/12 | Iceland:L | West Germany:12 (nf) | USA:Approved (certificate #17787) | South Korea:12 (2003) | Brazil:12 | Australia:G | Finland:K-12 | Norway:12 | Sweden:15 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Aspen, Colorado, USA

Company:

C.V. Whitney Pictures

Trivia:

The medal Ethan Edwards gives to Debbie is not a Confederate or Union Army medal. It is a French medal awarded to mercenary soldiers who fought between 1865 and 1867 for the Emperor Maximilian of Mexico. This medal implies Ethan served in the French Mexican Expedition during his mysterious three year absence and also explains his fluency in Spanish.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: At the shooting whit the Indian's at the river Rev.Capt. Clayton gun is empty, and Ethan is throwing a loaded gun to him, Clayton is throwing his hat and hits Ethan. Ethan is moving his lips and saying something, but there is no sound.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[seeing a horseman in the distance]
Aaron Edwards: Ethan?
Debbie Edwards: Hush, Prince.
Lucy Edwards: That's your Uncle Ethan!
Martha Edwards: [he approaches] Welcome home, Ethan!

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 10 Top 10: America's 10 Greatest Films in 10 Classic Genres (2008) (TV)

Soundtrack:

The Searchers

New Discoveries

About ten minutes into the film, there is a shot which begins with Captain Clayton (Ward Bond) slamming a door behind two children who were teasing two young lovers, Lucy and Brad. There follows a wordless interior shot, lasting maybe a minute, wherein Aunt Martha takes out Ethan's Confederate overcoat, tenderly caressing it before she hands it to Ethan. I noticed the sequence when I recently watched the film again, and I had to rewind and play it once more because I found it so stunning--all of the information and emotions conveyed without a word. I'd watched the film previously maybe a dozen times and had never noticed the power of this sequence.

Don't for a second tell me that Ethan is a stereotype, because there is so much more at work here. Obviously we are not supposed to sympathize with Ethan's prejudices, but notice that Ethan is not the only one who feels that way. Laurie (not at all disapprovingly) tells Martin that Aunt Martha would have preferred her daughter to be killed after being defiled. Interestingly, Martin is one-eighth Cherokee, which under the old racial percentages of the Confederacy would make him the equivalent of an octoroon, and therefore non-white. Martin's intended marriage to Laurie, on racial terms, would have been as taboo as Debbie marrying Scar: Laurie believes that death is preferable for Debbie, but she intends to do likewise with Martin. The contrast is that Debbie was abducted, whereas Laurie would willingly go. And note at the end that Laurie walks right by Debbie, as she heads for Martin.

The final shot is famous, but I noted the doorway theme throughout the film: the message of an open or closed door, whether the character enters the door or just looks in, at other times, the character is inside looking out. And all of this in a 50's western.

The movie is not perfect: I could have done without some of the comic relief. However, this is John Wayne's best work (The Shootist is a close second). Those who think this is the best film of all time have good reason to support their belief.