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The Quiet Man

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The Quiet Man
File:Quiet man.jpg
original film poster
Directed byJohn Ford
Written byMaurice Walsh
Frank S. Nugent
Richard Llewellyn
Produced byMerian C. Cooper
StarringJohn Wayne
Maureen O'Hara
Barry Fitzgerald
Ward Bond
Victor McLaglen
CinematographyWinton C. Hoch, ASC
Archie Stout, ASC
Edited byJack Murray
Music byVictor Young
Distributed byRepublic Pictures
Release dates
21 July Template:Fy (UK)
August (Venice Film Fest.)
14 August (US)
Running time
129 minutes
CountryTemplate:FilmUS
LanguageTransclusion error: {{En}} is only for use in File namespace. Use {{lang-en}} or {{in lang|en}} instead.

The Quiet Man is a Template:Fy American film starring John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Victor McLaglen, and Barry Fitzgerald, and directed by John Ford. It was based on a Template:Lty Saturday Evening Post short story by Maurice Walsh. The film is notable for its lush photography of the Irish countryside and the long, climactic, semi-comic fist fight between Wayne and McLaglen.


Plot

Sean Thornton (John Wayne), an Irish-American from Pittsburgh, returns to Ireland to reclaim his family's farm. He meets and falls in love with the fiery Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O'Hara), sister of the bullying, loud-mouthed landowner "Red" Will Danaher (Victor McLaglen). Danaher at first refuses to sanction the marriage until he is tricked into believing that a wealthy widow will not marry him unless Mary Kate leaves the house. After learning the truth on their wedding day, an enraged Will refuses to give his sister the full dowry to which she is entitled.

Sean couldn't care less, but Mary Kate is obsessed with obtaining her dowry. Enraged at Sean's reluctance to confront her brother, she regards him as a sniveling coward. The truth, however, is known only to one other person in the village, the Church of Ireland minister "Snuffy" Playfair (Arthur Shields). Sean was once a famous boxer in the United States under the name of "Trooper Thorn." After killing an opponent in the ring, he hung up his gloves and vowed never to fight again.

Later, in an attempt to force Sean to stand up to Red, Mary Kate leaves him and boards a train out of the village. Infuriated, Sean drags her off the train and demands her dowry from Red. To Red's horror, Mary Kate and Sean then throw the money into a furnace. Sean and Will slug it out through the village and then become the best of friends. Sean has regained Mary Kate's love and respect, and all is well.

Cast


Cast notes:

  • Charles Fitzsimons and James Fitzsimons were Maureen O'Hara's real life younger brothers. Barry Fitzgerald and Arthur Shields were also brothers in real life, and Francis Ford was John Ford's older brother.

Production

The film was something of a departure for Wayne and Ford, who were both known mostly for their Westerns. It was also a departure for Republic Pictures, which was given the chance to back Ford in what was considered a risky venture at the time. It was the first time the studio, known for low budget B-movies, put out a film receiving an Oscar nomination, the only Best Picture nomination the studio would ever receive.

Ford read the story in 1933, and soon purchased the story for $10. It took over 12 years for the film to be financed and made. Small Republic Pictures agreed to finance the film with O'Hara and Wayne with Ford directing, only if all three agreed to film a western with Republic. All three agreed and after filming Rio Grande they all left for Ireland to start shooting. John Wayne would eventually describe the movie as the favourite of his long career.

One of the conditions that Republic Pictures placed on John Ford was that the film came in at under two hours total running time. The finished picture was two hours and fifteen minutes long. When screening the film for Republic Studio executives, Ford stopped the film at approximately two hours in: on the verge of the climactic fight between Wayne and McLaglen. Republic executives relented and allowed the film to run its full length. It was one of the few films that Republic filmed in Technicolor; most of the studio's other colour films were made in a more economical process known as Trucolor.

The film employed many actors from the Irish theatre, including Barry Fitzgerald's brother Arthur Shields, as well as extras from the Irish countryside and is one of the few Hollywood movies in which spoken Irish can be heard.

The story is set on Innisfree, an island in Lough Gill, County Sligo. Many scenes for the film were actually shot in and around the village of Cong, County Mayo and on the grounds of Cong's Ashford Castle. Cong is now a wealthy small town and the castle a 5-star luxury hotel. The connections with the film have led to the area becoming a tourist attraction.

Academy Awards

Award Person
Best Director John Ford
Best Cinematography Winton C. Hoch
Archie Stout
Nominated:
Best Picture John Ford
Merian C. Cooper
Best Supporting Actor Victor McLaglen
Best Art Direction Frank Hotaling
John McCarthy Jr.
Charles S. Thompson
Best Sound Daniel J. Bloomberg
(Republic Sound Department)
Best Adapted Screenplay Frank S. Nugent

Public reception

The film was a financial success and inspired the 1961 Broadway musical Donnybrook!.

The famous kissing scene between John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara is shown in E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982), when E.T. watches television. E.T. is interested and moved by the scene and thru telepathic contact he makes Elliott recreate it at his school.


Template:American films

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