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3 Godfathers

3 Godfathers

Western · 1948

Three outlaws on the run discover a dying woman and her baby. They swear to bring the infant to safety across the desert, even at the risk of their own lives.

Movie details

3 Godfathers

“John Ford's Legend of the Southwest!”

1948 Western 1h 42m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.8 / 10

Community rating

Three outlaws on the run discover a dying woman and her baby. They swear to bring the infant to safety across the desert, even at the risk of their own lives.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over 3 Godfathers?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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The Tall T

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The Shootist

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3:10 to Yuma

3:10 to Yuma

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In Arizona in the late 1800s, infamous outlaw Ben Wade and his vicious gang of thieves and murderers have plagued the Southern Railroad. When Wade is captured, Civil War veteran Dan Evans, struggling to survive on his drought-plagued ranch, volunteers to deliver him alive to the "3:10 to Yuma", a train that will take the killer to trial.

Stagecoach

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A group of people traveling on a stagecoach find their journey complicated by the threat of Geronimo, and learn something about each other in the process.

The Searchers

The Searchers

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

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

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On the eve of retirement, Captain Nathan Brittles takes out a last patrol to stop an impending massive Indian attack. Encumbered by women who must be evacuated, Brittles finds his mission imperiled.

Hombre

Hombre

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John Russell, disdained by his "respectable" fellow stagecoach passengers because he was raised by Indians, becomes their only hope for survival when they are set upon by outlaws.

Forty Guns

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An authoritarian rancher rules an Arizona county with her private posse of hired guns. When a new Marshal arrives to set things straight, the cattle queen finds herself falling for the avowedly non-violent lawman. Both have itchy-fingered brothers, a female gunman enters the picture, and things go desperately wrong.

Frontera

Frontera

Western · 2014

After crossing the border illegally for work, Miguel, a hard-working father and devoted husband, finds himself wrongfully accused of murdering a former sheriff’s wife. After learning of his imprisonment, Miguel’s pregnant wife tries to come to his aid and lands in the hands of corrupt coyotes who hold her for ransom. Dissatisfied with the police department’s investigation, the former sheriff tries to uncover the truth about his wife’s death and discovers disturbing evidence that will destroy one family’s future, or tear another’s apart.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

John Ford

Written by

Laurence Stallings · Frank S. Nugent · Peter B. Kyne · Robert Nathan

John Wayne

John Wayne

Robert Marmaduke Sangster Hightower

Pedro Armendáriz

Pedro Armendáriz

Pedro 'Pete' Roca Fuerte

Harry Carey Jr.

Harry Carey Jr.

William Kearney ('The Abilene Kid')

Ward Bond

Ward Bond

Perley 'Buck' Sweet

Mae Marsh

Mae Marsh

Mrs. Perley Sweet

Mildred Natwick

Mildred Natwick

The Mother

Jane Darwell

Jane Darwell

Miss Florie

Court is in session

Put 3 Godfathers on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Patience is part of the point.”

Duration becomes texture. The film asks you to inhabit its world instead of merely processing its plot.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“A test of endurance, your honour.”

Stillness keeps submitting itself as meaning. At some point, contemplation needs something worth contemplating.