| She Wore a Yellow Ribbon | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | John Ford |
| Produced by | Argosy Pictures |
| Screenplay by | |
| Based on | The Big Hunt 1947 story in The Saturday Evening Post War Party 1948 in The Saturday Evening Post by James Warner Bellah |
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | Irving Pichel |
| Music by | Richard Hageman |
| Cinematography | Winton Hoch |
| Edited by | Jack Murray |
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Production
company |
Argosy Pictures
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| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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103 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.6 million |
| Box office | $2.7 million (rentals) |
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is a 1949 Technicolor Western film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne. The Oscar-winning film was the second of Ford’s Cavalry trilogy films, along with Fort Apache (1948) and Rio Grande (1950). With a budget of $1.6 million, the film was one of the most expensive Westerns made up to that time. It was a major hit for RKO. The film takes its name from “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon“, a popular US military song that is used to keep marching cadence.
The film was shot on location in Monument Valley utilizing large areas of the Navajo reservation along the Arizona–Utahstate border. Ford and cinematographer Winton Hoch based much of the film’s imagery on the paintings and sculptures of Frederic Remington. The film won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, Color in 1950. It was also nominated as 1950’s Best Written American Western (which the Writers Guild of America awarded to Yellow Sky).
The cast and crew lived in relatively primitive conditions in Monument Valley. Most slept in dirt-floor cabins that only had communal cold-water drum showers. The film was completed ahead of schedule and under budget.
Although the film’s cinematographer, Winton Hoch, won an Academy Award for his work, filming was not a smooth creative process because of conflicts with Ford. Ironically one of the most iconic scenes from the film was created during a dispute. As a line of cavalry rode through the desert, a real thunderstorm grew on the horizon. Hoch began to pack up the cameras as the weather worsened only for Ford to order him to keep shooting. Hoch argued that there was not enough natural light for the scene and, more importantly, the cameras could become potential lightning rods if the storm swept over them. Ford ignored Hoch’s complaints; completing the scene as the thunderstorm rolled in, soaking the cast and crew. Hoch later had filed a letter of complaint against Ford with the American Society of Cinematographers over the filming of this scene.
The story of Hoch’s refusal to shoot in this thunderstorm has often been repeated, but actor Harry Carey, Jr., who was on the set, contests it. He says Ford had finished shooting for the day, but when the picturesque storm brewed he asked Hoch if they could shoot in the declining light. Hoch answered, “It’s awfully dark, Jack. I’ll shoot it. I just can’t promise anything.” Ford then instructed, “Winnie, open her up [the camera lens] and let’s go for it. If it doesn’t turn out, I’ll take the rap.” Winnie complied, saying, “Fair enough, Jack.”
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