The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

1962

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Critics Consensus

Featuring a trio of classic leading men and a rich story captured by a director at the peak of his craft, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is one of the finest Westerns ever filmed.

93%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 43

92%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 23,629

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Movie Info

Eastern attorney Ranson Stoddard (James Stewart) heads to the wild West in search of a new life. He settles in the small town of Shinbone where he meets up with Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Valance is as bad a villain as there ever was, and his dastardly deeds are financed by an evil conglomerate resolute on stopping the territory from gaining statehood. When Valance beats Stoddard to a bloody pulp, Stoddard is rescued by rancher Tom Doniphon (John Wayne). Tom helps Ranson to a nearby restaurant where owner Hallie (Vera Miles) who patches him up and gives him a job as table server. Valance and his sadistic sidekicks delight in berating the hapless waiter, branding him as "yellow." Once again, Tom comes to the rescue when Ranson is tripped by Valance and spills his food. Ranson's only allies appear to be Hallie, Tom, and a dipsomaniac newspaper publisher named Dutton Peabody (Edmund O'Brien. When Peabody prints an article which advocates statehood, he is beaten by Valance and his vermin and his printing office is wrecked. Having stood by and watched the action long enough, Stoddard places his lawyer's shingle in front of the newspaper office. This sets the stage for a showdown between the lawless Valance and the lawful Stoddard, while Tom waits in the wings and watches. Film is directed by John Ford.

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Cast

John Wayne
as Tom Doniphon
James Stewart
as Ransom Stoddard
Vera Miles
as Hallie Stoddard
Lee Marvin
as Liberty Valance
Edmond O'Brien
as Dutton Peabody
Andy Devine
as Link Appleyard
Ken Murray
as Doc Willoughby
John Carradine
as Maj. Cassius Starbuckle
Jeanette Nolan
as Nora Ericson
John Qualen
as Peter Ericson
Carleton Young
as Maxwell Scott
Woody Strode
as Pompey
Denver Pyle
as Amos Carruthers
O.Z. Whitehead
as Ben Carruthers
Paul Birch
as Mayor Winder
Robert Simon
as Handy Strong
Joseph Hoover
as Hasbrouck
Anna Lee
as Passenger
Charles Seel
as President of Election Council
Leonard Baker
as Man
Larry Finley
as Bar X Man
Dan Borzage
as Townsman
Ralph Volkie
as Townsman
Charles Morton
as Drummer
Edward Jaurequi
as Drummer
Brian 'Slim' Hightower
as Shotgun
Jack Williams
as Henchman
Chuck Hayward
as Henchman
Chuck Roberson
as Henchman
Mario Arteaga
as Henchman
Shug Fisher
as Kaintuck the Drunk
Ted Mapes
as Highpockets
Jack Pennick
as Jack the Bartender
Bob Morgan
as Roughrider
Earle Hodgins
as Clue Dumfries
Earl Hodgins
as Clue Dumfries
Montie Montana
as Politician on Horseback
Strother Martin
as Floyd
Lee Van Cleef
as Reese
Robert F. Simon
as Handy Strong
Stuart Holmes
Dorothy Phillips
Buddy Roosevelt
as Townsman in Diner
Gertrude Astor
Eva Novak
Slim Talbot
William Henry
Blackie Whiteford
Helen Gibson
Danny Borzage
as Townsman
Sam Harris
as Convention Committee Member
Robert Donner
Jack Kenney
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Critic Reviews for The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

All Critics (43) | Top Critics (7)

  • There's much to say about it; the simplest is that it's both the most romantic of Westerns and the greatest American political movie.

    Apr 29, 2013 | Full Review…

    Richard Brody

    New Yorker
    Top Critic

  • There is a purity to the John Ford style. His composition is classical. He arranges his characters within the frame to reflect power dynamics -- or sometimes to suggest a balance is changing.

    Dec 30, 2011 | Rating: 4/4 | Full Review…

    Roger Ebert

    Chicago Sun-Times
    Top Critic

  • John Ford and the writers have somewhat overplayed their hands. They have taken a disarmingly simple and affecting premise, developed it with craft and skill to a natural point of conclusion, and then have proceeded to run it into the ground.

    Jul 7, 2010 | Full Review…

    Variety Staff

    Variety
    Top Critic

  • A great film, rich in thought and feeling, composed in rhythms that vary from the elegiac to the spontaneous.

    Apr 24, 2009 | Full Review…

    Dave Kehr

    Chicago Reader
    Top Critic

  • Ford's purest and most sustained expression of the familiar themes of the passing of the Old West, the conflict between the untamed wilderness and the cultivated garden, and the power of myth.

    Feb 9, 2006 | Full Review…

    Nigel Floyd

    Time Out
    Top Critic

  • A basically honest, rugged and mature saga has been sapped of a great deal of effect by an obvious, overlong and garrulous anticlimax.

    May 9, 2005 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

    A.H. Weiler

    New York Times
    Top Critic
View All Critic Reviews (43)

Audience Reviews for The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

  • Jun 27, 2013
    "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend". That quote is a great one, especially when it comes to taking a closer look at history, but especially historical memory, and its impact. And it's the key to this film too, which is one of many standouts from its legendary director John Ford. Jimmy Stewart is Ransom Stoddard- a greenhorn eastern lawyer whose efforts to dispense his brand of justice out in the small western town of Shinbone are hampered by the local menace Liberty Valance, played wonderfully by Lee Marvin. John Wayne plays Tom Doniphan- the toughest and meanest man in Shinbone (next to Valance), who does his best to help Stoddard, despite some complications, namely their methods of how to proceed, as well as the fact that they're both pining after the same lady- the lovely Hallie, who is played by Vera Miles. This is one of many elegiac westerns that was ahead of its time for trying to demythologize the west before it became popular. It's also maybe the only time in his career where Ford is presenting things with a decent amount of pessimism, something that would also later get popularized a few years later along with revisionism, and demythologizing. The acting is great, and Ford had a tremendous cast to work with, There's also lots of smaller appearances from way too many genre luminaries to count, and that certainly scores the film some extra points, too. I love how, even though this was made in 1962, they chose to shoot in black and white, and almost exclusively in interiors. There's a few moments outside, but there's none of the grand landscape shots you might expect. I think it really adds to the mood, tone, and point the film is trying to make about expectations versus reality.The music is also pretty fine as well. All in all, this is a superb film. Definitely give it a watch.
    Chris W Super Reviewer
  • Feb 27, 2013
    Jimmy Stewart reduces the Duke to a block of wood with a classical performance but it doesn't matter much in the end. The plot thickens nicely and the good guys of course come out ahead. What you want from a good western.
    John B Super Reviewer
  • Nov 01, 2012
    The strangest thing about "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" is how slow its greatness sneaks up on you. John Ford doesn't let his film start out on an exciting note, opting instead to take a more low-key route. Here is a director that knows the Western genre like the back of his hand, and his subtle approach here is admirable yet again. "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" is a lot more understated than you might imagine, but I think that's where it succeeds. It's so calm and self-modulated that it throws you off when things get brutal. I'll need to revisit it again later on, but I'm almost positive that this is one of the greatest films out there.
    Stephen E Super Reviewer
  • Oct 27, 2011
    Ford's last masterpiece. A truly epic story of the end of the old west, Stewart and Wayne put in masterful performances.
    Graham J Super Reviewer
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