Three Godfathers
This 1948 John Ford western is one of my favorite Christmas movies.
Indeed, I actually don't like most of the Christmas classics for one reason or another, although I've just posted on another one of my favorites, A Christmas Story.
This movie is a classic John Ford western featuring three of the best known actors who appeared in his films. John Wayne, Pedro Armendáriz, and Harry Carey Jr. appear as three outlaws who ride into a small western town while on the lam, and then set out to make good their escape. While in the desert they run across a dying woman and her baby, the only survivors of misbegotten effort to cross the desert. The woman make the men the baby's Godfathers as she passes away and they then proceed to attempt to save themselves and the child.
Very well done, what is not evident at first is that this classic Ford western is also heavily allegorical. As the movie progresses we learn that it takes place near Christmas and the three Godfathers come to stand in for the Three Wise Men as they seek to rescue the baby and make it to the town of New Jerusalem.
The film is fantastically done, with rich color tones, and well worth seeing. As a western movie, the film is typical of films of this period and attention to material details doesn't equal that of later films. However, this film fares better in those details than some others as no date is given for the film, so it cannot be said that any of the physical items depicted in the film are done so incorrectly. The clothing is typical for a film of this era and is not 100% accurate, but is not badly done either.
The film is well worth seeing and stands out as one of Ford's very good western movies, as well as being a unique Christmas movie.
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