Destry (1954)

Destry is 1954 Audie Murphy western based on a novel by Max Brand. There were two film adaptations in the 1930s including a fairly admired 1939 version (with the title Destry Rides Again) directed by George Marshall. In 1954 Marshall directed another version, simply called Destry, with Audie Murphy in the role played by James Stewart in the ’39 film. This is the film reviewed here.

I’ve seen the 1939 movie but it was so long ago that I was able to approach this 1954 remake with an open mind.

Restful is the name of the town but restful it ain’t. It’s run by a very shady businessman and gambler named Decker (Lyle Bettger). Decker has the crooked Mayor Sellers (Edgar Buchanan) is his pocket and a gang of gunmen.

Restful is without a sheriff after the previous holder of that office, Sheriff Joe Bailey, suffered a fatal heart attack. That’s what it says on the death certificate but the death certificate neglected to mention that by an amazing coincidence the heart attack happened at the exact same moment that the sheriff got a bullet in the back. This occurred shortly after a dispute over a poker game in which Decker cheated Henry Skinner (Walter Baldwin) out of his ranch. Decker cheated with some help from sexy saloon girl and chanteuse Brandy (Mari Blanchard).

To ensure that they have no problems with nosy sheriffs Decker and the major appoint hopeless drunk Rags Barnaby (Thomas Mitchell) as sheriff. Rags then has a brainwave. Years earlier, before he crawled inside a bottle, Rags had been the deputy of a legendary sheriff named Destry. Destry had a son, Tom. Rags hasn’t seen the son for years but he figures he’s bound to be a tough two-fisted fast-shooting lawman.

When Tom Destry (Audie Murphy) arrives in town all Rags’ hopes are dashed. Tom is a quiet inoffensive young man who looks like he would faint if he saw a gun. And Tom makes it clear that as deputy he has no intention of carrying a gun. Tom is a tenderfoot who will clearly be no use at all.

Appearances are of course deceptive. Tom Destry doesn’t carry a gun and he doesn’t believe in shooting people but underneath the gentle bookish exterior there is steel. Destry is tough and brave. He’s just not tough and brave in a way that involves shooting people. And he’s smart. Why try out-shooting criminals when you can out-think them?

Destry is determined to clean up Restful, and bring the murderer of Sheriff Bailey to justice.

This is the sort of thing Audie Murphy did particularly well, playing an unconventional hero. He plays this hero as a seriously nice guy but he convinces the viewer that Destry is actually quite formidable in his own way. And of course Audie Murphy had a very high likeability factor. I think Murphy’s performance works just fine.

Mari Blanchard has a tougher challenge, playing the role played by Marlene Dietrich in the ’39 film. She’s no Dietrich but she’s not pretty good. She gets several musical numbers which she handles well enough.

Thomas Mitchell as Rags and Edgar Buchanan as the sleazy mayor are of course huge amounts of fun. Wallace Ford as the town’s incompetent doctor and Alan Hale Jr as a hot-headed cattleman are also excellent. Lori Nelson gets saddled with the thankless good girl role but she’s OK.

As I said earlier I have only dim memories of the 1939 Destry Rides Again so I can’t compare the two movies. Judged on its own merits Destry is a pretty good western. Recommended.

Kino Lorber’s Blu-Ray (in their Audie Murphy Collection II boxed set) offers a nice transfer. Being a 1954 Universal International release the movie was shot in Technicolor and looks great.

I’ve seen and reviewed quite a few Audie Murphy westerns. Their quality is variable but Murphy’s performances are always good. Hell Bent for Leather (1960) and No Name on the Bullet (1959) are superb. Ride Clear of Diablo (1954) and the Don Siegel-directed The Duel at Silver Creek (1952) are reasonably OK.