John Wayne appeared in approximately 83 Westerns throughout his career. From his early B-movie days to working with legendary director John Ford, to winning an Oscar for True Grit, it’s hard to imagine another actor who so thoroughly defined a genre. Some names come to mind, Clint Eastwood, Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Boris Karloff, but Wayne is the clear winner. His persona, voice, and moral code became so ingrained in the Western that The Shootist, his final film, feels less like a character study and more like a meditation on Wayne himself, and, by extension, the genre he helped shape. It is the most fitting farewell the actor could have ever given us.
Based on Glendon Swarthout’s novel, The Shootist follows J.B. Books, an aging gunslinger who learns he is dying of cancer. He settles into a quiet boarding house run by the widowed Bond Rogers (Lauren Bacall), who grows uneasy as her teenage son, Gillom (Ron Howard), begins to admire him. As Books processes his fate, word spreads through town, and soon, opportunists, whether out for revenge or personal gain, come knocking. All the while, Books reflects on his life’s accomplishments, regrets, and the legacy he will leave behind.
The film’s solemn tone is elevated by one of Wayne’s most introspective performances. Every line he delivers feels measured and deliberate, striking a fine balance between the larger-than-life icon and a real human being confronting his mortality. The supporting cast is equally strong, Ron Howard, in perhaps his best performance (one of his last, before transitioning to director), brings youthful energy and loyalty; Lauren Bacall is both firm and vulnerable as Bond; and Richard Boone is memorably detestable.
The film is at its best in its quiet, reflective moments: the doctor’s diagnosis, delivered by none other than James Stewart; a ride between Books and Bond, charged with emotion; a shooting lesson for Gillom, and a visit from a past lover. It confidently hits all the expected beats of a farewell story, but it never quite reaches the profound depths of something like Unforgiven. A stronger personal motivation for Books, some specific regret or unfinished business, could have elevated it further. As it stands, his past is more of a broad shadow over his final days rather than a singular wound he’s trying to mend. That said, even if it stops short of essential cinema, The Shootist remains a necessary Western, if only for being the perfect swan song for John Wayne.
It’s incredible to think that this role almost went to Clint Eastwood, given the film was directed by Don Siegel (Dirty Harry). But in the end, The Shootist belongs to Wayne. His presence in every scene, coupled with the real-life parallels to his own battle with cancer, makes it one of the most fitting matches of actor and character in Hollywood history. That the film stands strong on its own, with poignant dialogue, memorable supporting characters, and well-executed shootouts, only makes Wayne’s farewell that much more bittersweet.
- Where to watch
- Rent or buy at Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Amazon Video
- Where to watch
- Not available for streaming
Play trailer
- Original title
- The Shootist
- Director
- Don Siegel
- Genre
- Western
- Cast
- John Wayne, Lauren Bacall, Ron Howard, James Stewart, Richard Boone, Hugh O'Brian, Bill McKinney, Harry Morgan
- Rated
- PG
- Screenwriter
- Miles Hood Swarthout, Scott Hale
- Composer
- Elmer Bernstein
- Cinematography
- Bruce Surtees
- Editor
- Douglas Stewart
- Country
- Language
- English
- Box office
- $13.4 million