40 Films in Robotech: Destry Rides Again (1939)

    

I’m partial to Jimmy Stewart westerns. This Robotech prompt was pretty vague on which Western and so… 

 ROBOTECH MENTION:  

In the book Symphony of Light (1987), Jack Mckinney writes the novelization of the Robotech TV Episode 81 Hired Gun from Rand's point of view, as he journals about the adventure. McKinney never mentions Destry Rides Again by name but refers to an era of its genre. Here’s a scan of Page 104 from the book….

 SYNOPSIS:  

This Destry Rides Again synopsis comes from the back of the DVD case of the 6 James Stewart Classic Westerns movie set – which I purchased at The Jimmy Stewart Museum in Indiana, PA: “A mild-mannered deputy (James Stewart) attempts to restore order in a corrupt frontier town and falls for an alluring saloon girl (Marlene Dietrich)." 


 AWARDS & KUDOS:  

Destry Rides Again earned a National Film Registry from the American National Film Preservation Board in 1996.

 OTHER COOL FACTS:  

In his 1939 film review of Destry Rides Again, New York Times film critic Frank S. Nugent draws a direct line between Marlene Dietrich’s breakthrough performance as Lola Lola in The Blue Angel (1930) and her character Frenchy in Destry Rides Again. The Blue Angel is another movie featured in our blog’s 40 Films in Robotech yearlong celebration. Lancer/Yellow Dancer is tied to a Marlene Dietrich character in both movies. 

 ROBOTECH REASON:  

When this scene takes place in The New Generation, both Jack McKinney in the book and writer/Robotech creator Carl Macek in the TV series, want the audience to quickly get the old-time western reference in look and feel. There are many, many Westerns that look like this Robotech scene. New York Times film critic Frank S. Nugent made it blatant that Destry Rides Again is exactly what American audiences would expect to see going into a Western in his 1939 film review. He writes: “Typecasting, the bane of the film industry, has rarely been more successfully plied than by producer Joe Pasternak in his Destry Rides Again…Good fun every minute of it, and another trophy for Mr. Pasternak.” And so, Robotech’s Hired Gun episode also does that with guys at the bar, Lancer dressed up as Yellow Dancer singing “to the boys,” Rand and Rook peering over the saloon doors, and so on. There are epic works of art westerns – which are well worth seeing. But your run-of-the-mill westerns like Destry Rides Again may not have a place of honor in the Louvre but will certainly pass the time of day on a rainy afternoon…and put a smile on your face.

To read my ⭐⭐ (out of a possible 5 star) rating for Destry Rides Again (1939) on Letterboxd, click here.

But wait - there's more! Destry Rides Again is the 20th film in the 40 Films in Robotech! We're halfway through the list. Here's a recap of what we've covered so far:  

You can also view this list on LETTERBOXD and see other reviews of these films.

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