One of John Wayne's last films, the 1971 Big Jake puts "The Duke" in the title role as a tough old frontiersman who is called on by his estranged wife (Maureen O'Hara) to perform one last, life-and-death job: to rescue his kidnapped grandson from a roving bunch of outlaws who have pegged the McCandles family as both able and willing to pay an astounding million-dollar ransom.

The most interesting part of Big Jake is its setting, at the tail end of the Old West period. The credit sequence is quite captivating, with a series of sepia photographs accompanied by a voice-over narration commenting on the differences between the "high society" of 1909 on the East Coast of the U.S., and the very different rough-and-tumble life out West. It sets the West in context, making it even more intriguing by its contrast to city life back East. Once the film gets going, we see even more examples of the way that the "Wild West" was starting to be tamed at the turn of the century: in addition to the railroad, we see automobiles and motorcycles, and in general the characters look to technology as the new big thing, with the old ways of cowboys and horses part of the past. It's an appropriate match of setting and star, with the aging actor playing an old-fashioned character whose traditional way of life is on its last legs.

I wish I could say that the film itself lives up to the promise of its setting, but alas, it doesn't. One of the problems with Big Jake is that its plot is entirely linear. After the initial situation is established, we don't learn anything new, and the situation doesn't really change. Jake sets off on his adventure, and we see what happens, step by step. Despite all the bloody fights and shootouts (and there is plenty of violence), there's never any real sense that Jake won't succeed in his mission. And with this lack of surprises, there's a natural lack of dramatic tension.

Another problem is the uneven mixture of drama and comedy. The film takes pains to set up Jake as a tough character, and the situation as a grim one, with the brutal assault on the ranch in the opening scene, but various slapstick moments are interspersed within the film. Especially since these scenes are heralded by an obtrusive "comic theme" in the soundtrack, the overall effect is very uneven.

Big Jake himself is a curious character. Jake is supposed to be a tough guy, feared and respected by outlaws as well as by law-abiding folk. The film does try to convince us of this early on, in a scene where he intimidates a couple of outlaws into stopping a lynching, but taken on its own merits, it doesn't really work: Jake is just a pudgy old guy in a pastel shirt who tells the outlaws what to do, and they do it. Later, as if realizing that the tough guy image wasn't sticking, the filmmakers have Jake push around and punch out his grown sons in a couple of scenes. This may help convince us that he's a jerk, but it doesn't really bolster his image as "resourceful and tough." I can't help but think that here, Wayne is relying mostly on his legend status to convey his character to the audience; if we view Jake as a composite of all the other Wayne tough-guy heroes, it starts making more sense how he's treated by the other characters.

In general, Big Jake has the feeling of having been written by a committee. Take, for instance, the motorcycle-riding character of Michael McCandles (Christopher Mitchum). Far too much screen time is devoted to scenes of him madly riding around, over open ground, over hills and rocks, and even doing outlandish stunts with the motorcycle. Why do we get subjected to these lengthy sequences, given that they don't advance the plot in any way (and actually seem quite ridiculous)? It's a good question; my guess is that someone said "If Steve McQueen got all that attention for riding a motorcycle in The Great Escape, by Jove, we'll put in some motorcycle stunts in our movie, too!" Except that this kind of imitation rarely works, and the hot-rod sections in Big Jake are just dull. Then again, the film as a whole is best described as dull, so it's all of a piece.

One interesting piece of trivia about Big Jake is that it was a "family affair" for John Wayne. The character of McCandles' son James was played by Wayne's real-life son Patrick, and the film was produced by another of Wayne's sons, Michael.

The DVD

Video

Big Jake is presented in its original 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio, anamorphically enhanced. The image shows a moderate amount of noise in some scenes (mostly indoor ones) but is almost noise-free in other scenes. Colors look good for the most part, though at times the primary colors seem a bit overly bright next to more subdued colors; skin tones have a slightly pallid appearance. Contrast is satisfactory throughout the film. Edge enhancement is heavily in evidence, and does detract from some scenes, but close-up and medium shots look fine.

Audio

The film offers a Dolby 5.1 and a Dolby 2.0 track. The 2.0 and 5.1 track are very similar in their sound quality. The 5.1 track offers a minimal surround experience; we do get some effects in the side channels, but not a whole lot. The dialogue sounds fairly flat, and while it's always understandable, at times it takes on a somewhat muffled quality. Apart from this, it's a satisfactory track, with the music, dialogue, and effects correctly balanced, and no noise or distortion.

Extras

There are no special features on this DVD.

Final thoughts

Big Jake's interesting setting and creative opening leads into a ho-hum action plot that goes straight as an arrow from start to finish, with plenty of fistfights and gunplay but no interesting twists or turns. This film is probably worth a rental for John Wayne fans, if only to see him co-starring with his real-life son Patrick Wayne, but for the viewer who's just looking for an entertaining film, I suggest skipping this one.