The Searchers: Subtext, Tone, and the Failure to Follow Through

  Upon the opening scenes of John Ford’s western epic “The Searchers” we are thrust into a post civil war America. With the introduction of John Wayne’s Ethan Edwards we become even more privy to that fact, since it seems Ethan is a former confederate soldier himself. And with his actions we see that he is still convinced that war is being fought, that action coming in the form of Ethan still having his saber. Historically, the confederates gave up their sabers in surrender, but Ethan having his is seen has him not letting go of the fight. Later in the film we learn that Ethan fought in the Franco-Mexican conflicts, explaining his 3 year absence after the South lost. These are some examples of the many subtextual cues we are given throughout the film to give some context to the character of Ethan. Most of his past is never explicitly stated, but rather shown through the acting prowess of Wayne, who embraces the soul of the character very well. My reasoning for bringing up these points is that the film has the ability to tell the story of a man who lacks purpose in life, moving from one conflict to another. Ford has created a tragic hero, whose nature is never morally driven but rather vengeful. But the average moviegoer will surely not pick up these things on first viewing. Now while Ford has created a film that showcases the darkness of a man with no meaning to life, he also has created a maze of tone shifts that seek to bury those flaws. Many times throughout its runtime, Searchers seeks to veer from the path of emotional resonance. A scene being undercut by a comic act the next over, or in some cases the opposite. A pristine example being the fate of the innocent Comanche woman Look. treated from the introduction as a bit of comic relief, ford then has our characters suddenly treat her amorally, and seal her fate. Eventually leading to her grisly and sudden death later on. In the end her humorous role led to her dehumanization in the film. The lack of characterization leads to muted reactions to her death, our characters barely looking twice, leaving the audience to do the same. Ford inadvertently creates not only a character that doesn't matter, but perpetuates the message that her people entirely didn't matter. Instead of a gritty character study of a broken soldier, Ethan comes out as an unwilling hero, who never truly owns up to his nature. The movie seemingly doing the same, its tone never really picks a side, when a side truly should be taken on its contents. Ford’s “The Searchers” has become film history canon as a quintessential western, however today it seems to lack the true depth it deserves. If remade in the future, we may see Ethan and the rest of our characters given the resolutions they truly needed.