True Grit (1969)

The picture is the first adaptation of  Charles Portis 1968 novel True Grit.  John Wayne stars as U.S . Marshal Rooster Cogburn and won his only Academy award for his performance in this film.   In True Grit, Wayne plays grumpy, pot-bellied U.S. marshal "Rooster" Cogburn, hired by 14-year-old Mattie Ross (Kim Darby) to find Tom Chaney (Jeff Corey), who killed her father .  She could have selected any other lawman but she chose the aging Cogburn because she believes that he has "true grit".  Texas ranger Glen Campbell is also in search for Tom Chaney for a different murder.  He teams up with the marshal and Mattie .  But oddly enough, True Grit isn't really about plot.  It's about the creation of the character.  Tough old Rooster , isn't above a little larceny ,but has one stern moral code about real bad guys.   And he's got quite the colorful past as he relates tales of his younger days to Campbell and Darby on the trail.  Wayne's portrait of that fat, mean, greedy,  eye-patched ,  whisky drinking and yet in some strange way lovable lawman will remain as one of the best performances in westerns.  Kim Darby is also a surprise.  She's more than capable of handling Wayne in each and every scene.  They made a very good team.  Glen Campbell is not as good as these two, but then he really isn't an actor .  The photography is superb, with the hills, mountains, valleys and forests being the real stars in this film.