The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Acclaimed as ‘the greatest American political movie’ by The New Yorker, John Ford’s grand classic takes place at the turning point in the West when the rule of force gave way to the rule of law, coinciding with the decline of both the Western genre and the Golden Age of Hollywood. Intertwining politics, law, press freedom, history and education with a love triangle, this tale of conflict between the untamed wilderness and the cultivated garden sees Ford at once deconstruct and reconstruct the myth of romantic heroism, a salute yet a farewell to the volatile America of the past, where John Wayne rides tall. ‘When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.’ Ford prints the legend – and the facts behind it, making it into a bitter irony that is as tragic as it is moving – so much so that fellow filmmaker Sergio Leone called it his favourite.

4/10 (Sun): Film talk with Kiki Fung