Along Came Jones (1945)

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

I'm a big Gary Cooper fan, but even the Coop's by this time ageing skills can't rescue this comedy-western from mediocrity.The plot is contrived, scenes are too long, characters and situations are poorly drawn - in truth, as a movie it just drags and sags to its predictable happy-ending finish.The problem for me is that the older Cooper got, the less believable his country bumpkin persona convinces. Here familiarity really does breed contempt, and while his Melody Jones character gets into some heated clinches with the alluring but otherwise out of place Loretta Young, in truth there's little other chemistry between them and you can't imagine her really throwing over the at least mildly dangerous desperado Dan Duryea, whose abilities are wasted here on an underwritten part, for slow-walking, slow talking Jones.The action sequences are pretty inactive, to be frank, the laughs are few and far between (Jones' hat falling off every time he enters a room is about the height of the humour), conveyed by pretty lumpen direction and by the end you realise that the film is something of an epitaph for the comedy-western genre. Tougher, more realistic westerns were just around the corner (Ford's "My Darling Clementine", Gregory Peck's "The Gunfighter" and James Stewart's collaborations with Anthony Mann, to name but a few examples) and Cooper was to find his last great role when he eschewed the overdone country hick in favour of the dignified seriousness of the marshal in the classic "High Noon".I love the Coasters' hit song of the same name as this film, penned by the great Leiber and Stoller partnership from a few years later than this and before watching, had hoped it had been inspired by a rollickingly funny and richly entertaining movie.I was wrong.

Gary Cooper plays a singing cowboy named Melody Jones who is mistaken for a robber named Monte Jarrad (they have the same initials). Loretta Young is his love interest Cherry de Longpre - she helps out Mr. Cooper and pal William Demarest. The odd character names are a a clue this was intended as a comedy. With a couple of exceptions, the comedy isn't all that funny. There are other times when "Along Came Jones" didn't look at all comic… so, I was confused.The best part of the film is the first kiss between Cooper and Ms. Young. It happens after they do a saddle switch. Cooper wipes his lips on his sleeve and kisses Young. Then she says, "Thank you!" in brilliant movie star focus - do not miss this kiss! The worst part of the film was the obvious cheap looking way they rode along on their horses in front of a projection screen. Even worse that that is the fact that you can't really tell, from the overall film, how we (audiences) are supposed to take the movie. Whatever the filmmakers intended missed, obviously. I'll take it as a comedy with top stars and a couple of good laughs. ***** Along Came Jones (1945) Stuart Heisler ~ Gary Cooper, Loretta Young, William Demarest

Basically, this is an entertaining western that sports a combination of suspense, action, romance and comedy. It also features an interesting cast, with names like Gary Cooper, Loretta Young, William Demarest and Dan Duryea.Cooper, as "Melody Jones," plays his normal low-key hero role and Demarest provides most of the laughs. Young is attractive and plays an intriguing character and Duyea does what he does best: play the villain. However, the latter has a smaller role than usual.This is corny in spots, but it was meant to be since this is supposed to be a spoof of westerns. The only thing that didn't come off well was the special-specials, but they weren't much back in the days of this film but they are very dated now.A nice, lightweight enjoyable satire.

Poor Melody Jones, a simple soul, a good cowboy who has never really developed skill with firearms, gets himself mistaken for notorious western badman Monty Jarrad. Same general build, same initials and both are known to hang around with a cantankerous old timer. A recipe for trouble?For Melody yes, but for the viewer it's a recipe for one of the best comic westerns ever made. Gary Cooper who produced as well as starred in this film, seems to be having a grand old time spoofing all the western heroes that people like he have played for years.Quite a few stock western types are here. Loretta Young is the killer's girlfriend, a Calamity Jane type who's pretty accurate with a rifle fortunately. William Demarest is the cantankerous old timer sidekick, he could have had a great career portraying those had he stuck to westerns. And Dan Duryea is just fine as the real Monty Jarrad who's coming back to his hometown to get the loot he's stashed there.Cooper as Melody gets in one fix after another at almost a dizzying pace. His final showdown with Dan Duryea must have influenced John Ford when he made The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Though this is a comedy and Ford's film was deadly serious, the showdown between Cooper and Duryea is quite serious.I'm also sure that Mel Brooks was influenced by Along Came Jones when he created his classic Blazing Saddles. Thank you to director Stuart Heisler and writer Nunnally Johnson for creating a fabulously funny film.