
Country: United States
Language: English
Director: John Ford
Writers: James Warner Bellah, Willis Goldbeck, Dorothy M. Johnson
Stars: James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles
Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar, 4 wins & 3 nominations total
Duration: 2h 3m
When Senator Ransom Stoddard returns home to Shinbone for the funeral of Tom Doniphon, he recounts to a local newspaper editor the story behind it all. He had come to town many years before, a lawyer by profession. The stage was robbed on its way in by local ruffian Liberty Valance, and Stoddard has nothing left to his name but a few law books. He gets a job in the kitchen at the Ericsons' restaurant, where he meets his future wife Hallie. The territory is vying for Statehood and Stoddard is selected as a representative over Valance, who continues to terrorize the town. When he destroys the local newspaper office and attacks the editor, Stoddard calls him out, though the conclusion is not quite as straightforward as legend would have it.
A senator returns to a Western town for the funeral of an old friend and tells the story of his origins.