Movie Review: McLintock (1963)

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Brian Wright

More solid ideological substance than given credit for… 8/10

… or what the majority of fans would have watched it for back in the day. McLintock was a big, successful action-packed movie in the the early 60s around the time of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and just before the buildup and war in Vietnam that tore the country apart. But I don’t remember having seen it at the local theater. A reader, Neil, recommended McLintock to me for various pro-liberty sentiments and principles expressed in much of the movie’s dialog and action. And he’s right: the writers have the protagonist GW McLintock (John Wayne) making strong statements in favor of property rights, personal responsibility, productive ambition, fair treatment of Indians as individuals, and the detrimental, illogical effects of most government activity. Continue reading →

Movie Review: Swing Shift (1984)

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Brian Wright

Small WWII movie with big-budget impact

“Mable Stoddard’s husband is in the Pacific. She took this job for the duration.
‘Mrs. Stoddard, how do you like your job?’
‘I love it.’
‘How about after the war, do you plan to keep on working.’
‘Well as I was saying, when my husband comes back, I’m going to be busy, at home.’
‘Good for you.’
“Each returning serviceman will get his job back when the war is won. And you girls and women, you’ll be going home. Back to being housewives and mothers as you promised to do when you came to work for us. Your lives will return to normal.”
— Post-war announcement by industry spokesman Continue reading →