The Comancheros (1961)

The Comancheros is easiest catagorised as an excellent (in terms of quality) example of John Wayne's output in his later years. There's no real edge to any of the characters—and especially not John Wayne's—and the plot is largely a straightforward adventure yarn, it still a very good film. The brawling is kept in check (only really appearing in an early scene with Lee Marvin) and the plot is decent even if it does not have much to say about anything.

The film mixes two different stories: firstly that of a slightly amoral gambler (Stuart Whitman) on the run from a mostly justified murder charge who's captured by John Wayne's Texas Ranger, the escapes, then is captured again, before joining up with the Texas ranger. Secondly, the "main" plot of the film, about preventing the comancheros trading rifles with the Comanche. I feel this part of the plot leave something to be desired from a historical point of view, but is good fun none the less.

In summary, there's some decent action scenes, some slightly unconvincing romance (on the part of the gambler; John Wayne's feelings for his dead wife were much more strongly integrated), and an enjoyable cameo from Lee Marvin at the start. John Wayne reputedly directed a large chunk of the film since Michael Curtiz was ill at the time.

The (US) Blu-Ray version is generally pretty good, although a few select scenes were a bit fuzzy, probably reflecting the quality of the source material or possibly some slightly unconvincing back projection in one place.