Generally considered one of John Ford’s best westerns, “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” (1962) is a wild west story about an unlikely hero rising up to take down a group of dangerous and ruthless outlaws. Pairing two gigantic movie stars of the time in John Wayne and James Stewart, it was an instant hit, and remains well respected to this day. The film opens up with US senator Ransom Stoddard (Stewart) and his wife Hallie (Vera Miles) arriving to the town on Shinbone to attend the funeral of a man called Tom Doniphon (Wayne). When a local reporter asks the senator why he came all the way for the funeral of a local rancher, the story moves back in time to young Stoddard arriving to Shinbone and being robbed and severely beaten by an outlaw gang led by Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Stoddard is nursed back to health by a local restaurant owner and his family. He learns that Valance and his men keep terrorizing Shinbone, and that the sheriff is unable to stop him. The only man willing to stand up to him is tom Doniphon, who plans to marry restaurant owner’s daughter Hallie. Stoddard decides to stay in shinbone and open a law practice, and he and Doniphon become fast friends. When Stoddard begins calling for statehood and gets elected a delegate for the statehood convention, that puts him at odds with local cattle barons who hire Valance and his gang to instill fear into Stoddard and his supporters. This will set Stoddard and Doniphon – two men fighting for the affections of the same young lady - up for a final conflict with Valance.
Jessica Alba: I don't want to be stay-at-home mom
