Talbot Jennings is reputed to have been known for his strong narrative skills. On the other hand, somebody is said to have said westerns are really only about the scenery and the gun-play. Otherwise this film is completely without meaning or purpose. What happened to the two hundred horses ? Looked more like five hundred to me, all bought on credit from a funny looking guy who dropped in from Idaho and then disappeared, just like his horses. Difficult to think of four more unlikely looking brothers, ages ranging from 16 to 60, give or take a year or so. Dean Martin ? John Wayne had the weirdest walk. Four worthless sons of a paragon mother, who sold a blind horse. This film passes the time in a totally aimless sort of way, if you've nothing better to do. Don't bother, unless you really can't think of anything else, which happened to me. I won't be watching it again.

The very first time I saw this I was 7 years old. I saw this at the Westbury Drive in of Long Island New York. and i must be very honest that this was the movie that made me realize what i was about. It was love at first site for Dean Martin and Michael Anderson Jr. and to make matters more intense, there is a small dialog that really caught mt attention. This was the part when Bud was telling the story about him being accused of stealing a horse. he says during the story that he "got up and changed his pants". after Matt says that's not such a great story, Tom says " I like the part of when he changes his pants" I think i was in seventh heaven after hearing that. I was not happy with the ending. none of the brothers should of gotten killed. I would of did the end much different. after Morgan Hastings got his just dues, the boys would of gotten the ranch back and all would live happily ever after..Sorry but this was and still is my most loved John Wayne movie.

THE SONS OF KATIE ELDER is an old-fashioned western with the kind of plot you'd see in a 1930s-era movie, updated to the 1960s with glorious colour and a bigger budget allowing for great backdrops and expansive landscape scenes. It brings together two lions of the western genre, expert and experienced director Henry Hathaway, with veteran old-timer John Wayne to tell a story of suspense and revenge.This is a very good film and one I thoroughly enjoyed thanks to the solid pacing and never-ending suspense right from the word go. The idea of having the four sons having to band together to solve a murder mystery and then subsequently take their revenge is a very strong one and really powers forth from beginning to end. Even hints of romantic sub-plots fall by the wayside in favour of the action-adventure template, and the strong set-pieces are endless; the outstanding bridge set-piece being the highlight for me.Wayne is his dependable self and this is the best I've seen from him after THE ALAMO and TRUE GRIT. Dean Martin provides veteran support, but the most fun performances come from the up-and-coming stars like George Kennedy and Dennis Hopper. Inevitably the real winner is Hathaway himself, whose lush visuals and endlessly dramatic cinematography add up to a great addition to the western genre.

Four sons join together to get revenge for the murder of their drunk, habitual gambler father on the wake of the death of their beloved frontier mother, Katie Elder (never seen, but her presence is felt throughout the film anyway; how her memory always returns establishes her importance in the plot). John Wayne, Dean Martin, Earl Holliman (The Forbidden Planet), and Michael Anderson Jr. are the Elder sons who return to their mother's funeral, finding a town who wants no part of them. Wayne, as John Elder, is a known gunfighter while Martin's Tom has a warrant out for his arrest after an incident with a bartender in another town. The Elders are set up for the murder of Clearwater, Texas sheriff, Billy Wilson (Paul Fix, veteran of television), by a conniving, sneaky, no-good gun store owner, Morgan Hastings (character actor James Gregory, a veteran of television, particularly Barney Miller). Hastings is the one responsible for the murder of patriarch Bass Elder, resulting in the loss of land which left Katie without her home. The Elder sons attempt to right the wrongs orchestrated by Hastings.I admit that "The Sons of Katie Elder" isn't one of my favorite John Wayne westerns, certainly, in regards to his pairing with Dean Martin, not a patch to "Rio Bravo". That said, I found it entertaining for what it was: a story about four men trying to do right by their maw after a life of muddying the name Elder, especially John who is known for the bloodshed as a reputed gunfighter. Katie, a pacifist, loved John, but hated violence, and this provides motivation to try and do something (forcing youngster Bud (Anderson Jr.) to return to school and do Katie's memory justice) that would make her proud.Katie had a plan to raise cattle, so the Elders attempt to ride them to miners in the Rockies, but this plan is interrupted by Billy's "replacement", the green deputy Ben (Jeremy Slate) who believes they were behind the sheriff's murder, even though this is hogwash considering the Elders were in Pecos receiving the cattle. George Kennedy has a memorable part as Gregory's hired gun, black hat and rattlesnake grin, who will help Hastings in his plan to snuff out the Elders as they are carried, bound in chains, by stagecoach across a bridge. This film also has an early role for Dennis Hopper as Hastings' nervy, sniveling son, Dave. Curiously, the film is absent a lot of action, except two sequences at the end, including a bridge blown apart by dynamite and a gun store exploded, with more emphasis on the Elders attempting to put aside their criminal pasts to restore their family name and allow Katie to have died with some dignity. The film does have a playful brawl between the brothers which erupts when an angered Bud (mad as hell that John didn't draw in a gunfight with Kennedy's Curly in a bar) provokes John inside Katie's old home. I will say that the gunfight at the end, where the Elders must fend off Hastings' men underneath the bridge, is quite thrilling, although, interesting enough, this normally results in the conclusion of the film, but is instead a precursor to the return to town so that John can have one final showdown with Hastings.