Red River NC

I believe there are two alpha male characters in the film, but there is no 'hero' or 'villain' as in 'The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.' At the beginning of the film, Dunson is the strong adult male; he has a potentially wealthy future ahead of him and should have had a family. Unfortunately, his potential wife is killed. A bit later, we see him kill a Mexican and talk about his dream to be rich on beef and that he will have to slave for about 10 years. This event in the film changes this individual film's structure greatly compared to any other John Wayne film to date, as when the cows are ready to be moved upriver, Dunson is old. He slowly slips into unintentionally letting his son talk over him and act independently. Through this process, he becomes more and more unkempt, breaking down into the dirty norm of the villain. By the time he is actually forced to leave, his drinking and other habits lead to that ejection.

In terms of the alpha male, Dunson, though putting in hard work, becomes old blood. He becomes frustrated and tired in a position with which the alpha male characteristics should be shining. But dirty and socially distraught in the second half of the movie, the newer, sharper adopted son shows off his gun skills and earns the respect to oust his stepfather of sorts.

In watching the film, the point that Dunson actually begins to slip was with his wife's death. He starts to become that hero that cannot get what he wants rather early, and his slipping is reflected in the wet, dirty fight he has against the Indian that had taken the bracelet.

Dunson early in the film seizes a large section of land from a large landowner. Understanding Tompkins, this may as well mean that he is seizing his destiny and attempting to control his fate. It is soon learned that he cannot make the men come on his journey; he asks them not to come if they don't want to but because of the numbers and his age he cannot tame the men he brings. Though the men are supposedly leading the cows upriver, it almost seemed as if the men were being led by the cows themselves. The cows seemed generally agreeable and manageable, they were spooked by a coyote but in general few problems. The men themselves get sidetracked, go to a homestead to drink coffee and find women, and get into fights before and after. The cows never experience this, which I interpreted as a new way of examining nature and the hardboiled roles compared to Wayne's previous films.