Red River 1948 Internet Archive -

John Ford, upon seeing Wayne's performance, famously said, "I never knew the big son of a bitch could act!"

At the time, Wayne was known for heroic, stoic characters. In Red River , he plays a tyrannical, obsessive father figure who descends into madness. Montgomery Clift’s sensitive, Method-acting approach was the perfect foil to Wayne’s classical style. The friction on screen is electric, culminating in one of the most famous final scenes in cinema history (often compared to the ending of The Burying of the Hatchet ). red river 1948 internet archive

also hosts digitized historical records related to the film, such as: May 1948 issue of Variety John Ford, upon seeing Wayne's performance, famously said,