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Red River is a film starring John Wayne as Thomas Dunson. The movie begins with Dunson crossing the Red River into Texas with his trail hand, Groot Nadine. He claims the land and begins the Red River D ranch with only a couple head of cattle. Dunson and Groot happen upon an orphaned boy, Matthew Garth. Dunson adopts him and promises to add an M to his brand once Matt earns it. After fourteen years, Dunson's herd has grown to well over 1000 cattle, but he found himself broke as a result of the Civil War. Dunson decides that cattle prices in Texas are not good enough so he will drive his herd to Missouri. He and his men encounter many hardships including a stampede and long patches with no water. Dunson's stubbornness and unsympathetic attitude begin to affect the cowboys and even Matt rebels. Matt took control of the drive and changed the destination to Abilene. He had heard that the route to Abilene was safer and just as profitable. Dunson is obviously furious and vows to murder Matt. On the way to Abilene, the crew comes upon an Indian attack, which they take care of and Matt falls in love with Tess Millay, a woman whom they had saved. Finally, upon reaching Abilene, Matt finds that there are people there waiting for the arrival of a herd. Matt accepts a generous offer for the cattle. Dunson arrived in Abilene shortly after to kill Matt. As the two men fought, Tess breaks in and demands that they realize how much they love each other. They realize their mistakes and forgive each other. The movie ends with Dunson telling Matt that he will incorporate the M into the brand.

The film illustrates the romance of the cowboy that is so often seen on the Great Plains. It also shows how the downturn of the cattle industry in Texas influences other areas of the Great Plains north of Texas. While this film wasn't 100% historically accurate, it was still interesting to see a literary take on a cattle drive from Texas. It was also the first John Wayne movie I had ever seen.