Perry Kate
Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
Exoticalot
People are voting emotionally.
Jenna Walter
The film may be flawed, but its message is not.
Erica Derrick
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
Edgar Allan Pooh
. . . in Warner Bros. eerily prophetic Real Life Bio-Pic of Marion Morrison, a.k.a. John Holmes, a.k.a., John Wayne. It's an extensively researched fact that throughout his life, the quintessential "Whited Sepulchre" Marion was Hollywood's Number One Patron of the Border Town Bordellos an hour or two South. Multiple reputable sources have documented that at least one of Marion's three Hispanic spouses (that would be Wife #2) was a Real Life Working Girl when Marion met her. This fits in with MONTEREY's plot, when Marion's "John Holmes" character finds his squeeze Dolores ready to turn on a dime and marry "Luis" for her financial advantage. It's no wonder that when Hollywood's most famous "John Holmes" Googled "WOMANIZING PR*CK" in searching for a good porn name, Marion's bride-seducing earlier star turn was the top result. The rest is History, as is Marion's invention of Secret Agent 007's Catch-Phrase 30:30 into MONTEREY. Delores queries Marion's character, "Capitan ----?", not knowing her "Gringo" seducer's name. Marion's exact reply? "Holmes. John Holmes."
CitizenCaine
John Wayne made a series of six films for Vitagraph from 1932-1933. The Man From Monterey was the last of the bunch and no better or worse than the others. Wayne stars as a cavalry officer in old California and tries to help a Spanish landowner from land-grabbers. The chief villain is played by Francis Ford, brother of the great western film giant: John Ford, who would later play a role in establishing Wayne as a mythic western hero as well as a legitimate actor. The film moves quickly but contains amateurish acting from the supporting cast, missing Spanish accents, non-Spanish-looking actresses, and laughable swordplay. Wayne's sidekick does offer up a few laughs though, especially when in drag. *1/2 of 4 stars.
MartinHafer
Throughout the 1930s, John Wayne made a steady stream of cheap B-westerns. While none of these were classics, they were enjoyable little films--much like those of Gene Autry or Roy Rogers, though Wayne's films rarely had any singing. However, early in his career, he was still learning his craft as an actor and a few of these films are rough and just not up to the standards of his films just a year or two later. I've seen several dozen of these films and I think "The Man From Monterey" might be the worst of the bunch. Here are some examples of how bad this film is: At the 11 minute mark, there's some really bad acting and terrible action. A jerk beats a poor guy over the head with a guitar. He actually hits the guy in slow-motion and Wayne's reaction is amateurish as well--it's obvious he still has a lot to learn as an actor and the entire scene looked fake.A few times, lines were flubbed but the director didn't care enough to re-film the scene.Few of the Hispanics in the film seemed of Spanish origin! They often lacked accents and couldn't speak the language in the least. In one scene, a supposedly Hispanic lady says that "hasta luego is 'see you later'". No, in Spanish, hasta luego means 'see you later' and hasta pronto is 'see you soon'. Another 'Spanish' lady gets angry and shouts "...enough of your impudence!!". Heck, most native Americans don't even use the word impudence!! Wayne is taken prisoner by a gang who threatens to kill him. When his fellow US Cavalry troops arrive, Wayne LIES--telling the men he is okay and not being held prisoner! Why would he do this?! The WORST sword fighting scene in history--many high school plays feature more realistic sword-play! Stock footage from a silent film is used in one scene. You can tell because the speed is way too fast--the result of using silent stock on sound machines.The only GOOD thing about the film is Philippe in drag. Seeing this ALMOST made this bland film worth seeing...almost.
Michael_Elliott
Man from Monterey, The (1933) ** (out of 4) "B" Western has Captain John Holmes (John Wayne) being sent by the government to try and explain to some Spanish folks that they must register their land grants or they will end up losing them by them falling into the public domain. Holmes must battle some greedy land stealers who want the most valuable land to fall into the public domain so that they can get it at a better price. This was one of six early films Wayne made for Warner and it's not one of the best. I think it goes without saying that many of the "B" Westerns from this era were very short on plot and many of them didn't differentiate themselves from countless others that were being released. This one here features Wayne with Duke and that's pretty much it. Usually I find myself entertained during these films but that wasn't the case here as I found the story to be interesting but that's about it. The movie didn't contain any good action scenes, the fights were rather boring and the entire subplot with the love story was deadly boring. The most energy comes from some unintentionally funny moments including one sequence where Wayne saves his love interest (Ruth Hall) only to have her jealous, wannabe boyfriend (Donald Reed) stick him up. How Wayne keeps flirting with the woman even though he has a gun on him had me laughing out loud. Even funnier is that the so-called boyfriend keeps getting more and more steamed yet Wayne never seems to notice. Other funny moments come from a troubadour (Luis Alberni) who actually keeps the film moving with his performance. Wayne isn't too bad, although he really doesn't have much to do except stand tall and act tough. Hall isn't too bad as the love interest but the screenplay doesn't do her any favors. Reed is pretty bland as the bad guy, although the unintentional laughs are actually needed here. The story of the land falling into the public domain could have made for an entertaining story but director Wright brings no life or energy to the film and in the end it's just too boring even at only 57-minutes.