Red River
Following the Civil War, headstrong rancher Thomas Dunson decides to lead a perilous cattle drive from Texas to Missouri. During the exhausting journey, his persistence becomes tyrannical in the eyes of Matthew Garth, his adopted son and protégé.
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Your review
Cast
44 people
John Wayne
Thomas Dunson
Known for
The Searchers
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Montgomery Clift
Matthew Garth
Known for
I Confess
A Place in the Sun
Joanne Dru
Tess Millay
Known for
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Super Fuzz
Walter Brennan
'Groot' Nadine
Known for
Rio Bravo
To Have and Have Not
Coleen Gray
Fen
Known for
The Killing
Nightmare Alley
Harry Carey
Mr. Melville
Known for
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Angel and the Badman
John Ireland
Cherry Valance
Known for
All the King's Men
Spartacus
Noah Beery Jr.
Buster McGee
Known for
The Rockford Files
Walking Tall
Harry Carey Jr.
Dan Latimer
Known for
Back to the Future Part III
Trinity Is Still My Name
Chief Yowlachie
Quo
Known for
The Paleface
Paul Fix
Teeler Yacey
Known for
To Kill a Mockingbird
Zabriskie Point
Hank Worden
Simms Reeves
Known for
Twin Peaks
The Searchers
Howard Hawks Director · Borden Chase Screenplay Charles Schnee Screenplay
Worldwide gross $9M · Budget $3M · United States release September 17, 1948
Box office
Budget
$3,000,000
Worldwide gross
$9,012,000
Gross vs. budget
3.0×
Production
Monterey Productions
Production
Charles K. Feldman Group
Production
United Artists Pictures
Studio · Production
United States
Produced in
The River Is Red
Working title
Languages
Original language
English
Spoken on screen
English · Italian · Spanish
Release dates
United States · August 25, 1948
Premiere · Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas
United States · September 17, 1948
Theatrical
Australia
April 1, 1949 · Limited theatrical
June 21, 1970 · Premiere · Adelaide Film Festival
Austria
October 5, 1951 · Theatrical
Brazil
June 1, 2000 · Physical · DVD
Canada
October 11, 1948 · Theatrical
January 31, 2006 · Physical · DVD
France
August 10, 1949 · Theatrical
March 30, 2005 · Theatrical · Re-release
January 17, 2018 · Theatrical · Re-release (Restored Version)
October 11, 2020 · Premiere · Lumière Film Festival
October 6, 2026 · TV · Ciné+ Classic
Germany
February 9, 1951 · Theatrical · West Germany
December 3, 1968 · TV · West Germany
Ireland
June 17, 1949 · Theatrical
Netherlands
February 17, 1949 · Theatrical
July 8, 2003 · Physical · DVD
Portugal
February 7, 1950 · Theatrical
January 10, 2025 · Limited theatrical · Lisboa, Cinemateca Portuguesa
South Korea
September 25, 1952 · Theatrical
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