The Long Gray Line. 1955. USA. Directed by John Ford. Screenplay by Edward Hope, based on the book by Marty Maher with Nardi Reeder Campion. With Tyrone Power, Maureen O'Hara, Robert Francis, Donald Crisp. 138 min.
John Ford's affectionate chronicle of West Point athletics instructor Marty Maher spans five decades of American military history, from the Spanish-American War through World War II. Shot in CinemaScope and Technicolor by Charles Lawton Jr., the film represents a significant departure from Ford's more celebrated western landscapes while maintaining his characteristic visual precision and emotional resonance. Through Maher's immigrant journey---from Irish dishwasher to beloved institutional fixture---Ford examines notions of belonging, duty, and sacrifice that form the institutional bedrock of his cinematic worldview.
Tyrone Power delivers one of his most affecting performances as the aging Maher, with Maureen O'Hara bringing characteristic warmth and dignity to his devoted wife Mary. Their relationship, marked by personal tragedy and steadfast commitment, provides the emotional center of this expansive historical narrative. The film's episodic structure allows Ford to present West Point as both a venerable institution and a living community, where individual stories acquire meaning within a larger framework of tradition and continuity.