If you liked Rio Bravo (and who doesn't? ), you will like this one as well.  Wayne's Cole Thornton isn't  as hard as John T Chance but Wayne's  authority  is evident  in  every  scene  he appears  in,  and that's about 90 percent in this one. Robert Mitchum, who plays the drunk here, is good as usual, even though he is not given much to do.  The role isn't  as well developed as Dean Martin's part in Bravo.  James Caan as Mississippi  is head and shoulder above Ricky Nelson's Colorado, the difference between  an actor and a singer.  Charlene Holt and Michele Carey as the female leads are nice to look at but don't  add up to one Angie Dickinson.  Overall, director Howard Hawks had enough that was new to put into this picture to make it fresh  and enjoyable.  I read in Todd McCarthy's book on Hawks that Leigh Brackett, who helped write both this one and Bravo, quoted  as saying she was suprised no one but a few film scholars caught the similarities between the two films.  Overall, El Dorado is like a dinner of leftovers,  just really good leftovers.
If you liked Rio Bravo (and who doesn't? ), you will like this one as well. Wayne's Cole Thornton isn't  as hard as John T Chance but Wayne's  authority  is evident  in  every  scene  he appears  in,  and that's about 90 percent in this one. Robert Mitchum, who plays the drunk here, is good as usual, even though he is not given much to do. The role isn't  as well developed as Dean Martin's part in Bravo. James Caan as Mississippi  is head and shoulder above Ricky Nelson's Colorado, the difference between  an actor and a singer. Charlene Holt and Michele Carey as the female leads are nice to look at but don't  add up to one Angie Dickinson. Overall, director Howard Hawks had enough that was new to put into this picture to make it fresh  and enjoyable. I read in Todd McCarthy's book on Hawks that Leigh Brackett, who helped write both this one and Bravo, quoted  as saying she was suprised no one but a few film scholars caught the similarities between the two films. Overall, El Dorado is like a dinner of leftovers,  just really good leftovers.