I guess the Waynes and so called "all American heroes" hated this movie.The look on Kane's face at the end when he throws the badge in the dirt. Surely there were no cowards in the Old West? Damn sure there were! Coward in all of us, particularly when you have to be the first one to say "I'm with you"
shareJohn Wayne and director Howard Hawks REALLY hated this movie. That was part of the reason they made the movie "Rio Bravo". Wayne turned down the role of Kane, however, when he presented Gary Cooper with the Best Actor Oscar, Wayne lamented that he wished that someone would offer him a similar character.
"There will be blood. Oh, yes, there WILL be blood."-Jigsaw; "Saw II"
In the context of the film he was basically telling everyone in the town "screw you" for not coming to help him. He was only in trouble because he had done his job properly in the past, and no one came to help him when the consequences of that came riding into town. Can't really blame the guy.
But it's the metaphorical meaning that hacked people off. And by people, I mean people that were on the side of McCarthyism. I like John Wayne a lot. I think his movies are great. Just looking at the films themselves, I think that Rio Bravo is the superior film. But Duke was wrong about blacklisting, and he bitterly help on to his beliefs after pretty much everyone else had accepted that is was a terrible, terrible idea.
So it's kind of a weird situation, the metaphor I agree with being the weaker film in and of itself.
To me, the badge in the dirt signifies that he knows he should have left with his wife at the start. He made the wrong decision in staying behind to be sheriff for one last day. His wife was the only one who supported him at the end, and the townsfolk didn’t deserve to be spared of Miller. He knows he should have listened to her; hence the throwing of the star on the ground with disgust.
share^ this is a good point
i think he was mostly annoyed with his own decision instead of frustration with the townsfolk
i liked the ending myself.